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Tag Archives: Gardening
Is A Garden Worth Growing?
Is a garden worth growing? What a great question. When you factor in all expenses including your time, many wonder if a garden is worth it. Do I get enough return for my investment of time and labor? Does raising … Continue reading
Posted in Gardening
Tagged Gardening, homesteading, prepping, self sufficiency, self-reliance
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Tractor Versus Tiller for the Self-Reliant Homesteader
Most serious homesteaders come to realize at some point in their journey to self-reliance that certain equipment not only makes life easier but is essential for efficient utilization of time. For financial reasons many homesteaders hold down jobs while at … Continue reading
Posted in Gardening
Tagged Gardening, Homestead Building, homesteading, self sufficiency, self-reliance
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Is Cooking a Survival Skill?
Food is one of life’s most basic necessities. Relying on someone else to prepare your meals be they restaurant meals, take out/deliveries or prepared convenience foods such as frozen pizzas and entrees is far from being self-reliant. So yes cooking … Continue reading
Posted in Homestead Cooking
Tagged Gardening, homesteading, Off Grid Cooking, self sufficiency, self-reliance
2 Comments
Homegrown Poultry Seasoning
With the approach of the holidays, many of us will be making stuffing and roasting the holiday turkey. There’s nothing better to season both of these than your own homegrown poultry seasoning. Here’s how to grow and concoct your own … Continue reading
Posted in Homestead Cooking
Tagged Gardening, homesteading, Off Grid Cooking, self sufficiency, self-reliance
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Alternative Methods to Weed Control
I know this post is coming a little late to be useful this year but I’m hoping this post will be helpful next growing season for all gardeners and homeowners who wrestle with weed control. Unless weeds are dealt with … Continue reading
Posted in Gardening, Uncategorized
Tagged Gardening, homesteading, prepping, self sufficiency, self-reliance
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Our Solar Greenhouse Construction
We’ve mentioned our solar greenhouse many times over the years both in Saskatchewan and now here in Nova Scotia. Our greenhouse is an indispensable necessity for us and an invaluable resource for maintaining our self-reliant lifestyle. It not only allows … Continue reading
Posted in Gardening
Tagged Gardening, homesteading, prepping, self sufficiency, self-reliance
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Six Herbs for Homegrown Herbal Teas
If, like us, your goal is to be as self-sufficient as possible, we can recommend you raise these 6 herbs for homegrown herbal teas. We’ve grown these 6 herbs for years and never tire of drinking them. They are as … Continue reading
Posted in Gardening
Tagged Gardening, homesteading, prepping, self sufficiency, self-reliance
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2023 Resolution – 100% Self-Reliant Vegetable Production
Is raising 100% of your own vegetables possible? Absolutely. We’ve done so for decades. Why not make 100% self-reliant vegetable production your 2023 resolution. We raise 100% of our vegetables which means we don’t rely on the grocery store for … Continue reading
Posted in Gardening
Tagged Gardening, homesteading, off grid, prepping, self sufficiency, self-reliance
2 Comments
The Aging Homesteader
Aging is a fact of life. Even though we’ve been homesteading for over 43 years and we’re in our 60’s, we haven’t slowed down much. But we know the day is coming when we’ll slow down to the point it … Continue reading
Posted in Homesteading/Prepping
Tagged Gardening, Homestead Building, homesteading, self sufficiency, self-reliance
5 Comments
Green Manures for Increased Garden Fertility
Green manures, sometimes referred to as cover crops, are crops that are grown with the intention of tilling or plowing them back into the soil for increased garden fertility. They include legumes such as clover, alfalfa, beans, peas and vetch … Continue reading
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Tagged Gardening, homesteading, prepping, self sufficiency, self-reliance
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Grow More Perennials and Save Labor
Whether you’re a backyard gardener, a homesteader or someone contemplating joining the ranks of those desiring to be more self-sufficient, we’re all busy and are looking for ways to save time and effort. Raising perennials is the answer. Why not … Continue reading
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Tagged Gardening, homesteading, prepping, self sufficiency, self-reliance
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Compost is the Lifeblood of any Organic Garden
Compost is the lifeblood of any organic garden since it not only enriches the soil, but also improves soil structure. Both clay soil or sandy soil can be transformed into a productive loam through the addition of compost. What is … Continue reading
Posted in Gardening
Tagged Gardening, homesteading, prepping, self sufficiency, self-reliance
2 Comments
A Homestead Staple – Potatoes
Potatoes are a staple vegetable for us. We grow several hundred pounds each year for just the two of us. Let’s explore how we grow and harvest a homestead staple – potatoes. Here’s a video we did on potato planting. … Continue reading
Posted in Gardening
Tagged Gardening, homesteading, Off Grid Cooking, prepping, self sufficiency, self-reliance
2 Comments
Grow Your Own Italian Herb Seasoning Mix
Anyone, even apartment dwellers, can grow their own Italian herb seasoning mix. All that is required to make your own Italian herb seasoning mix is equal parts of the following dry herbs: Oregano, Marjoram, Thyme, Basil, Rosemary, Sage. Growing the … Continue reading
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Tagged Gardening, homesteading, Off Grid Cooking, prepping, self-reliance
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The Fall Garden – A Key Component to Vegetable Self-Sufficiency
The fall garden is one that is still producing after the first fall frosts and is a sign of a dedicated, committed and skilled gardener. While keeping a garden productive well into fall is a key component to vegetable self-sufficiency, … Continue reading
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Tagged Gardening, homesteading, prepping, self sufficiency, self-reliance
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Bountiful Harvests Grown on Small Plots
Recently, our publisher put up an inspiring post about an urban garden in Detroit on our book’s marketing page. That post garnered over 250,000 likes and loves and wonderful comments from so many people. As you might imagine, it also … Continue reading
Posted in Gardening
Tagged Gardening, homesteading, Off Grid Cooking, prepping, self sufficiency, self-reliance
2 Comments
Home Grown Rhubarb Juice for More Self-Reliance
While home grown orange juice is out of the question for us self-reliant homesteaders in most of North America, home grown rhubarb juice isn’t. In our book, The Self-Sufficient Backyard: For the Independent Homesteader, we write about rhubarb and rhubarb … Continue reading
Posted in Homestead Cooking
Tagged Gardening, homesteading, Off Grid Cooking, self sufficiency, self-reliance
6 Comments
Plant Belgian Endive Now for January Salad Greens
For those of us seeking independence from the supermarket, winter salad greens are a challenge. But there’s a little known vegetable that fills the void – Belgian endive otherwise known as Witloof chicory. So plant Belgian endive now for January … Continue reading
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Tagged Gardening, homesteading, Off Grid Cooking, self sufficiency, self-reliance
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The Homestead Herb Garden
Our previous two homesteads wouldn’t have been complete without the homestead herb garden and neither would our new homestead here in Nova Scotia. Because herbs don’t require much space, they make good candidates for containers and can even be grown … Continue reading
Rhubarb for the Self-Reliant Garden
Rhubarb, sometimes referred to as pie plant, has a place in every self-reliant garden especially for us northern gardeners. This hardy perennial is a boon for any of us in cold climates as it’s one of the first things to … Continue reading
