| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Colleen Easlon |
Posted - Dec 02 2010 : 10:12:49 PM
Hello, I am new to Farmgirl, and love the site. Does anyone know if there is any information regarding actual, self sustaining homesteads? Am interested in reading about them. |
| 21 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Littleredd |
Posted - Feb 07 2011 : 9:33:45 PM
Just about anything by John Seymour is also good, though he tends to skim over things rather than go in to too much depth about them but it's a good starter book and then buy more in depth books on the topics you're truly interested in.
~`~`~`~`~`
A little red, attempting to be The Fearless Farmgirl
www.fearlessfarmgirl.blogspot.com
http://www.etsy.com/shop/Stimalano |
| happyhomesteader |
Posted - Jan 21 2011 : 05:24:42 AM
Have any of you heard of our DVD series on Homesteading? ![]()
We are a young family with 5 children that we homeschool. We have created a DVD series that deals with the self sufficient lifestyle. We cover topics from milking a cow, making all your home dairy products, raised bed gardening, canning, butchering livestock and canning the meat, making homemade noodles, healthy breads, sprouting, root cellaring, making your own vitamins cheaply, maple syrup production, and much more. We learned much of what we know from our Amish friends who have been teaching us for about 10 years now. We make it fun, interesting, and attainable for your average person. It portrays my husband and I along with our children who are 11 and under. Many times the children are helping alongside, or teaching some skills as well which makes it fun for people young and old. Our country is headed for some very hard times so it is very needful for people to learn these lost skills and pass them on to the future generations. To see a trailer of our first DVD go to this link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n25yByJ49c0
The first 10 people who email me, I will give you each a free copy of our homestead DVD volume one. The ones for purchase come with a full color cook book and information booklet. They are sold separately or as a set of three. Handy to have in the kitchen or garden shed for a reference. They are sold separately or as a set of three. Enjoy!
www.homesteadcommunitypost.com |
| cranberryrose55 |
Posted - Jan 20 2011 : 10:01:32 PM
Wow! I just saw Joel Salatin last night 1/20; he had great ideas on using ways to ways to make food production easier. He has a a book out-You Can Farm, subtitled The Entrepreneur's Guide to Start and Succeed in a Farming Enterprise. The voice of experience comes from this book about what works and what doesn't. It is the most useful book I have ever found about growing food, plants or animals, so that you might grow more than you eat and sell some.
There is no use trying, said Alice; one can't believe impossible things. I dare say you haven't had much practice, said the Queen. When I was your age, I always did it for half an hour a day. Why, sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast
.
Lewis Carroll |
| Colleen Easlon |
Posted - Jan 12 2011 : 9:16:30 PM
Thank you Kathy, I saw your post about the canvas cabin. I think that is wonderful what you're doing. Have you considered writing a book on your experience with the canvas living? It seems like an exciting experience.
Thank you everyone for your suggestions. I discovered backwoodshome.com a few months ago and love it. I have not subscribed to their magazine because we are trying to be frugal, but I get great ideas from their website on a regular basis. |
| canvascabinliving |
Posted - Jan 12 2011 : 12:32:18 PM
Hi Colleen welcome to farmgirls its awesome to meet someone as interested as I am in homesteading. My husband and I are learning as we go currently this is our first winter without electric and indoor plumbing and we wouldn't change it for anything. I love the magazine Countryside that someone mentioned. We have gathered a lot of information from old issues a dear friend gave us. Otherwise its all been trial or error but great fun. Especially to see peoples reactions when we tell them what we are doing.
Have a wonderful adventure keep us posted on it and good luck.
Live Simply, Simply Live
Canvas Cabin Living |
| graciegreeneyes |
Posted - Jan 04 2011 : 09:26:42 AM
There are some good things in the Backwoods Home Kaye - a friend gave me a box of old magazines a couple of years ago and those were in there. I'm trying to not buy new stuff this year so I am rationing myself through that box - there are some Hobby Farms, Mother Earth News and Herb Companions too - I feel like Laura Ingalls as she and her family would get copies of periodicals and ration themselves:) Anyway - older copies of magazines are definitely worth going through.
Another book is Back to Basics - it was reissued a couple of years ago, my uncle found me an older copy at a thrift store for Christmas last year.
Amy Grace
Farmgirl #224
"use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without"
|
| kcmiller |
Posted - Jan 04 2011 : 08:49:29 AM
We love the Backwoods Home magazine's, have been reading them for years. You have to check out Jackie Clay- she is amazing!
They have a website avail too. http://www.backwoodshome.com/
Enjoy!
|
| Penny Wise |
Posted - Dec 30 2010 : 07:51:19 AM
i had just seen Madigan's book offered- wondered if it would be worth it! thx for the recommendation!
Farmgirl # 2139
~*~ counting my pennies and biding my time; my dreams are adding up!~*~ |
| hsmommel |
Posted - Dec 30 2010 : 06:50:11 AM
"The Backyard Homestead: Produce all the food you need on just a quarter acre!", edited by Carleen Madigan has been a fascinating read on homesteading. Also, "The Encyclopedia of Country Living" is awesome! Hope those help some. :-D
"What you do speaks so loudly I can't hear what you are saying." -- Benjamin Franklin |
| Rejena |
Posted - Dec 28 2010 : 6:17:42 PM
We've been enjoying Carla Emery's
An Old Fashioned REcipe Book (The Encyclopedia of Country LIving. It is chunky and awesome. A great read on a freezing cold night with a cup of lemon tea. Been reading it for over a month and keep re-reading it. It has everything from: growing and preserving food, poultry, animals and my favorite "oddments". Also, I really like the section on "Wild Critters" starting on page 585.
We've just pulled in a bit of wild game over the past deer season and I can't wait to hopefully dress our first deer ourselves that my husband may bring in with his muzzle loader this weekend. I can only hope. My knife is sharp and my gloves are ready....
We raise goats, chickens, and ducks for meat right now and it is always a pleasure to eat local meat! Especially when it is homegrown.
Rejena
www.violetacresfarm.com
www.violetacresfarm.com
"Kid Run Boer Goat Farm" |
| msdoolittle |
Posted - Dec 19 2010 : 9:07:29 PM
I have been researching this topic for over 2 years now. It's fun and fascinating and you never stop learning!!! Amazon is a good place to start...even if you don't buy the books, you can search self-sufficiency and see what other people have bought, then go find the books at your library. I have LOTS of books like this. I try to keep good books around for reference and ideas. I have a list a mile long. I will try to incorporate that list into a post on my blog :0)
I also subscribe to Countryside mag (great!), MJF, Mother Earth News, and Hobby Farms Home. I am going to also get Urban Farms mag. It's a fun journey! :0D
FarmGirl #1390
www.mylittlecountry.wordpress.com |
| KD Earthwork |
Posted - Dec 05 2010 : 6:47:14 PM
Hi welcome ! We are trying to live as self sustainably as we can. I write about our homesteading experience on my new blog/website.You might be interested.
http://www.rosemancreekranch.com
Katie |
| Lady Woodworker |
Posted - Dec 04 2010 : 04:11:55 AM
Thank you! |
| Colleen Easlon |
Posted - Dec 03 2010 : 9:27:26 PM
Thank you everyone for your input. I am excited about looking in to all of these. =) |
| Valgirl |
Posted - Dec 03 2010 : 7:46:59 PM
I love the Mary Jane's Farm magazines and also a magazine called Countryside. They call it the magazine for the modern day homesteader. We have learned a lot about animals, outbuildings, renewable energy, recipes for those odd and seemingly useless weeds (dandelions, poke salad, all those wierd tree nuts), you name it. I really enjoy it.
Today is the day the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it. |
| Mama Jewel |
Posted - Dec 03 2010 : 7:31:25 PM
Hi Karen! You might try posting about finding farm girls in Maine/Illinois on the Welcome Wagon and/or "Across the Fence" so there's a better chance of farm girls in your area seeing it. I've only been able to connect with a couple of farm girls so far in real life & it has been truly a wonderful experience! Welcome to MJF's forum 
Farm Girl Sister #1683 Living Simply & Naturally on our lil Sweet Peas Farmette
"Do Everything in Love." 1 Cor 14
http://www.piecemama.etsy.com |
| Lady Woodworker |
Posted - Dec 03 2010 : 6:34:28 PM
Hello All,
I too am new here (this is my first post). I love the book, Country Wisdom & Know-How Everything You Need to Know to Live Off the Land, from the Editors of Storey Books.
It has a lot of great information, much like the Foxfire books and other sources mentioned here.
I just joined the sisterhood and am excited to be a part of this.
Are there any farmgirl sisters in MidCoast Maine or Northern Illinois?
Karen |
| dandelionhouse |
Posted - Dec 03 2010 : 5:59:08 PM
The Self-Sufficient Gardener: A Complete Guide to Growing and Preserving All Your Own Food is also a good resource...
Welcome! You'll have fun poking around all the forums!
So much creativity, cleverness and farmgirl fun here!
farmgirl sister #1199
Deb~
www.deborahjeansdandelionhouse.com
" home is where we all craft the life of our dreams." |
| lovingewe |
Posted - Dec 03 2010 : 5:24:36 PM
My favourite book is called Homesteading by John Vivian. It is from the 60's or 70's, but goes through a lot of deep Homesteading, live off the land from his experiences with his family.
http://www.heritagefarmgirl.blogspot.com |
| Lessie Louise |
Posted - Dec 03 2010 : 2:16:08 PM
The Foxfire series are good too
Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit.
Wisdom is not putting them in a fruit salad!
Farmgirl #680! |
| Mama Jewel |
Posted - Dec 03 2010 : 1:36:40 PM
Hi Colleen! Welcome to MJF's site. You'll love it here. All these Farm gals are *fantastic* & have a lot of great info to share about homesteading. There's a lot of info in MaryJane's Idea book and outdoor living book that have lots of useful information for doing your homestead. As for someone running a self-sustaining homestead, look into the book, Made From Scratch by Jenna Wolginrich (I think she's a farm girl on this board, too) and she has a blog as well, about her adventures as a homesteader. I hope that helps!
Farm Girl Sister #1683 Living Simply & Naturally on our lil Sweet Peas Farmette
"Do Everything in Love." 1 Cor 14
http://www.piecemama.etsy.com |
