In 2005, thirty-five Swedish households were asked to keep a diary about food purchasing and usage habits. 44.1% of all root vegetables were wasted after storage.* This was second only to dairy products. Based on the number of potato eyes staring at me from my food storage, I would guess that Americans are experiencing the same results. Temperature is not the only factor, and not all root vegetables need the same thing. Do you know how to properly store root vegetables?
Category: Gardening & Permaculture
All things “food production.”
Companion Gardening for the Intimidated
When I was a kid, I loved gardens. When we had one at our house, I loved weeding because it meant eventually I’d get to snack on yummy radishes. When teachers and grandparents wanted young labor to help in the gardens, I was always willing.
Deer in the Garden: How to navigate gardening with wildlife
Hungry animals are bold animals. They will walk right into populated areas for a quick snack. And apparently, my garden is fair game. Here are my hard-earned tips on how to keep them out of yours.
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Top 5 Healthy Vegetables You Can Grow at Home
Everyone can readily buy vegetables they love at their nearest grocery store, but do you know that there are so many vegetables you can easily grow at home in no time?
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Grow and Harvest Yarrow for Insect Bites and Stings
I started beekeeping with two hives, and one was very calm and docile. The other? Uh, no, turns out they were Africanized and put me into the hospital. That’s another story you can read about here. But until we actually figured it out, we were finding ourselves with stings from just “more aggressive than normal” bees. Of everything we tried to soothe our skin, our family found Yarrow to be the most effective non-drowsy option.
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Off-Grid Micro-Hydro Homestead
Microhydro Electricity Unplugged
Microhydro, its simplicity is so attractive. So, you have always wanted to do it . . . go off grid and be self-sufficient. What does it actually take? From everyone I have spoken to who actually has done it, the answer seems to be, “Take your estimated cost for time, energy and money and triple it.”
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Homemade Chicken Feed Using The Chop Rite
My how the chickens love this. It’s just what we do after fish night now. You can make homemade chicken feed from everyday scraps, but some scraps need to be broken down for them.
By grinding the parts that humans do not consume and feeding the chickens, we cut down on chicken feed and provide amazing nutrition to the girls.
We made this video five years ago when we first got our Chop Rite, and I don’t know why we never posted it. With five years’ experience with owning a Chop Rite, I can speak with some authority when I say that it was an excellent investment for our homestead.
Oh, and it’s still Made in America. The company used to be called “Enterprise” and once in awhile, you can still find an old Enterprise at an estate sale or in a dusty attic. They haven’t changed the design since they came out well over 100 years ago, so if you need Enterprise replacement parts, we have those too.
[youtube_sc url=”https://youtu.be/BidW_EQyR-g” title=”Using%20the%20Chop%20Rite%20Chopper%20for%20Homemade%20Chicken%20Feed” width=”500″ color=”white” theme=”light” autohide=”1″ rel=”0″ nocookie=”1″]VIEW CHOP RITE
Indoor Planters for Your Indoor Herb Garden
An important thing to consider when constructing your indoor herb garden, is figuring out what sort of indoor planters to use! This is where you can have a lot of fun actually, because your indoor planters don’t necessarily need to be typical planters. You can use anything that will hold dirt/water without making a mess – though you do need to consider drainage in many situations.
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How to Encourage Kids to do Gardening
It’s not easy to let your kids go with you to do some gardening tasks, especially now that there are now electronic gadgets to keep them entertained. But did you know that letting kids join to do some gardening tasks is essential, as this will help them to learn and develop skills when it comes to nature and science.
Food Waste & World Hunger (An Infograph)
What if I told you that we could completely eradicate world hunger without growing another grain of rice?
World Domination and the Free Video on Rocket Mass Heaters
Paul Wheaton from Permies.com is a friend. Perhaps the most evil of geniuses I’ve ever known.
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Best Indoor Plants to Buy
If need a pick-me up, if you need to add some color and life to your living space, try some new indoor plants! These are the best indoor plants to consider, and a plan of action to keep them alive.
Homesteading Heartbreak: How to Kill a Beehive on Purpose
We cannot say that we have done it all on our homestead, but we have bravely cared for chickens, ducks, a goose (who may not acknowledge that relationship), goats, earth worms, and now honey bees.
Homesteading is not cheap, nor is it easy. It is fulfilling, and at times heart breaking.
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Growing an Herb Garden from Scratch
Growing an herb garden from scratch is an easy way to go about it. Many herbs can be grown with little sunshine, and water drains off very well from their soil on the average. They also require some watering and fertilizer or compost on a regular basis and some regular garden care. Your biggest worry is if they become too prolific (as the case with mint, and a few others–just pot & gift to an unsuspecting friend). Growing an herb garden is an awesome idea, when it comes to the true meaning of simple gardening.
4 Must-Have (Hard-to-Kill) Succulent Plants
Succulent plants are easy to grow because they have juicy leaves, stems or roots which store water. Even if you forget to water them from time to time, they will survive. You can seed succulent plants alone or together with others. There are a number of colors from which to choose, and something will be perfect to liven up your home. Still not sure what we’re talking about? As an example, all of the cacti plant species are succulent. These plants are very easy to grow because they like warmth and dry humidity, which most homes can offer.
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