Homemade Horseradish Sauce Having your own horseradish plants is a great way to save a little money and spice up your meals. Homemade horseradish is much stronger than storebought, so a little will go a long way. I like having extras in the freezer to thaw and use in the…
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Hatching Chicks in Autumn
For complete instructions on hatching eggs, see my post How to Hatch Chicken Eggs in an Incubator Hatching in Spring vs Fall Most people think of cute little chicks hatching in the spring, right around Easter time. It’s the natural time of year for baby animals to start their lives,…
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Too Many Chickens? Make Soup!
Do You Have Too Many Chickens? Nothing puts a damper on keeping chickens like a high feed bill, too many aggressive roosters, and a flock of unproductive hens. Yet many chicken enthusiasts find themselves faced with just this situation. Some of them will find new homes for their old and…
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Egg Production Slowing Down?
Fewer Eggs in Autumn? As the days get shorter you are likely to notice lower egg production in your laying hens. It’s one of those facts of life to take into account when deciding to keep chickens for eggs. Although we have bred chickens for larger size, increased egg size…
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Foraging for Daylilies
Eating Tiger Lilies or Daylilies Tiger lilies are a wild variety of daylily (Hemerocallis) that often grows in naturalized clumps along ditches and roadsides. They are easy to spot and identify and may even grow in your own yard. I like to make salads with young day lily shoots in…
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How to Freeze Lambs Quarters
How to Freeze Lambs Quarters and Foraged Greens We have a lot of lambs quarters growing in our garden. I weeded much of it out to make way for my regular garden vegetables, but I keep a small patch here and there to harvest for salads, cooked greens, and freezing…
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Harvesting New Potatoes
New Potatoes from Our Garden Our potato plants are doing very well this year and I’ve already spied a few flowers. Once a potato plant begins to flower, you know that there are some potatoes forming under the soil. I usually wait a few weeks after the flowers show up…
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Attract Pollinators with a Mason Bee House
Attracting Pollinators with a Mason Bee House Do you want to attract native pollinators to your garden and landscaping? There are plenty of ways to increase habitat and food sources for our native pollinators, such as mason bees. Adding native plants and other sources of nectar is a great way…
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How to Forage for Common Milkweed
How to Forage for Milkweed When I first read that common milkweed was edible, I was quite skeptical. I remember reading that Monarch butterflies ate the milkweed leaves not only for food but also for the poison that would render them inedible to predators. But the field guides are telling me…
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6 Helpful Hints for Busy Gardeners
Time-Saving Tips for Busy Gardeners Every year I start the season with good intentions. I have a plan. I get my beds prepared in a frenzy. My back aches and I pull a muscle that I didn’t even know I had. But I get it done, water it in, weed…
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Caring for Newly Planted Beds
Caring for Newly Planted Garden Beds Gardening is not one of those ‘fix it and forget it’ tasks in life. You might feel like taking a break from the garden once the soil has been prepared and the seeds are planted. But those newly planted beds will need some extra…
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Giving Up On Goats?
No More Goats on My Homestead After one month of keeping goats, I decided to put them up for sale. A family came and purchased them yesterday and I’m sure that they will give the goats a good home. There were many reasons that I wanted goats and many reasons…
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Our First Perennial Onions of the Season
Perennial Onions I planted Egyptian Walking Onions years ago and have been reaping the rewards of these easy-care perennials ever since. They are the earliest vegetable ready in my garden each spring, at a time when I treasure anything green coming up! These onions can be harvested at any stage…
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How to Build an Easy Straw Bale Cold Frame
A Modified Straw Bale Cold Frame Do you want to get an early start on your garden but the cost of cold frames is too high? If you’re anything like me, you want something inexpensive, eco-friendly, and super easy to make! The following instructions for creating a straw bale cold…
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Goat Lessons for Newbies
I’m a Goat Newbie In fact, I brought my goats home less than two weeks ago! So what lessons can I teach you about goats? Admittedly, I have a ton of lessons yet to learn, so this list will undoubtedly get longer as time goes by. However, these past few…
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‘Should I Keep Chickens?’
Do You Want to Keep Chickens? With urban chicken websites popping up online, new products for chickens going on the shelves at feed stores, and cute little coops all the rage on Pinterest, it’s obvious that a lot of people are interested in keeping a few backyard chickens. See also…