List of safe seed companies that sell non-gmo, open pollinated, untreated, heirloom seed. How to steer clear of Monsanto seed. Buying non gmo seed.
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Companion Planting For Melons
As any experienced gardener will tell you, it takes a whole lot more than sun and soil to successfully cultivate a homestead garden. Moisture, nutrition, as well as weed and pest control are required. While many gardeners treat their garden with commercial insecticides to prevent insect pests, these noxious chemicals have the adverse affect of
How To Get Rid Of Pests In Your Vegetable Garden
Pests can harm your garden, but there are natural solutions available. A new piece of property, fertile soil, and lots of sun and water is all you should need for a successful vegetable garden. However, there are the invasions that you probably didn’t consider. For instance, you have the blue jays that peck mercilessly at
25 Small Greenhouses (For Nearly Any Space—2×2 And Up)
A small greenhouse allows just the right amount of sun and moisture to come in while keeping insects and bad weather out. And the easy access panels or sliding doors make tending to your tomatoes or lettuce easy labor. If you’re a hobby gardener who likes to grow a few veggies on your patio, or
How To Get Rid Of Gophers
There’s nothing like planting a beautiful garden, only to have burrowing animals eating your carrots and making tunnels through your lettuce patch. Despite being cute and fluffy, gophers are a farm and garden pest. Along with rabbits and field mice, gophers are some of the most common mammals that disrupt growing crops. There are plenty
Growing Spinach
Originally hailing from 4th-century Persia, Spinacia Oleracea or spinach has a long and storied past as a health tonic, a poor man’s food, a favorite of big-forearmed sailor men, and a choice food of health gurus. We are constantly hearing about how important it is to eat your leafy greens, and for good reason—they’re fantastic
Raising Rabbits: How To House, Feed, And Care For Rabbits
Rabbits are one of the cutest animals you can raise on the homestead. Their soft and fluffy bodies are irresistible. Rabbits are also diverse. You’ll find quite a difference in the colors, sizes, and hair textures; you can raise them as meat or pets. Rabbits are often overlooked in favor of larger livestock like cattle, goats,
Seed Saving: 5 Things I Never Knew
Before I moved to my homestead, I was gifted a huge jar of heirloom seeds by a friend who understood what we were trying to do and had experience in seed saving. I remember dreamily sorting through the tiny baggies of beans, kale, and beets; my inexperience and ignorance of gardening temporarily gilded with happy
Homestead Stories: Blood Oranges
“There’s something wrong with your oranges. Would you like me to get another bag?” The lad packing my groceries spoke with concern. “These are fine, thank you.” “But they’re all dark and bruised.” “They’re called blood oranges. And they are delicious.” Years ago, a student introduced me to blood oranges. I had never heard of
Using Human Urine As Fertilizer
Fertilizer comes in many forms, depending on your gardening outlook. If you’re super conventional, it comes in a nasty smelling, chemically-derived, pellet-filled plastic bag emblazoned with the 3-figure NPK ratio of your choosing. What’s it made of? Where did it come from? How was it made? What does it do the soil in the long
Sustaining Survival Gardens
I’m not trying to sound apocalyptic with that title. Growing food has been a way of life for centuries. Long before farmers markets and grocery stores, people grew produce. It was a part of day-to-day living. Having enough food to sustain your family or household in times of need is security. If you’re like many
🏡 Homestead Living
Homesteading is the foundation on which Insteading was built. The core values of homesteading are ones that we at Insteading like to promote to our readers and ones that we like to establish in our own lives Self-sufficiency, living off the land, and choosing eco-friendly alternatives are all things we encourage. Our Homestead Living content
Vegan Athletics: The PCRM VegRun Program
The folks at Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) launched a plant-based running program, and they offered me a free account to try it out. I jumped at the change to prove that vegan athletics are totally possible!
Foraging for Mulberries
The first time I met a mulberry, it was a confusing introduction. At the time, I considered my general plant knowledge to be better than average, but somehow, this unfamiliar tree didn’t make sense. It was a beautifully shaped, open grown tree with scalloped alternate leaves that I couldn’t identify offhand (because mulberry trees come
Entrée Exchange Groups
If there is economy in scale, an entrée exchange group embodies it. The idea is that if five families participate, each family makes five of the same meals, meet up and trade, and go home with four meals plus your own. By making multiples of the same meal you can save on preparation time and ingredients. Forming an entree exchange
Food Preservation
Types of Peas
Peas add crunch and freshness to countless recipes. Growing them in your garden allows you to have fresh stock of this delectable treat, including its rarer varieties.
How To Make Homemade Coffee Creamer
If you’re like me and can’t imagine starting the day without a cup of morning joe, you’ll be glad to know that health experts start their day the same way. What they don’t do, however, is add artificial coffee creamers. What is it about that special sweet liquid we stir into our coffee? Maybe it’s the rich,
What You Need To Know About The Health Benefits Of Pomegranate
Some pomegranate health claims are accurate. Here’s the skinny on what the real health benefits of pomegranate are vs. the ones marketers overstate.
7 DIY Bath Bombs For a Soothing, Relaxing Soak
Fizz away fatigue with all-natural, DIY bath bombs that transform bathwater into a fragrant, skin nurturing, stress-melting oasis. A quick search of the internet yields as many different recipes for DIY bath bombs as for chocolate chip cookies. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, you can make a basic bath bomb with a few drops of water
Cast Iron Dutch Ovens: The Ultimate Guide
My enameled Dutch oven is my favorite cooking tool. But only since I graduated from my 20s. The impatient, impulsive, careless me and the Dutch oven were not compatible. I had a date to meet, a show to see, a new bar to check out…and you, Dutch oven, wanted me to stay home all night
Canning Peaches
After spending many memorable summers in the south, I am addicted to the smell and taste of peaches. Aunt Mildred and Uncle Elmer nurtured several different varieties in the peach orchard of their rural Georgia homestead. I loved joining Auntie Millie and the cousins, picking, peeling, preserving, and putting up peaches. Although most of the
11 Healthy Grains You Should Add To Your Diet
As a chef and educator, I get asked all the time about healthy grains. Some of the healthiest grains are amaranth, barley, buckwheat, corn, kaniwa, millet, oats, quinoa, rice, teff, and wheat. Speaking very generally, there are two schools of thoughts about grains: one believes that grains can be a healthy part of a plant-based
Plantains Vs. Bananas
Ever wonder about the differences between plantains vs. bananas? Which is more nutritional? Tastier? Easier to store? In the plantains vs. bananas debate, you no longer need to wonder. Everyone loves bananas. According to government data, bananas are the world’s favorite fresh fruit. In the United States alone, each person eats more than 11 pounds
15 Natural DIY Perfume Ideas
Did you know there are over 4,000 chemicals that are used to create fragrances in skincare and beauty products? And since these fragrance blends are considered trade secrets, companies aren’t required to disclose the specific ingredients on their labels. I don’t know about you, but for me, that is reason enough to consider more natural
Homestead Stories: Black-Skinned Apples
What’s your favorite apple? I have many favorites: Braeburn, McIntosh, Snow, Northern Spy, Wolf River, Cortland, or Cox’s Orange Pippin. I don’t think there’s an apple I don’t like, though I have to admit I’m not partial to Granny Smith. Here are a few I’ve tried and enjoy regularly. One apple I’ve never considered trying,
How To Make Queso Fresco
There are so many reasons to skip the supermarket and stick to your kitchen these days. If you want to avoid the crazy crowds, save money, and make healthier choices, then you’ll love this easy recipe for homemade queso fresco! Any chance we get to make homemade, wholesome recipes, feels like a win in our
Pesticide Lobby Bugged by Michelle Obama & White House Organic Garden
Are you worried that an organic garden on the White House grounds might cause some Americans to start eating a wide variety of chemical-free, locally grown produce? The Mid America CropLife Association, a lobbying group for agribusinesses giants, is. Just a few days after Michelle Obama invited local fifth graders to help plant the White
Know Your Vegetable Seeds: The Lowdown on Heirloom, Hybrid, and Organic Seeds
Now’s the time of year when prudent green thumbs curl up with their favorite seed catalogs and plan their springtime gardens, selecting from a huge variety of vegetable seeds for sale from an equally large number of seed companies. Many companies commonly offer heirloom and organic seeds, but what sets these varieties apart from the
How To Capture And Use Wild Yeast
I have a secret weapon in my kitchen. It makes my daily bread taste amazing (and far more digestible than anything store-bought). As long as I take care of the starter, this weapon is an endless material. And the best part of all? It’s free for the taking. I’m talking about wild yeast — a
All the Different Sugars
List of all the Different Sugars
How To Build Your Own Cheap Outdoor Pizza Oven
Last summer, I got hooked on the idea of baking pizza and bread outdoors in a wood-fired oven. Baking outside, in a super hot oven with a brick hearth, (the way bread is really meant to be baked) was a hugely appealing thought. It became very clear to me that I wanted to build a
Planting Currant Bushes
Currants are a great addition to any homestead. Native to the United States, currants are a flavorful and versatile berry used in jellies, jams, wine, cordials, puddings, and pies. Currants, no matter whether they are black, red, pink, or white, establish readily in the homestead garden where they will provide an annual abundance of sweet
Cultivating Thimbleberries In The Homestead Garden
Thimbleberry (Rubus parviflorus Nutt.) is a common bramble plant found growing in the wild on sunny, sub-alpine, mountainous slopes and avalanche tracks from Alaska to California. In fact, thimbleberries are a circumpolar fruit that grows wild in Japan and Russia, and all but the most southern regions of North America. Red when ripe, thimbleberries may
How To Make Carrot Wine
As a young man, my father was a homesteader who raised root vegetables to sell at the town fresh market. Even when the harvest was plentiful, there were always misshapen carrots, not attractive enough to appeal to what he called “picky city folk.” Dad stashed most of the rejects in the root cellar, to make
Growing Elderberries
A member of the honeysuckle family, the common elderberry (Sambucus nigra subsp. canadensis), also known as American elder, wild elder, sweet elder, dwarf elder, hairy blue elderflower, European elder or Tree of Music, is a dense, woody shrub. It grows wild across the northern reaches of the United States and in the southern provinces of
Jerusalem Artichokes
I first discovered Jerusalem artichokes about four years ago in Arkansas. I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me when I saw the 5-foot stalk with a yellow flower that looked like a miniature sunflower without the seeds. I flipped through my edible plants book, surfed the web, did some research and was pleased
2017 Tilth Conference
As the managing editor of Insteading, I get to learn a lot about farming and gardening from our writers as well as my own research. And every once in a while, I have the opportunity to attend conferences and classes. Back in November, I had the pleasure of attending the 2017 Tilth Conference, organized and
Heirloom Tomato Varieties
“Oh, my! That’s an interesting vegetable. What is it?” I looked at the colorful display of greens and reds and purples that made up the market stand, admiring, in particular, the luscious glossy red of the Beefsteak tomatoes. Between the red tomatoes and the yellow and green zucchini, there was a small, roundish vegetable that
17 DIY Smoker Plans
Smoking is a prehistoric practice, and we have records of it in ancient sources of food and cooking. At its most basic, smoking meat just means hanging salted meat over a slow, smoky fire. Smokehouses haven’t changed much in thousands of years, but today there many different sizes and styles of smokers available commercially and
Dwarf Fruit Trees
When landscape professionals talk about dwarf trees, they refer to trees both deciduous and evergreen that are explicitly cultivated to remain small and manageable. If space is limited, dwarf fruit trees are the ideal solution for both visual impact and fruit production in small gardens. Dwarf fruit trees are generally short trees with broad canopies
Growing Pumpkins
Native to Central and South America, pumpkin is a low growing, vining groundcover plant with bell-shaped yellow flowers and shallow roots. Pumpkins are members of the plant family cucurbit (Cucurbitaceae) that includes melons, cucumbers, squash, gourds, and zucchinis. Growing pumpkins is easy, and they are also easy to harvest, easy to transport, and store well
15 Of The Healthiest Meats You Should Add To Your Diet
The American Heart Association recommends limiting the intake of red meat and opting for poultry and fish. Red meat is higher in saturated fat, and a higher consumption may lead to high cholesterol and heart disease. White meats (fish, poultry), on the other hand, contain omega-3 fatty acids which have been shown to reduce heart
How To Grow And Forage For Lady Fern
I am in love with lady ferns and tuck every variety into shaded crevices, niches, nooks, and crannies in my homestead rockery. Apple-green in the spring and a glorious golden-yellow in autumn, lady fern is one of the easiest plants to grow in moist, shaded locations. With hundreds of species of lady fern and dozens
Harvesting Garlic: How To Gather, Store, And Enjoy Your Garlic Harvest
There are few garden plants I know that require as little upkeep as garlic, yet require as much time as garlic. If you’ve grown this wonderfully spicy, flavorful bulb in your garden, you are well acquainted with the near-year wait time till you’re finally at the point of harvesting garlic. You also know that the
15 Weird and Wonderful Tropical Fruit Trees for Tropical Homesteads
Living in the tropics allows the homesteader to go wild with unique tropical fruit trees and shrubs. You really can’t get a better climate for fruit production. The majority of the tropics worldwide are completely frost free with warm and humid weather year-round. In other words, exactly what most fruits need to thrive. Sure, you
Make Your Own Delicious Sourdough English Muffins
There are many things in this strange world with names that don’t suit them. Jerusalem artichokes are actually a sunflower. The peacock mantis shrimp is neither peacock, mantis, nor shrimp. The blindworm is a legless lizard that can see just fine. And don’t even get me started with the lesser broomrape. I don’t know what
Healthy Homemade Homestead Snacks
Sometimes, you just get a hankering for something salty and crunchy. Usually, that itch is scratched with a snack from a shiny, throwaway bag that has more multisyllabic chemical ingredients than there should be. But on a homestead seeking both a healthier lifestyle and a less wasteful existence, those Bag O’Salt crunchies really shouldn’t have
15 Tropical Fruits You Should Know About
Ever been to an international grocery market and didn’t recognize half of the fruits that were stocked? Or how about a tropical vacation where you had the opportunity to feast on new and exotic fruits? Wanna widen your knowledge of fruits? Tired of the common grocery store fare (e.g., apples, oranges, bananas, and grapes)? This
Foraging for Dock
There are several plants that have become all but invisible due to their sheer ubiquity and the fact they can grow in less-than-desirable places. Watch the video: Dock is one of those plants – a colonizer of empty lots, a squatter in industrial gravel piles, roadside inhabitant, and pasture weed. For years, its subliminal association