Wouldn’t gardening be far easier and infinitely more enjoyable if you didn’t have to turn the soil and break your back every spring? Each of us has been there and done that! After all, that ritual is what conventional gardeners have taught and passed down from generation to generation. In the search for a better […]
Search Results for: eco-home/water-quality/water-distillers
Agroecological Farming vs. Organic Farming: What’s the difference?
One of Becky’s recent posts raised the question of what separates agroecological farming from organic farming. Although agroecological farming shares some of the same principals as organic farming, agroecology is not associated with a particular type of agriculture. Conventional and organic farms alike can take an agroecological approach to managing farmland. What Is Agroecology? Agroecology […]
Raw Milk
There is nothing more bucolic and familiar in our imagination of a farm than the image of milking a cow by hand into a bucket, and then pouring a glowing glass of milk for two or three smiling children. How charming. How American. There is a serious disconnect between that image and the reality of […]
Lard: What It Is And How To Use It
Lard is a type of animal fat specifically derived from a pig. It’s available both rendered and as unrendered fat. When fatty cuts of pork are cooked, lard is the liquid left behind. Its primary use is culinary, and it’s often used as a replacement for other types of fat in a variety of cuisines. […]
Growing Saffron Crocus Bulbs
Known around the globe as a spice worth more than its weight in gold, saffron is expensive, but the intense color and incredible flavor it brings to food is priceless. A single grain of pure saffron will add distinctive bright yellow color to 10 gallons of water, or embellish the flavor of 10 pounds of […]
Companion Planting For Broccoli
Experienced organic gardeners bring diversity and balance to the garden with the age-old wisdom of companion planting, a time-tested method of close planting specific species based on their propensity to enhance each other’s growth and quality. Companion planting can help you grow a thriving crop of delicious, healthy broccoli. Companion plants offer shade or shelter, […]
tentree – 10 Trees Planted For Every Item Sold
Here at Insteading, sustainability is at the heart of everything we do. Sustainability is the reason why we skip pesticides, collect rainwater, compost, choose solar and wind energy, and strive to live more self-sufficiently. Of course, we’re always on the search for brands that use sustainable materials and business practices. As for a company that […]
Best Padlock
It’s a sad but true fact—whether you live in the city, suburbs, or country, thieves will come looking for your garden and power tools. A solid storage unit with a strong padlock is usually all you need to deter them. Let’s go through our top picks, followed by some basic criteria to look at when […]
Preserving Jalapeño Peppers
My jalapeño peppers did terrific this year! Small harvests came in clusters or waves, and even though I ate these babies regularly, I had to start preserving them. It began with the dehydrator. Then some went in the freezer, a bunch were powdered, and eventually, pickled peppers were in my steam canner. Storing Jalapeño Peppers […]
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 […]
Starfish Snake Plant
“Come see my newest succulent.” My friend greeted me at the door. She is always trying to grow something new, so I wasn’t surprised to be invited (yet again) to study a plant. I followed her to the sunroom and looked where she pointed. “Oh my!” I exclaimed. “That is something, isn’t it? What’s it […]
Growing Blackberries
Blackberries are easy to grow. A diverse array of blackberry varieties are native to almost all of North America. They are especially abundant in areas with warm summer days, cool nights, and plenty of moisture. An aggregate fruit composed of many tiny fruits known as drupes, blackberries are similar in taste and growth habit to […]
18 Beautiful Gazebo Plans for Your Backyard
Almost any backyard can benefit from a gazebo. It’s the ultimate, shady chill place for you to have a glass of lemonade and read a book during the warmer months. Regardless of the size of your yard, there is a gazebo that suits it perfectly. However, going over to a store like Home Depot or […]
Homestead Stories: Kalanchoe, The Eye-Catching Geometric Succulent
“Is that a real flower?” I asked, studying the display of succulents in my friend’s garden window. “Of course,” she replied (sounding a little miffed). “You know I don’t go in for fake flowers. Or fake anything, for that matter.” “But it’s almost too pretty to be real,” I insisted. “What is it?” The geometric […]
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 […]
4 Sustainable Reasons To Live In A Big City
Why urban density creates the perfect environment for collaborative consumption, and 4 reasons why that’s where you want to be.
Serama
A “Living Work Of Art” You need to see a Serama to believe it. These true bantams are not just normal chickens in extreme miniature. They take a shape truly their own. Often compared to toy soldiers, the proportions of the chicken are unique: A puffed-out, heart-shaped breast that almost seems to rise above the level of […]
Best Log Splitter
A log splitter will make short work of a job that’s notoriously labor intensive. A log splitter means less stress on your back, less time clearing your yard, and more time stacking firewood for the coming autumn and winter. There are a couple of different categories of log splitters, and we’ve selected a few products […]
How to Ferment Safely: Sanitize Those Jars!
Well-sanitized jars are so important for safe fermentation. Here’s how to ferment safely with properly sanitized jars.
Can I Compost Flowers?
Fresh or dried, flowers are more than just their visible beauty. Some flower types can contribute to your compost pile under optimal conditions and correct preparation.
Tiny House Interiors
Creativity is essential when planning and designing the interior of your tiny house. Trying to incorporate your kitchen, bedroom, living room and bathroom into an average of 200 sq. ft. is tricky. With the rise in people living tiny, there has been an increase in innovative designs that have come out to help incorporate all […]
Five Key Limitations of Organic Farming
(updated 8/22/11) Yesterday I posted about what I believe to be the five best things about Organic farming. These are attributes that I seriously believe are good ideas for how we should farm, and ideas that make sense to increasingly bring into mainstream agriculture (more cover cropping, more diverse rotations, more focus on building the […]
Can I Compost Pistachio Shells?
Unearth the benefits of composting pistachio shells in our comprehensive guide, and discover how they can serve as a nutrient-rich soil amendment for your garden. Explore the intricacies of composting, from preparation, methods to potential issues, and other beneficial uses for these shells beyond composting.
Can I Compost Glass?
Learn why glass is not suitable for composting and how it can negatively impact the composting process. Explore alternative methods such as recycling and upcycling to safely and sustainably dispose of glass waste.
The Story Of Our Waste
Each day we create an excess of waste that builds up in landfills, in our oceans, and in our bodies. Here is the story of our waste. We create a ton of waste everyday, there is no denying that fact. This is especially true if you live in the United States– we would need FOUR […]
Best Tomato Cage
Spring and summer mean tomatoes. If you’re lucky, and you have a plot in your yard that gets consistent sunlight throughout the day, you’ll have vines that yield more tomatoes than you know what to do with. My tomato patch faces north-northwest, and the sun isn’t impeded by any trees or bushes. It’s the perfect […]
Biochar
When I first heard all the hype surrounding biochar, it was hard for me to believe that a material that looked as simple as charcoal could be the solution to some really serious issues. Biochar may be overlooked as simple pieces of charcoal, but don’t let its humble appearance fool you. From biochar’s ability to […]
Growing Broom Corn
If you’re getting through the long, dark days of winter reading the seed catalogs and dreaming of having your hands in the dirt, you may want to consider adding some new and visually exciting plants to your homestead landscape. Broom corn fits the bill. Native to Central Africa, broom corn, (Sorghum vulgare) a variety of […]
Shower Heads
The shower is the place you do your best thinking, relaxing, and unwinding. A good (or bad) shower head makes a huge impact on the quality of your shower. It’s time to finally get rid of that leaky, low flowing shower head and make a serious upgrade. Chances are you won’t realize how weak your […]
Best Router Table
A router table is an extremely useful woodworking tool if you plan to apply a specific edge, slit, or groove to your building material. The table creates a stationary surface for your router to spin, and a stable plane to pass your material over. The bottom-line here is that a router table gives you better […]
8 Meat Chickens To Consider Raising For Your Table
Many of us, unsatisfied and even disgusted with the treatment and quality of animals in the food processing industry, have begun homesteading as a way to reclaim food responsibility. On that journey, we discover the joy of raising meat chickens as a small-scale declaration of independence. Chickens are an ideal animal to start with when […]
How to Make Bone Broth
Bone broth has recently come into vogue, showing up in health food stores and gourmet restaurants—for a pretty penny. Making your own bone broth is a simple and rewarding practice for a fraction of the price you’ll find on the shelves. Bone Broth Basics For homesteaders or hunters, bone broth is a wonderful thing to […]
Chicken Hatcheries
When you want to start a flock of chickens or grow your existing flock, you have a number of options for how to go about purchasing chicks. Check out our article on where to buy chicks. One of the most cost-effective methods is to buy live chicks directly from a hatchery. https://www.instagram.com/p/BSw6_9QBl80/?tagged=chickenhatchery We have all […]
How To Raise Pigs
Pigs are by far my favorite homestead animal. They are curious, affectionate, and incredibly smart. Those are also the characteristics that make them uniquely challenging. The first time I ever saw a pig I was 12, travelling in Eastern Europe. The pig had gotten out and was being chased around a courtyard by four or […]
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 […]
How To Build A Tiny House
So, you want to build a tiny house. You’ve spent countless hours envisioning a tiny house life. Your Pinterest searching days are dwindling; maybe you’ve saved a handful for inspiration. You’ve decided on the size, design, and amenities for your tiny house. Now, you contemplate the gap between you and your tiny house. To bridge that gap, […]
Steam Bent Shingles
Steam Bent Shingles
Propane: The “Dirty Little Secret” of Living Off the Grid
Living off the grid sounds romantic…no more bills from dirty energy companies, self-sufficiency, green power, etc.; however, there is one “dirty little secret” found in most alternative energy homes. Without it, some off-gridders couldn’t cook, refrigerate, heat water, or dry clothes. That dirty little secret is propane. Propane is a “by-product of natural gas processing and petroleum refining,”. Due to […]
13 Beneficial Chicken-Friendly Plants To Grow Next To Coops
If you’ve had chickens for long, you probably have noticed that they eat all day long. They peck and scratch at the soil and eat every last bit of our kitchen scraps and leftovers. Letting your chickens free-range, or giving them access to plenty of natural vegetation and/or rotating their grazing parameters, is the key […]
Dent Corn Puts a Dent in Our Health
Dent Corn and Sweet Corn
The Real Costs of Bottled Water
Bottled water is sold to us as a fresh, healthy, and pure product. Yet in reality, when you buy a bottle of water you’re may just be buying back your local tap water at a mark-up of up to 1000 times the actual cost. Not only is bottled water no better for you than plain old tap water, but the environmental cost of the packaging used to beautify it is a serious issue.
Renzo Piano Builds a Haute Shiver Shack For Off-the-Grid Singles
Italian architect Renzo Piano has come up with a small, simple-living home design that could is less of a shiver shack and more of a one-person, off the grid castle – and, if you’re in the market for a “tiny house” and you have an eye for going off grid, you’ll want to pay attention, because it doesn’t get much better than this …
23 DIY Chandelier Projects To Illuminate Your Space
Lighting is one of the best ways to create ambiance or set the mood in any room. It’s also one of the ways that homeowners can showcase their own style. When you go to add new lighting to the rooms of your home, however, it’s easy to get sticker shock when shopping retail to find […]
Can I Compost Flour?
You can efficiently process flour into nutrient-rich compost, but doing so presents some composting challenges. Learn more about the best practices, potential issues, and alternative disposal options of flour waste.
Can I Compost Egg Cartons?
We discuss how to compost egg cartons, the optimal conditions, and other composting alternatives to sustainably handle egg carton wastes. If you’ve been wondering whether you can compost your egg cartons, this richly detailed guide provides the answers.
Wofati
There’s a charm to underground homes and so-called ‘hobbit homes’, but many former owners of such buildings have moved out due to problems with moisture and related conditions. But, earth might be the best insulator available, and it’s definitely the cheapest. Permaculturalist Paul Wheaton, owner of the forums at permies.com as well as richsoil.com, set […]
Historical Cob
Historical Cob Buildings
Salvaged Wood Cabins
Salvaged Wood Cabins
Savin Couelle
Savin Couëlle
Off-Grid Utility Options: How to Handle Electricity, Fresh Water, Sewage & Garbage
Now that we’ve covered how to find your land, build your home, and keep things warm or cold in the previous article, let’s get into the nitty gritty of off-grid living and talk about how to get the electricity and water flowing, and the toilets … er, toileting. The whole point of going off-grid is […]