Little Farm Homegrown


Book Description

A gardening book for anyone who has dreamed of going back to the land and living a simpler life… After two city-bred Boomers weather their first, tumultuous year on their rural backyard farm, the couple foresees smooth sailing for the future…only to discover their homesteading journey has just begun. The sequel to Susan Colleen Browne's award-winning memoir, Little Farm in the Foothills, Little Farm Homegrown follows modern homesteaders Susan and her husband John creating a hands-on life in the foothills of the Pacific Northwest. As they experience the joys and challenges—and sometimes life-changing adversity—of living closer to the land, they labor to transform an old clearcut into a working homestead. In this lively true story, John and Susan cope with the demands of their middle years while raising chickens, creating a self-sufficient lifestyle, and adapting to—and often battling—nature. As Susan writes, “The Gardening School of Hard Knocks is actually a super-effective way to get an education, but I’d like to save you from learning everything the hard way.” With that in mind, Little Farm Homegrown includes tips for caring for your laying hens, maintaining your homestead, and growing your food crops sustainably. Like the first Little Farm in the Foothills memoir, Little Farm Homegrown is a warmhearted tale for gardeners, nature-lovers, and dreamers of all ages! Praise for the first Little Farm book, Little Farm in the Foothills: “The Browne’s foray into slower living…is an enjoyable read. Their delightful, yet very real, experiences in making the big leap toward their dreams make for a humorous and charming book.” —Washington State Librarian Jan Walsh




Little Farm Homegrown


Book Description

A gardening book for anyone who's dreamed of going back to the land and living a simpler life...After two city-bred Boomers weather their first, tumultuous year on their rural backyard farm, the couple foresees smooth sailing for the future...only to discover their homesteading journey has just begun. In this sequel to the award-winning memoir, Little Farm in the Foothills, Little Farm Homegrown follows the continuing adventures of modern homesteaders Susan and her husband John as they pursue organic food-growing and self-reliance in the foothills of the Pacific Northwest, experiencing life-changing adversity and the ongoing joys and challenges of living closer to the land and transforming an old clearcut into a working homestead. In this lively true story, John and Susan cope with the demands of their middle years while raising chickens, creating a self-sufficient lifestyle, and living closer to-and often battling-nature. As Susan writes, "The Gardening School of Hard Knocks is actually a super-effective way to get an education, but I'd like to save you from learning everything the hard way." With that in mind, Little Farm Homegrown includes tips for caring for your laying hens, maintaining your homestead, and growing your food crops sustainably. Like the first Little Farm in the Foothills memoir, Little Farm Homegrown is a warmhearted tale for gardeners, nature-lovers, and dreamers of all ages! Praise for Little Farm in the Foothills, Book 1: "The Browne's foray into slower living...is an enjoyable read. Their delightful, yet very real, experiences in making the big leap toward their dreams make for a humorous and charming book." -Washington State Librarian Jan Walsh




Home Grown


Book Description

The charming story of one family's mission to build a deeper, lasting connection to land and community on their Vermont farm When Ben Hewitt and his wife bought a sprawling acreage of field and forest in northern Vermont, they were eager to start a self-sustaining family farm. But over the years, the land became so much more than a building site; it became the birthplace of their two sons, the main source of family income and food, and even a classroom for their children. Through self-directed play, exploration, and experimentation on their farm, Hewitt’s children learned how to play and read, test boundaries and challenge themselves, fail and recover. Best of all, this environment allowed their personalities to flourish, fueling further growth. In Home Grown, Hewitt shows us how small, mindful decisions about day-to-day life can lead to greater awareness of the world in our backyards and beyond. In telling the story of his sons’ unconventional education in the fields and forests surrounding his family’s farm, he demonstrates that the sparks of learning are all around us, just waiting to be discovered. Learning is a lifelong process—and the best education is never confined to a classroom.




Homegrown & Handmade


Book Description

The author of Ecothrifty shows you how to life more self-sufficiently with her guide to modern homesteading―no farm required. Food recalls, dubious health claims, scary and shocking ingredients in health and beauty products. Our increasingly industrialized supply system is becoming more difficult to navigate, more frightening, and more frustrating, leaving us feeling stuck choosing in many cases between the lesser of several evils. That’s why author Deborah Niemann is here to offer healthier, more empowering choices, by showing us how to reclaim links in our food and purchasing chains, to make choices that are healthier for our families, ourselves, and our planet. In this fully updated and revised edition of Homegrown and Handmade, Deborah shows how making things from scratch and growing some of your own food can help you eliminate artificial ingredients from your diet, reduce your carbon footprint, and create a more authentic life. Whether your goal is increasing your self-reliance or becoming a full-fledged homesteader, this book is packed with answers and solutions to help you rediscover traditional skills, take control of your food from seed to plate, and much more. This comprehensive guide to food and fiber from scratch proves that attitude and knowledge is more important than acreage. Written from the perspective of a successful, self-taught modern homesteader, this well-illustrated, practical, and accessible manual will appeal to anyone who dreams of a more empowered life. “Dreaming of a mindful life? Niemann’s advice on gardening, cooking, orcharding, raising livestock, and much more demonstrates that it’s possible to begin the journey in your own backyard.” —Rebecca Martin, Managing Editor, Mother Earth News




Homegrown Pantry


Book Description

Now that you’ve mastered gardening basics, you want to enjoy your bounty year-round, right? Homegrown Pantry picks up where beginning gardening books leave off, with in-depth profiles of the 55 most popular crops — including beans, beets, squash, tomatoes, and much more — to keep your pantry stocked throughout the year. Each vegetable profile highlights how many plants to grow for a year’s worth of eating, and which storage methods work best for specific varieties. Author Barbara Pleasant culls tips from decades of her own gardening experience and from growers across North America to offer planting, care, and harvesting refreshers for every region and each vegetable. Foreword INDIES Silver Award Winner GWA Media Awards Silver Award Winner




The Resilient Farm and Homestead


Book Description

The Resilient Farm and Homestead is a manual for developing durable, beautiful, and highly functional human habitat systems fit to handle an age of rapid transition. Ben Falk is a land designer and site developer whose permaculture-research farm has drawn national attention. The site is a terraced paradise on a hillside in Vermont that would otherwise be overlooked by conventional farmers as unworthy farmland. Falk's wide array of fruit trees, rice paddies (relatively unheard of in the Northeast), ducks, nuts, and earth-inspired buildings is a hopeful image for the future of regenerative agriculture and modern homesteading. The book covers nearly every strategy Falk and his team have been testing at the Whole Systems Research Farm over the past decade, as well as experiments from other sites Falk has designed through his off-farm consulting business. The book includes detailed information on earthworks; gravity-fed water systems; species composition; the site-design process; site management; fuelwood hedge production and processing; human health and nutrient-dense production strategies; rapid topsoil formation and remineralization; agroforestry/silvopasture/grazing; ecosystem services, especially regarding flood mitigation; fertility management; human labor and social-systems aspects; tools/equipment/appropriate technology; and much more, complete with gorgeous photography and detailed design drawings. The Resilient Farm and Homestead is more than just a book of tricks and techniques for regenerative site development, but offers actual working results in living within complex farm-ecosystems based on research from the "great thinkers" in permaculture, and presents a viable home-scale model for an intentional food-producing ecosystem in cold climates, and beyond. Inspiring to would-be homesteaders everywhere, but especially for those who find themselves with "unlikely" farming land, Falk is an inspiration in what can be done by imitating natural systems, and making the most of what we have by re-imagining what's possible. A gorgeous case study for the homestead of the future.




The Homegrown Paleo Cookbook


Book Description

On her farm in Massachusetts, nutritionist Diana Rodgers has found a way back to a healthy, active lifestyle with a focus on nutritious and delicious eating, raising animals, growing vegetables, and balancing work and play. Anyone can have the same healthy, balanced lifestyle and a closer connection to their food—whether you live in a house in the suburbs, a farmhouse in the countryside, or an apartment in the city. The Homegrown Paleo Cookbook shows you how. With more than 100 seasonal Paleo recipes, guides to growing your own food and raising animals, and inspiring how-tos for crafts and entertaining, The Homegrown Paleo Cookbook is a guide not just for better eating, but for better living—and a better world.




The Homegrown Preschooler


Book Description

Transform your home into a learning environment that rivals the best preschool classroom Find exciting learning opportunities in everyday occurrences, from using laundry to teach sorting to exploring growth cycles in the garden, with the easy-to-organize, simple-to-start ideas, advice, and activities. As straightforward as a parenting how-to book and as easily applicable as a set curriculum, this book will inspire parents to use their homes as classrooms and take advantage of the naturally rich learning opportunities existing in everyday life.




Bringing Nature Home


Book Description

“With the twinned calamities of climate change and mass extinction weighing heavier and heavier on my nature-besotted soul, here were concrete, affordable actions that I could take, that anyone could take, to help our wild neighbors thrive in the built human environment. And it all starts with nothing more than a seed. Bringing Nature Home is a miracle: a book that summons butterflies." —Margaret Renkl, The Washington Post As development and habitat destruction accelerate, there are increasing pressures on wildlife populations. In his groundbreaking book Bringing Nature Home, Douglas W. Tallamy reveals the unbreakable link between native plant species and native wildlife—native insects cannot, or will not, eat alien plants. When native plants disappear, the insects disappear, impoverishing the food source for birds and other animals. Luckily, there is an important and simple step we can all take to help reverse this alarming trend: everyone with access to a patch of earth can make a significant contribution toward sustaining biodiversity by simply choosing native plants. By acting on Douglas Tallamy's practical and achievable recommendations, we can all make a difference.




Knit Local


Book Description

"A "Locavore's Guide to Knitting" of sorts, this book showcases 30 beautiful fashion, acceessory and home dčor projects made exclusively with yarns manufactured and sold in the USA. As well as offering thoughtful, in-depth profiles of the businesses and yarns, the text raises awareness of the importance of preserving local business, ecological sustainability and humane treatment of livestock. Finally, it is a stunning book of fashion (accessories too): gorgeous projects for all skill levels in a variety of American-made yarns"--