Google around for your local beekeeping Club. Most of them have classes in the winter. Here's where you can find out how to keep bees in your location. I'm in New England, and it's very different from, say, Texas.
What you will learn is probably a miniature version of commercial beekeeping...
Oh, right, but I don't really care what other people plan, I just look for ideas! Some of the things I've learned on those sites have inspired me to add different things to my property and some of the methods have increased production quite a bit. Very useful when space is limited.
The only time I've had seeds like beans rot instead of germinating as if there's extended rain or if it is too cool. Beans like heat. If it's too cool or too wet they'll rot before they sprout. The mushrooms have not made any noticeable difference. Except in my harvest, which is noticeably larger.
I'm sure I'll miss a few things. Perennials listed first. Some are annuals that reseed so I sort of consider them perennials in that I don't need to replant them.
Peaches, plums, strawberries, rhubarb, chives, spearmint, peppermint, lemon balm, Feverfew, gooseberries, currants, lingonberries...
There's no need to be any more scared of lye then of using bleach or boiling water. You just take reasonable precautions and you're fine. You're more likely to get hurt with boiling water then with lye if you are reasonably cautious when you use it. I've gotten droplets of it on my skin and it...
I've never picked them and brought them in to do something with them, but the tender ends of the vines are a fantastic nibble in the garden. Very sweet.
Processed foods are nightmare, there's no nice way to say it. When I started deeply learning this stuff, I was very angry, angry at the system that allowed things to get this bad. Angry that I was duped and lied to. Angry that my health was destroyed while I trusted that "they" wouldn't let...
I love The Art of Natural Cheesemaking, new book. I also use that 200 cheese recipes book, can't think of the name right now. I buy my cultures and rennet through getculture.com. I always use raw milk. No calcium chloride needed, no citric acid, nothing that would typically be produced in a lab...
My pup just turned a year old and I was really hoping he would be a great vermin killer like my first dog, Gunnar, was. Guy is being influenced by my older dog Biscuit who has no interest in hunting and will only chase and catch something that is round and fuzzy and green. Or flat. Tennis balls...
I've made hundreds of pounds of cheese over the years, many different types. I have three or four recipes that I find that I really liked and fall back on now though. I started out using New England Cheese Supply and Ricki Carol's book but I have to admit that my real success came when I got...
I can't really say without a full workup, and since that's not happening, I'm just going to guess that you have pretty severe digestive issues. I would also strongly suggest that you see a very good nutritional therapy practitioner. They will get to the bottom of it instead of just throwing meds...
As they say, your mileage may vary and I hope it does! If I didn't live in such a close neighborhood I would absolutely keep Icelandic. I really liked them. They really know how to feed themselves and they are good mothers.
Don't forget to store enough eggs to get you through the slow laying periods (if you aren't using lights or otherwise geared to year round laying). I've used 7 month old eggs with no problems, just be sure to break them into a cup one at a time before adding them to whatever you are making...
I discovered Autumnberries three years ago and found a sizable patch on a local bike path. I regularly picked 4 gallons in about an hour and a half and one day counted how many people passed me without any apparent curiosity as to what I was doing. 100 people passed, one couple stopped. They...
PS: Expect me to pontificate and be preachy on this topic. We were well designed and our food was well designed. That humans think they can do better in a factory is just crazy and insulting to our Creator. Besides, real food is amazingly delicious! Seriously!
Here is my rule on salt: Mined sea salt mostly, but there are some decent brands of salt made by dehydrating in clay flats, like Celtic. Redmond Real Salt is easily found at places like Whole Foods.
I use Himalayan salt almost exclusively because it can be purchased in bulk for a very good...