Rural Living Skills

Modern Homesteading and Rural Living: What’s Your Why? (Part 1)

There are days that I wonder what I was thinking by trying to do this modern homesteading thing on my own. Like this past week. There I was, having not been sick at all for at least a year, finally feeling human again after more than a week of being unable to walk more than [...]

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Living Without a Refrigerator – 5 Easy Ways to Preserve Food Without Electricity

Have you ever had this happen: the power goes out due to a storm or some other calamity while you’re away on vacation, and you come home to a freezer full of spoiled food? If not, count yourself lucky! So imagine what would happen if you had to depend on that food and couldn’t replace [...]

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Modern Homesteading Mentors – My Dad

Moving from the city to country comes with its own set of challenges, especially for those of us who didn’t grow up that way. In other words, if you’re going to do this thing, it’s important to get yourself some mentors who can download their brains and experience to you when required. I guess the [...]

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Could You Survive 3 Weeks Without Going to the Grocery Store?

Right now? Without stocking up first? The answer for most of us is, unfortunately, ‘There’s no way‘. Most government emergency programs recommend that citizens be prepared to care for themselves and their families for a minimum of three weeks – in food, medicine, clean-up and repair – in the event of a natural or other [...]

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Storing Food 101

As I’ve ventured down the road of becoming more self-sufficient, one thing has become abundantly clear: my skills for storing food are sadly lacking. Because I never learned these things growing up, I have to learn it now. But I’m lucky – there are SO many people who have made it their business to help [...]

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The Beginner Vegetable Garden – 7 Simple Strategies for Success

There’s just something about having a vegetable garden. Imagine – your own organic market, right outside you front door. No more running to the store for salad, no more worrying about pesticide residues, no more concern about having nothing to eat in an emergency. A beginner vegetable garden is a key piece of your self-sufficiency [...]

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Modern Homesteading – Lessons Learned So Far (Part I)

This rural living gig is still fairly new to us. We’ve been living in our little cabin in the woods for almost two years. After growing up in the country, 22 years living in the city and then 6 months in temporary digs while we renovated our 80+ year-old heritage log cabin, I finally moved [...]

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Planning Towards Self-Sufficiency for 2011 (and Beyond!)

I spent yesterday going over my goal-setting mind map from last January. This time last year, I had no garden, no greenhouse, an old, decrepit woodshed, an overgrown brush pile where the pasture now stands, no blueberry patch (tiny though it is) and no website! Amazing how much you can get done if you actually [...]

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Small Livestock

In this video, Modern Homesteading speaks to JoAnna May, who has been raising chickens on her rural lot (for both eggs and meat) since the spring of 2009. We ask her about her biggest challenges (think big, four-legged bruins) and her top three tips for anyone considering raising chickens. Related Posts:The Fear Factor: Modern Homesteading [...]

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How To NOT Starve During a Disaster or Major Emergency

How many times have you said this to yourself: “I ‘ve got to get that emergency kit together – but I’ve got time… I’ll do it later“. NF558VFMMUBR Truth is, that’s what most of us do, put off building an emergency kit until tomorrow. Or next year. Because really, what’s the chance of something big [...]

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