Five Good Survival Knives
I’ve liked knives ever since I was a kid. I’m not a knife collector, per se, or a true knife aficionado. I don’t have expensive blades in cases, swords on the walls or a subscription to Blade Magazine....
View ArticleProblems with Raised Beds
Most modern gardening books embrace the raised bed as if it were the greatest invention since the Scots created peat-flavored alcohol. Raised beds are the modern way to garden. The good way. The BEST...
View ArticleA Multitool For Your Bugout Bag: A Leatherman Wave Review
A tight package hides a pile of tools. When I was a kid I thought Swiss Army knives were the coolest thing ever. One of my friends had one. It contained everything from a screwdriver to a saw to a can...
View Article14 Tough Gardening Questions Answered!
Have you asked any of these tough gardening questions? Q: Why won’t my bell peppers grow well? A: Bell peppers? Seriously? I basically gave up on those stupid things a long time ago. So has John...
View ArticleGardening Tasks for Fall
The air is crisp and the leaves are hanging tenuously on the branches. Even the weeds are starting to fade as the chill of fall sends its first tentative tendrils through the air to caress away the...
View ArticleTearing it up with a Ridging Hoe
For the survival-minded homesteader – or for those who simply wish to live a simpler existence – good hand tools are important. When you don’t have a tractor or when gas gets too expensive (or...
View ArticleEasy Gardening Solutions for Lazy Gardeners
“Girl in Hammock” (detail). Winslow Homer. Sometimes I wonder: does a person’s garden follow his personality? Is the love of weeds, praise of borderline chaos and embracing of wild animals simply an...
View ArticleHow To Choose The Right Ax
Photo credit Andy Carter. I received an e-mail recently from a relative interested in finding a good ax. He was less than pleased with the selection at Tractor Supply and other local chain hardware...
View ArticleUsing Plastic in the Garden
Photo credit Wikimedia Commons. You know, I’ve never liked plastic. It has some excellent uses, sure – but still, I like to avoid most stuff that takes roughly a bazillion years to break down. When I...
View ArticleMake A Solitary Bee House (That Also Attracts GOOD Wasps!)
So you’ve planted an orchard. Or a food forest. Or a garden. You may have added irrigation, planned in some nice cover crops or perhaps picked up a metric donkeyload of mulch along the way. Things are...
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