Gardening Tips

Where to Start

You want to be self-sufficient. Where do you start?

Where to Start Blog

Plant with purpose: Pest Control

Anything I plant or attempt to grow must have a purpose, other than looking pretty. As a busy mom of two, and a side of extra farm/cattle hand, I don’t have the time or space to care for things that are just pretty. A good part of homesteading is being purposeful with your resources. Your time, your space, and in some places your water, are all valuable. Make sure you are using them the best you can.

Plant with Purpose

Plant with Purpose: Herbs

Another way I chose which plants to start growing regularly was what do we consume the most of (excluding garden plants). HERBS!! I love to season food with home grown herbs and spices. So naturally I decided to grow them.

Herbs

Plant with purpose: Home Remedies

A recent interest I have found is using plants for home remedies. I discovered is many of the “weeds” were beneficial!

Home Remedies

Plants, Extracts, Salves and Essential Oils

Saving plants to use during the winter is vital. If you are going to use them for cooking or teas, you can simply dry them down. But if you are wanting to use them for more medicinal preventative use, you need a different method of storage.

Plants, Extracts, Salves and Essential Oils

First Steps - Living on Less

If you like to have as many plants as possible it is important to plan out where you will plant everything in your garden. I have found that if I space the bigger plants, like the tomatoes, out amongst the other plants the bugs are not as bad. If I don’t map the garden out before, I found that I run out of space or forget something.

Map It Out

Biggest Need in Self-Sufficiency

When starting to plant your garden pay attention to the weather and soil temperature. The planting zones are good guidelines to follow, but always pay attention to the long-term forecast.

Cool and Warm Season Plants

Second Biggest Need - Protein source

Self-Sufficient Remedies

4 Beginner Gardening Tips to Save you Time

I’m often asked when people see or hear about my gardens: “How do you get it all done?” The short answer, ‘Little by little.” I started small with my garden, a few simple easy to grow plants and have expanded from there. Every year my garden has grown a bit, with more plants, more variety, and more space. Along the way I learned a few things that help cut down on the amount of work over the summer.

Beginner Gardner Tips

Fall Garden To- Dos

The ground has produced its bounty for you and is now turning dormant for the winter. But for next year's garden, there are a few things you can do now to care for that soil, so it will continue to produce a bounty for you next year.

Fall Garden To-Dos