Home - Backwoods Home Magazine

Homemade Toys! — Easy to make, fun to play with, and great for gifts!

Lessons learned from an ice storm

The art of living in small spaces

The greatest American who was never President

Practical Ideas for Self-Reliant Living

Woodbarrow

By Setanta O’Ceillaigh When I first abandoned a slum town and fled back to the countryside I gathered and carried firewood with a laundry basket....

Boost your immune system with fast and easy fish dishes

Vitamins D and K — way more important than you thought

Grow some winter squash this year

Cheaper than Store-Bought Eggs

By Kristina Seleshanko Issue #177 • July/August/September, 2019 Something we heard a lot when we first started raising chickens in the suburbs was, “For the cost...

A Small Space Yields a Big Crop of Garlic

Prevent Foodborne Illness with Safe Gardening Methods

Leafy Green Vegetables — The Underrated Heroes of the Garden

Solar-Powered Electric Fencing

Follow Jackie Clay-Atkinson and her husband, Will, as they homestead a 120-acre piece of northern Minnesotan woods entirely off-grid. Sharing their homestead are horses, beef cattle, a milk cow, dairy goats, chickens and turkeys.

Massad Ayoob on Guns

This blog, from a retired police captain and self-defense instructor, covers the use of different firearms, political musings, and self-defense tactics.

Building

Choosing a chain saw

Shelves and benches

For summertime baking needs, build yourself an outdoor horno

Building and Using Wattle Fences

Self-Reliance

Teach your kids math with the banking game

A guide to buying silver and gold

By Thomas M. Buckley Photos By Steve Lindh Issue #126 • November/December, 2010 The standard measure of weight used for precious metals is the troy ounce. A...

A determined Rose Bley escaped the city

By Gene Sheley Issue #51 • May/June, 1998 Rosie Bley's self-reliance and confidence has served her well all her life, permitting her to live in one...

Animals

The homestead cat

By Jackie Clay-Atkinson We have had at least one cat in our home ever since I was a young child. So it’s no wonder we...

Cheaper than Store-Bought Eggs

Raising your own beef

Fermenting Chicken Feed

Keeping homestead animals healthy

Science and Education

Zombie Apocalypse

Can we make a Tyrannosaurus rex from a chicken?

The gee-whiz! page — Cats: Why they rule our world

Gee-Whiz: Alcohol

Energy

Solar power for farm and ranch

By Jeffrey R. Yago, P.E. It may be surprising to learn that there are now all kinds of do-it-yourself solar powered devices specifically designed to...

Power-up bag

Amateur Ham Radio – The Ultimate Tool for Survival Communications

Keep the Ice On

Power Up

Americana and History

Fried chicken for breakfast

Emancipation Proclamation by Historical Document

Feeling nostalgic? Now you’ll rave! Here’s the story of Burma Shave.

Was the first government gun confiscation attempt foiled by an unsung colonial heroine?

Firearms

BHM hosts Appleseed marksmanship event

Women and guns

By Massad Ayoob Issue #121 • January/February, 2010 In a time when what used to be called "the women's liberation movement" has achieved many of its...

Tailoring guns to females

By Massad Ayoob Issue #131 • September/October, 2011 So, I'm sitting here in a hotel writing this, less than three hours after getting off the witness...

The time for modern; the time for traditional

By Massad Ayoob Issue #137 • September/October, 2012 Traditional "old skool" guns, or the most modern and efficient ballistic hardware that money can buy? I asked...

Preparedness

Preparing for civil unrest

The return of home emergency shelters takes on a dual-purpose approach

Preparedness for travelers

With commonsense planning, you can survive hard times

Power Up

Survival infection control

Articles By Dave Duffy

My View: Call Me Miracle Man!

By Dave Duffy Issue #177 • July/August/September, 2019 Superheroes are the rage these days at movie theaters. Even I am fascinated by them. Old style heroes...