Home - Backwoods Home Magazine

Build a 6500-gallon concrete water tank for $1500

Food security 101, part 3: Why I love my vacuum sealer (and more)

Boost your immune system with fast and easy fish dishes

By Linda Gabris When I was growing up in the rural woods, Grandpa and I did a lot of fishing from spring through fall so...

Grow some winter squash this year

Vitamins D and K — way more important than you thought

Exotic Plants for the Homestead

By Corcceigh Green Issue #85 • January/February, 2004 Isn't it funny how even the things we step on while walking on the lawn have value? I...

Making Apple Cider with a Homemade Press

Converting a Gasoline-Powered Rototiller to Electric

Clover — From Livestock Forage to Medicinal Tea, This Humble Plant...

Put Your Garden to Bed for the Winter

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

Building and Using Wattle Fences

A Kid-Friendly Chicken Coop

Build an inexpensive but durable jackleg fence

Adventures with a portable sawmill

Self-Reliance

Make a quilt out of Levis

Small Town America: Thermopolis, WY — Horses and hot springs

By Emily Salinger Photos by Richard Coffinberry Issue #85 • January/February, 2004 When Nate and MaeCile Brown amble down the main street of Thermopolis, Wyoming, everybody recognizes...

Just for Kids: Some good clean fun!

By Lucy Shober Issue #24 • November/December, 1993 Click on pictures for printable, full-sized versions to color. When a chill hits the air and the first cool...

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

Gee-Whiz: Trees

Gee-Whiz: Ice Ages, Past and Future

Avian Flu — How afraid of this

A brief history of health and medicine

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

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

Presidents’ wives of the past Part 3

Constitution of the united States of America

The greatest American who was never President

Firearms

Firearms handling refresher Part III: Rifles

Just because

By Massad Ayoob Issue #144 • November/December, 2013 I generally recommend that people buy guns the way they'd buy power tools, or automobiles, or homes. Assess...

Hunting, processing, and serving black bear

By Linda Gabris Issue #162 • November/December, 2016 Bear was a popular meat in our house when I was growing up in the rural woods. Black...

1911: The classic homeland security pistol

By Massad Ayoob Issue #83 • September/October, 2003 If you've read American firearms history at all, you know the lore of the .45 automatic. How during...

Preparedness

Bugging out in place

Preparing for civil unrest

Wildfires: Before, During, After

Changing the odds in home fire protection

Solar-powered water purifiers

Preparedness for travelers

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...