Backwoods Home Magazine - Practical Self-Reliance

Power Up Light, Water, Communications in Emergencies

Habeeb Salloum — Poet, Traveler, Recipe Writer

The cholesterol in your stovepipe can be fatal

Practical Ideas for Self-Reliant Living

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...

Vitamins D and K — way more important than you thought

Grow some winter squash this year

Build an Old-Fashioned Hotbed and Start Your Seeds in Style

By Roy Martin Issue #104 • March/April, 2007 A hotbed is a miniature greenhouse that is heated to protect new seedlings from cold. The hotbed differs...

For Extra Production, Try Mound Gardening

Vermicomposting — Raise Worms to Consume Waste, Amend Soil, and Earn...

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

This coop is for the birds

Build a wood-fired stock tank heater

How to build a good fence for your homestead

Building David’s Cabin, Part One

Self-Reliance

The 7 core areas of preparedness

How to maintain your chimney

By Charles Sanders Issue #169 • January/February, 2018 As a good stove can be vital to a country home, a good chimney is just as important...

Frostbite — Don’t flirt with this sneaky danger

By Tom and Joanne O’Toole Issue #96 • November/December, 2005 Frostbite can be defined, in its most severe stage, as when your fingers and toes freeze...

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

A brief history of health and medicine

The coming ice age

Gee-Whiz: Coffee

The world is coming to an end… and this time, I’m not kidding

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

Constitution of the united States of America

The vanishing outhouse

Emancipation Proclamation by Historical Document

Catfish Biscuits

Firearms

An economical battery of guns for the backwoods home

Air power superiority

When a well-placed shot is required, when stealth and quiet are called for, an air rifle may be the best option. By Gary Lewis Issue #151 • January/February,...

The light at the end of the gun

By Massad Ayoob Issue #128 • March/April, 2011 Dave writes, "A few weeks ago I had to shoot a skunk in the chicken house, but the...

BHM hosts Appleseed marksmanship event

By Massad Ayoob Issue #139 • January/February, 2013 Long a supporter of the Appleseed concept, Backwoods Home Magazine hosted one in Gold Beach, Oregon, in second...

Preparedness

Preparedness for travelers

Use solar landscape lights for emergencies

Oregon Trail preparedness: What supplies did the settlers carry?

The Five “P”s: A fire evacuation grab ‘n’ go kit

Changing the odds in home fire protection

The fire wick fire starter

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...