Farm and garden Archives - Backwoods Home Magazine

Herb Boxes from Fence Boards

By Maggie Larsen Issue #86 • March/April, 2004 During a binge of spring cleaning, I ventured outside and began to renovate the exterior of my home, a 47-foot trailer in a mobile home park. While waiting...

Use Plastic to Get a Head Start on Corn in the Fall

By Mark and Lynn Klammer Issue #41 • September/October, 1996 As spring approaches each year, we can hardly wait for the feel of warm earth between our fingers. And so, while most avid gardeners let Mother...

Build a Composter

By Charles Sanders Issue #170 • March/April, 2018 As with most of the other facets of homesteading, composting can be as simple or as elaborate as you wish to make it. One of the easiest ways...

Gardening Tips and Tricks

By Charles Sanders Issue #99 • May/June, 2006 Gardeners are an ingenious lot. Trial and error, time, study, observation, and experience all help us to come up with ideas that result in better gardens, more produce,...

Tomatoes, the Essential Garden Crop

By Charles Sanders Issue #123 • May/June, 2010 Tomatoes are one of the most favored of all garden crops. They originated in South America, but in the early 1500s were taken back to Italy. Today, many...

Currants and Gooseberries

By Sylvia Gist Issue #155 • September/October, 2015 Currants and gooseberries all belong to the genus Ribes (pronounced "rye-bees"). There are varieties of currants and gooseberries native to Europe and North America, along with some developed...

Woodchuck-Proof the Garden

By Setanta O'Ceillaigh  Issue #160 • July/August, 2016 The cycle never ends: As soon as one garden pest is dealt with, another takes its place. Last...

Want More Fruit From Less Space? Espalier Your Trees!

By Rev. J.D. Hooker Issue #79 • January/February, 2003 After originating in the semi-arid regions of the middle east, espaliering (is-'pal-yer-ing) became a commonly employed fruit tree growing method of the Greco-Roman world. Later, during the...

Grow some winter squash this year

By Lisa Nourse I love summertime — I love the green of the trees, the warm weather, and growing my own food. I especially love growing vegetables that will store well and provide that great...

Build Your Own Hoop House

By Jackie Clay-Atkinson Issue #171 • May/June, 2018 I’ve had my own garden for more than half a century, and I have learned a few things after all these years. One of the most valuable things...

Gardening in the Desert Using Only Rainwater

By Joe Mooney Issue #147 • May/June, 2014 I've always found the use of seasonal rains by native peoples very fascinating. From the diversion of floodwaters in earthen berms to irrigation via "aquaduct," it seemed incredible...

Sweet Potato Greens

By Tim Scullen Issue #168 • November/December, 2017 By now, you’ve no doubt figured out how good chard, spinach, and kale are for you. But did you know that sweet potato leaves are loaded with vitamins...

The Homestead Greenhouse

By Charles Sanders Issue #67 • January/February, 2001 For those of us living close to the land, the production of a dependable and healthful food supply is a primary objective. To that end, some consideration will...

Green or Yellow: Grow Your Best Bush Beans Ever

By Lisa LaFreniere Issue #62 • March/April, 2000 Bush Beans, or snap beans as they're sometimes referred to, are a growing favorite among many gardeners, and with good reason. Beans are high in vitamins A, C...

No Worrying About Fire Blight with Orient and Kieffer Pears

By Alice B. Yeager Issue #52 • July/August, 1998 Everyone likes a good success story, and if I were called upon to name the most successful tree in our small orchard I'd have to say it's...

Start a Self-Sufficiency Garden Even in a Cramped Apartment

By Nancy Wolcott Issue #61 • January/February, 2000 You are sitting there in your recliner chair in your small city apartment desperately longing for the day when you can escape to the country and become a...