Solar Building Design

By Steven Heckeroth Issue #63 • May/June, 2000 Solar building design has been used since ancient times. In the more recent past, it has been more or less ignored as impractical, complicated, or too expensive. Incorporating...

Eye-catching signs with mirrors

By David Lee Issue #144 • November/December, 2013 The reflected image in the mirrored letters give a "see-through" illusion to the sign and the tree. Stained glass nuggets add flashes of color. Need a sign? Do you want...

Homestead Helpers

By Charles Sanders Issue #65 • September/October, 2000 Every day around the home place brings with it many new experiences. The number of projects, chores, repairs, and other tasks often seem endless. With those jobs come...

Couponing, refunding, and stockpiling will make your money stretch

By Mary Kenyon Issue #92 • March/April, 2005 Seven years ago, when my brother John helped us move into our current country home, he commented wryly, "If you ever fill those cupboards upstairs I don't want...

Vegetable Scramble

Recipe of the Week  Vegetable Scramble  Courtesy of Mattie Silverman  Ingredients 8 ounces tiny new red potatoes 4 to 8 ounces asparagus spears, chopped 1/2 red bell pepper, chopped 1/2 small onion, chopped 6 egg whites 3 whole eggs 1...

Build a deluxe barrel stove

By David Lee Issue #108 • November/December, 2007 Winter is coming again, pretty much on schedule in spite of global warming, and it will be cold, just like always. Having a reliable heating system makes winter...

How to make kombucha

By Kristina Seleshanko Issue #172 • July/August, 2018 Kombucha is an ancient drink that’s recently enjoyed a revival because it’s a fizzy and healthy alternative to soda pop. Despite urban myths, it contains only trace amounts...

Building a Ferro-Cement Shed

<!-- --> By Robert Van Putten Issue #162 • November/December, 2016 For a year and a half, we lived in an 18-foot travel trailer while building a straw bale cottage. There isn't much space in a travel trailer,...

The cholesterol in your stovepipe can be fatal

By D.B. Frandsen Issue #36 • November/December, 1995 The season is arriving. The garden is ready for its final turning, the apples are picked, and it's supposed to freeze by the end of the week. So,...

Subduction zone tsunami — What the residents of the Pacific Northwest have to fear

<!-- Subduction zone tsunami --> By John Silveira Issue #94 • July/August, 2004 I was sitting in my cubicle poring over a map of the Oregon coast—actually, just that part of the coast that is Gold Beach where Backwoods...

Heart healthy recipes

By Ilene Duffy Issue #99 • May/June, 2006 I'm not a nutritionist or a medical professional, but I've gained a lot of knowledge concerning foods that are considered to be heart healthy since my husband, Dave,...

Propagating Grapes

By Sylvia Gist Issue #107 • September/October, 2007 As a kid in western South Dakota, I enjoyed picking wild grapes and using the delightful juice they produced, so when I eventually acquired property in Montana, I...

Tastes Just Like Chicken

By Allen Easterly Website Exclusive • July, 2007 So you want to raise some critters that taste just like chicken? There's no better critter than the chicken itself. Chicken has become the most sought after meat...

Picnicking with class!

By Jean Louis L’Heureux Issue #63 • May/June, 2000 Picnic weather has arrived and there's nothing like enjoying good food with family or friends in the scenic outdoors. I have several recipes that have made my...

Who were the best…and worst U.S. Presidents?

By John Silveira Issue #49 • January/February, 1998 It was one of those days I love. We were between deadlines and Dave, Bill, Mac, and I had gone fishing on the lake. Dave, of course, is...

Leafy Green Vegetables — The Underrated Heroes of the Garden

By Jackie Clay Issue #104 • March/April, 2007 When you mention "garden," everybody immediately thinks of sweet corn, green beans, and tomatoes, with a few peppers and cucumbers thrown in. But a whole lot of folks,...