Articles - Backwoods Home Magazine

Chickens — The most valuable animal on the homestead

Finding, buying, milking, and living with the family milk cow

Build a pallet fence

By Clay Sawyer Issue #69 • May/June, 2001 If you have access to various sizes of free pallets, consider this idea for your next fence. Now...

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

Here’s an Easier (and Cheaper) Way to Make Wooden Beams

Build a 6500-gallon concrete water tank for $1500

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...

Your Manure Pile — For Fuel, Fertilizer, and Maybe Even Improved...

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...

Was the first government gun confiscation attempt foiled by an unsung...

The Great Depression — A reminiscence

Hunting, processing, and serving black bear

10 ways to make money on your land

Buy your country place from the government

Boost your income by adding a processing step to what you sell

Design calculations for no-head, low-head waterwheels

Solar power for farm and ranch

Teaching a 10-year-old to shoot

By John Moody Issue #174 • November/December, 2018 In my youth, I remember my dad dragging my brother and me out of bed in the middle...

Bury a gun and ammo for 15 years

Firearms handling refresher Part I: Handguns

Choose your ammo… police style

The ‘risks’ with Swine Flu

By John Silveira Issue #118 • July/August, 2009 Do we have anything to worry about the reemergence of Swine Flu Novel Influenza A (H1N1) ...

Can the U.N. Ban America’s Guns?

The logic behind term limits and a historical perspective

Stumbling over your own stupidity

Dark Winter — A simulated terrorist attack on three American cities using weaponized smallpox

Bottle-raise a calf

By Jackie Clay Issue #120 • November/December, 2009 If you think milk and beef are expensive in the grocery store, then you should think about raising...

Keeping homestead animals healthy

By Jackie Clay-Atkinson Issue #169 • January/February, 2018 As a veterinary field technician for more than 20 years, I saw firsthand the frustration and heartbreak when...

Shearing, carding, spinning, weaving and creating with Margaret Boos

Broody biddies make sense on the homestead

How to buy your first sheep without getting shorn

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

Just for Kids: Life in the forest

Moving to the wilderness — Turning the dream to reality

By Jackie Clay-Atkinson Issue #166 • July/August, 2017 Nearly all of us homesteaders grow tomatoes in our gardens. Tomatoes are hugely valuable as a homestead crop. After all, they give us a wide variety of products. Many...

Plant Your Trees in the Spring

By Tom Kovach Issue #61 • January/February, 2000 Winter is a good time to plan your spring tree plantings, deciding what and where you want to plant. When spring arrives you'll be ready. Spring is the best...