The Animals Blogs

When you don’t feel like cooking, open some jars of freezedried food. [Cooking_with_freezedried_and_garden_veg.PNG] After covering the Hoophouse with plastic, today, I just didn’t feel like having to cook something.  Making a Meal from Freeze-Dried

Will the Hoophouse survive the winter? What we did was easy for these two seniors to do! [Hoophouse_winter_protection.PNG] While the weather is nice, it is time to work on the Hoophouse for the winter protection. We are in the midst of some nice, wa

Making the hoophouse trellis for tomatoes. [Homestead_Hoophouse_trellis.PNG] As I write this, it is almost the end of October and there isn't much left growing in my gardens.  In the hoophouse, I have my precious peas that are just starting to be rea

Storage of freezedried food [Longterm_storage_of_freezedried_food.PNG] I was recently asked how I store my freeze-dried food. This is my process. My Storage Options I have two options that I use to store the food that I have preserved through the f

Here’s 5 beginner gardener mistakes. I made them all! Avoid them for a great start to the growing season. BEGINNER GARDENER MISTAKE 1: BUYING TOO MANY PLANTS OR SEEDS There is nothing quite like walking into a greenhouse! It’s warm, brightly lit, and

Fall garden peas - a success  [Fall_garden_peas.PNG] If I harvest nothing else from my first attempt at a fall garden, (zone 5), this year is a success, because, today, I harvested and ate my first pod of peas off my plants!  Fall Garden Planting B

 Starting a vegetable garden is a great way to be more self-sufficient and grow your own organic food, and it doesn’t need to break the bank! Keep reading to find some practical tips to start your vegetable garden on a budget. [Image] This post conta

Gardeners don’t like tomato hornworms on their tomatoes! [Tomato_hornworms_garden_pest.PNG] If you have ever had one of these caterpillars in your garden, you will know how destructive they can be. They are the hungriest of hungry caterpillars and ar

Pollinators are vital to a healthy, productive garden  [Attracting_pollinators_homestead.PNG] This summer, I was more aware of and attentive to the pollinators in my garden.  Flower pollinators that I saw:  • Bees • Wasps  • Flies • Butterflies • Mo

11 Ways to live a simpler life  (Aka homesteading your life) “Living a simpler life happens one step at a time. ” I recently shared this image on my Pinterest account and I thought I would expand on it today in my blog.  [A_Simpler_Life.PNG] Livin

Fall is the time to prepare garden beds for the spring. [prepping_old_trellis_bed_.png] As you know I set up some trellisses this past summer and I grew some plants as an experiment, knowing that I wouldn’t get any harvest off them before the first

What if we have a really harsh winter? Will you be ready? [Prepare_for_winter.PNG] As I write this, it is mid-October and the cold is starting to move in, here in Ontario Canada.  Hindsight is 20:20 So, let’s imagine.  • Imagine that it is January a