Living off the land

[Rachelle]

I have a question and not sure where to post it, so I will try here first. DH and I are praying and trying to change our life style where we want to be able to live off the land as much as possible. Now we face one major challenge that being that we live in the city. Though, we do have a garden and we are raising chickens for eggs and meat. We are in the process of looking for a home with land. I have searched the internet for helpful books but have not come across anything great. Can someone recommend books to me or your own personal advice. I know longer have a microwave, dryer we do not use lights until evening ( if possible), our meats we buy local until we are able to raise all our own. We try to use one vehicle. Anyway advice anyone! This is a BIG PRIORITY FOR US!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :shrug :yes :shrug

Rachelle ~ Kansas

[JJsMom]

We live on 40 acres (shared with dh's siblings-10 of our own). We plan to have chickens, we have a garden, we have apple trees, we are starting to keep bees :grin , and we tap our maple trees. If we weren't dairy free, I would get a goat or cow. If it is a huge priority, keep looking! I love it out here, it's so peaceful and exactly what we want. If you have any specific questions, just ask! :)

[Lady TS]

Oh boy, we have a bunch of info for you, lol. Dh is a survivalist at heart and has wanted to live off the land his whole life!

Here's a start:
Any book by Joel Salatin...including You Can Farm...dh says that's more for marketing and selling though...
Carla's book.......have to find the title...emailing dh for it...this one is excellent!

(eta. Others posted her book---Encyclopedia of Country Living) Great book. She was in the process of another edition and passed away before it was finished... :(
Dh just got me a book, Abundantly Wild (I think that's the title) about wildcrafting things in your own region. This is one for the northeast US.

Be back later...

[thomer]

Not a book, but have you seen www.pathtofreedom.com (http://www.pathtofreedom.com)?

Very admirable goal - I always thought it would be my dream to, until I realized that I hate gardening :shifty
So instead we joined a CSA and someone else gardens for us. :giggle

[Iarwain]

There's TONS of neat books at our TSC store that would be helpful along those lines. We've slowly moved in that direction over the years and back and forth. Right now we have a few eggs from the two hens that are laying, and lots and lots of wild berries, but I didn't get most of the garden planted and the goat is dry. Last summer and fall we ate a lot of homegrown foods. We'll have more eggs soon and next year will probably include a lot more home-produced edibles.

For keeping animals Barnyard in your Backyard is a good introductory book and the Storey's Guide series for specific species. For growing fruits and veggies The Farmer's Wife books are pretty good too. There's another called the Encyclopedia of Country Living or something like that that looks very helpful too, but I haven't read it yet. Also there are some forums at homesteadingtoday.com that you might enjoy. The Lehman's catalog, Rodale Press, etc.. are things you might like to check out.

[Psyche]

I'm looking into the same thing. Here are the books that were recommended to me. I haven't had a chance to read any of them yet:

Carla Emery's "Encyclopedia of Country Living
Country Life by Paul Heiney
Barnyard in your Backyard
Storey's Basic Country Skills
John Seymour's "The Self-Sufficient Life and How to Live It."
Finding and Buying Your Place in the Country" by Les Scher

[Soliloquy]

:popcorn

[Lady TS]

Wanted to ditto the Storey's books and homesteadingtoday.com also. (Pick and choose and watch out...some of them can be a bit...catty :shifty)

[Iarwain]

Wanted to ditto the Storey's books and homesteadingtoday.com also. (Pick and choose and watch out...some of them can be a bit...catty :shifty)


This is true. There is a lot of experience there however.

[Lady TS]

Wanted to ditto the Storey's books and homesteadingtoday.com also. (Pick and choose and watch out...some of them can be a bit...catty :shifty)


This is true. There is a lot of experience there however.
:yes

[Teacher Mom]

JUMP IN

My husband always wanted to live in the country and we just DID it. Neighbors helped us through the years and continue to do so even today. You will be amazed at how much people love to share their knowledge.

[BHope]

I've heard good things about "Better Off" (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0060570040/ref=wl_it_dp/103-9144577-4235029?ie=UTF8&coliid=I1LNWPMFFI98J8&colid=3911OI9KXMAB2) by Eric Brende

There's another book I read a couple years ago that's sort of a novel but gives a great picture of what it's like to go from city living to farm living. The author has some really great tips on gardening and canning... Can't remember the name though! Something to do with Beanstalk Farm? Gah! If I think of it, I'll post it. I actually have it floating around here somewhere, but it's not on my bookcase at the moment, which means it's probably still packed in one of the boxes waiting in the garage.

[Rachelle]

THANK YOU! I have written down all the books that were recommended. Gosh, I wish tomorrow was not the 4th of July so I could head to our local library. DH and I just got through chatting about what our goals were and really trying hard to work through those. DH grandpa has a LARGE farm house with LOTS of land, that he now leases out to local farmers to farm the crop land for him. Grandpa is in poor health and unable to take care of the land himself. Long story short the family does not know who will receive the house and land after grandpa passes. :) OH GOSH it would be picture perfect for what DH and I desire. We have told dh's mom and the uncles of our dreams and that we truly would love to honor grandpa by keeping the farm going when he passes. It is now our job to get our $ in order, get out of our small debt so IF this is possible we will be debt free to take this dream on. DH and I have challenged ourselves to get our $ in order by 2009. If not then we came start looking elsewhere. SACRAFICE :yes but OH SO WELL WORTH IT! :rockon Thanks again! Please keep ideas coming!

Rachelle ~ Kansas

[Lady TS]

http://www.acresusa.com/books/thumbnail.asp?catid=17&pcid=2

This is the place I was looking for! They have a ton of books and a plethora(I love that word :giggle :shifty) of information. I started making a list on a sheet of paper and ran out of room.
I think you can get a printed copy to browse at your leisure.

I think I am going to make my list on half.com.....easier to keep track of it that way, right?