Self-Sufficiency (Various)

A beginner's guide to keeping hens with info on over fifty breeds, plus housing, feeding, daily care, disease prevention, egg production, breeding, & more. Self-sufficiency and organic living have never been more prevalent than in recent years. Keeping hens is becoming increasingly popular and is one way of ensuring you have fresh produce at your fingertips. This authoritative book introduces some of the key aspects of keeping your own chickens and benefitting from the produce. You don't need a large garden to keep poultry, and an average family only needs a couple of hens to keep them well stocked in fresh eggs all year round. The set-up costs are minimal, and you don't need a whole host of expensive gadgets or equipment to get started or care for your chickens. Packed with useful information on poultry keeping (housing, food and water, daily care routines, disease prevention and cure, encouraging egg production, and breeding), this guidebook also features comprehensive information on breeds and a useful list of contacts.

A comprehensive yet concise guide to making cheese at home, featuring step-by-step instructions, recipes, advice, troubleshooting tips, and more. Inside this book you will find everything you need to know to begin making cheese, from the tools and equipment for the job and basic recipes to making more complex cheeses and advice on setting up a small cheese business. There is no need to be scientifically trained or an accomplished cook to make delicious cheese at home. Artisanal cheese maker Rita Ash shows just how simple it is to make cheese, and how, with a little bit of care and attention, anyone can produce excellent handmade cheeses. Whether you are a fan of the deliciously soft molded Brie or prefer a strong blue veined Stilton, there is a recipe here for everyone. With suggested uses for your finished cheeses, an invaluable troubleshooting section and a handy glossary, this is a must-read for aspiring and experienced cheese makers everywhere.

Making your own bread by hand is a simple pleasure and a great starting point for anyone looking to become a little more self-sufficient. Making bread can be therapeutic and creative and is achievable with even a basic level of culinary skill. Filling your kitchen with the delicious smells of baking bread is reward enough in itself but it is important that the finished product tastes great too. Food writer and culinary stylist Kathryn Hawkins covers the basic steps to get you started, including essential equipment and simple breadmaking techniques. Also included are 40 tasty bread recipes, from plain white to whole wheat loaves, sourdough to French baguettes, as well as recipes for flavored bread and international fare from every corner of the globe, including brioche, pita bread, naan, stolen, and soda bread. Charming artwork, simple instructions, and informative writing make Breadmaking an invaluable guide for anyone who's always wanted to make warm, delicious bread in their own home while becoming a little less reliant on processed, pre-packaged food. Get started today, and get ready to enjoy a lifetime of hot, fresh bread straight from your own oven.

Learn what all the buzz is about with this guide to the fascinating and sustainable hobby of keeping bees. Plus: honey recipes for food and skin care! Beekeeping is about management, control and learning to understand the honeybee. It can also become a very enjoyable and sociable pastime-visiting others' hives and picking up vital hints and tips is all part of the fun-and farming and eating honey that your own bees have produced is a pure delight. Joanna Ryde covers all aspects of beekeeping, from the basic tools and equipment needed for setting up a hive to detailed advice on when to harvest honey and honey-inspired recipes, from delicious cakes to beauty products. This really is the definitive guide for anyone thinking of keeping bees.

Make the tastiest bacon, most delicious smoked fish, or perfectly cured salami without the need for high-tech equipment or expensive ingredients. Smoking and curing originated as ways to preserve food before the advent of tin cans, freezers and vacuum packs. Nowadays, these ancient skills are enjoying a comeback as many of us look towards a more self-sufficient and rewarding way of preparing, storing and eating our food. In this book, author Joanna Farrow explains how with some basic ingredients and equipment, you can soon be salting, curing, air-drying, and smoking a whole range of seasonal and year-round produce. With clear instructions and advice to help you get started, plus twenty-five original recipes for meat, game, and shellfish, this book will give you the confidence and know-how to begin your own experiments. What could be more delicious than home-cured bacon, subtle smoked salmon, or air-dried ham? With guides to setting up your own smoker, preparing salt and brine cures, drying, and preserving, Self-Sufficiency: Home Smoking and Curing is the perfect introduction to making the most of meat, fish, game and poultry.

Preserving fruits and vegetables is a great way to turn home-grown or local produce into delicious treats that can be enjoyed all year round. There are several different preserving methods and all give delicious results. Jams, jellies, fruit butters and curds, bottled fruits, chutneys, pickles and salted vegetables are all practical and economical ways to preserve seasonal produce. And you don't need a load of kitchen gadgets and equipment to get started: a heavy-based pan, funnel, sugar thermometer and a selection of glass storage jars are all you need! Ingredients listings, popular fruits and vegetables, sugars and cooking techniques are all explained, along with storage information and helpful hints and tips. This, along with the sixty delicious recipes that follow, make this book your one-stop guide to successful preserving.

This clear and concise directory provides all the essential information readers need to grow, use, and store a wide selection of flavor-enhancing herbs and spices. Some herbs are annuals, some are perennials, and some can be grown indoors-but all of those highlighted here can be grown either in pots or directly in the soil. Each individual plant profile includes detailed growing advice. Home and garden expert Linda Gray tells how to prepare the soil, when to sow and plant out, and when to harvest and gather. Linda also examines the culinary uses of each herb and spice, and explores other uses from medicinal remedies to insect repellents and sleep remedies. Tips on container growing and hints on how to store the harvest make Self Sufficiency: Herbs and Spices an indispensable guide.

In this comprehensive book, an expert textile arts instructor reveals everything you need to know to make your own fabrics. In “Self-Sufficiency: Spinning, Dyeing & Weaving”, you will learn where different fibers come from, how to grow and harvest your own vegetable fibers, and how to prepare them for spinning. The principles of spindle and spinning wheel spinning are covered, along with home dyeing using natural dyestuffs, and hand weaving with or without a loom. Finally, there are a number of simple projects, such as a rug, shoulder bag, bed cover, jumper, and mitts to put your newly learned skills to the test.

Most conventional store-bought cleaning products are packed full of chemicals, many of which are harmful to the environment and your health, let alone your wallet. You'll be pleasantly surprised to discover that your kitchen cupboard already stocks the alternative supplies you'll need to transform your home into a clean, safe, and fresh-smelling haven! Lemons, salt, vinegar, baking soda, and club soda are just some of the natural ingredients used to clean the kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, floors, and everything in between. Turn a chore into a pleasure and discover a whole new way to clean! About the Self-Sufficiency Series: More and more Americans are becoming concerned about living a healthier land more environmentally-friendly lifestyle. Whether it's moving to the country and starting over on a whim or just making city-living a little simpler and easier, the "Green" movement is changing the way we live our day-to-day lives. Skyhorse's new Self-Sufficiency handbooks are meant to help-offering advice on what to do, how to do it better, and how to save money as well. This is a beautifully-illustrated series made even more beautiful because its goal is to help everyone live in a more earth-friendly fashion.

What could be better than enjoying a glass of delicious home-brewed organic beer? This book includes everything you'll need to know to brew a variety of beers at home, from the equipment and techniques needed to a few inside secrets from a professional brewer. In this timely book, John Parkes demystifies the brewing process and explains in easy-to-follow terms how anyone can produce delicious beer with the help of just some basic equipment and a few key skills. Those new to home brewing will love the easy-to-follow instructions and the detailed explanations of the brewing process and anyone already adept at home brewing will be delighted by the original recipes. Made without unnecessary chemicals and additives, the beers featured here will appeal to anyone seeking a more self-sufficient lifestyle.

What could be better than enjoying a glass of delicious home-brewed organic beer? This book includes everything you'll need to know to brew a variety of beers at home, from the equipment and techniques needed to a few inside secrets from a professional brewer. In this timely book, John Parkes demystifies the brewing process and explains in easy-to-follow terms how anyone can produce delicious beer with the help of just some basic equipment and a few key skills. Those new to home brewing will love the easy-to-follow instructions and the detailed explanations of the brewing process and anyone already adept at home brewing will be delighted by the original recipes. Made without unnecessary chemicals and additives, the beers featured here will appeal to anyone seeking a more self-sufficient lifestyle.

This new handbook book includes everything you'll need to brew a variety of beers at home, from the equipment and techniques needed, to inside secrets from a professional brewer. John Parkes, an experienced brew master, explains how anyone can produce delicious beer with the help of just some basic equipment and a few key skills. Those new to home brewing will love the easy-to-follow instructions; adept home brewers will be delighted by the original recipes. Made without unnecessary chemicals and additives, the beers featured here will appeal to anyone seeking a more self-sufficient lifestyle-and they taste great!

There are several different methods of preserving fruits and vegetables and all give delicious results. Jams, jellies, fruit butters and curds, bottled fruits, chutneys, pickles, and salted vegetables are all practical and economical ways to preserve seasonal produce. All you need is a heavy-based pan, a funnel, a sugar thermometer, and glass storage jars. Ingredients, popular fruits and vegetables, sugars, cooking techniques, storage information, helpful hints and tips, and 60 delicious recipes make this book your one-stop guide to successful preserving. This is a handbook that will add flavor to your life and reduce your carbon footprint! About the Self-Sufficiency Series: More and more Americans are becoming concerned about living a healthier land more environmentally-friendly lifestyle. Whether it's moving to the country and starting over on a whim or just making city-living a little simpler and easier, the "Green" movement is changing the way we live our day-to-day lives. Skyhorse's new Self-Sufficiency handbooks are meant to help-offering advice on what to do, how to do it better, and how to save money as well. This is a beautifully-illustrated series made even more beautiful because its goal is to help everyone live in a more earth-friendly fashion.

Reap the advantages of backyard-to-table produce with tips on planning, soil, fertilizers, cultivation, pests, and diseases. Includes a Quickstart Guide! This is a simple and systematic guide to growing a selection of the tastiest fruit and vegetables. The aim of this book is to start you off with some easy-to-grow produce such as carrots, onions, radishes, tomatoes and strawberries. Once you have the confidence of the first growing season behind you, you can then progress to crops requiring slightly more labor, such as peas, beans and raspberries. When you grow your own produce, you can be absolutely sure that everything has been organically cared for and you can grow just the variety you like. You can pick the fruit and vegetables at their freshest without a tiresome journey to the supermarket. It's satisfying, it's economical and it's delicious.

With delightful illustrations and fascinating facts aimed at young readers, this children's book explores the natural world of riverbanks. Have you ever wondered how and why beavers build their dams, how otters live, or how frogs come to be? Now you can find out! This charming picture book teaches young children what it's like to be an animal living on and in the water. With each turn of the page, this volume reveals dozens of adorable illustrations, educational captions, and vocabulary words. From beavers and otters to snakes, frogs, newts, and more, children will love learning all about these busy aquatic animals and the amazing lives they live!

Discover a safer, greener, less expensive way to keep your house clean with this simple guide to making your own natural products. This friendly book will help you become more self-sufficient while benefiting your health, the environment, and your bank balance. Natural Household Cleaning is packed with easy-to-follow recipes for natural alternatives to common commercial cleaning products-all using harm-free ingredients found in your kitchen cupboard! Lemons, salt, vinegar, baking soda, and club soda are just some of the natural ingredients that can be used to clean the kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, floors, and everything in between. Many of us don't realize just how easy it is to make your own cleaning products and achieve truly amazing results. Turn a chore into a pleasure and discover a whole new way to clean!

Tap into the healing power of nature by increasing your plant knowledge, putting together an herbal first aid kit, and even growing your own medicine. What could be more wonderful that being able to soothe your own and your family's aches and pains naturally? Here Melissa Corkhill gives advice for treating common conditions and illnesses at home using remedies provided by Mother Nature. In this book you'll discover how to treat non-serious complaints, such as coughs, colds and sore throats, as well as suggestions for easing the strain of more permanent conditions like eczema, arthritis and asthma. Packed with easy-to-follow recipes using herbs, essential oils and ingredients found in your kitchen, you'll be making your own natural remedies in no time.