It's not hard to grow a laurel hedge from cuttings, it just takes a bit of time. We grew a Laurel hedge for under $10! Before we moved to the Cariboo, we lived on the ocean. We built a cottage, landscaped the property and basically went crabbing every afternoon. Since I have always loved to garden, I was delighted to have a blank canvas to work with when it came to … [Read more...]
How to Store Animal Feed
Wondering how to keep animal feed stored? Read on for just how to store animal feed to keep it secure and pest free. When you have a number of animals on your homestead farm, you have to figure out how to store animal feed. If you have enough animals, I suppose you could have a silo. You could call the feed mill and get them to deliver your feed mix and dump it right into the silo. Silos are … [Read more...]
How to Dry Herbs
Discover how to dry herbs the right way, even if you don't have a dehydrator. We use a lot of herbs in cooking and so we always have some growing in the gardens. We grow Oregano, Lovage, Parsley and Chives which are all perennial herbs. Today I want to show you how to dry herbs. Plant these perennial herbs once and they should come back each year with new growth. Our … [Read more...]
Poison Ivy Rash: Symptoms, Treatment and Prevention
Have you recently found out that you have poison ivy rash? If so, you’re not alone. This is quite common for people who venture outdoors frequently. Today I wanted to share some tips to help you soothe poison ivy rash, get rid of it and how to try to avoid getting into poison ivy in the first place. Poison Ivy Rash and How to Get Rid of It Learn to Identify the Plant Poison ivy can be … [Read more...]
How to Get Rid of Poison Ivy Plants in Your Yard Naturally with a Homemade Weed Killer!
Here's how to get rid of Poison Ivy in the yard - use this natural weed killer that really works! All gardeners love to see plants blossoming and thriving. It brings us joy and makes us feel that the work has been worthwhile. However, there is one type of plant that most gardeners dread seeing in their yard - poison ivy! Here's how to identify it and how to get rid of Poison Ivy plants. I've … [Read more...]
How To Improve Clay Soil
If you're looking for tips on how to improve clay soil, check out this guide for frustration-free ideas! Here in the Cariboo region of British Columbia, we have clay based soil in our lawn that we are always trying to amend. I had never seen heavy clay soil before we moved here. It was pretty disappointing when we quickly planted a garden after we moved in, but over time we learned how to … [Read more...]
Planting Fruit Trees in the Backyard
Fall is the best time for planting fruit trees - planting in very late summer or early Fall gives the trees time to settle in before the winter cold sets in. You can plant a fruit tree in the spring - just be sure to give it regular watering ALL season long until the winter comes. Here's how we got started with fruit trees on our homestead. We decided on planting apple … [Read more...]
How to Make a Gravel Path
Garden paths and walkways add a lot to the look of your yard. Whether you want to make a gravel path leading to your front door or a walk way through your backyard garden, paths are awesome additions to your yard. Here's how to make a gravel pathway. Here's the "before" picture of our yard. See that flower bed leading down to our barn? I created a perennial flower bed and filled it … [Read more...]
How to Defrost a Freezer
Here's how to defrost a freezer quickly - whether it's a chest deep freezer, an upright or your fridge freezer! Once the gardening and outside work is finished for the season, it's time for me to get going on the inside work. Not only giving the house a good cleaning, but also doing a little appliance maintenance. Cleaning out my frost-free freezers is pretty high on the list, because it's one of … [Read more...]