By Melissa Norris | Livestock , Podcast , Raising Your Own Food
Chickens tend be the rockstars of poultry, but many homesteads of old used ducks and geese. Learn why geese are one of the most sustainable forms of poultry and can be an amazing way to earn an income while improving your land and providing for your family. Listen in below to the full podcast, […]
Read MoreBy Melissa Norris | Chickens , Livestock , Podcast , Raising Your Own Food
Knowing how to butcher a chicken at home is a skill not for the faint of heart, but one essential if you want to be self-sustainable and raise your own livestock from start to table. We’ve been butchering our own chickens for 6+ years now and have learned a few things over the years to […]
Read MoreBy Melissa Norris | Chickens , Livestock , Podcast , Raising Your Own Food
Chickens are so rewarding but they can be surprisingly aggressive with one another and integrating flocks needs to be done with some care. I’ve gotten lots of questions on integrating your new chicks into existing flocks and if you should keep meat birds with your laying hens. Read on my friend for all these answers […]
Read MoreBy Melissa Norris | Chickens , Livestock , Podcast , Raising Your Own Food
Raising chickens for meat can be extremely rewarding as well as delicious. Knowing what to expect throughout the process of raising meat birds is important. Often times people have a bad experience because they don’t understand how the care of meat birds differs from heritage meat birds or laying hens. No worries, I lay it […]
Read MoreBy Melissa Norris | Chickens , Livestock , Podcast , Raising Your Own Food
Breeding chickens naturally using selective breeding for eggs and chicks, either to build up your own flock or to create a homestead income from your chickens, can be a great way to support yourself and keep heritage breeds alive. I recently read The Homesteader’s Natural Chicken Keeping Handbook by Amy Fewell and knew I had […]
Read MoreBy Melissa Norris | Gardening , Livestock , Podcast , Raising Your Own Food
When freezing temps and winter storms are on the way, a homesteader has more to deal with than a regular household. I’m walking you through a week on our homestead and tips you can use when you have freezing tips or storms moving in. If you haven’t had the wild winter weather hitting your area […]
Read MoreBy Melissa Norris | Cattle , Livestock , Podcast , Raising Your Own Food
When getting your beef from a local farmer or raising it yourself, you need to know when butchering a cow (technically a bovine and usually a steer or heifer) cuts of meat that are essential to make sure you’re getting the most from the animal and the cuts that will serve you and your family […]
Read MoreBy Melissa Norris | Cattle , Homestead-Life , Livestock , Podcast
How to get the most from your grass fed beef on butcher day. When you’re raising or purchasing your own beef, you want to make sure you’re getting as most from it as possible, but many people don’t know there are quite a few cuts of meat you should be getting right on butcher day. […]
Read MoreBy Melissa Norris | Cattle , Livestock , Podcast
Keeping a family milk cow or having a home dairy on the homestead is something I’ve long considered. Grass fed organic raw milk at he store is hard to come by… and you’re also paying more for all that wonderfulness. Dreams of cream, farmers cheese, cream cheese, buttermilk, glass jars of creamy white milk lined […]
Read MoreBy Melissa Norris | Chickens , Livestock , Podcast
Using chickens in the garden – 13 things you need to know first, to save you and your chickens a lot of heartache and frustration. Our goal is to use our crops and animals as a compliment to one another. But if you’ve ever dealt with free ranging chickens and having your crops or plants […]
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