Homesteading

by  Petticoat Prepper

First let me say, I am no expert. I have been keeping bees for the past year. It’s been fun, frustrating, interesting and challenging. I’ll share what I’ve done and hopefully those interested will find a bit of help. Just keep in mind; it’s rather like herding cats.

I am setting up to add 3 more hives to my backyard this year. I just placed my order for two more starter kits as I have one empty which I got for a swarm that left before I got back with it and then I have the original one (bees are still there).

Once I have all of them set up I will have 4. The maximum number allowed by my city is 5.

By law, if I have 5 or more I am required to register them with the State Agriculture Department. I don’t care to have the government in my backyard so I’m stopping at 4. The fee is very small and they check for diseases to help keep all the honeybees healthy.

I am prohibited from selling any of the bees, honey, etc. as that would make them ‘livestock’ and I’m not zoned for livestock…gotta love ‘em!

I would strongly suggest you look for a local beekeeping club to join. I would also suggest getting a decent book. My club suggests Beekeeping for Dummies. There are lots of YouTube videos that are very helpful and tons of websites too.

The first thing you need to understand is that it’s December 30, 2012, as I write this and that means you’re almost behind if you want to get going this coming year. Even if you don’t have a hive set up and clothes; get your bees ordered. You have no idea how hard it is to get them if you wait. My bees will come in April but I have to order them now.

Bees come in 3-pound boxes. Yes, that’s 3 pounds of bees and one mated queen shipped with a can of food. 3 pounds of bees will be about 11,000 bees. Yes, 11,000 that’s a lot of bees and you’re going to let them out of that box! My bees are Italian; they are yellow-brown in color with dark bands.

They are gentle, produce a good amount of comb and large brood which results in quick colony growth. They winter over a large amount of bees so they need a good amount of food storage. Italian bees are the most popular followed by Carniolan.

Ok, you’ve ordered your bees and now you need to start looking at a home for the ‘girls’ and a place to put them. There are several options for homes but I’m only talking about mine. I use the Langstroth method named after the ‘Father of Modern Beekeeping’.

I order my supplies from Ruhl bee supply as they are about 45 minutes from me. You can see their products at www.ruhlbeesupply.com depending on where you live you may want to order closer to home.

I order their PNW starter kit assembled. I have no desire right now to put this stuff together and I pay them the extra $50 figuring it’s worth the loss of frustration. Plus I don’t have to make a second ‘oh crap!’ trip to get something I broke.

This gives me everything I need to get the girls going. I also get a second medium super (terms are coming up hang in there), a queen excluder, mouse guard, and plastic feeder.

Raising Honey Bees Terminology on Hive Parts:

• ‘Super’ this is the box sections.
• ‘Deep Super’ this is where the girls live or stockpile food.
• ‘Medium Super or Shallow Super’ is where they make YOUR honey.
• ‘Frames’ this is the wood or plastic part that hangs from the super and to which foundations are attached.
• ‘Foundations’ this is a flat plastic or beeswax form that is held in place on the frames. They are stamped with a honeycomb pattern and the girls will draw comb on this.
• ‘Draw Comb’ this is where the girls make wax honeycomb.
• ‘Queen Excluder’ a plastic grate that keeps the queen from reaching the medium supers so you don’t get brood in the honey.
• ‘Brood’ baby bees.
• ‘Entrance reducer’ a small board with a notched section. This gives a new hive a smaller area to defend.
• ‘Plastic Feeder’ this is a small flat dish if you will that a canning jar of syrup fits into to feed the girls.
• Ok, the kit will/should have:
• 1 screened bottom board with a sloped front (don’t get the solid flat ones)
• 1 entrance reducer
• 2 deep supers
• 20 frames (10 each super)
• 20 foundations
• 1 medium super
• 10 frames
• 10 foundations
• 1 inner cover
• 1 telescoping or English garden cover

I also get cinder blocks from the lumber yard for the hive to sit on. I want them off the ground to help keep them dry. I want them up so any invading animals will have to stand on its back legs thus exposing their tender tummies to painful stings.

When you site the hive you want dappled shade. The sun will wake them so you want them to get some but you also want to protect from the heat of the day. A windbreak is important too as is a water source. I’m on a creek so the girls have plenty of water and the shade from my fruit trees helps keep them cool when we get hot.

A 5-gallon food grade bucket with a line of holes drilled a couple inches from the top and filled with water and a couple inches of packing peanuts will work fine if you don’t have water within half a mile. Peanuts give the girls something to stand on so they don’t drown and the holes let rain water drain out so you don’t lose the peanuts.

Wet bees are sick and unhappy bees. Take care to adjust the blocks or pallets so the hives lean forward a bit to help drain out any moisture. In the valley here we get lots of rain so I worry about drainage a bunch.

The last I’m covering for this part is clothing and hand tools. Look through the style and types of beekeeping clothing and pick out what appeals to you. I bought a one piece pull over jacket with hat and veil. I like it as there is no zipper opening for a bee to find.

The ‘hat’ part slides around a bit and I’m sewing a ribbon inside to tie under my chin to see if it will be still on my head. I find a bandana helps to keep my long hair contained and sweat out of my eyes while working the bees.

I added painter’s coveralls for my pants. It’s a disposable one and I found it hot to work in during the heat of summer. I like it because the pant cuffs have elastic and I wear them outside my boots. I may look for just pants. I bought bee gloves with mesh at the wrist to help cool me off.

The thing to think about when trying on the official outfit is being able to bend and stretch. AND how many openings are there? Bees will search you while you work and I for one do not want one inside with me!

Raising Honey Bees Tools

Get a good hive tool. Don’t scrimp here you use this for just about everything. A smoker and fuel is a must. Learn to keep the smoker going. You want cool smoke for the girls never hot. A bee brush is nice. I used a small fresh branch with leaves before I got my brush and it worked fine, but I like the brush.

A frame holder is great to have. This hangs on the side of the super and you remove the first frame and place it there while you work your hive. This gives you a bit of space to move the remaining frames forward.

A frame grip is one of those things you think is stupid to have until later in the season when you’re trying to pull up a frame filled with pounds of honey and bees. Trust me you never want to drop a frame of bees. This stupid little tool is a must!

The big day has arrived; your bees are ready for pickup!

I was both nervous and excited when mine came. Something I wish I’d had and will for this next group of bees is a sprayer bottle of water. You know those plastic plant misters? It was hot the day mine came and I picked up in my car. The girls rode in the trunk.

I was worried about them overheating and stopped often to cool them down. I was afraid some police officer would see me on the side of the freeway fanning my open trunk frantically and think something was amiss…. I think lightly spraying them may have helped. They use their wings as fans and boy were they trying to cool down.

When you pick up your bees be sure to get a container of Terramycin. American and/or European Foulbrood isn’t something you want. Make sure you’re getting bees from a seller with a good reputation. If they get American Foulbrood your bees and hives will most likely need to be destroyed.

I gave the girls two tablespoons shaken over them when I first hived them. After that you treat spring and fall, follow the package directions. Also, pick up some pollen patties to feed them as this will give them a good start.

Your hive should be set up already. You’ll only need one deep super for now. The bees will build up and you want to make them almost fill each super before adding another. Store your second deep and the honey supers until later in the season.

When you arrive home with them place the box near the hive unless it’s raining then put them out of the wind and rain. Give them a spray of water and let them sit. They can stay in the box for a day or two just be sure to spray with water off and on. The can hanging inside is their food.

This day or two of rest will give them time to become acquainted with their queen. Each queen has her own pheromone scent and there may be some confusion during shipping as many boxes of bees will have been shipped together thus mixing the pheromone scents.

You will need to feed them at first until they have their house set up. 2 parts sugar to 1 part water. Bring your water to a boil turn off heat and add sugar, stir until dissolved, cool completely. This will be the food for them. Pour into canning jars or old mayo jars and screw into the plastic feeder.

Now let’s get ready to hive your bees hopefully on a sunny day with no wind. First, take a shower. Don’t use scented soaps, perfume, cologne or deodorants. Take off any rings just in case you get stung, don’t want to have your favorite ring cut off a swollen finger.

If you do get stung, scrape off the stinger never pull it out as there are venom sacks and you’ll only add to the amount in the bite. Stay calm and smoke around yourself quickly. There is a pheromone released by the bee when it stings that signals others to follow and defend the hive; smoke and step away for a minute.

Ok, the smoker is working nicely with cool puffs of smoke and you’re showered and ready to don your official outfit. Sprinkle some baby powder on your hands, according to the dummies book the bees like it. I figure it helps for sweaty palms.

Dress in your beekeeper suit making sure to close any openings at ankles, neck, and wrists. Take your hive tool, sugar water sprayer and smoker with you; spray the girls with the sugar/water mix. Don’t saturate them but give them enough to get them busy cleaning each other.

Pick up the box and give it a sharp rap or two on the ground to force the bees to drop to the bottom. See the little wooden cage inside the box of bees? This is your queen bee and her attendants. You want to remove this box first. Locate the metal tab that holds this cage in place next to the can.

Carefully pry the can of food up while holding onto the metal tab keeping the queen cage in place. Do Not Drop The Queen! Once the can is out, quickly remove the queen cage and replace the can in the box, don’t worry about the bees that escape they’ll stay near the queen.

Remove one frame from your deep super and store until next week. Hopefully, the place you got your bees from gave you some mini marshmallows to plug the queen cage with. If not, I guess you’d better have bought some. The queen cage will have a candy plug in the end.

You want to remove this plug, use a screw to get a hold on and then gently pull out and replace with 2 mini marshmallows. Don’t let the queen or her attendants escape.

Take a really good look at your queen; you’ll need to be able to locate her next week. If you managed to buy one that’s marked it’s a lot easier to find her. .Once you replace the candy plug fit the queen cage between the two middle frames.

There is generally a metal tab on her cage that you can bend over the top of one frame to help secure it in place; if not then wedge between the two frames in the middle. Make sure to angle the plug end up in case one of the attendants dies so its body doesn’t block the queen’s escape route.

Also, be sure the screened side is facing down so the bees can bring her food. The bees will eat through the marshmallows to free the queen. Once you’re sure you’ve got the queen secured, it’s time to let the bees out and into their new home.

If they are very active inside the box, spray them again and rap box to drop them to the bottom. Pry out the feed can and set aside. Then shake and pour the bees over the queen’s cage. Some will stay in the hive around the queen and others will fly around.

Stay calm and work slowly; it’s scary to be surrounded by this many bees but remember, they are looking for the queen right now and have no honey to defend. You can give puffs of smoke around to help calm them if needed. Once you have most of the bees out of the box sit it at the entrance to the hive, opening facing up. The remaining bees will smell the queen and move into the hive.

If they are very active you can smoke them to calm them down just don’t overkill with the smoke. Shake two tablespoons of the Terramycin over the bees and frame tops in the hive. Place half a pollen patty on top of the frames; you don’t need to remove the paper.

Take the inner cover and starting at the back of the hive, slide it carefully into place. This will allow the bees to move out of the way and you won’t squish any. Place the telescoping cover on top of that.

Insert the plastic feeder with filled food jar into the front of the hive at the entrance. I find with the slope of my hive I have to shim the feeder to make it leveler. If I don’t then the food seems to flood out instead of dripping out slowly. The entrance reducer will most likely not fit with the feeder in place.

Stuff the entry with grass or leaves to reduce the area leaving only about 2 inches of opening. This will give the girls a smaller spot to defend from invaders.

They will remove this on their own as they feel more confident in their ability to defend their new home. Once you see they’ve done this you can clean the remaining grass and leaves out with your hive tool. You’ll use the entrance reducer later to help combat stealing. In the morning you’ll be able to remove the box and return it for the deposit.

Congratulation! You’ve hived your first bees!

Now leave them alone for the next week, no peeking. Just be sure to keep the food jar filled and enjoy their gentle hum. Part three will go over the types of bees in a hive, their jobs, and your first inspection. Your bees have been coming and going now for a week and if you’re like me you’re dying to take a look inside.

Before you do, however, I want to explain what’s going on inside so you’ll know what to look for and what to expect. I’m listing the bee’s jobs in the order assigned as the bee gets older.

Your bees have been coming and going now for a week and if you’re like me you’re dying to take a look inside. Before you do, however, I want to explain what’s going on inside so you’ll know what to look for and what to expect. I’m listing the bee’s jobs in the order assigned as the bee gets older.

Housekeeping – is the first job a new bee has from the moment it crawls from the cell. They clean the cell they emerge from as well as any others that need tidying up for more babies, pollen or honey.

Undertaking – the hive is a very clean environment and the most sterile in nature. During the first couple of weeks of life, one of the tasks is to remove as far as possible from the hive any bee that’s died. If you sit and watch the comings and goings you’ll see a dead bee being dragged off. Sometimes the best the little bee can do is move to the entrance and push off to the ground.

Nurse bee – the young worker bee tends to her baby sisters by feeding and caring for the developing larva. On average up to 1,300 times a day for each developing bee.

Royal duty bees – because the queen isn’t able to tend to her most basic needs, she has attendants. They not only groom, feed and ‘pooper scooper’ for her; they also coax her to keep laying eggs. While she may be queen she is a slave to her job.

Stockpile bees – these are bees inside the hive that greet the forager bees and take the nectar and pollen from them. They deposit the nectar or pollen in the designated comb cell. If nectar they add an enzyme and fan to evaporate moisture to turn it into honey. Both honey and pollen are food for the colony.

Fanner bees – workers take turns cooling the hive and reducing the humidity. You may see during honey flow or high heat days a line of bees at the entrance facing the hive. They will be fanning their wings drawing cooler air into the hive and others inside will fan to move it through the hive. They also have a gland that releases a pleasant sweet odor into the air. You may be able to smell it as you approach. This signals the bees an orientation scent to help them find their home.

Builder bees – these are the bees that make the wax and draw comb.

Guard bees – these are the bees at the entrance to the hive. You’ll know who they are if you sit and watch for a bit. Every returning bee will check in with the guards before entering. If a bee from another hive were to try to gain entrance the guard would fight and kill them.

Forager bee – these are middle-aged bees. You’ll see them hovering up and down and side to side in front of the hive to orient before taking off to find food. This is the most dangerous job in the colony.

Aside from maybe being eaten by a bird, they must visit about 5 million flowers to produce one pint of honey. And they will forage a two to three-mile radius from the hive in search of provisions.

They literally work themselves to death, you see them returning with torn wings and battered bodies but they keep at it until the very end of life.

The Drone – the only males in the colony! There are only about 100 in the entire colony of probably 60,000 bees. His only purpose is to mate with the queen. Now before you guys cheer him on, come fall when the weather cools and mating season is over…the girls toss them out to die 🙁 .

The Queen – She controls the hive. She lays eggs to keep the colony alive and if needed signals half the colony to swarm away with her.

So now you know who’s who on the playing field. Let’s go over what you’ll be looking for on each inspection.

Repeating the prep on shower, outfit, smoker, and tools grab your one frame you took out when you hived your bees and head to the girls. Let them know you’ve arrived by giving a few puffs of smoke at the entrance. Then after a minute, pry the telescoping lid up and give a couple of puffs of smoke there and close the lid.

Wait a minute before removing the lid. Carefully, lay it on the ground inside up. Now a puff or two of smoke through the hole of the inside cover. Gently pry the cover up and lay it across the upturned lid.

If the girls are still topside drift a bit more smoke over the frames and into the hive. This will make them think there’s a fire and they will busy themselves by gobbling provisions in case they need to bug out. Position the frame holder on one side of the hive and place the frame you brought back there. T

ake hold of the queen’s cage and gently slide the frames so you can remove the queen cage. Have they eaten the marshmallows and is she out? If she’s out ….yippee! If not go ahead and release her. If you have to release the queen then slide all the frames to one side and add the frame you brought back.

Position the frames together and evenly spaced from the super on the end frames. Replace the two lids and wait a week to check for the information below. Your queen needs time to work.

If your queen was released you want to slide the frames to one side and start checking each frame; both sides of the foundation. You’re looking for drawn comb and eggs and larva. The eggs will look rather like a very small piece of rice in the middle of each honeycomb cell.

You only want to find one per cell. If you’ve two then the queen may have left/died and you have a laying worker and will need to re-queen right away. It’s the same procedure as installing the first queen; other than the bees are already in the hive.

While you work your inspection listen to the girls. There should be a gentle hum from them, happy busy bees. If you hear them start to rev up, stop and look at them. Are they lining up and looking at you? If they are then they’re becoming upset with you.

Give them a bit more smoke to calm them down. I always carry my lighter and additional smoker fuel just in case. Sometimes it seems I can’t keep the smoker going and have to relight it or I take too long and need to refuel.

They will start working on drawing comb and laying eggs in the middle frames and work their way out. You want to check the egg pattern of your queen. There should be few cells she’s missed and there should be pollen and honey/nectar around the perimeter although not so much the first week.

Remove each frame, shift the lower edge slightly towards you so you can see the surface of the foundation but not so much that the nectar drips out. Then to view the other side, raise your left arm straight up so the top of the frame is straight up and down, then turn the frame to show the other side (rather like turning a book page)and lower your arm again.

You have to keep the foundations fairly straight or any nectar will fall out. The dummies book has a good picture in it.  When you pull the frame out of the hive the wood top will be on top of the foundation and when you flip it to view the other side it will be on the bottom.

Reverse the procedure to right the frame and replace in the super. Each frame goes back in the same spot you took from. Work over the hive in case the queen is on the frame you pulled to check, she may jump off to hide and you don’t want to drop her in the grass as she may not be able to find her way home.

Later in the season, you can move the far outside frames one or two spaces towards the middle to encourage them to draw comb but never move to the center of the hive.

Try to find the queen as you work through the hive. If you can’t find her but see eggs then you know she was there at least two days ago. She’s hard to find especially if you’re looking through a full colony of 60,000 bees. If you have a queen that has a bad laying pattern, lots of skipped cells then you might want to dispose of her after acquiring a new queen.

Once you’ve checked all the frames gently slide them as a single unit back across the super and re-add the one frame you removed last week. Every week check your bees for eggs, larva and brood.

Here’s a photo I found on one website http://www.arkive.org/honey-bee/apis-mellifera/image-A22601.html of eggs, larva, and capped brood. As the season progresses you also want to check for pollen and honey stores. Smoke them once more and replace the inner and telescoping cover. Check the food jar and top up as needed.

The first few weeks have passed and your bees have been busy. You’ve kept the 2:1 sugar syrup in the feeder and they’ve built comb and the queen has laid thousands of eggs. As you’ve done your weekly check you’ve noticed they started in the middle and began to work their way out.

Once your bees have filled 7 out of the 10 foundations it’s time to add the second deep super. There’s no big procedure; you just add it when doing your weekly check, the inner cover goes on top followed by the telescoping lid.

The next couple of weekly checks you may find they’ve moved into the second deep and haven’t finished filling the lower deep.

You can move a frame in one or two spaces in the lower deep to help encourage the girls to fill them. Just be sure not to break the brood area.

You can continue to feed them the sugar syrup mixture. It encourages wax making, comb building, and egg-laying. Once you’re into your local nectar flow, you can stop. In my area we have a dearth of flow for about 3 weeks; I may feed them during that time. I have planted many helpful flowers in my yard but it’s not enough to really assist them.

On your weekly hive check keep an eye on the second super. The Dummies book said 7 out of 10 frames drawn was when you added your honey super. I felt I’d been a bit early on adding the second deep so I made myself wait until 7 were drawn.

I should not have done so. I should have listened to my gut as it was telling me to add that honey super.

The next week, I was getting my gear ready to go down and check the girls only to see them swarming. Amazing sight but sickening at the same time. I did collect them from my neighbor’s yard but didn’t have a second hive and by the time I could drive to the store and return with one…they were gone.

This began the frantic attempt to re-queen. Queens are expensive, I still won’t tell my DH what they cost but he does know I made two attempts to requeen. They killed each one off and made their own. From now on, I’m letting them make their own.

The advantage to a swarm is that it disrupts the brood cycle which helps with varroa mite control.

The disadvantage is it disrupts the brood cycle and impacts honey production as the girls leaving gorge on honey to help start the new hive. The only good thing about a swarm is when it’s someone else’s bees and YOU got them.

This year once the second deep is 5-6 frames filled, I’m adding my queen excluder and honey super. The queen excluder keeps her highness out of the honey supers so you don’t have to worry about eggs and larva.

I found the girls didn’t work on the honey supers until after the two deeps were filled so honey supers are going on the hives before they need them. An old beekeeper told me (after my swarm) ‘gotta give them something to keep them busy.’

Swarms happen to all beekeepers. It’s a natural way for honey bees to reproduce. However, we should work hard to keep the girls home. Fewer bees mean less honey for you.

So remember to:

• 1 Avoid congestion. A crowded hive is one that will swarm.
• 2 In overwintered hives, reverse the bodies. (info on this in the next part)
• 3 Add the queen excluder and honey supers
• 4 Provide good ventilation. This is one reason I like the screened bottom board.
• 5 If your inner cover doesn’t have a notch on the edge for additional airflow, glue small sections of Popsicle sticks on the four corners

So aside from seeing the second deep nearly full, what could I have seen to know the bees were readying to swarm? When you’re inspecting you’re looking for the egg pattern, brood, etc. but you also want to watch for crowded bees and supersedure cells/queen cells.

If you see these cells you must remove all of them. 100% of them, if you leave even one then the hive have the signal to bug out. I didn’t take any photos of my girls and their supersedure/queen cells and I didn’t want to link to anyone’s photos due to unknown copyright issues. Just do a photo search, there are tons of pictures out there.

If you find they are still moving forward with swarming then the other thing to try is to remove ALL the frames with capped brood and the bees on them to a new hive, try to assure the queen isn’t on those frames. Then replace those removed frames with new, empty frames.

A hive won’t swarm if they don’t have capped brood equal to the number of bees leaving. Move the new hive as far from the old one for at least 24 hours. Two miles would really be good but for me not really practical so off to the other side of the yard.

After a week check to see if you’ve eggs in the old hive. If you do then yippee, the queen is there and working! If not, then you need to re-queen. So, order a new queen and go through the same procedure as installing her when hiving your first bees.

Check the new hive to see if they have queen cells. If they do then the girls are making a new queen and you can sit back and enjoy. I’d remove all but 2 or 3 queen cells. The first queen to emerge will kill off the others but I don’t want her to have to expend too much energy for that as I want my virgin queen to take flight and mate as soon as possible.

Things are moving along nicely in your hive and you’re doing your weekly checks. You notice there is a brown, sticky substance appearing on the frames, covers, your hive tool and maybe you. This stuff is like super glue what the *#$@ is this? It’s propolis.

The girls gather this super stick stuff from trees and plants and use it to seal the hive, strengthen comb and sterilize their home. You want to remove as much as you can every time you inspect.

As you gather this uber sticky stuff save it to a small container. Propolis has amazing antimicrobial qualities that help fight bacteria and fungi. The Chinese have been using it for thousands of years. You can make a tincture with it. You can even make a fine wood furniture polish with it.

Many beekeepers use a propolis trap to encourage their bees to make more. This trap looks rather like a queen excluder and goes where your inner cover usually fits. In cold weather, propolis is hard and easy to crack and scrapes off your traps much easier.

Propolis tincture from the Dummies book:

• Measure the crumbled propolis and add an equal measure of 100 proof vodka or grain alcohol. (For example, one cup propolis, and one cup alcohol). Place in oven proof bottle with lid.
• Heat the closed bottle in a 200 degree F oven. Shake the bottle every 30 minutes. Continue until the propolis has completely dissolved in the alcohol.
• Strain through a paper coffee filter or nylon stocking.
• Bottle the tincture into dropper bottles.

It’s now the end of your season and the bees have been hard at work laying in their winter provisions. Depending on your area they may need more than other warmer locations. My understanding for MY area is that the girls need 80 lbs of honey to make it to spring.

Remember they visit about 5 million flowers to make one pint of honey. One pint of honey is about one pound; 80 pounds is a #$%@ load of flowers! I tried to be very grateful and respectful when I harvested my honey.

There are lots of different types of equipment for extracting honey. But given that I’m cheap or more nicely said ‘frugal’ and given the expense of startup (and two dead queens) I refused to buy any harvesting equipment. I will add to my supplies this season.

The girls will be very, very defensive of their honey and who can blame them? I did use a ‘fume board’ but found it didn’t do anything for me. It’s supposed to with the addition of some smelly stuff, drive the girls out but that didn’t happen for me.

I ended up just gently brushing the girls off each honey frame. I then quickly removed that frame from the area. This year I’m going to get a plastic file box to hang the frames in so I only have to make one trip.

Honey is dried and ready to harvest when it’s capped. The girls will have a white wax cap over the openings. Again, there’s a piece of equipment you can buy to test the moisture content but cheap me…

I figured the girls wouldn’t cap if it wasn’t ready. Robbing can be a problem and if you see strange bees fighting with your girls you should probably add the entrance reducer now. This will help them keep the thieves a bay.

I decided not to buy/rent an extractor as people have been harvesting honey for centuries without this little helper. I used one of my 5-gallon food grade plastic buckets to collect the honey in. A cap scrapper would be helpful or a hot knife better. I’m hoping for the hot knife. I, of course, had neither, so I used my freshly washed and dried fingers to break open the honeycomb.

I left each frame in the bucket at a slight angle and let the warm honey drip slowly into said bucket. Yes, this took way more time than a machine that spins the frames really fast to fling the honey out.

Once both sides of a frame were done dripping I took it out to the girls and let them clean up the messy honey that remained. They made short work of it.

Once I had harvested all the honey I strained it through a fine sieve although you could use a paint strainer. Save the wax as there are many things to be done with it. I poured it into clean, dry pint canning jars with lids. This is the best honey I’ve ever had. No processing, no heating just pure honey from my girls.

In preparation for winter, I gave the girls an extra half of a pollen patty. The deep supers were so very heavy that I stopped checking the bottom deep. The last check on the bottom one I realized I was in trouble when lifting the top deep super. It was extremely heavy for me.

I did take it to the inner cover on the ground but thought it was a mistake as I did so. (See, listen to your gut!) When I went to replace it I KNEW it was a mistake as I couldn’t lift it up more than knee high. Of course, the bottom super on its stand is about waist high.

So, what’s a girl to do? Well, if you’re going to work with honeybees you’re going to get stung. I figured I just had to take the stings. I lifted the deep super weighing in at close to 80 pounds and gently slid my leg from the outside corner along the super’s edge to help me lift it the remaining distance. Imagine my surprise when the girls all moved out of the way and I didn’t get even one sting! I will not be lifting them filled again.

To help with mite control I gave the girls a heavy dusting of powdered sugar. Yes, I powdered the bees. This makes them groom each other and that helps to knock off the mites. If you have a screened bottom board the mites will fall to the ground and not be able to get back to the bees.

If we were bees with mites it’d be like having rats on us that we couldn’t get rid of. I treated for foulbrood with terramycin following the package directions. I covered the hive with an insulating wrap, removed the entrance reducer and placed the mouse guard over the entrance.

I also ran a tie-down strap (like for a boat cover) over the entire hive to help keep the top on in case of winds.

My girls were buttoned up for winter and on their own. Great now I can worry till spring…..

During winter bees stay inside and do not use the ‘restroom’ so on nice days when the sun is shining, there’s little wind and temps are close to 60 degrees F. they will do a ‘cleansing flight’. This means they fly outside to poop, try not to be in their line of fire.

Many hives die as they approach spring due to lack of food. If you have a nice day and the girls are out you can do a quick peek to see how their stockpile is holding up. If you fear they are getting low you can give them sugar cakes and pollen patties. Do Not give sugar syrup.

If you’re going to give them sugar cakes you’ll need a taller inner cover which you can get from your local supplier.

Sugar cake

• 5 pounds of granulated sugar
• 7 ½ ounces water
• 3 tablespoon of lemongrass and spearmint essential oil mix (see below)

Pour everything over the sugar and stir to mix well.

Pour into a wax paper lined 9 x 13 pan. Cut into 4 sections, pushing the sugar mix to give about ½ inch between each section. Place in oven with the oven light on. Leave the light on for 24 hours to dry out the cakes. Do not turn on the oven….

Place on the top of the frames to give emergency food to the bees.

Essential oil mix

• 100% pure food grade spearmint and lemongrass essential oils
• 1/8th teaspoon Lecithin granules (local health food store)
• 2 ½ pounds sugar
• 5 cups water

Bring water to a boil add sugar, stir until dissolved. Remove from heat and add lecithin stir well. Once this is cooled add 15 drops each of the essential oils.

To help combat tracheal mites you can give grease patties…

Grease Patties

• 1 pound of granulated sugar
• 1 ½ tablespoon corn oil
• 1/4 pound Crisco (not lard)
• 1/4 pound honey
• 2 ounces pink salt (can use rabbit wheel salt ground up)
• 3 teaspoons lemongrass essential oil

Mix all together with gloved hands. Scoop into about 2-ounce portions and form into ‘hamburger patties’. Extra patties can be frozen until needed. Place two around the frames tops.

A few weeks before the first blossoms appear you’ll want to treat for Nosema and Foulbrood. Follow the package directions. Keep an eye on their general health. Again, the Beekeeping for Dummies is a great book and will give more detail than I’m going to.

The final topic for this series is reversing hive bodies. Again, springtime only and there is some discussion as to the importance of this. Your apiary, you decide.

On a nice sunny fairly warm spring day of not less than 50 degrees F. smoke the bees. Remove the outer lid and lay upside down on the ground. Then without removing the inner lid, lift the top deep super and move it to the upturned outer lid.

Look inside the lower super, it will probably be close to if not empty. Lift if off the bottom board and set it crosswise on the upper super. Scrape and clean the bottom board. Then lift the super that was the lower super and set it on one end on the ground.

Take the original upper super and set it on the bottom board. Smoke the bees and then remove the inner cover. Place the old lower super on top of the new lower super; replace the inner cover and outer lid.

This is supposed to help with distribution of brood, honey, pollen etc. Plus bees like to move up so it gives them that too. In about three or four weeks you do this again, returning the hive to its original superpositions. When you do, you can add your honey supers, assuming, of course, the bees bring nectar and you’re not medicating any longer.

Remember, this is a very, very short tutorial on beekeeping.

The book “The ABC and XYZ of bee culture” is considered to be the bible of beekeeping. You can find free downloads of it here: http://archive.org/details/abcxyzofbeecultu00root it’s very detailed and for the beginner, the ‘Dummies’ book is much easier; at least in my humble opinion.

How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. Hopefully, I manage to give you bites on this elephant of a subject. Honey bees are very important to our food crops, 2/3’s of them need the bee for pollination without which they can’t produce the food. Colony Collapse Disorder, not disused here is a huge issue.

There are several thoughts about what’s causing this problem and the EPA doesn’t want to hear that corn and soybean farmers, GMO’s, insecticide usage etc, could be the issue. One thing is pretty certain. If something isn’t done to help the little honeybee…by 2035 North America will not have any.

So with that thought, I want to encourage everyone to practice backyard beekeeping. If you can’t do that, how about landscaping with the girls in mind? Thanks for hanging in there with me on this how to raise honey bees series.

by Goat Mama 12

I am writing this article to give people some ideas regarding using livestock guardian dogs for protection of livestock, property, and people.  My husband and I moved to East Texas about 10 years ago to live my country dream.  We acquired 25 acres for my horses and soon thereafter I started raising goats.  It was love at first sight so to speak, of goats.

My long-suffering husband has had to put up with a lot of crazy ideas, with goats being one of those ideas.  Anyway, we live out in the boonies and have a lot of coyotes and even a cougar that comes through the area occasionally.

I knew I had to figure out what I wanted to get in the way of a livestock guardian.

There are several options to choose from in the guardian category, everything from dogs, to llamas and donkeys.  The idea is to have something that will keep your livestock from being killed by predators.  Donkeys are used a lot as they normally do not like dogs or coyotes and will attack any that come in the pasture. 

They usually need to be the only equine in the pasture as they can bond with other equines instead of the goats they are protecting.  Llamas are another option.  They are curious and can behave assertively towards trespassers in their pastures.

My understanding, since I don’t have llamas, is that they advance toward the predators which is not normally prey behavior.  This can make the predators retreat.  The downside to llamas is that they are just as vulnerable to predators if they are attacked by more than one.  Other peoples experience or opinion may vary regarding the use of llamas or donkeys for predator control.

I did a lot of research about livestock guardians prior to deciding what I wanted.  A factor to take into consideration is the threat level of the predators in your area.  Are they very aggressive, have they killed your livestock or just looked?

Something that I read during my research stated, in relation to coyotes, if you don’t have a strong threat from a pack in your area, don’t try to eliminate the current pack.  If you do, then you may get another pack that is more aggressive to fill the void.

Nature abhors a vacuum is how the saying goes I believe.  I strongly feel this is true.  If your current predators know your livestock is protected and leave them alone, why would you want to take a chance that a more aggressive pack could move in to take advantage of the buffet you have provided for them?

I decided to use livestock guardian dogs (LGDs).  I had several reasons for choosing dogs. I have had dogs for over 30 years, was a veterinary technician for 12 years.  I also trained and showed dogs for 20 years, mostly herding dogs.

I am very familiar with dogs and comfortable with them.  Once I decided on LGDs then I had to decide what breed to get.  Just an FYI here, herding dogs are not livestock guardians.  They are bred to work with humans to guide and work a flock of animals.

They also have too much prey drive which means they will more likely chase the stock.  Livestock guardians are bred to be independent thinkers and protect the flock.  Some people confuse the two, thinking that herding dogs will work as LGDs.

There are several different breeds of LGDs with different traits, temperaments, and abilities.  Before you decide on a breed, DO YOUR RESEARCH!  Especially if you are not familiar with dogs or different breeds.

Talk to people, read books, search the web.  There are several good books on LGDs available.  A great website to look at is www.lgd.org.   They have a good library of articles.  I decided to get the Great Pyrenees for their personality traits.

I did not want a breed that was very people aggressive as I have great neighbors that visit often and I wanted to keep my neighbors happy.  I obtained an adult Pyr from Texas Great Pyrenees rescue.  By the way, check out LGD breed rescues.  The people that run these are familiar with their breeds and can answer questions.  My Pyr had lived with goats but had no human socialization.

He is a wonderful dog that knows his job and does it well.  I also acquired a puppy at the same time.  Thor (adult rescue) discovered the joy of having human interaction and having a dog buddy.  He taught the pup, Odie, who has, in turn, trained my 2 younger dogs.

Anyway, since I knew what kind of threat level I had, I obtained dogs that are very capable of protecting my goats without being overly assertive.

Don’t underestimate them though, cause if push comes to shove, they will take care of the problem.  There are breeds that are stronger, or more assertive, to predators and/or people.  I have a friend with a large goat herd that has lost a lot of animals to coyotes.  She has a very different threat level than I have.

She obtained llamas but they were not enough.  I encouraged her to get some strong dogs to deal with her predators.  You have to have an idea of what threats you are facing to make a decision on what is right for your situation.

I know this is getting longer than I intended but bear with me, I’m almost done!  Part of my point is also about using LGDs not only to protect your livestock but also to protect your property and your family.  I know about protection dogs such as German Shepherds, etc.

I have had Dobermans, which I love.  However, if you are not sure about having a “protection” dog, I would recommend you consider a livestock guardian dog.  They are not just for livestock.

They have been bred for centuries for their guarding instincts and believe me, watching their instinct kick in is wonderful.  You don’t have to train them to do their job, they already know how.

That doesn’t mean you don’t have to do some training but the basics are already there.  One other thing I should mention is LGDs are independent thinkers.  They are bred to analyze the situation/threat and decide what to do about it.

That means that sometimes, ok a lot of times lol, they can/will ignore your request/directions/commands.  If you can’t handle that, don’t get an LGD.  However, I wouldn’t take anything for my LGDs.  They are the sweetest, best dogs I have had.  Challenging at times, but they keep my on my toes.

They love their people, livestock and property.  My crew is Thor, Pyr; Odie my big teddy bear, Pyr; Alesta, Akbash (Turkish)/Maremma (Italian) LGD and her full sister Ellie, my sweet girls.  They keep my goats safe and they keep me entertained.

Please keep in mind all this is my opinion and your mileage may vary.  I hope this article has given you something to consider in choosing protection options for your livestock and family.

by Jane W

My interest in chickens began at age three when my grandmother would allow me to gather eggs from the nests in the chicken house at their farm. I learned from her to be observant and gentle with animals. When my own child reached that age, I wanted to share some of that magic with him and began considering raising chickens.

As an avid reader of Mother Earth News, Organic Gardening magazine and other Rodale Press publications, I felt I had enough information to begin.

I knew I had to protect the chickens from the weather and predators so I purchased a large roll of one inch chicken wire and 1 X 4 X 8 boards to fence a small area outside an old building that had previously been used as a chicken house on our “postage stamp sized” farm in the mountains of Virginia.

When the outdoor ” cage” (it was covered with wire also, so hawks could not fly in and so the chickens could not fly out) was finished, I built nest boxes out of scrap 2 X 4s and plywood and filled them with hay, and built a small ramp for the chickens to use to enter and exit the building through a 8 X 8 inch hole in the outside wall.

A heat lamp was hung from the existing light socket, automatic feeder, and waterer, and the four chickens I purchased from the local flea market were added.

I realized after a few days that chickens do not pick a nest as their own and use that one for themselves. They pick a “community” nest or two. It is not necessary to have a nest for each chicken which can save a lot of work and money if you have a large flock of chickens.

It pays to spend some time in the chicken house in the mornings when the hens are laying to see how many nests are being used at the same time. Some chickens will wait their turn for a chosen nest if it is busy instead of using another nest.

I would wear a mask ( you can get seriously sick from breathing dust from chicken droppings) and gently rake and sweep up the hay, shavings and droppings on the floor (this was composted along with the horse and cow manure from the barn and later used on the garden as “organic fertilizer”) , wash out and refill the waterer and feeder and observe the chickens.

I got the hens used to me reaching under them to gather the eggs and I never got seriously pecked. Some would gently peck at my hand but I never got injured. One hen would even hop on my lap to be petted if I squatted down.

The chickens settled in pretty well. However, I soon realized, all I needed to know about them wasn’t in the neat little articles I read in magazines.

A few days after settling the chickens into their home, my son left the gate open to the fenced outside area and the chickens all got out. The herding dog we had, thought it was great fun to chase them and the chickens ended up in a tree. Who knew chickens could fly!

I put the dog in the house and used a broom to encourage the chickens to come down out of the tree and back in their yard. This took at least an hour and I began to realize “chicken training” and “dog training” were both in order.

On another day later that week, the dog was taken in the chicken yard on a leash and properly introduced to the chickens and not allowed to chase them or be aggressive toward them.

Over the next week they became used to each other and the “chasing game” never happened again. My neighbors, all over 80 years of age, had first-hand experience with chickens and suggested clipping the wing feathers on only one wing of the hens.

This created an imbalance so the chickens could not fly easily. The chickens could still run and escape any threat when outside their area, but not get 12 feet up in a tree. To do this you hold the chickens upside down by their feet.

They essentially “go to sleep” and are easy to handle this way. If you run after a chicken, it will outrun you and unless you have a net (which I did have later to catch the roosters). The easiest time to catch them is when they are on a nest after laying.

Just slide your hand under them and grab both feet at the same time, They will flap their wings and try to get away, but holding them by the feet with their heads hanging down will stop this readily and you are ready to work on a calm chicken.

It is best to have a helper to do this. One person holds the chicken and the other cuts the feathers. Take one wing, spread it out and using scissors, carefully cut the feathers a few inches from the wing itself. Chickens do get mites and this is a good time to dust them with organic insecticide to prevent them. This process has to be repeated every few months, as the feathers do grow back.

I also began scattering feed in the chicken yard while clucking and calling to the chickens instead of just using the auto feeder and waterer. This both encouraged the chickens to scratch and eat natural feed, such as bugs and worms and weeds, but to also eat small grains of sand and dirt which they need to process their food.

Chickens that are only feed chicken feed have to be provided something like oyster shell which not only helps with their digestion but also provides calcium which helps them form hard egg shells. Chickens that naturally forage for food, better meet their nutritional needs without supplements.

Being able to call the chickens to me instead of having to chase and herd the chickens back into the chicken yard saves a lot of time and work.

Eventually, at the urging and help of my neighbors, I was able to allow the chickens to free range in the garden and barnyard during the day and call and gently herd them into the chicken yard before dusk… chickens really do go to bed just as the sun is setting and it is best to get them into their area before then.

They will roost (sleep) wherever, but once they are allowed to sleep outside of their nesting area, they will lay eggs elsewhere also. Finding an egg in the barn in the haystack, possibly weeks after it was layed, is not a good thing.

I was careful to not let the chickens out until all eggs were laid for that day, so early afternoon until about an hour before dusk was long enough. Also, eggs need to be gathered each day and not left in the nests for long periods of time as some chickens will peck at the eggs and once a chicken cracks and eats some of it, it is almost impossible to stop this.

Many animals will eat eggs and eggs can draw animals such as fox, raccoon, snakes, opossum, and hawks to your area and potentially put your flock at risk.

Chickens in the garden need to be supervised to be sure they are not eating the vegetables and fruits themselves. I was usually hoeing weeds, loosening and bringing fresh soil up around plants, or picking vegetables while the chickens were enjoying their time in the garden.

If I saw a chicken eating something it shouldn’t I would simply correct that behavior and encourage the chicken to move away from that area. I found the chickens would follow me and “work” where I was working. If I was in the barn cleaning out a stall, the chickens were there, because I was uncovering bugs and worms for them!

I had read that modern chickens did not have a nesting instinct anymore because they had been caged and not allow to raise chicks for generations. By this I mean, they did not lay a number of eggs and sit on them and keep them warm until they hatched into chicks. Grandma called this “being broody”.

I did not have a rooster, so the eggs my hens were laying were not fertilized. I could not add to my flock by this method, so I decided to buy an incubator with an automatic egg turner and buy fertilized eggs from the flea market to incubate.

This was a fun experience and was not too labor intensive. If I had not had the automatic egg turner I would have had to manually turn the eggs once or twice a day which was more time consuming than anything. Keeping the temperature and moisture levels correct was relatively easy; waiting the 20 some days till the eggs started hatching was the hard part!

Once the chicks starting hatching young and old would spend hours watching and listening to a chick peep while still in the eggs and peck a hole in the eggs shell large enough to get out. It was tempting to try and help a chick get out of the shell, but it is better to leave it up to nature in this case.

Don’t expect all of the eggs to successfully hatch. That is not natures way, hard as it is to see an animal perish before it actually lives. Once the viable chicks have hatched, keeping them fed and watered in a cardboard box with a heat lamp (or old-fashioned light bulb that gives off heat) until they started sprouting their big chick feathers.

At this time they could be put in a small bottomless cage on the ground during the day for several hours at a time.

They need to be back in the box and under the heat at night even in summer… Some people advocate clipping the beak of young chicks so they will not peck and injure each other. This can be done with fingernail clippers but I never had to do it to my chicks.

I think overcrowding and not handling the chicks could possibly be contributing factors. I handled all the chick by picking them up and cupping them in my hands and never had any aggressive chicks to deal with.

One thing I did not know is that day-old chicks get very tired very easy and will fall asleep and spread out like they are dead. I had a couple fall asleep with their head in the water tray and felt like I saved a few from drowning by picking them up out of the water.

They do stop this after a couple of days after hatching, but it pays to keep a close eye on them or remove the water when you cannot watch them the first couple of days after hatching.

The box itself should be large enough so the heat lamp or light you have over the cardboard box will not heat the entire box. The chicks will move toward and away from the heat as they need it so be aware of whether or not your chicks are getting too hot or cold.

Once the chicks are losing their “baby feathers” and growing their larger feathers I introduce them to the other chickens by putting them in a wire box in the chicken yard. Chickens have a pecking order and you don’t want to risk a small chick being injured by a big chicken by just turning them loose to defend themselves.

After a few days of their being in the chicken yard for a few hours protected by their wire box, I release them in the chicken yard with the other chickens. By this time they have long legs and heads nearly as large as adult chickens. I have never had a problem with a chick being caught and injured by a larger chicken.

I did find that after a year of being “free range” chickens that natural instinct kicked in with one of my hens. She was sitting on about four eggs one morning and was a little more bothered than usual when I went to get the eggs.

I had kept one rooster from the chicks I had hatched and wondered if he was doing his job. He was certainly a good alarm clock, crowing and flapping his wings while on the highest spot he could find in the chicken yard every morning.

I left those eggs for the “broody” hen and she successfully hatched 8 chicks. I was very happy to see that natural instinct would take over if given the chance.

I failed to mention the wonderful eggs we got from our chickens. I learned to make many things I would not have learned to make without them. Everything from mayonnaise to angel food cake to quiche became things enjoyed by my family as well as by the helpful neighbors.

I was able to barter eggs for butter with one neighbor that had a milk cow. I no longer have the chickens, that farm or the neighbors but still, have the incubator. I thoroughly enjoyed learning about chickens and maybe someday soon I will start another flock.

In the meanwhile, I hope my experiences will be helpful to any of you with chickens or thinking about getting started with chickens.

by Chuck H

Water has always been an afterthought for me and my prepping. It’s so easy for me to take it for granted when all I need to do is turn a faucet handle and fresh, clean water is made available. But what if the power goes down for a significant amount of time and eventually the water stations with it?

So I finally decided to store some water for just such an occasion. The most efficient way I could find to do this was by rain collection in rain barrels.  I tell the neighbors it’s for watering the garden and yes we use it for that as well. But if the SHTF I have 220 gallons of water available for my family to use.

That’s right, four 55-gallon, food-grade barrels collect rainwater. This was quite a process. I Googled it, YouTubed it, and overall did a lot of research. I combined what I thought to be the best way to do it for what I had available. The first step was to acquire the 55-gallon plastic barrels which I got from a local, large-scale food distributor.

You’d also be surprised who has these with just a simple Facebook request. You would also be wise beyond your years to purchase a bung wrench to unscrew the caps on these bad boys. It just makes life a lot easier.

Anyhow, the barrels contained salted vodka (not any good…I tried). So I definitely needed to clean them out. It was a matter of putting some hot water and soap in them and screwing the cap back on. Then just have the kids roll it around the backyard a bunch of times, rinse, and repeat as necessary.

Once cleaned I chose to spray paint them a color similar to the siding on my house in the hopes it would blend in a little better than the bright blue plastic it was made of. After they were cleaned and painted I moved on to the deck I would build for the barrels.

I read in my research that the higher up the barrels the greater the flow of water due to an amazing scientific discovery called…gravity. So my deck would end up being high enough off the ground for me to fit a watering can or 5-gallon bucket under the spigot (about 4′ off the ground). Using treated lumber I ended up with six 4×4 posts as the legs.

They were cut to the appropriate height. Next, I used treated 2x4s and framed out the legs as you see in the pictures.

I basically framed a wall around the legs like you might frame a wall in your house (header, footer, studs, etc.). Once the frame was fixed to the legs I put the deck on which consisted of a treated piece of plywood cut to the dimensions of the frame. This is what my barrels would sit on. Since my plumbing would be under the deck I also cut a hole for each barrel to be plumbed underneath.

My deck was basically complete for now, so I turned my attention to the plumbing. Now I either got extremely lucky with these four barrels or all barrels are like this, but you’ll notice that one of the bungs is threaded in the middle. A threaded PVC adapter will fit this perfectly.

I planned to store rain in my barrels upside down. Since the hole would be at the bottom of the barrel I was all but assured every last drop of water from the barrels. Water will naturally self-level itself so by plumbing all of the barrels underneath the water would enter the first barrel (from the downspout) go to the bottom of the barrel and into the PVC pipes and then rise up into the other barrels.

That is how I planned to fill all of the barrels without extra holes in the top, just let water and gravity do the work for you. It is VERY important that you dry fit all pipes before permanently affixing them to the barrel and each other. So I set my barrels upside down on the deck and began measuring and cutting the PVC pipes.

I planned for a shutoff valve at each barrel and another at the spigot (5 total) in case anything needed replacing or isolation it would be easier to shut off the water from that barrel. Once everything was dry-fitted I used some clear, silicone caulking and applied it liberally to the two bungs in the bottom of the barrel.

This is where the bung wrench comes in handy to tighten the bungs completely. Next, I applied the same caulking to the PVC adapter that conveniently threaded inside the one bung. I tightened it all the way thus making a leak-proof seal on all my barrels. I waited to permanently affix the plumbing until everything was in place. So now I had to prepare my yard for the deck and barrels.

With the help of my wonderful wife, we dug up the sod in the backyard closest to the downspout we wanted to use. We dug a 32” x 115” section of the sod out, about 4” deep, and filled it with crushed rock. Here is where the hardest part of the project comes in.

Using an 8” x 8” tamper I tamped down all of the crushed rock making it about the density of cured concrete. Next, I placed six concrete piers on the crushed rock and, with the help of a friend, set the deck in the piers.
It was time to put the plumbing together permanently. I sanded the rough edges off the cut ends of the PVC pipe and applied the purple primer to the end of the pipe and inside the pipe, I would attach to.

I went a little farther up the pipe with the primer than what I would need so it would be a complete seal. After applying the primer I put PVC cement on the purple primer. Then you push the pipe in the adapter and twist a quarter turn. Hold this in place for 30 seconds and then test your work.

This “twist and hold” method is really important because you’ll notice the pipe wanting to push out of the adapter if not held in place. When done correctly it will be pretty solid. Once I plumbed everything together I used metal, nail-on straps to hold them in place (especially at the spigot). I also angled the spigot down a bit to make sure water wouldn’t sit in one place forever.

Now that the barrels were in place and the plumbing secured I built a small fence around the barrels. If you haven’t noticed by now I did a lot of overkill. The decking, the crushed rock, the concrete piers, etc. I wanted to make sure this much weight would hold (220 gallons of water weighs almost a ton!). So the fence keeps the barrels from blowing off the deck when empty.

At this point, I’m almost finished with the project. I used flexible downspout extenders to route the water from the downspout to the top of the far right barrel. Then another flexible downspout was used as an overflow.

I put them in place and traced around the end where it met the barrel on one end and the downspout from the house on the other end. I cut the barrel and downspout and installed the flexible downspout to the top of the barrel and the downspout from the house.

Since mosquitos love standing water I placed a cut section of window screen around the opening in the barrel (sealed around the edges with the leak-proof caulking mentioned earlier) and around the end of the flexible downspout (attached with an adjustable ring used for dryer vents) to catch particles that washed off the roof. Now water will enter my barrels!

As I mentioned I did a lot of research before attempting this project. Part of that research mentioned drilling a small hole in the top of the barrels because of pressure that may build up in them would reduce the flow of water. I was skeptical about this but it didn’t hurt to drill a small hole in each and place more window screen over them. I sealed these with the same caulking.

The overflow spout is a necessary part of the project. If the barrels continued to fill past capacity then the plumbing could be damaged and that would be a nightmare. So at the very top of the same barrel the water entered, I measured and cut a hole to install another flexible downspout that would return to the original downspout from the house and flow away from the house.

This part was tricky because I wanted a watertight fit and not to have water spilling out of the hole down the barrel and all over the deck/ground. So I got a large diameter PVC adapter and put it in the hole I had cut. I made it watertight using a metal flange and some all-purpose bondo to seal it to the barrel.

Now the flexible downspout fits perfectly around the PVC adapter and overflows to the original downspout on the house and away from the house.

I failed to mention that I also have a small retention basin in my backyard. I drain the barrels before winter so they won’t turn into huge ice chunks. The plan is to use water from the retention basin during the winter if needed. While doing my research I read that rainwater off a roof is not potable.

So if the need arises we will be filtering and boiling any water used from the barrels (and retention basin for that matter). Also during the winter, I take the piece of the downspout from the house that I removed and put a couple adapters on each end, remove the flexible downspouts from the barrels, and place the original downspout back in place. This allows melting snow to flow through the downspout like it’s supposed to.

When spring rolls around I just switch back to my flexible downspouts and I’m refilling the barrels with May showers. It took about 2-3 days to finish the project, a little bit of sweat, and a lot of cuss words, but it was finished. What I like most about the rain barrels is the capability to have 220 gallons of water available to me at almost any time.

A body can survive longer without food than without water so knowing we have this stored away gives me peace of mind. In the meantime, my garden loves the water and occasionally my lawn does too. It’s tucked away behind my house and not many people know it’s there.

You could add some lattice fence-work around the deck frame to hide it even more if privacy is a concern for you.

Hopefully, you’ve learned a little bit about how to make a rain barrel system and its benefits. And that’s really what this blog is all about… learning new things to help us stay prepared.

by MountainSurvivor

About fifteen years ago, when I went to Oklahoma with a friend of mine, we met a man in his mid- to late-fifties that offered to sell us some land that he said he owned. When we went to look at the piece, we saw a small travel trailer sitting there, surrounded by dense stickery brush, and he told us what a good deal he would make us.

After we headed out to discuss buying it from him, the next door neighbor down the road stopped us and asked us if he was trying to sell us the land. When they learned that he was, the neighbor informed us that the guy did not own the three-quarter acre that he had shown us and that his mother had willed him a measly ten feet from the edge of the dirt road. We were relieved that we had not been conned and taken for every cent that we had.

The other day, I was looking at a house on about an acre of land that was for sale on the internet and thought, for the price of about sixteen hundred dollars I could own it, clean it up and either keep it or sell it for a bit of pocket change.

Well, after further investigation, I learned that there was no house at the address that the advertiser had specified nor was there anything in the vicinity for sale which even resembled what I saw on the site. All the red flags were up and I ran as fast as my mouse would click.

The world is full of con artists so anxious to stuff their pockets with greenbacks that they will steal you blind if they have the slightest of chances. But not today because I am going to give you a crash course that will help you avoid looking like a meal for the ruthless vultures.

Now, I am not a real estate agent nor do I know the laws of every state but the principal I am about to share may be applied no matter where you are looking at buying a home or land.

Well, here we go. First, you must look at the land, walk it and verify that the corner posts are in. If you cannot find any then the seller needs to show you exactly where they are. The corner posts are placed into the ground to determine where every edge of a parcel of ground sits.

Without a survey, a landowner will not know where to put a fence, home, buildings, garden, etc. and be assured that they are not infringing on their neighbor’s dirt. Again, verify that a survey has been done by seeing, for yourself, that the posts really are in place.

Second, you need to do a little easy footwork which will probably take you under thirty minutes per parcel. You should never sign a contract or hand over any cash/trade until you personally, or by phone, contact the Treasurer as well as the Assessor of the County where the land or home is located because their records will enable them to tell you who the actual owner is, what their address is, how much the land is valued at, if the taxes are current or delinquent, the type of use the land has been zoned for such as Recreational which will not allow you to be there year-round, Residential which is usually year round or Ranchland which has it’s own set of rules that are dependent upon the location, possibly if the land is landlocked or legally accessible as well as other details of which only they can tell you about.

If you do not know how to ask for the details, just tell them that you are looking to buy Parcel Number (such and such) in (whatever) County and would like to know what they have on record.

For obtaining the specifications, always have a pen and paper handy, know the parcel number and/or site (situs) address, and the seller’s or real estate agent’s name. Also, most Counties have websites and there are many which provide parcel, tax and other information which is made available to the public.

Please note that, in certain parts of the country, the EPA has a choke hold on land so, if there is a source of water on or nearby a piece they may require that you have an Ecological Study done which will tell you whether or not you can even live on it but be prepared to pay through the nose, or far more than the land’s worth.

And, when purchasing any home or land, verify that an illegal drug dealer, user or manufacturer had ever used the premises because, if they were, the chemicals or drugs that may be left behind can affect your health.

Third, an Escrow Agent must always be involved because their job is to find out if the title is free and clear. You do not want to purchase a parcel of land or home only to later find out that you cannot take full possession because there is a lien or other things tying up the title.

Looking for land is simple if you know where to look or how to search for it. A lot of land goes through Real Estate Agencies and some agents keep a list of properties that they were advertising which they can refer back to if you ask them in a nice way.

Driving around looking for “For Sale” signs, empty or dilapidated houses and paths that are used by vehicles which head onto a parcel of land can lead you right to a purchase.

House and Land Brokers may have what you are looking for or they may know someone who does. Never overlook a broker because they are in business for selling and turning a profit. Check with them for “fixers” that need attention/TLC because if they have been sitting on something for a long time, they are not making any money, and no money means their pockets are not filling up.

If you run into a stubborn broker, one that would rather not sell because they believe the right buyer will come along, just move on and keep trying because, odds are, the tables will turn in your favor.

Banks finance homes and sometimes land. They also like to sell what they foreclose upon because they do not want to lose the interest they would have made by the time the contracts were to be fulfilled. So, all you have to do is call a bank, ask to speak with someone in their loan department and then ask that individual if the bank has any foreclosures.

County Offices are notorious for selling homes, land, and homes with land, foreclosed and abandoned. They acquire them when the owners fail to pay their taxes after a certain period of time. This is where the public lucks out because for the price of the unpaid back taxes they can purchase the properties outright.

And they can do so through either the regular annual or multiple yearly auctions, or surplus sales which are properties which did not sell at the County-held auction(s). To obtain the properties, most Counties require that you submit a bid with payment and then if your bid is accepted, they will provide you with legal documentation.

The County Treasurer always knows when an auction will be held, will have a list of available properties to be auctioned and important information and facts that only they can provide to you as every County and State varies in regards to their rules and bidding processes.

The Internet contains millions of properties for sale. There is so much of it that it would take you years to get through it all. If you like to find things on your own but want to know what to type into the search box, enter “cheap acreage for sale in (the state or location where you are looking)” or “cheap fixers for sale in (again, the state or location where you are interested)”.

You could also type in the first two letters of the state followed by -realestate.net or check your state’s MLS (Multiple Listing Service) which is generally free to the public.

“Owner financing”, “no- or low-down” and “low monthly payments” can be a little hard to find so it is important that you specify that information in the search process but do not give up if you do not find what you are seeking right off. Just be patient and persistent because a search engine contains a lot of information that you may have to sift through before you are successful.

Hopefully our economy will not turn out to be like Greece’s or any nation that has suffered from bankruptcy and we find ourselves “wishing” we had found property and stuck in situations where we cannot even plant food because there is no room, regulations prevent us or we do not have the means or supplies to.

Those who have not found their dirt pie in the sky, what are you waiting for? Do not let your current situation determine when you may begin. Start looking now, begin rounding up the money by selling what you can and working a few extra jobs whenever possible to fill up the piggy bank to secure your future asap.

M.D. Creekmore adds: I found my first property on this website – the bank had foreclosed on it and I bought it directly from the bank. A great book that covers every state, with an eye towards long-term survival is Strategic Relocation: North American Guide to Safe Places.

Recommended Reading

• Modern Homesteading: Rediscovering the American Dream
• The Backyard Homestead: Produce all the food you need on just a quarter acre!
• How To Find and Buy Land for a Small Homestead

Face reality, unless you are super rich putting back more than six months to a one-year food supply, isn’t practical, and even if you have the cash to spend, finding room for storage and the constant dating and rotating become the next obstacle, and this can get quickly become unmanageable.

For most preppers the goal should be a one-year food storage reserve, this should see you through most disasters, but you should also plan and work toward becoming as self-reliant as possible where you are. If you can grow and forage for all or most of your own food then you can survive for decades if need be, and eat healthier too.

In this article, I will cover some key points learned from my experience running a small homestead and providing most of my own food for over a decade. This includes gardening, foraging, and raising domestic livestock as well as tips on preserving the bounty of your harvest.

Self-Sufficiency Starts with the Survival Workshop

The ability to use tools has been a major contributing factor to our survival and growth as a species, but unfortunately, that ability has turned into a specialty skill set in our increasingly dumbed-down, in the call, “the guy” for everything that needs fixing in the world that we now live in. Unfortunately, for some calling “the guy” may not be an option during a long-term disaster. You will be “the guy” and if it breaks you will probably be the one who has to fix it, and aside from the obvious of needing to know what you are doing, you will also need the correct tools to do the job effectively.

Nothing beats hands-on learning and experience, and you can get that by signing up for any courses available in your area. Look into welding, woodworking, auto mechanics etc. learn all you can, because skills will be needed for your own use and well as being an excellent barter item that no one can steal from you.

You can often get free training, by offering your help to local businesses that specialize in the skills that you want to learn. Tell them that you would like to offer your help free in exchange for them helping you learn those skills. As long as they know that, you are not trying to learn, so that you can then set up as competition later, most will welcome the offer.

As for what tools you will need that really depends on your skills in using those tools, once you gain skills you will know also know what tools you need in your toolbox. But not matter what tool you buy always buy the very best quality that you can afford – low-quality tools often break during use and cause all kinds of cursing, disappointment, and unfinished work.

Another thing to keep in mind when selecting and buying tools is that power from the utility might not be available, therefore hand tools that run on muscle power and sweat should be given top priority, in the prepper’s toolbox, and then rechargeable tools that can be charged via solar or generator power. 

The Prepper’s Garden

When it comes to gardening everyone seems to have their own ideas as to what is “the best” method, and they all could be right because different methods are required for different situations and locations, but never the less the basics are still the same. You start with a seed, seedling, or cutting, plant it, nurture it, harvest it, and eventually eat it.

Generally, you will need a fertile soil with a pH-balanced level of between 6.5. – 7, well drained, with six or more hours of direct sunlight, and fresh water to grow a healthy, productive garden. If you can provide this type of growing environment, then the plants will do well without much else from you.

With the survival garden, your goal should be to grow as much produce as possible, on the least space as possible, while doing the least amount of work as possible. Remember minimum effort and the maximum reward is the goal because if you burn more calories planting and tending your garden than you get back from the harvest, you then have a negative return for your effort, which goes again the rules of human survival.

I have found a mix of close planting (sometimes called French intensive) and Ruth Stout’s method as detailed in her book gardening without work, works very well for me, producing an abundant harvest with little effort on my part.

With Ruth Stout’s gardening method you simply keep a thick layer of mulch (usually hay, straw or leaves) on the garden at all times, this keeps down weeds and automatically builds the soil and adds nutrients back as it decays. As it decays into the soil, you simply add more mulch, keeping it at a consistent level to keep smoother weed growth.

There is no need to build and turn a compost pile, or plow, sow a cover crop, weed, and seldom have to water, or do anything else besides adding mulch and plants to grow a productive garden.

The only fertilizers that I use are manure tea, cottonseed, or soybean meal, and then only need small amounts these, especially after the first couple of years once the soil has time to become fertile from constantly rotting mulch. To plant you simply pull back the mulch and plant the seeds, cutting or seedlings as you normally would in any garden.

And that’s all there is to it, mulch, plant, let grow, rest, harvest.

Guerrilla Gardening

Guerrilla gardening is a term used by local pot farmers, who have developed unique skills that allow them to raise the “illegal plants” in a secretive manner. However, before you get all excited with visions of easy money and smoke puffing from a freshly rolled marijuana cigarette, let me clear the smoke from the air, this article is not about growing the illegal weed; it is about growing secret food crops after a complete breakdown of the current system and WROL.

Having the traditional garden planted in rolls and in the open could make you the target of looters, scavengers, and thugs. Having your garden hidden and out of site could mean the difference between plenty and starvation after the balloon goes up.

Secret Grow Rooms

Secret grow rooms or greenhouses should be considered, all that is needed in most cases is to remove the roof from a garage or outbuilding and replace it with corrugated fiberglass. The walls can be painted white, or covered with aluminum foil, to help reflect light back onto the plants inside. From the outside, it just looks like any other outbuilding, while inside it hides an abundant garden.

Tables for plants can be made and rigged on pulleys, so the plants can be lifted closer to the roof providing more sunlight and lowered back down again for watering. Using this method, it would be difficult to grow enough to feed an entire family, but it could be done with proper planning and enough space. Most likely, the secret grow-room would be used to supplement other available food resources.

Order a copy of – Secret Greenhouse of Survival: How to Build the Ultimate Homestead & Prepper Greenhouse by Rick Austin for a full plan for setting up a secret greenhouse.

Forest Gardens

Many people have mentioned forest gardens; the idea has been around for a long time and could work well, for the survivor or a person bugging out to the forest. All you do is – find a suitable spot that is hidden, well drained, and open to sunlight. Dig up the soil, work in organic matter, or timed released fertilizers and plant.

If done right, such a garden can be largely self-maintaining requiring little effort by you after planting.

Avoid making trails to the garden area, people follow trails, and these will lead them directly to your garden, remember the harder it is for you to reach the gardens location the more likely no one else will even try.

Remove all signs of activity, like trash or freshly dug soil. Spread any loose dirt over the area covering any open spots with natural ground cover such as leaves. This also helps form mulch reducing the need for watering significantly. Try to make the garden area blend in with the surrounding forest as much as possible.

Step back and look at the possible approach points, and remove anything that catches the eye. Remember to avoid making trails to and from the site by never going in or out the same way and using alternating entry points. Try to walk on hard surfaces as much as possible to avoid leaving tracks.

Some plants are easier to hide than others are; potatoes, for instance, would be easier to hide than say tomatoes or corn. Most people would pass within three feet of a potato patch and not recognize what they were looking at. Choosing plants that blend in with the surrounding is an important consideration for the secret survival gardener.

The Gardening Nomad

I know a guy who lived in a truck camper for years – he would move from one hide to another every couple of weeks, he had gardens strategically located all over the countryside. I do not know if they were all legal crops (probably not), but know that some of what he grew what he grew were food crops and he seemed to do very well, while living a very simple life, all without a lot of stress and worry.

Three Sisters of the Cherokee

Another growing technique that I recommend is “the three sisters“. This system has been used for thousands of years with great success in both North and South America by many “Indian” tribes and native people.

The three sisters consist of corn, squash, and beans that are planted in a circle, with corn in the center, then pole beans are then planted around the corn and then squash are planted around the outside. The pole beans help to put nitrogen back into the soil, which is great for the corn and squash. The beans climb up the corn, which acts as a natural trellis. The squash with its wide leaves help shade out weeds and reduces the need for watering. It all works together in a sort of mini garden ecosystem.

Perennials

Perennials are my secret weapon against post-collapse hunger pains and starvation – planting perennials will allow you to have a continually replicating food supply, which will provide for you year after year with little effort on your part. Every prepper should establish a good variety of perennial edibles at their retreat.

I have established “gardens” of asparagus, Jerusalem artichokes, horseradish, garlic, perennial onions, and herbs scattered around my homestead. Once these perennials are planted, and established, they continue to grow and expand every year on their own with little or no help from you…

Choosing Seeds

At the beginning of the growing season most gardeners, simply head to their nearest garden center, and pick up whatever seed packets that are being displayed on the shelf that year, or they skip the seeds and their germination altogether by purchasing seedlings and transplanting those directly into their garden.

And why this works well (sometimes) during “good times” when you can still rely on going back and getting new seed for planting a new crop each year, if you’re thinking in terms of long-term survival or saving your own seed from year to year, then you need to consider buying and stockpiling Non-Hybrid (Heirloom) vegetable seeds.

According to the good folks at Heirloom Organics:

Non-Hybrid or Open-Pollinated seeds allow the gardener to collect seeds from a crop for future planting. Hybrid seeds do not. Heirloom Organics Seed Packs are 100% Non-Hybrid and Non-GMO (genetically modified) and specially sealed for long-term storage. Use now AND save for an emergency. All from the same hermetically sealed pack!

And while this is true in most cases, saving seed from year-to-year that grows true, without negative genetic changes is a little more complicated than that. Some plant species, such as corn, okra, and spinach, for example, must “cross-pollinate” each year to remain strong and to be productive.

Constant inbreeding of cross-pollinating plans, even if they are of the non-hybrid variety will result in weak, non-productive plans after the first couple of years. Therefore, even if you start with pure non-hybrid, heirloom seed you cannot save the seed of cross-pollinating species, indefinitely without a negative change in the resulting offspring at some point, due to inbreeding of the plants.

The solution to this problem is to simply, buy enough seed to last several years, and stored in optimal conditions to ensure germination, or buy several different Non-Hybrid, Non-GMO varieties and cross-pollinate each year.

Now the good news, self-pollinating plant species such as bean, pepper, tomato, eggplant, garlic, and pea can be grown and the seeds saved year-after-year with little or no genetic change in growth, health, or overall production, allowing you to continually feed your family, now and during hard times.

Over the years, I have seen many folks express concerns about the germination rate of seeds that have been packaged for long-term storage, such as the Non-Hybrid vegetable seeds that are packaged and sold by Heirloom Organics and other seed vendors.

The main concern seems to be that the process and conditions of storing the seed long-term will somehow cause the seed to not germinate (sprout) when planted. After having tested these seeds and their germination rates over the past several years, and others have done the same with similar results, I can assure you that germination rates remain just as good as or better than seeds stored in a traditional fashion.

Putting back a supply of non-hybrid vegetable seed should be on the to-do list of every, gardener and that applies ten-fold for the “prepper” because we do not know what will happen, the result or how long the duration.

We can only store so much food, and after it is gone, you will have to produce your own or starve….

Fruits, Nuts, and Berries

Fruits, nuts, and berries are one of my favorite hedges against starvation because they can be planted once and then mostly take care of themselves after. However, the biggest benefit is that after planted and established they will come back and provide for years after without you having to do much in the way of care…

Plant it and forget it… well almost.

If you have an empty space on your property, then fill that space by planting a food bearing tree, vine, or shrub. To fill larger areas plant fruit and nut trees, and for smaller areas consider planting strawberries, raspberries, rhubarb, blueberries etc. No space should be left empty especially around a small homestead…

Let us start with fruit trees since these tend to produce the most food for the least amount of work. When choosing fruit trees, look either dwarf or semi-dwarf varieties depending on the space you have available. Never plant a dwarf tree if you have room for a semi-dwarf variety, the semi-dwarf trees grow to a larger size and thus they will produce more fruit under the same growing conditions, they are also more winter hardy, and live longer.

It’s also a good idea to plant a variety of different trees, shrubs and vines that produce different types of fruit, nuts, and berries, i.e. apple, pear, peach, plum, cherry, blackberry, blueberry, raspberry etc. This will not only provide you with more variety at the table, it will also act as insurance against pest and disease that might attack one variety or plant but not another.

Also, when planting apple trees, I suggest that you plant both summer and winter varieties, as you might have assumed summer varieties mature and are ready for harvest before the winter varieties which makes it easier to harvest and preserve the fruit because it’s not all ready for harvest all at once.

As for planting instructions, I am not going to get into that here simply because the details can vary slightly depending on location and type. You will find that the planting instructions for your location will come with the trees, shrubs, and vines when you buy them at the nursery, if not ask.

When choosing varieties for cross-pollination, you can use the free tool at www.orangepippintrees.com/pollinationchecker.aspx to help you make the correct choices. Also, ask at the nursery when you buy your fruit trees for their advice on pollination and their recommendations.

I recommend that before planting your first tree, shrub or vine that you order a copy of The Fruit Gardener’s Bible: A Complete Guide to Growing Fruits and Nuts in the Home Garden by Lewis Hill this is a great book that is dedicated to the subject, and will cover everything that you need to know and then some.

Fruit Tree Pruning Instructions – dormant pruning is done in late fall or winter when the leaves have fallen off.

Practical Domestic Animals and Poultry

When choosing which domestic animals to keep for food, look for those that require the least time and effort to care for. As I explained in the gardening section above, when surviving, you do not want to put in more effort, and thus, burn more calories, then you are going to get back upon consumption.

Look for animals that can generally take care of themselves, like with anything else that you do when trying to survive look for the most reward for the least effort. For example, you do not want to exert 1000 calories, searching for an egg that you are only going to get 78 calories from. If you do this for consistently, then you are ensuring a slow withering death from malnutritions.

Chickens

No section on raising domestic animals for food would be complete without taking a closer look at raising chickens. Chickens are usually the first thought that pops into a person’s head when they think about farming or homesteading and for good reason.

Really the only downside to raising chickens is the initial startup costs of having to build a coop and feeders and watering containers, after that the cost per bird is extremely low, especially if your let them free-range so that they can forage for most of their own food.

Your main concern will be keeping them safe from predators because everything loves to eat chicken, including but not limited to foxes, raccoons, coyotes, bobcats, mountain lions, owls, hawks, domestic dogs, domestic cats and everything else that likes to eat meat. The best way to keep them safe is to keep

them inside a well-made coop with a securely fenced in outside run, but this means that you’ll have to feed them more because they generally won’t be able to forage for the bulk of their food when confined to such a limited space.

As a compromise, I keep my chickens inside the coop with access to the eight by twenty-five foot run most of the day and let them out to forage of the evenings about two hours before dark. They generally stay within seventy-five yards of the coop, and will go back in to roost before dark. After they are all in I’ll go lock the door to the coop, to keep any predators out and the chickens’ safe inside.

When building your coop seal any openings uptight, even a small hole can give a hungry predator a way in – some will even use a small opening as a starting point that they can enlarge by chewing until they can squeeze inside.

When building your run, you will want to use treated wood for longevity, and to dig a trench six or more inches deep to bury that length of the wire in the ground to prevent predators from digging in under the fencing. I also like to pile rocks all the way around the coop and run – so far, this has worked great and I have never had a predator that has gotten inside the coop or run by digging.

Another thing to keep in mind is that chicken wire by itself is weak, and will not keep a large determined predator out. When I built my first chicken coop and run, I had two stray dogs that managed to rip through the chicken wire and into the coop. Luckily, I was at home and stopped them before they were able to do any more damage.

After that incident, I have always re-enforced the bottom three feet of chicken wire around the run by covering it with welded-wire. This has been very effective at keeping larger predators out and the chickens’ safe inside. My coop is almost finished in the photo above.

Having an outside dog (one that will not kill chickens) is also a great help at keeping your flock safe and for security in general. A good dog will keep watch and run predators off when they wonder into the area before they have a chance to find their way into your coop.

When choosing a type of chicken for survival purposes, look for dual-purpose breeds that are both good egg layers and meat producers. You will also want to choose breeds that go broody and that are good mothers so that you can raise additional birds to replace those that are eaten.

Note: hens will continue to lay eggs, even without a rooster but those eggs will not be fertile and with not hatch producing offspring.

My five most recommended breeds for preppers are the Black Australorp, Rhode Island Red, Dominique, Plymouth Rock, and Wyandotte. These breeds meet all of the criteria listed above and are easy to find or order in most areas and easy to care for.

When you start raising chickens, you will find that it is easy to be carried away with the result being that you end up with more birds than you need. For most preppers, a flock consisting of ten hens and two roosters works out well. The extra rooster acts as a “backup” should something happen to the other, allowing your hens to keep producing offspring.

You can find a wealth of free information detailing everything that you could possibly want to know about raising chickens, breeding, medical issues, coop building etc. However, to be honest, it is not that hard and if it is then you are doing it wrong.

Remember look for a maximum reward for the least effort, once you get your coop built it should only take about ten minutes per day to take care of your flock.

Ducks

I used to keep a few ducks around, and plan to add ten or more back into my flock this coming spring when I can buy day-old ducklings from the local Tractor Supply or Farmers CO-OP, and eventually, I may completely replace my flock of chickens with ducks.

Ducks are smarter than chickens and are better foragers that can find most of their own food, and they are less disease prone and seem to attract fewer predators. Ducks lay just as many eggs as chickens, but the eggs taste better and are larger. They are also better mothers to their young.

Many preppers make the mistake of thinking that they must have a large pond or another body of water on their property to keep ducks, and while the ducks do enjoy that setting, it is not necessary. All that I ever used were several “kiddie pools” that I kept full of water around my property and the ducks thrived.

Since ducks like to poop in the water, you will need to pour it out every week or so and replace it with fresh water. The water from the pools makes an excellent fertilizer that can be poured around your fruit and nut trees.

Rabbits

If the goal is to put meat on the table then you should start building your rabbit hutches now. Rabbits meet or exceed all of the criteria that I previously mentioned about choosing animals that easy to keep and cheap to feed because they do well on nothing more than, fresh dry grass clippings, hay, unused produce from the garden, salt, and fresh water.

I also like to add a hand full of commercial feed pellets for each rabbit every couple of day to round out their diet. This becomes more important during the winter months when fresh grass clippings and hay are not as readily available.

Housing for rabbits is a simple matter; all they need is protection from predators and from harsh weather conditions. Do a web search and you will find a wealth of free hutch building plans, these range from basic but functional to major projects costing several hundred dollars. My preference is to keep it simple and cheap.

You will have to keep the male “buck” separate from the females until you are ready for them to breed. After the female has been breed, remove the male and put him back in his cage. Females are usually ready to breed at around ten months old and will usually bear from eight to fourteen young after a short thirty-day gestation period.

The offspring can be slaughtered after nine weeks and the doe then rebreed again. As you can see if you do the math, one buck and five does can produce a lot of meat quickly. Just don’t make the mistake of eating only rabbit meat – rabbit meat is too lean and humans need some fat to survive and a diet consisting of only rabbit meat by itself does not provide enough fat to keep a human body healthy over the long-term.

Larger Animals

If you have enough land to provide the bulk of food and space for larger domestic animals like hogs and cows, then these can prove a huge benefit and should be considered. These larger animals can provide hundreds of pounds of meat, or as is the case with the cow can also provide milk, cheese, and related products as well as meat when slaughtered.

Goats are a great alternative to the cows and are much easier to care for and will find most of the own food if left free to forage over a large enough area. However, keep in mind that they can kill trees, and native foliage, and will eat your garden, flowerbed or just about anything else that they are allowed to get into.

Since this is not a dedicated book on how to care for and harvest domestic animals, I am going to suggest that you order two books – Barnyard in Your Backyard: A Beginner’s Guide to Raising Chickens, Ducks, Geese, Rabbits, Goats, Sheep, and Cattle by Gail Damerow and Basic Butchering of Livestock & Game by John J. Mettler. These two books will cover everything that you need to know to successfully raise and butcher domestic livestock and poultry.

Bees and Honey

Honeybees have been vanishing at an alarming rate, with losses of upwards of 40% of bee colonies worldwide over the past few years. In addition, while no one seems to agree on the cause, we can all agree that the loss of our honeybees will throw our ecosystem out of balance, making it more difficult or impossible to grow enough food to support the earth’s current population.

Personally, I believe that the predominant cause of this hive die-off is due to the increased planting of GMO crops and especially the use of chemical pesticides that the bees carry back to the hive, causing death and eventual hive collapse.

Having one or two beehives can produce 25 to 50 pounds of honey per year if the hive is healthy and well managed. If you want to keep a hive or two at your homestead, the first thing that you should do is to go talk to a local beekeeper that already has established hives.

These experienced bee keeps can give you some great pointers on keeping bees in your area and the dangers to look out for, and possibly sell you everything that you need to get started.

Foraging For Wild Foods

Foraging for wild foods via hunting, fishing, trapping, and gathering of edible plants and nuts can go a long way toward ensuring your survival after the balloon goes up if you are prepared and have the needed skills to do so.

You need to learn how to hunt, trap, and fish as well as how to recognize and prepare the edible plants and nuts that are abundant in your area.

Granted it’s impossible to teach someone to hunt by writing about it in a book, you need to get out and do it to learn, but you can pick up a few tips and some how-to-do-it knowledge from reading and watching other people hunt on the Outdoor channel.

Generally, trapping is more efficient than hunting especially for those just starting out; traps can be set and work without you having to be there. Set it, leave it, come back, and check it once a day to remove caught game, rebait the trap or both.

You can use the free time to do other needed chores like tending your garden or setting more traps. Harvesting wild game for the stewpot is an excellent long-term survival strategy as long as you do not plan to live off harvested wild game exclusively. Wild game should be considered as only one link, in your food resupply chain, and not as the whole chain.

You must have variable and independent sources of resupply, lined up and ready to go. I have seen too many preppers, who plan to rely 100% on their stored foods. They have no resupply chain, and if the crisis lasts longer than their food stockpile, then they are out of luck.

Plus your stockpile might be looted, burnt, blown away or destroyed a hundred other ways, so please don’t put all of your eggs in one basket, so to speak. Plan on losing your main food supply, and make plans that will allow you to keep on feeding your family, regardless of how empty your storage shelves become.

To start, you will need to learn the basics of setting both store-bought and homemade traps. To help you in both areas, I suggest that you order copies of The New Buckshot’s Complete Survival Trapping Guide by Bruce Hemming, Survival Poaching by Ragnar Benson and The Modern Hunter-Gatherer: A Practical Guide to Living off the Land by Tony Nester.

However you’ll still need to get up and off of your rear-end and actually go outside, and do it. You will need to practice, practice and then practice some more because most animals are smarter than the average human trying to trap them is.

There are other good how-to-do-it trapping books available, but the three are my top recommendations. Just do not think that you are an expert or proficient trapper just because you read a book, you are not.

You have to get outside and DO IT!

As for trap and gear recommendations, I suggest that you lay in a good supply of small game snares, you can make your own snares, but I’ve found that it’s just as cost effective to order them pre-made in bulk than to make your own, especially when you consider your time.

The Dakota line Rabbit Snares are a perfect size and weight for trapping small game like rabbit, squirrel, and pheasant. Larger game can also be taken (easily I might add) with snares, but you will have to make your own, heavyweight snares for this (disclaimer: check and follow game laws… yadda, yadda, yadda), full details on snaring large game are given in the pages of Survival Poaching, that I linked to above.

My next trap recommendation is the 110 Single Spring Body Trap, these are perfect for rabbit, and squirrel sized game, and can be set without a setting tool by most people. When setting these traps, it is a good idea to use a Safety Grip Tool, for your safety.

These traps work by snapping shut with enough force to kill the animal with a blow to the neck, and they have enough power to break your hand if the trap is accidentally tripped while setting it.

Fishing Gear

One of the easiest and often most productive places to forage for food are in lakes and streams. While everyone knows about fishing with a pole, line, and hook, most people never consider methods such as trapping, spearing, gigging, or shooting fish (check your state’s game and fish laws yadda, yadda, yadda) despite the fact that these methods are often far more effective.

First, let us talk about “fishing” after all this is the first thing that most people think of when “catching fish” is mentioned. It is easy to tie a line with hook and bait to a pole and toss the line into the water and wait for something to bite.

Alternatively, to make a “hobo fishing reel” which is really just a soda, soup can or stick with fishing line wrapped around it. While this simple setup will not win any contests for “showiness”, it can be put together in a couple of minutes and is effective enough to put food on the table if the fish are biting.

When riding an ATV or backpacking into the backcountry, I like to fish the abandoned farm ponds, and remote streams, that can be found in my area. I like to take a collapsible fishing rod or the voyager spinning travel kit with me, both work very well and don’t get in the way when riding or hiking in wooded areas like a traditionally fixed fishing rod would.

These types of rods will work great in a bug out kit and for foraging the waters away from your home or retreat after a disaster or TEOTWAWKI. Just be careful not to get so preoccupied with fishing that you become oblivious to your surroundings, and are taken by surprise by someone who may have bad intentions.

In this type of situation, after the stuff has hit the fan it is best not to go out alone if possible. When you’re alone it’s nearly impossible to do a task, such as fishing and stay 100% aware of your surroundings 100% of the time. Having an armed lookout, placed in a concealed location to watch your six is a good idea.

Ditto for other post-disaster, chores as well stay alert and if possible, post a lookout to watch your back.

For mobile fishing tackle, I keep it simple, a few assorted hooks, some split-shot sinkers, a few small artificial lures, and a couple small bobbers. This simple yet basic fishing gear is small and lightweight while still being effective for freshwater fish like bluegill and sunfish.

Another type of “fishing reel” that I have grown fond of using is the Yo-Yo Fishing Reels. Several of these can be set and left alone while you go take care of other chores, like setting up camp or building a fire, and let’s face it having several lines in the water at once can only increase your chances of catching something.

Edible Plants

Every prepper should be able to identify, harvest, and use the edible and medical plants that grow wild in their area. Luckily, there are a number of great books with color photos and detailed information on this subject, but like with most things you’ll still need to go out and actually find, harvest and use these plants because nothing beats getting out in the field and doing it to gain lasting knowledge…

Here are two books, a video, and deck of cards that I recommend:

• The Forager’s Harvest: A Guide to Identifying, Harvesting, and Preparing Edible Wild Plants by Samuel Thayer
• Backyard Foraging: 65 Familiar Plants You Didn’t Know You Could Eat by Ellen Zachos
• Wild Cards: Edible Wild Foods
• The Forager’s Harvest – Edible Wild Plants 2 DVD Set by Samuel Thayer

Have you always dreamed about starting your morning with farm fresh eggs and fresh milk from your own cow or goat? Even on a small homestead, you can make that a reality.

And you will be happy you did. Raising animals will not only provide a source of food and milk for your family, it will provide you with a sense of independence as well as life experiences you can pass down to your children.

Before you begin, we will help you with the questions you need to ask and the planning that goes into bringing farm animals to your homestead.

1. Can you have farm animals on your property?

For obvious reasons, this is the first question you need to go over. Earlier in the series, we talked about purchasing your homestead. And one of the questions to look into was whether you can have farm animals, or anything beyond cats and dogs, outside. But maybe you are inheriting land or want to turn your current property into a homestead.

Many cities and HOAs will have covenants against any type of farm animals on your property. Make sure you aren’t on the wrong side of the law.

2. What do you have space for?

The size of your property will limit what you can have on your homestead. While you will likely see or hear differences on how much space each animal needs, just take this in to consideration.

As you plan what you want, make sure your property can handle it.

3. What animals do you want?

After you have figured out what you have space for, consider what animals you want on your homestead. And for what purpose.

For a smaller homestead, chickens are probably the most common or popular animal, to begin with. They will provide eggs and meat. Ducks will do the same, while rabbits will provide meat.

As you expand your homestead, animals like goats and sheep will be a great addition. Not only do goats provide milk and cheese, they will also clear land for you. And sheep will provide wool as a bonus.

Cows will provide a source of milk or meat. But they will also require more space and more feed. And then there are pigs. They are more work than traditional livestock, but they are both helpful for your homestead and provide great meat.

A wildcard is bees. They are great to have around your garden and, of course, you get free honey. Just make sure you know what you are doing as bees are pretty dangerous. You can learn more about beekeeping here. (affiliate link)

4. How big should I start?

It’s easier to start with smaller animals, like chickens and ducks, before moving up to cows or goats.

We understand the urge to start as big as you can but recommend taking your time. You will likely face your biggest obstacles in the first couple years. It will just be easier to correct that with a smaller flock or herd and then build up with time.

5. How can I involve young kids?

There is just something about young children and animals. For most children, their connection to animals will be picture books or an occasional trip to the zoo. But not on the homestead.

Kids can help by collecting eggs, filling up livestock waterers, feeding the animals, cleaning the chicken coop and milking the family cow. And the bigger kids can help with processing meat. Along the way, they will learn where food comes from and the values of hard work and responsibility.

By preparing, and taking your time early on, the animals on your homestead will provide a great source of food, milk, and pleasure for you and your family for years to come.

If you want even more in-depth prepping then please check out my best selling 176-page book “How To Survive The End Of The World As We Know It – Gear, Skills, and Related Know-How. It’s available in paperback and well as Amazon Kindle.

When you are starting life on the homestead, you quickly learn that common food and yard scraps that most people throw away can be very beneficial.

That is certainly true with composting. If you don’t know how to compost, it’s not difficult and we can guarantee it will be well worth your time and energy.

What are the benefits?

First, you are reducing waste. Estimates say that common food and yard waste make up anywhere between 25 and 50 percent of what people throw away. That means we’re using energy and fuel to transport this waste to a landfill, potentially releasing methane gas. When we don’t have to.

But it will also help your homestead. Applying compost to your soil will make your vegetables and trees very happy and help them grow. It is free fertilizer. Now, you can purchase compost from any big box retailer or nursery, but this is free. And when you have a large garden, it certainly adds up.

If you’re sold on composting but don’t know where to begin, read on.

1. Choose the right location

The location won’t necessarily make or break your compost, but there a couple points to consider to make this easier for you. One, choose a location relatively close to the house. We don’t mean one step from the back door, but when you will be taking regular trips from the house to the compost, I like to make life easier on myself.

The amount of sun won’t necessarily help or hurt your compost, but sun increases the temperature and can cause your pile to dry out. You can remedy that by watering more frequently, but it’d be easier to just choose a different location. We recommend partial shade.

2. Know what goes in a compost

As we have said, most food scraps and yard waste can go in your compost. The eligible items are generally broken down into brown material and green material. And you can probably guess what that includes.

The most common “browns” include dead leaves, pine needles, straw, hay, twigs or bark, sawdust, wood chips and pine cones. With the browns, make sure you chop them up as they tend to break down pretty slowly.

The most common “greens” include grass clippings, fresh leaves, fruits and vegetable peels, coffee grounds, melon rinds and even Christmas greenery.

Your post can be layered, one-row green, one-row brown, or mixed, where the browns and the greens are mixed together. And we recommend an equal amount of browns and greens.

3. It’s easy to build

You can purchase a pre-made compost bin from a big-box retailer or Amazon. This will be the quickest and easiest way to begin.

But if you want to save money, this is something you can do yourself in little time. You generally want a wood frame and wood or wire sides. If you’re looking for free materials, four pallets and some type of twine or wire will do the trick.

4. Maintaining your compost

Use a shovel or pitchfork to regularly turn your compost and mix the layers. A way that people ensure they’ve reached the entire pile is to move it into a new bin. You should turn your compost about once a month. Some do it more frequently, some less. But that is a good average number.

You also need to make sure the compost is kept moist, especially in the dry summer months. We recommended a shadier area so you don’t have to water as much, but you will still need to water in most climates.

5. Using your compost

Now that you’ve put this work into your compost, it’s time to make it work for you. If you have kept a regular schedule of turning the compost, your compost will probably be ready in three or four months depending on your climate and the time of year.

Once your compost is ready, you can now add it to the soil of your vegetable gardens, trees or other plants and shrubbery. Just how much compost you should add will depend on your soil, but we generally recommend adding about one to two inches to the soil.

If you follow these easy and practical steps, you will be composting in no time. And you will be happy you did.

If you want even more in-depth prepping and homesteading information then please check out my best selling 176-page book “How To Survive The End Of The World As We Know It – Gear, Skills, and Related Know-How. It’s available in paperback and well as Amazon Kindle.

You might also like:

• Start Saving Today and Live Your Homesteading Dream Tomorrow
• Smart Spending for Preppers Looking for Financial Freedom
• How Do You Handle Emergency Food Storage?

by Patient Momma

I have heard of and read some sad accounts of people purchasing property to begin their dream of homesteading, only to find thousands of dollars of expenses facing them. I’ve watched some of those ‘Homestead Rescue’ programs on TV and wondered what in the world were those people thinking?  This article is based on the premise that you’ve decided to get out of the city, to purchase some land with an existing on-grid residence and start homesteading in the country.

Life Style Change

Moving to the country and establishing a homestead is a major lifestyle change for the entire family.  I strongly suggest a family meeting and the reality of the situation be discussed before you even think about looking at property. If you have to work outside the homestead, how long will the commute take?  If children are part of the family visit the appropriate schools and find out if there is bus service to the prospective homestead or decide if you want to homeschool.  If your spouse is not in total agreement with to moving to the country you might be better off just getting yourself some acreage with a hunting cabin for a BOL.

Are you healthy and physically strong enough to do the work a homestead requires?  How far are the closest gas station, grocery store and doctor?   What are the roads like?  The further away from civilization you get, the worse the roads are.  Many country roads are gravel and oil or just gravel or dirt with blind curves and hills.  The countryside is dark…there are no street lights, no painted lines or curbs. Just realize that you leave convenience behind when you move to a country homestead. The road I have to travel is dangerous in the daytime and deadly at night.

When You Decide to Make the Move to the Country

You have been looking for your country property for a while and you made the effort to look at the property in person, not just on the internet. You have finally narrowed your choices down to two places you think would make a good homestead. This article is about taking a serious look at the homestead you are about to buy, so you can put some contingencies in your contract, if needed, to protect yourself.

No offense meant, but most city folks are somewhat oblivious to how things work and what goes on in the country on a regular basis.  Not because they are stupid; but because they are used to the city proving water, electricity, sewage, trash removal, etc.; all for a hefty fee of course.  They are also used to the landlord fixing the all the problems in their abode.  Unless folks were raised in the country, they usually don’t have any experience with well pumps, septic tanks, propane stoves/heaters, wood stoves, plus big bugs, mice, snakes and predators, etc.

Ask Questions

Is the property within city limits or is it just part of the county? It is possible to have a city mailing address but not be in city limits.  So what; why do you care?  If you are within city limits you are subject to city taxes plus all the little annoying rules; like you can’t have chickens, you can’t burn your trash, you can’t fence your property, you can’t build an outbuilding or anything without a permit, etc.  Most country properties are zoned as farm or ranch; but some are not.  You should have a list of questions the seller or the realtor needs to answer so you can make an informed decision.

If you are negotiating with a For Sale By Owner (FSBO), make sure you are familiar with the standard real estate contract for your state.  If you are purchasing a FSBO in a new state, you should consider having a real estate attorney work your contract for your protection.  Country folks are not as dumb as TV makes them out to be.

Inspect the Property

Looking at pictures on the internet is not accurate enough to base a purchasing decision on. You must have an in-person visit to see if 13 of the 15 acres advertised are up a mountain and only suitable for goats. When you see a photo of a beautiful view of a river and rolling hills, remember that the view is looking down and the advertised property has been carved out of a mountain that you have to drive up and down on a dirt or gravel road in all types of weather.

When you go to look at the homestead walk or drive the property (ATV or 4-wheel drive truck) and have the seller point out all the water sources. Is there a pond or lake? Does it flood over in the spring runoff or go dry in the summer heat? Is there a stream moving through the property; if so what is upstream and does it flood during the spring runoff?  Are there natural springs on the property or waterfalls off the hill or mountain? Is there wildlife roaming the property or is it strictly cattle pasture?

Inspect the Residence

When negotiating on the property, make sure you know the condition of the residence’s structure, roof, electrical wiring, plumbing, water well and septic system.  If you are not knowledgeable, you will need to get specific people to do these inspections as the average city home inspector, who charges $400-$700, does not do structural, wiring, pipes, wells or septic. The team of experts you need to do each inspection (structural, roof, electrical, plumbing, water well, septic) will add up to about the same cost but it would cost you more if you use a standard housing inspector plus the team of experts. These inspections can save your sanity and thousands of dollars.

Do not purchase anything without knowing the particulars of these categories. If you are purchasing a vacant property and using a realtor, insist that the realtor find out information from the seller or from public records.  The realtor is paid on commission so make s/he do some work.  If s/he cannot find the information on these critical systems, insist on the seller buying a Home Warranty Insurance Package covering all of these areas. A country package covering well and septic etc., is more expensive than the usual appliance package because they are extra riders to the basic policy.  This protects you for a year. Maybe you want the property in spite of the failures or unknowns, but at least make sure you are aware of the true condition so you know what you’re facing.

Get a Structural Inspection

If the residence is more than 15 years old, first on your priority list should be a structural inspection. Earth settles and the structure moves with it.  Sometimes older residences were built without spec and codes so determine whether the house sits on a cement slab, footers or other type of foundation. If you set a ball on the floor and it rolls across the floor that is a problem. The structural engineer will tell you what the problems are, which could be anything from foundation cracks to failed supports, sinkholes, crooked walls, warped beams, even fire damage. Sometimes the seller is not aware of the structural problems but you need to be before you sign on the dotted line.

Have the Roof Inspected

Make sure you get a reliable company to inspect your roof.  Depending on the location and age of the house it could be a lot worse than it looks. There is no substitute for an expert walking the roof for inspection. In my case the roof had to be replaced because of hail damage and the seller’s insurance paid $10,000 for the replacement.

Beware of DIY Seller Projects

A lot of country properties have homeowner DIY projects done to them; so you need to have experts look at the different things.  My brother bought a 23-year-old house only to late find it had aluminum wiring which could not handle the load of a modern home.  It cost him $15,000 to have the house rewired.

I anticipated the wiring needed updating in the 40-year old house.  I had an electrician come to inspect the wiring and give me a quote on what needed to be replaced, to install new outlets and to put in an another circuit breaker box to safely carry the additional load of newer appliances and multiple refrigerators and freezers. While he was there we found the wiring to barn was run underground from the over-loaded house circuit and without a protective PVC pipes.  The entire system for the tool shed to the barn had to be rewired to meet county code. If the work is required to meet county code, the seller usually has to pay for the update; but it is negotiable.

Inspect the Plumbing and Pipes

If your prospective home has a crawl space somebody needs to get dirty and look at the pipes and vapor barriers to see if they need fixing.  If your location gets cold snowy winters, you really need to have the plumbing pipes wrapped before you move in. It will save you from having to drip the faucets and spigots when the temps drop way down and the pipes are liable to freeze.  In my location we have very mild winters with very few nights below freezing so I decided I didn’t need every pipe in the crawl space wrapped and insulated. However, I found out I did need the exposed outdoor pipes protected and had to do that myself the day before the temperatures dropped to record lows in my area.

Check Out the Water Well

Most country homesteads use well water not city water.  Of course, you ask the seller how old is the well pump and how deep was the well drilled.  Some counties require paperwork when a well is drilled and installed; some don’t.  But checking the records in the county courthouse may give the date the well was drilled or motor last replaced, which is a big help to you.  Unfortunately, the well guy cannot stick a camera down the pipe and see if something is wrong. The well is either pumping or it isn’t.  Changing out the well pump is time-consuming and if the well guy is going to pull 100’ or 140’ of pipes to get to the motor, you might as well have the entire system replaced.   If the property does not have electric power to test the well, just assume it is not working and negotiate the price of a new pump and/or well drilling in the offer.

The more use the well gets the faster the pump wears out.  For example, if your well is used by two people for house water and washing cars it may last 10-12 years.  But if you have 5 or 6 people in your family and are additionally turning the spigots on and off by watering the garden, the animal barns, outbuildings or filling pasture water troughs from one well, the pump will wear out much faster. Depending on where you live, replacing just the well pump can run you around $1,000 to $4,000 depending on the depth of the well. Drilling a new well can cost between $3,000 to $15,000 or higher depending on your location and geology of the ground.  It’s important to be informed before you buy.

What is Your Backup for Water Delivery?

Another priority is your water backup system(s). Ask the seller if they have a backup if the electricity goes out (most well pumps run on electricity) or the pump fails.  We added two backup water systems after we moved in. Our DIY rainwater catchment system is a simple series of gutters, downspouts, and barrels. The rain rolls off the metal roofs of our outbuildings into gutters which have downspouts into 55-gallon food grade barrels. Each barrel sits up on concrete blocks and has a spigot to drain water or attach a hose.  Our redundant off-grid water system is a separate well with a Simple Pump, which is out of sight in an outbuilding.

Know the Age and Condition of the Septic Tank

The age and condition of the septic system is important to know.  The older the septic the stronger the chance of having trouble; which is something you don’t ever want to experience. The size of the septic depends on how many bathrooms, the number of people living in the home and how new the kitchen is; meaning is there a dishwasher, garbage disposal, automatic ice makers, etc. If you don’t know when the septic was last serviced, go by these fabled words: when in doubt, pump it out!  It is better if you can negotiate this action as a part of the selling contract, just like you would a termite inspection.

If the septic system is really old, it is possible the tank may be compromised. A friend purchased an older property and found out the hard way that tree roots had damaged the tank and over run the drain field. An instant $15,000 bill, which homeowners insurance may not pay unless you have a rider. The property I purchased did not have a septic tank; they had the old country system of a pipe running out to the woods.  I refused to buy the property unless they put in a septic system, which the seller did.  On average, a septic tank needs to be cleaned out every 4 or 5 years; but, if you have a house full of females, it only takes 2-3 years to fill up.

Inspect the HVAC System

If the residence has an HVAC system, have it checked out by a reputable person/firm. Just because you can feel hot or cold air coming out the registers doesn’t mean the system works properly.  A new heating/cooling system costs from $5,000 to $13,000 for the average 3 bed/2+bath house, depending on the quality you purchase.  Getting it repaired vs buying a new system can be negotiated with the seller.  When you call for a vendor inspection appointment be sure to ask what the service visit costs; because driving an hour each way to the country is not free.

Check Out the Wood Stove

Depending on the age of the wood stove it may or may not have a blower system.  It may or may not have fire bricks.  If it has tempered glass on the door, check the stuff that is holding the glass in. I say stuff because it varies by age, brand and if it meets current code. If the stove is free-standing, the stove pipe to the outside needs to be checked for cracks or holes so you don’t die in your sleep from carbon monoxide poisoning.  If the pipes are rusted they should be replaced. The insides should also be cleaned to avoid a stove fire which could burn your house down.

If the wood stove is in a fireplace, make sure the flue lining is cleaned and solid. If it has blowers have the wiring inspected and the motor cleaned. It is not very expensive to have the stove, pipes and motor serviced and it is worth it!  Depending on where you live and who your insurer is you may have to have a special rider to your policy if you have a wood stove.

Look at the Barn and Out Buildings

Does the property have an existing barn?  Does it have existing outbuildings? What condition are they in? If you are planning to farm or ranch you will need these structures.  A small metal barn can start at $20,000 and go upwards.  Building an 8’x10’ wood outbuilding will cost you around $500 for materials if you build it; more if you hire a helper.  If you buy a pre-built 10’x16’ metal shed it can run between $1800 to $3000, depending on quality.

Security of a Storm Shelter

High on your list of priorities should be a storm shelter or safe room.  Once you have been through a severe storm that rips your house apart while you cower in the bathtub with a mattress over your head, you won’t live anywhere without one.  Your location will determine whether it is a deep basement, a mid-house safe room or an outside storm shelter.

My location gets a lot of thunderstorms, which can spawn tornadoes.  The existing shelter was an outside concrete and steel framed storm shelter dug in the hillside. I also had a small basement dug as a backup.  I recently saw a new house being built near a town which had a concrete block safe room built in the middle of the house.

How Far is the Fire Department?

You should ask the seller or the realtor how far away is the nearest fire station and does it have a water truck.  There are very few fire hydrants out in the country so the fire department needs to bring the water.  Other items that are critical for country living are fire extinguishers and lots of them.  The further away from a town you are, the more fire extinguishers you should have.  I currently have about 8 scattered throughout the house and barn and I’m ordering a few more for the outbuildings. It is better to get the rechargeable ones; they cost a little more but don’t expire.

If you are buying in dry, wild fire country, you should identify methods of protecting your property.  I know people who lost a home and then rebuilt using concrete block and slate roof.  I have also read about folks who use sprinkler systems in the woods around their houses.  That old phase better-safe-than-sorry applies when you live in the country because your house could burn to the ground before the rescue/fire department/sheriff gets to you.

Backup Power Systems

Many country homes get their power from an electric cooperative via above-ground wires, aka telephone poles, which are prone to failure during any type of a storm. During storm season our power goes out, but usually for less than 48 hours.  Having a backup power system keeps everyone calm and systems working.  Again, it depends on your location on what you get.  Do you have enough sun for solar, wind for turbines or do you want to use a generator?  For short-term emergencies (+/- 3 months) we have a propane standby generator for the house and a portable generator for the barn.  The smaller outbuildings are solar powered.  We are still trying to figure out the best system or method for a long-term grid-down electrical outage.

Is There Protective Fencing?

Another item I consider a priority is fencing.  Living out in the country you are going to have loose critters; e.g., dogs, cats, goats, pigs, raccoons, armadillos, foxes, opossums, coyotes, deer and the occasional lost cow.  Those who choose to be in or near the mountains will have more dangerous critters such as wolves, big cats, bears, etc.

There are no leash laws in the country and some folks let their animals free range.  Many domestic animals roaming free are not vaccinated and wild animals carry a host of diseases.  A 5’ or 6’ agra fence will keep your family and animals safely inside your compound and most of the stray critters away from your house.

If you have deer in your area you will need an 8’ fence around the garden; a plastic deer fence will do.  A friend of mine used a couple of strands of hot wire which kept the deer out, but not the smaller critters.  At a previous home I had an 8’ plastic deer fence around my garden. One morning I looked out and saw a raccoon trying to climb the plastic fencing. The fencing swayed back and forth from the weight of the critter and the coon finally gave up and jumped off.

Around your chicken coops, I recommend a 5’ agra fence plus hot wire at 2 levels. The top-level hot wire discourages the owls, hawks and falcons from waiting for a chicken dinner, while the lower hot wire fends off the raccoons, skunks and opossums. For pigs we use 4’ agra fencing with a low-level hot wire. For goats you need strong fencing and multiple ways of locking the mischievous buggers in. Believe me; a stray goat can destroy any garden in one day!  If you run cattle or keep horses you will need 4 or 5 strand barbed wire fencing to contain them.  All this fencing costs money which adds up so if the property has existing fencing that is a plus.

Check Out the Closest Neighbors

Out in the country, the nearest neighbors might be across the road or 10 miles down the road.  I strongly urge you to make the drive and stop by.  Pull in the drive and blow the horn a couple of times until someone gets up off the porch or comes out of the house.  Stand by the car, wave and say hello.  If s/he waves or says hello go and talk to him/her.  If s/he seems contentious or yells for you to get off the property, seriously consider if you want that person as a neighbor.

Inquire about Communications

Depending on the population of the area, the communication systems will vary.  If you are phone, TV and Internet-dependent you need to ask where the closest cell phone tower is and if there is cable laid nearby.  You may have to get satellite TV/internet service and maybe a landline phone.  In my area, we are 12 miles too far from cell tower range and while in sunny weather we can call out and receive text messages, most of our incoming calls roll directly to voice mail.  Satellite internet out in the country is priced by data amounts so if you have game addicts in your house you need to figure out an alternative to online gaming.  If you go over your allotted data amount it slows to dial up speed or you can buy more data at sky high prices.

Be Aware

I hope this article has helped you to consider some of the variables involved when purchasing a country homestead. While setting up and running a homestead is challenging; it is also exciting. Thinking through these basic issues will help you negotiate your purchase.  Be wise and be aware before you buy!

You should also read:

• Moving Toward Self-Reliance for the Working Poor
• You Don’t Need To Be Wealthy to Homestead
• Start Saving Today and Live Your Homesteading Dream Tomorrow
• The Philosophy Of Tiny House Living – Things To Consider Before Going Tiny

When you are buying a small homestead

Are you ready to begin homesteading? You’re joining a growing number of Americans who are returning to our roots and living off what the land provides.

So how do you get started? It’s kind of obvious but you need land. In order to find the perfect piece of land, you should consider all the benefits associated with it such as increasing land value, lower cost of maintenance and especially freedom to utilize it in any way you want.

The good news is you don’t need thousands, or even hundreds of acres, to have a fully functional homestead. Indeed, you can homestead on less than ten acres. But it’s not something you should take lightly or do quickly.

As you begin, there are several factors to consider when you are looking for your perfect homestead.

What size property do you need?

The first question you need to ask yourself is what size of property you need for your homestead. And the key word is ‘need,’ and not necessarily ‘want.’ My focus is on smaller homesteads, those less than 10 acres, but there is still a significant difference between an acre or two and 10.

On a small property, it will be tough to have room for cattle to graze, particularly if you are using the property for anything else. You would likely have room for a family milk cow, but not a lot more.

So just spend time considering what your homestead will look like. And what you want it to look like in the future. Have those plans drawn out so you don’t overbuy or underbuy.

How far out do you want to be?

You also need to consider location. Homesteading on a decent sized piece of property is generally not something you do in a subdivision. That means you will likely be moving out of town. The question is, how far out can you be, or do you want to be?

Do you want neighbors? For some, they want to be as far away as they can be. That usually works well because prices would tend to be less the more rural you get (in most places). But think of life’s basic necessities. Are you okay with having to drive 30 or 40 miles to a drug store? Maybe 15 or 20 miles is more your liking. Just make sure you are happy with the location before you sign the dotted line.

Do you want to live off the grid?

For some, the beauty of homesteading is the ability to be totally self-sufficient. You can do that.

Others don’t want to take it quite to that extreme and want electricity, water, relatively accessible roads. Keep this in mind when you spot that dream piece of land.

How much do you want to spend?

As with any real estate transaction, you need to have a budget. You don’t want to make go broke homesteading, but it’s more than just the final price tag of the property to pay attention to.

How much work needs to be done? Not just to the house, but to the property. Does it have outbuildings, or will you need to build them, or at least put money in repairing them? Does the land need to be cleared out? It stands to reason you will need to put some money into making the property right for your needs.

What kind of land do you need?

When you think about the plans for your homestead, consider what you need the land to provide. If you are relying on a wood stove to heat the house, do you have sufficient trees for your needs? If you will have cattle, does it have open land for grazing?

These are just a couple examples of questions you need to ask. In most instances, you can work the land to make it right for you, but that might not be preferable.

How much work do you want to do in preparing the land?

As a follow up to the previous question, think about the work you want to put in. One response might be that you just want to purchase a small farm or homestead that is being used in a fashion similar to what you envision.

On the other end of the spectrum, you can start completely new. You can buy property that you need to clear, build a house and any outbuildings and bring in water and electricity. This will allow you to have a homestead drawn to your exact specifications but will be time-consuming and costly.

Is the property appropriately zoned?

Make sure you can have chickens, cattle or other livestock on your property. In some instances, you need to make sure you can have outbuildings. The further out you go, the less of an issue this will be. But do make sure you check this off your list.

What about Internet access?

If you are running either a full-time or side business from your homestead, or maybe just a blog, you want to have reasonably fast Internet speeds. Unless you want to spend all of your free time on your computer.

Does it make sense for your needs?

By purchasing a homestead, you are committing to a new lifestyle. It can be a great experience and something you can pass on to your children.

But, you want it to work for you. If you want to be close to school, be close to a school. If you want to be close to town, be close to town. If you have no need for a hundred acres, don’t buy a hundred acres.

This property needs to meet your needs. The previous questions served more as a checklist or bullet points to ponder as you find a property. This is a little deeper. This is about finding a property that is right for you and your family.

You don’t want to make a purchase and regret it. By thinking about these questions, you will be off to a great start in your new life on the homestead.

If you want even more in-depth prepping and homesteading information then please check out my best selling 176-page book “How To Survive The End Of The World As We Know It – Gear, Skills, and Related Know-How. It’s available in paperback and well as Amazon Kindle.