Livestock

By the Pantry Team Start with the honest version, because most of what you will read about beef this month is written to frighten you. There is no beef shortage at the American grocery store. The cases are full. What has happened is that the price of what is in them has climbed past the … Read more

By the Aquaculture Team In fish farming, one truth outweighs all others: healthy water makes healthy fish. Nearly every problem a fish keeper faces, from stunted growth to disease outbreaks to sudden die-offs, traces back to water quality, because the water is the fish’s entire environment, supplying the oxygen they breathe and carrying away the … Read more

By the Aquaculture Team For the homesteader who wants to raise fish intensively in a controlled way, a recirculating aquaculture system, or RAS, offers a compelling approach: raising a lot of fish in a relatively small volume of water by continuously filtering and reusing that water rather than relying on a large natural pond. RAS … Read more

By the Aquaculture Team Raising your own fish for food may sound like an ambitious leap, but for the homesteader looking to produce protein, few options are as approachable as tilapia. Hardy, fast-growing, and remarkably forgiving of the mistakes beginners inevitably make, tilapia has become the go-to fish for small-scale aquaculture, letting a homestead produce … Read more

By the Beekeeping Team Here is the question every new beekeeper actually needs answered, and almost nobody asks first: what happens if you do nothing wrong and your bees still die over winter? It happens, often, and it is not always your fault. Beekeeping is not a set-and-forget homestead project like a rain barrel. It … Read more

By the Homestead Team Fresh milk from your own animals is one of the most rewarding products a homestead can provide, and it opens the door to butter, cheese, yogurt, and more. But dairy animals ask something of you that most livestock do not: an unwavering daily commitment, because a milking animal must be milked … Read more

By the Homestead Team Rabbits are one of the most efficient and practical sources of homegrown meat available to a small homestead, converting feed into lean protein faster and in less space than almost any other livestock. Quiet, compact, and prolific, they let even a modest property produce a steady supply of meat, along with … Read more

By the Homestead Team Chickens are among the most rewarding animals a homestead can keep, but their health, productivity, and safety depend heavily on one thing: a well-designed coop. The coop is the chickens’ home, shelter, and refuge from predators, and getting it right is the foundation of successful chicken keeping. A good coop keeps … Read more

By the Homestead Team Growing food without soil sounds futuristic, but hydroponics and aquaponics are proven, powerful methods that let a homestead produce fresh vegetables and, in the case of aquaponics, fish, year-round and in remarkably little space. These soilless growing systems offer real advantages in productivity, water efficiency, and control, and they can grow … Read more

By the Homestead Team Adding animals to a homestead is a major step toward self-reliance, providing food, materials, and a renewable source of protein that a garden alone cannot match. But not all livestock suit a beginner or a small property, and choosing the right animals to start with makes the difference between a rewarding … Read more