Learn about our 2022 projects and goals!
Our 2022 Homestead Goals, Planning, and Projects
Author: happyonthehomestead
Potting Mix: A Simple DIY Recipe
Learn what potting mix is and how to quickly and easily make your own.
Seed Starting Mix: What is it and how to make it?
Learn all about seed starting mixes and how to make your own!
Starting Seeds for the Home Garden
Our small homestead is located in upstate NY, in a zone 5 growing zone. We’re able to grow most annual vegetables, thanks in part to getting an early jump of the growing season by starting seeds indoors. Life on the homestead is often marked by the passing of the seasons. The stark contrast of
Keeping Chickens in the Winter
Keeping chickens in the summer is one of the most quintessential, charming, and memorable experiences – hens laying a bounty of eggs, your flock free ranging on a warm sunny afternoon, scratching at the earth, and hunting bugs. Chores are often quick and simple, and it’s a pleasant and rewarding experience to spend time with
Planting Garlic
It’s fall in upstate NY, the days are getting shorter, mornings are crisp and cool! We’ve had our first frost (and some snow flurries), which subsequently ended our summer garden, and we’re thinking about all the tasks that we need to complete before the real winter weather sets in. Warm sweaters, thick socks, and wood
How to Encourage Your Hens to go Broody
A fellow homesteader recently asked us on Instagram how they can encourage their hens to go broody. They wanted to hatch eggs and raise chicks without all the work of using an incubator or brooding the chicks. Hatching chicks in an incubator can be a lot of fun and raising chicks is a rewarding experience
No-bake Strawberry Jell-O Pie
One of my favorite summertime treats is a no-bake strawberry Jell-O pie. It’s sweet, tart, refreshing, wrapped up in a graham cracker crust, and perfect for a hot summer day. Made with fresh strawberries it’s got that classic taste of summer. Since this is a no-bake recipe, it’s perfect for the summertime when you don’t
Ten Benefits of growing in Raised Beds and Why We Have Raised Beds in our Garden
There are a multitude of benefits of gardening and growing plants in raised garden beds, keep reading to learn about ten benefits of having raised beds in the garden and why we have raised beds. Our first season on our homestead we put in a small and simple traditional garden. We borrowed a rototiller, picked
How to Build a Raised Garden Bed for Less Than $15.00
We do most of our gardening in raised beds – for us, this method works very well. We average around 148 frost free growing days in our zone 5, upstate NY garden. A short growing season, coupled with our poor draining, thick, heavy clay soil that is often waterlogged well into late May, means that