Publications

    We have some great publications and special reports to help you with your own personal projects in the country.

    We have created these texts to guide you step by step through some of the tasks that we learned through trial and error. Many times there was little or no information available for us to reference, so to help others along, we decided to provide informative reports to our readers.

    While most of our information is provided free of charge, we do ask a small price for special reports to help cover our administrative costs to keep this website up and running. We appreciate your support and look forward to serving you!

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Featured

featuredimage Discovery Survival Show - The Colony 2010

What would you do in the wake of a global catastrophe? Even if you survived it, could you survive ...

featuredimage Solution For Punctured Vacuum Sealed Bags

If you are dehydrating vegetables like potatoes or carrots, you may have discovered that your vacuum sealer bags become punctured ...

featuredimage Careful Planning Reaps Great Rewards

I received the Albertson's Grocery Ad in the mail yesterday. Upon a quick scan, I noticed that there were ...

featuredimage Collectible Liberty Blue China

Staffordshire Liberty Blue, dinnerware tableware pattern was a 1976 promotional premium item made to tie in with the 1776-1976 bicentennial ...

featuredimage Vacuum Sealer Bags from DC Sales Enterprises

I just received my first order of vacuum sealer bags from DC Sales Enterprises, Inc.  After spending way too much ...

featuredimage Sweet Potato Harvest

This has been our best year ever for growing sweet potatoes.  I'm not sure which elements came together to make ...

featuredimage Blackberry/Peach Cobbler

Here's a great recipe for your spring and summer bounty of blackberries. If you do not have access to ...

featuredimage Beautiful Fabrics Designed With A Country Flair

Looking for that perfect fabric for your baby room décor? Or are you really into shabby chic country style, but ...

featuredimage Dried Beans - The How To’s of Preparing, Cooking and Storing

  While searching for some general advice about storing dried beans and cooking times, I found this outstanding 2-part article at ...

Gardening

Carrots Are In… or should I say out (of the ground)

Robert harvested the carrots last week, and it was a great hall! I’ve already cleaned 3 freezer bags full of carrots and now must decide how to store them.

Alternative Energy

Solar Power - Even In The Shadows?

As we see energy costs go up, realize peak oil is imminent, and green jobs become mainstream, new innovative ideas will emerge from the private sector to meet the needs of a growing population.  Take a look at this February 17th report from Commodity Online about new technology that will maximize the output of PV [...]

Herbs

Bee Balm (Monarda didyma)

Bee balm, or Oswego tea, was the tea substitute of choice for American colonists who wre boycotting black tea just before the Revolutionary War.
This perennial plant grows well in zones 3 to 9.  The plant grows 3 to 5 feet tall and is classified by most herb sources as easy to grow with minimal attention [...]

Health Topics

Leaving In A Hurry - How To Secure Your Home Before “Bugging Out”

While most preparations are centered around being at home, there is always the possibility that you could have to evacuate, and in a hurry.  Many events can trigger a mandatory evacuation warning including a severe weather event, chemical spill, uncontrolled fire, floods, mud slides, explosion, gas leak, terror event.. and so many other things.  You [...]

Wildlife

Red-Tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis)

The most common large hawk in North America, most birds are year round residents except in the northernmost areas. This is one of the most variable of the hawks as far as plumage is concerned. Adults of most forms can be told by the rusty red tail. In general the species [...]

Emergency Preparedness

YOU WANT ME TO STORE HOW MUCH?? - Set An Achievable Food Storage Goal

One of the reasons that people put off making their food storage plan is that they set out with goals that seem unachievable. I know when I first started figures like “50 Pounds of Powdered Milk” and “100 Pounds of Potatoes” per person, per year.. I almost hyperventilated! My first thought was “Where [...]

Cooking

Cake In A Jar

This is an old-time favorite that I remember my family doing with cans and with jars. You can make this treat with either a purchased cake mix, or your favorite “from-scratch” recipe. I recently found the cake-in-a-jar technique in one of my back issues of Mother Earth News and decided to share it [...]

Texas History

Samuel H. Walker (1817-1847)

A native of Maryland, Samuel Walker joined the military fighting Alabama’s Creek Indians in the 1830’s. In 1842, he joined the Texas Rangers in Galveston and took part in border skirmishes with the Mexican army.
Walker fought in an 1844 battle near the Pedernales River, during which 15 Rangers using Colt six-shooters defeated 80 Comanches. [...]

Reference Library

Review of “Gardening When It Counts – Growing Food in Hard Times” by Steve Soloman

Review of “Gardening When It Counts – Growing Food in Hard Times” by Steve Soloman
This book has an excellent introductory chapter that gives a good feel of the entire book. I had to read the introduction several times because it resonated with me yet contradicted the way I have been gardening for years. Being [...]