Helpful tips for living without electricity, without municipal water supply and sanitation services.
I think it’s fair to say that we all enjoy good fruit, am I right? Of course, I am! They’re sweet and juicy, and they often look very appetising. Now, while there are many edible fruits in the wild, there are also a huge number of inedible plants which can cause serious health problems. So, … Read more
Cichorium intybus or common chicory is a member of the Asteraceae (daisy) family. It’s a perennial herb that typically has blue flowers – rare instances of chicory plants have white or pink flowers. The common chicory is native to Europe and the Mediterranean, and was introduced to the USA sometime in the 19th Century. There … Read more
It is always good to learn about the wild plants growing on and adjacent to your homestead. In many cases, these plants are edible, and can make a great addition to your salads, soups or stews, or great complement to the poultry and meats you raise on your homestead as well. One great pant you … Read more
Henbit is a delicate edible plant that is commonly referred to as a weed, as are most wild edible plants and herbs. One of around 50 plants found within in the Lamium species family, common henbit, also known as Lamium amplexicaule, is one of them. Common henbit is also known as greater henbit and henbit … Read more
Some plants are so common we cannot help but take them for granted. Sow thistle definitely falls into this category. Anyone with a decent stretch of field, or even a big lawn, is bound to have sow thistle growing somewhere in it. If you’ve just scoffed at it or attempted to root it out as … Read more
Could there be a plant that may not only help keep your skin, teeth, bones, fingernails, and hair healthy, but also aid in repairing those parts of the body? For centuries, herbalists have been using the horsetail plant in remedies designed to address those issues and many more. The horsetail plant (Equisetum hyemale in particular) … Read more
Hazelnuts are the fruits of the Hazel tree and are found in the more temperate parts of the Northern Hemisphere. They’re quite popular in the UK and in other parts of the world as flavorants for desserts and chocolates. A question many younger kids may have when foraging or hiking through nature is… are these … Read more
As we move into the upcoming spring season, the air is full with the scent of wet soil and blooming floors, and a new round of foraging begins. Even if you’re a novice forager, you should definitely know how to spot and harvest leeks. If you live somewhere on the east coast or in parts … Read more
Hiking, camping, and orienteering were a huge part of my childhood. I was camping at least two or three times a month and on hiking trails almost every weekend. These hiking trips took me through many different game reserves, and it was great! I could watch a herd of wildebeest (water buffalo) – from a … Read more
Common / roundleaf Greenbrier, or Smilax rotundifolia, is a perennial woody vine growing abundantly through the eastern United States and Canada. Greenbrier can grow up to 20ft so long as it has a tall surface to climb up. Just about every part of the vine is edible. Foragers have compared the taste of different parts … Read more
If you’re a homesteader or a forager, chances are you don’t pay too much attention to the shadier areas of the forests and fields you venture into. However, if you’re spending most of the time in patches of sun, you may be overlooking the handsome false Solomon’s Seal Plant. This native perennial is a great … Read more
Whether you’re a novice or expert forager, chances are you have access to sassafras nearby; it may even be growing on your property. However, despite how common sassafras is, it is often overlooked as a target for foraging; after all, most people forage plants, not trees! However, this easily identifiable trees is a really useful … Read more
Sometimes a plant can be so aggressively invasive and problematic that people can overlook its good qualities or refuse to believe any exist at all. Such is the case for Japanese knotweed, a plant so invasive that it has seemingly taken over wide swathes of the Eastern United States and elsewhere. In Southern New England, … Read more
There is a wide variety of primrose plants, with over 400 types included in the Primulaceae family. Majority of the various primroses grow in shades of yellow, but there are other varieties that are red, pink, white, purple, or sometimes orange. From the diverse lands of North America, evening primrose varieties were soon migrated overseas, … Read more
I know I’ve talked about this already but growing up on hiking trails and in campsites, there were only a few rules that we had to worry about. A crucial one was don’t touch anything! You don’t mess with Mother Nature, and she won’t mess with you. So, you’d think that with a name like … Read more
If you spend any time in the shady woods that surround your homestead, chances are you have run into patches of Solomon’s seal from time to time. This handsome plant looks like it belongs in your garden as much as it does beneath a thick canopy of trees, so it is no surprise that it … Read more