Composite lumber helps outdoor projects resist water, weather, and sun
By Steve Maxwell
How many times have you built an outdoor project out of wood, only to be disappointed by the deterioration that hit after...
Currants and Gooseberries
By Sylvia Gist
Issue #155 • September/October, 2015
Currants and gooseberries all belong to the genus Ribes (pronounced "rye-bees"). There are varieties of currants and gooseberries...
Doesn’t anyone remember Tom Paine
By Robert L. Williams
Issue #19 • January/February, 1993
Many years ago, before I came to my senses and left public education for good, I was...
Of guns and snakes
By Massad Ayoob
Issue #151 • January/February, 2015
Mas safely kills a rattlesnake in a populated area. (Note angle of gun and trajectory.) Pistol is a...
Gee-Whiz: Alcohol
By O.E. MacDougal
Backwoods Home
Did early man first cultivate grains just to get drunk?
The brewing of beer is older than civilization and goes back at...





























































