Articles - Backwoods Home Magazine

Where our farm animals come from

Build an Old-Fashioned Hotbed and Start Your Seeds in Style

By Roy Martin Issue #104 • March/April, 2007 A hotbed is a miniature greenhouse that is heated to protect new seedlings from cold. The hotbed differs...

Jackie’s Garden Primer

By Jackie Clay Issue #117 • May/June, 2009 The birds are singing. The sunshine makes the day feel soft and warm. The soil is mellow and...

Use Plastic to Get a Head Start on Corn in the...

the gee-whiz! page: Animals, humans, extraterrestrials, and tools

By O. E. MacDougal Issue #154 • July/August, 2015 There was a time when it was thought that a defining difference between humans and animals was:...

Farm baseball … with ghost runners!

Feeling nostalgic? Now you’ll rave! Here’s the story of Burma Shave.

Ribeye Steak with Chianti Sauce

Water development for the homestead: Ponds, cisterns, and tanks

Food security 101, part 3: Why I love my vacuum sealer (and more)

Is steam power in your future?

7 Solar Water Heating System Designs

Converting a Gasoline-Powered Rototiller to Electric

Picking a holster

By Massad Ayoob Issue #69 • May/June, 2001 One good thing about being out in the boonies by yourself is that you can carry a gun...

How to shoot a handgun accurately

Get a piece of history — An M1 Garand rifle

Firearms handling refresher Part III: Rifles

Teaching a 10-year-old to shoot

Gee-Whiz: Ice Ages, Past and Future

By O. E. MacDougal January/February 2016, Backwoods Home Most people don’t know that we’re currently in an ice age and have been for the last 2.58...

Avian Flu — How afraid of this

A doomsday scenario to sleep on

The attack on Colin Powell prompts questions I’m not supposed to ask

Three honest words: “I don’t know”

Loading the gun for a dictatorship

The state of freedom in America

Switch your family to goat’s milk

By Tanya Kelley Issue #128 • March/April, 2011 If you milk goats, there's no doubt you've heard it"Eww! Goat's milk! Gross!" To be perfectly honest, goat...

Forget the dog, chicken is man’s best friend

By Richard Blunt Issue #49 • January/February, 1998 The domestic chicken, or Gallus domesticus as the Romans called it, has lived with humans for centuries. It...

Are aliens stealing our honeybees?

Picking your pressure canner — All American or Presto?

Sew a baby quilt in two days… for a lifetime of memories

By Alice B. Yeager Tomatoes are a boon to mankind in health benefits. It doesn't matter whether they are the large or small varieties. Issue #93 • May/June, 2005 When we dig in...

Okra — Not Just for the South

By Alice B. Yeager Photos by James O. Yeager Issue #58 • July/August, 1999 No one is quite sure about how okra seeds came to this country. Okra is of African origin and the seeds could have...