One of the most significant benefits of starting your seeds is the cost. However, that can quickly be overshadowed if you buy expensive grow lights and run them for months. With energy costs rising, the question arises: What about starting seeds without growing lights? It's possible, and in this ...
Roasted Root Vegetables Recipe
The roasted root vegetable recipe is a delicious dish you should make a staple in your home. It is a true garden-to-table recipe that is simple, delicious, and realistically adds to your self-sufficiency list. From garden to table Self-sufficiency is a fancy word that, in its true sense, no ...
Exploring Alternatives to Starting Seedlings Early
Once the winter holidays end, gardeners get excited to start preparing for the next growing season. While there is nothing inherently wrong with starting seeds early, more effective alternatives are worth exploring. In this blog post, we will explore these alternatives, and perhaps you will discover ...
Heating your Home with a Wood Stove in Town
As you know, we are an urban homestead in a small town in Alberta, Canada. It gets pretty cold here in the winter, and having heat is essential. Homesteaders in rural areas often rely on wood for heating, which makes sense if you have ample space for growing and storing it. But what about an urban ...
Simple Winter Compost Solution
Composting is like nature's recycling program, but it has a bit of a love-hate relationship with winter. You see, compost needs heat to do its magic. If it's not steaming hot before the temperature drops below freezing, your composting materials will just freeze. In that case, we're not composting ...
Do food growers need nutritional supplements?
Northern Homestead focuses on growing, preserving, and preparing nutritious food. Despite our cold climate and short growing season, we strive to have homegrown food year-round. We do not claim to be self-sufficient; instead, we enhance our diet with high-quality food in ways we can. A ...
Preparing Fruit Trees for Winter in a Cold Climate
Preparing fruit trees for winter in a cold climate is essential. We cultivate cold-hardy fruit trees in our cold climate (Zone 3). However, young trees may not have experienced a true cold winter yet, depending on their origin. We cover what qualifies as a cold-hardy tree and provide some reliable ...
End-of-Season Garden Update for 2024
The year 2024 has likely been the most challenging yet. While the gardening season in 2023 was difficult due to rough weather, 2024 has posed health challenges. I wasn't even sure if we would have a garden in the spring. Looking back, I think we should have kept our gardening efforts to a minimum. ...
Preparing the Garden for Winter in a Cold Climate
Preparing the garden for winter in a cold climate is essential for the soil and perennial plants. Since we are in Zone 3, winter temperatures can drop to -40 degrees. Although this extreme cold doesn't happen often in our area, it can occur after a warm spell when most snow melts. Therefore, ...
Repairing a Geodesic Dome Greenhouse
One of the advantages of a geodesic dome greenhouse is that it can be easily constructed. However, this also comes with a weakness, as it requires regular maintenance and repairs. The dome is built using struts that are typically 1-2 inches thick and 2-4 inches wide, which can be susceptible to rot. ...
