A root cellar is an excellent addition to any homestead. Ideally, it should be built into a hillside, featuring an entry space and a cellar room. However, most of us do not have that option. Modern houses often lack a cold room. What can you do? Build a root cellar in the basement. A relatively ...
Organizing and Storing Seeds
Organizing and storing seeds properly simplifies the busy sowing season and saves money by preventing the purchase of duplicates and prolonging the shelf life of the seeds we already have. There is no need to buy new seeds every year. When organizing seeds, you can go from very simple to super ...
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, ...
