Backyard Homesteading All-in-One For Dummies

Todd Brock is a television writer and producer whose work includes PBS's Growing a Greener World, DIY Network's Fresh From the Garden, and HGTV's Ground Breakers. He is the coauthor of Building Chicken Coops For Dummies.

• Introduction 1About This Book 1Foolish Assumptions 2Icons Used in This Book 2Beyond the Book 3Where to Go from Here 3Book 1: Creating a Garden 5Chapter 1: Planning Your Garden 7Determining Location and Size 8Deciding On a Layout 15Thinking Outside the Garden Bed 19Keeping Critters Out 26Assembling Tools 33Chapter 2: Deciding What to Grow 41Understanding Veggie Varieties 41Deciding How Much to Grow 43Succeeding with Vegetables 45Planting Other Small-Scale Crops 58Growing Herbs for and in the Kitchen 62Chapter 3: Preparing to Plant 65Razing Your Garden Spot 66Analyzing and Improving Your Soil 69Turning Your Soil 77Looking Ahead at Watering Options 79Fencing It In 86Planning for Pathways 94Chapter 4: Planting 95Timing Your Planting Wisely 96Choosing Seeds or Transplants 102Deciding on Your Seeding Method and Decoding a Seed Packet 103Starting Seeds Indoors 104Transplanting Indoor Seedlings and Starter Plants 112Sowing Seeds Directly in Your Garden 116Planting Guidelines 120Chapter 5: Growing Your Garden 125Introducing Your Inner Gardener to the Watering Basics 126Digging Into Composting 128Fertilizing Your Vegetable Garden 135Keeping Your Plants Cozy and Weed Free with Mulch 140Surveying Some Cool Farmer Techniques 145Knowing When to Harvest 151Chapter 6: Dealing with Weeds and Pests 155Fighting Weed Wars 156Keeping Good Bugs Nearby 158Battling Bad Bugs 159More Methods of Attack 164Chapter 7: Extending Your Season 171Covering Your Rows 172Using Cold Frames 173Going with Greenhouses 175Getting Your Feet Wet with Hydroponics, Aquaponics, and Aeroponics 178Book 2: Preserving the Harvest 181Chapter 1: Canning Basics 183Starting Successful Canning 183Gathering Your Canning Gear 185Putting Safety First 191Chapter 2: Water-Bath Canning 197Water-Bath Canning in a Nutshell 197Gearing Up for Water-Bath Canning 198Water-Bath Canning Step-by-Step 200Adjusting Your Processing Times at High Altitudes 206Canning Fresh Fruit (Yes, That Includes Tomatoes) 207Fresh Fruit Canning Recipes 211Jam, Chutney, Relish, and Salsa Recipes 223Chapter 3: Pressure Canning 231Understanding the Fuss about Low-Acid Foods 232Choosing a Pressure Canner 232Pressure Canning Step-by-Step 238Pressure Canning at Higher Altitudes 242Canning Vegetables 243Vegetable Canning Recipes 246Chapter 4: Pickling 269Perusing Pickling Ingredients 269Brining Education 272Adding Crunch to Your Food 274Pickling Equipment and Utensils 275Pickled Vegetable Recipes 275Chapter 5: Freezing 291Focusing on Freezing 291Giving Fruit the Freeze 295Frozen Fruit Recipes 298Blanching Perfect Vegetables 303Frozen Vegetable Recipes 304Freezing Fresh Herbs 316Chapter 6: Drying 319Opening the Door to Successful Food Drying 319Choosing a Drying Method 320Protecting the Life of Your Dried Food 324Snacking on the Run: Drying Fruit 325Dried Fruit Recipes 328Drying Vegetables for Snacks and Storage 338Dried Vegetable Recipes 340DIYing the Drying of Herbs 350Chapter 7: Root Cellaring and Storage 357Finding the Perfect Place for Cold Storage 357Following Simple Storage Rules 362Preparing Foods for Cold Storage 364Book 3: Making Your Own 369Chapter 1: Brewing Beer 371Setting Up Shop to Brew 372Getting to Know Your Ingredients 374Brewing Your First Batch 377Taking Hydrometer Readings 380Bottling Your Brew 383Chapter 2: Fermenting 389Getting Familiar with Fermentation 389Fermenting Essentials 390Cleaning, Sanitizing, and Sterilizing 392Fermenting Vegetables (including Sauerkraut and Kimchi) 393Starting Sourdough 401Mooving On to Dairy 405Raising a Glass to Fermented Beverages 416Chapter 3: Baking Bread 425Understanding Yeast Breads 425Mixing and Kneading Breads 428Encouraging Bread to Rise 430Shaping and Baking the Loaves 431Yeast Bread, Quick Bread, Muffin, and Biscuit Recipes 432Chapter 4: Making Candles and Soap 441Igniting Your Candlemaking Hobby 442Rolling Beeswax Candles 444Making Molded Candles 445Taking a Dip with Tapers 447Cleaning Up with Homemade Soap 450Book 4: Raising Animals 455Chapter 1: Introducing Beekeeping 457Breaking into Backyard Beekeeping 458Choosing the Right Hive 461Gearing Up for Beekeeping 467Chapter 2: Caring for Your Bee Colony 473Busying Yourself with Bee Activity 474Holding Out for Honey 481Harvesting Your Honey 485Swarming and Absconding 496Playing Doctor: Fighting Disease 498Battling Varroa Mites 502Colony Collapse Disorder 506Chapter 3: Introducing Backyard Chickens 509Thinking Through Chickenkeeping 510Chicken Breeds 516Analyzing the Anatomy of a Coop 525Chapter 4: Raising Your Chicken Flock 529Feeding Your Flock 529Raising Baby Chicks 536Pests and Predators 544Expecting Eggs (for Eating) 549Chapter 5: Opting for Other Animals 553Raising Rabbits 554Getting Your Goats 555Figuring Out Fowl: Ducks, Geese, and Turkeys 556Goin’ Fishin’ 558Book 5: Building It Yourself 559Chapter 1: Starting Small with Garden Projects 561Making an A-Frame Trellis 562Crafting the Ultimate Tomato Cage 563Building Raised Garden Beds 565Constructing a Cold Frame 567Elevating Your Rain Barrel on a Stand 568Organizing Made Easy with a Tool Wall 570Creating a Compost Bin (or Two) 573Whipping Up a Walk-In Hoop House 578Chapter 2: Building a Backyard Beehive 581Choosing Materials 582Protecting Your Hive with Paint and More 586Building the Kenya Top Bar Hive 587Chapter 3: Building a Chicken Coop 603Choosing Materials 604Selecting the Right Coop for Your Flock 611Constructing the Alpine A-Frame Coop 616Index 631