When author and homesteader Nicole Faires decided to retrofit an old school bus and tour America’s small farms with her husband and two small children, she expected to learn a lot, be inspired, and have some fun. But what she found disturbed her. Mismanaged small farms; clueless urbanites setting up shop to “get back to the land”; a mindless devotion to organic farming; and, ultimately, the discovery of just how dependent we are on corporations for our food.She began to understand how dangerous and fragile our food system really is. Climate change. Farmers retiring or going out of business. Corporations controlling our food distribution system while being protected from the consequences when they endanger our health. Skyrocketing food prices. Outsourced food production. With this admittedly bleak assessment of the current state of affairs, Nicole and her family decided to abandon the bus trip and instead start a farm. “I couldn’t tell people the solutions to our food crisis while I was traipsing around America taking photos. I had to live it,” Nicole says. And so the seeds for Food Confidential were sown.Our basic right to healthy food is at risk.What can we do? Written in an astute, engaging style, armed with examples from her own homesteading lifestyle, small farmer Nicole Faires’s Food Confidential gives you the tools to fight the intangible battles, as well as the practical ones.

How to maximize your food production in an urban environment.The idea of bringing agriculture into the city has been promoted by many on both sides of the political fence: proponents of sustainability and prevention of climate change as well as those who worry about government and social instability. To address the urgent need for a shift in the way our food is produced, The Ultimate Guide to Urban Farming offers a practical education in everything there is to know about city agriculture: how to grow a lot of food in any kind of urban living situation, from apartment to full-scale commercial venture.Subjects covered include:• Small scale vs. large scale agriculture• The economic, social, health, and environmental impacts of urban farming• Making the most of the space available• The latest technologies and developments in agriculture, including: hydroponics, vertical gardening, and aquaponics• Case studies and design concerns for community-based farming• The best plant species for cities and seasons• Beekeeping and small animals• Commercial agriculture and the business side of farming in a city environmentThis comprehensive guide will introduce readers to the rewarding possibilities of growing their own food, as well as dispel the falsehood that says we need faraway factory farms to produce everything we eat.

Take your garden to the next level—organic, native, and natural!Permaculture is an important but often misunderstood method of growing food and building homes in a manner that works with nature, rather than against it, to create beautiful, healthy, and useful gardens. Blending ecology, organic agriculture, green home design, appropriate technology, and biology can be confusing and overwhelming, but Permaculture for Beginners simplifies this vast field for practical application. This is a hands-on guide, taking the beginner through each step of the design process, so that anyone can apply permaculture principles to their own life. While the principles are simple, the in-depth topics cover every aspect of permaculture, including: Building green homes and passive solar design Growing edible plant communities and forest gardens Using no-till and natural farming methods Creating microclimates for extended growing seasons Raising livestock with ecological foraging techniques Transforming urban backyards into food-abundant oasesThis is a commonsense approach to sustainable living that creates a self-sufficient and low-effort home for the people that live there, whether in the city or the country. Permaculture for Beginners isn’t a philosophy book, or a dissertation on theory. It is a step-by-step, complete guide to every aspect of permaculture.

Take your garden to the next level—organic, native, and natural! Permaculture is an important but often misunderstood method of growing food and building homes in a manner that works with nature, rather than against it, to create beautiful, healthy, and useful gardens. Blending ecology, organic agriculture, green home design, appropriate technology, and biology can be confusing and overwhelming, but Permaculture for Beginners simplifies this vast field for practical application. This is a hands-on guide, taking the beginner through each step of the design process, so that anyone can apply permaculture principles to their own life. While the principles are simple, the in-depth topics cover every aspect of permaculture, including: Building green homes and passive solar design Growing edible plant communities and forest gardens Using no-till and natural farming methods Creating microclimates for extended growing seasons Raising livestock with ecological foraging techniques Transforming urban backyards into food-abundant oasesThis is a commonsense approach to sustainable living that creates a self-sufficient and low-effort home for the people that live there, whether in the city or the country. Permaculture for Beginners isn’t a philosophy book, or a dissertation on theory. It is a step-by-step, complete guide to every aspect of permaculture.

The Ultimate Guide to Homesteading is a practical guide with nitty-gritty details on everything a homesteader can do, step-by-step with hundreds of color illustrations and pen and ink sketches.You can do it! This book will show you how to:Make your own bread?Grow a garden all winterMake a solar ovenStore food without electricityRaise a water buffaloMake fine linen from stinging nettleMake your own shampooDeliver a babyYes, you, too, can be totally self-sufficient! This massive, full-color book answers all these questions and thousands more and includes checklists, diagrams, and instructions. All the information meets these criteria: It is something that anyone can do, without special training. It can be done with relatively few supplies or with stuff you can make yourself. It has been tried and tested—either by the author, the military, doctors, or other homesteaders.

When author and homesteader Nicole Faires decided to retrofit an old school bus and tour America’s small farms with her husband and two small children, she expected to learn a lot, be inspired, and have some fun. But what she fou

When author and homesteader Nicole Faires decided to retrofit an old school bus and tour America’s small farms with her husband and two small children, she expected to learn a lot, be inspired, and have some fun. But what she found disturbed her. Mismanaged small farms; clueless urbanites setting up shop to “get back to the land”; a mindless devotion to organic farming; and, ultimately, the discovery of just how dependent we are on corporations for our food.She began to understand how dangerous and fragile our food system really is. Climate change. Farmers retiring or going out of business. Corporations controlling our food distribution system while being protected from the consequences when they endanger our health. Skyrocketing food prices. Outsourced food production. With this admittedly bleak assessment of the current state of affairs, Nicole and her family decided to abandon the bus trip and instead start a farm. “I couldn’t tell people the solutions to our food crisis while I was traipsing around America taking photos. I had to live it,” Nicole says. And so the seeds for Food Confidential were sown.Our basic right to healthy food is at risk.What can we do? Written in an astute, engaging style, armed with examples from her own homesteading lifestyle, small farmer Nicole Faires’s Food Confidential gives you the tools to fight the intangible battles, as well as the practical ones.

How to maximize your food production in an urban environment.The idea of bringing agriculture into the city has been promoted by many on both sides of the political fence: proponents of sustainability and prevention of climate change as well as those who worry about government and social instability. To address the urgent need for a shift in the way our food is produced, The Ultimate Guide to Urban Farming offers a practical education in everything there is to know about city agriculture: how to grow a lot of food in any kind of urban living situation, from apartment to full-scale commercial venture.Subjects covered include:• Small scale vs. large scale agriculture• The economic, social, health, and environmental impacts of urban farming• Making the most of the space available• The latest technologies and developments in agriculture, including: hydroponics, vertical gardening, and aquaponics• Case studies and design concerns for community-based farming• The best plant species for cities and seasons• Beekeeping and small animals• Commercial agriculture and the business side of farming in a city environmentThis comprehensive guide will introduce readers to the rewarding possibilities of growing their own food, as well as dispel the falsehood that says we need faraway factory farms to produce everything we eat.

Take your garden to the next level—organic, native, and natural!Permaculture is an important but often misunderstood method of growing food and building homes in a manner that works with nature, rather than against it, to create beautiful, healthy, and useful gardens. Blending ecology, organic agriculture, green home design, appropriate technology, and biology can be confusing and overwhelming, but Permaculture for Beginners simplifies this vast field for practical application. This is a hands-on guide, taking the beginner through each step of the design process, so that anyone can apply permaculture principles to their own life. While the principles are simple, the in-depth topics cover every aspect of permaculture, including: Building green homes and passive solar design Growing edible plant communities and forest gardens Using no-till and natural farming methods Creating microclimates for extended growing seasons Raising livestock with ecological foraging techniques Transforming urban backyards into food-abundant oasesThis is a commonsense approach to sustainable living that creates a self-sufficient and low-effort home for the people that live there, whether in the city or the country. Permaculture for Beginners isn’t a philosophy book, or a dissertation on theory. It is a step-by-step, complete guide to every aspect of permaculture.

Take your garden to the next level—organic, native, and natural! Permaculture is an important but often misunderstood method of growing food and building homes in a manner that works with nature, rather than against it, to create beautiful, healthy, and useful gardens. Blending ecology, organic agriculture, green home design, appropriate technology, and biology can be confusing and overwhelming, but Permaculture for Beginners simplifies this vast field for practical application. This is a hands-on guide, taking the beginner through each step of the design process, so that anyone can apply permaculture principles to their own life. While the principles are simple, the in-depth topics cover every aspect of permaculture, including: Building green homes and passive solar design Growing edible plant communities and forest gardens Using no-till and natural farming methods Creating microclimates for extended growing seasons Raising livestock with ecological foraging techniques Transforming urban backyards into food-abundant oasesThis is a commonsense approach to sustainable living that creates a self-sufficient and low-effort home for the people that live there, whether in the city or the country. Permaculture for Beginners isn’t a philosophy book, or a dissertation on theory. It is a step-by-step, complete guide to every aspect of permaculture.

The Ultimate Guide to Homesteading is a practical guide with nitty-gritty details on everything a homesteader can do, step-by-step with hundreds of color illustrations and pen and ink sketches.You can do it! This book will show you how to:Make your own bread?Grow a garden all winterMake a solar ovenStore food without electricityRaise a water buffaloMake fine linen from stinging nettleMake your own shampooDeliver a babyYes, you, too, can be totally self-sufficient! This massive, full-color book answers all these questions and thousands more and includes checklists, diagrams, and instructions. All the information meets these criteria: It is something that anyone can do, without special training. It can be done with relatively few supplies or with stuff you can make yourself. It has been tried and tested—either by the author, the military, doctors, or other homesteaders.

When author and homesteader Nicole Faires decided to retrofit an old school bus and tour America’s small farms with her husband and two small children, she expected to learn a lot, be inspired, and have some fun. But what she fou