Homesteading: A Backyard Guide to Growing Your Own Food, Canning, Keeping Chickens, Generating Your Own Energy, Crafting, Herbal Medicine, and More (Back to Basics Guides)

Price: $24.95 - $23.25
(as of Sep 26, 2026 19:35:07 UTC – Details)


Over 100,000 sold—a national bestseller!
Whether you want to live off the grid as part of the modern back to nature movement, or simply learn new skills that will make your home more comfortable and your garden grow, this companion to the bestseller Back to Basics, is for you!
Who doesn’t want to shrink their carbon footprint, save money, and eat homegrown food whenever possible? Even readers who are very much on the grid will embrace this large, fully illustrated guide on the basics of living the good, clean life. It’s written with country lovers in mind—even those who currently live in the city.
Whether you live in the city, the suburbs, or in the wide-open spaces, there is plenty you can do to improve your life from a green perspective:
Start container gardening. With a few plants, fresh tomato sauce is a real option with your own homegrown fresh tomatoesReduce electricity use by eating dinner by candlelight (using homemade candles, of course)Learn to use rainwater to augment water suppliesMake your own soap and hand lotionConsider keeping chickens for the eggs
From what to eat, to supporting sustainable restaurants, to avoiding dry cleaning, this book offers information on anything a homesteader needs—and more.

From the Publisher

Water Usage

Garden Planning

Tree Maintenance

Candle Making

Making your own foods

Raising chickens

Simple structures for your land

Crafting pottery

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Skyhorse
Publication date ‏ : ‎ November 1, 2009
Edition ‏ : ‎ Illustrated
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Print length ‏ : ‎ 464 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1602397473
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1435139824
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 3.15 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 10.75 x 1 x 8.5 inches
Part of series ‏ : ‎ Back to Basics Guides
Best Sellers Rank: #24,705 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #2 in Sustainability & Green Design #3 in Energy Efficient Remodeling & Renovation #4 in Organic & Sustainable Gardening & Horticulture
Customer Reviews: 4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars (1,070) var dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction; P.when(‘A’, ‘ready’).execute(function(A) { if (dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction !== true) { dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction = true; A.declarative( ‘acrLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault”: true }, function (event) { if (window.ue) { ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } } ); } }); P.when(‘A’, ‘cf’).execute(function(A) { A.declarative(‘acrStarsLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault” : true }, function(event){ if(window.ue) { ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } }); });
Customers find this homesteading guide comprehensive, covering a broad range of topics from canning to water systems, and appreciate its straightforward, easy-to-follow content. The book receives positive feedback for its illustrations, with one customer noting it includes both pictures and photos, and customers find it exactly as described and worth the purchase price.