Farmstead books

 The other day someone posted this terrific link to free homesteading books from the University of Texas. These old timey "bulletins" are really great. The one thing about farming is that many of the "old" principals still apply.  The numbers may have changed but sometimes the "good old fashioned way" is still the best.

There is nothing new under the sun. You still need a good hat..

You can click here to see the list of available, online, free books.

One of the things that I was really shocked to learn is that there is nothing new under the sun. The principals I learned from reading Ten Acres Enough are just as true now as they were back in 1864. Not only does this book have practical wisdom but I loved the story of how Mr. Morris changed his city life to a country life. I read this when I was preparing myself to leave my city life.

I had no idea back then, sitting at an expensive and trendy breakfast place, that I'd amass much of the same information, make the same mistakes, or find the same life here in The Good Land as a stranger over 100 years before me.

Everyone makes mistakes - the key is to learn from them. One thing that has stayed with me tho, is that you need to run your farm like a business or it will over take you...and not in a good way. Not every body gets to stay and sometimes hard choices need to be made. Persistence usually pays off but not always. Sometimes your "I would never's" become... "I guess we have to."

One think that helped set me on the right course was Making Your Small Farm Profitable by Ron Macher.This is all pretty much common sense but it's good to have a star to steer by.

I think the biggest misconception about homesteading or small farming is that it's all just "the simple life" and it all just works out. Not always. You can't control chickens, the neighbor's dog kills your livestock, or it just won't rain. So many things could go wrong. Making smart decisions, making hard choices, and just plain working hard can keep you on the right path... but it usually isn't simple at all.

Work hard, do the right thing, keep your focus...those are the things that will help you in your small farming efforts. And learning a lot of the old wisdom... that helps too.

Happy Thursday everyone!


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