Bart Saelen and his wife Maryann own and run O’Naturel farm, a small-scale agricultural business centered around 250 laying hens that produce about 200 eggs/day. They follow a model of rotational grazing pioneered by U.S. farmer Joel Salatin and which is also used by Richard Perkins of Ridgedale Permaculture in Sweden. They originally moved the […]
Expert advice on how to establish self-sufficient food production, including guidance on crop rotations, raising livestock and grazing management. Your 1-acre homestead can be divided into land for raising livestock and a garden for raising fruits, vegetables, plus some grain and forage crops… Everyone will have a different approach to keeping a self-sufficient homestead, and it’s unlikely that any two […]
We’re headed towards a global food crisis: Nearly 3 billion people depend on the ocean for food, and at our current rate we already take more fish from the ocean than it can naturally replace. In this fact-packed, eye-opening talk, entrepreneur and conservationist Mike Velings proposes a solution: Aquaculture, or fish farming. “We must start […]
Bruce Morgan, a farmer from Australia, has figured out a great way to get his chickens involved in gardening around the house using a series of wire tunnels. Bruce, an Australian permaculturist, designed an intricate system of what he calls “chook tunnels,” chook being the Australian nickname for the chicken. These tunnels funnel his hens […]
New Zealand has just set a great example to the world by recognizing what animal lovers have known forever- that our furry friends are as sentient as we are, and (obviously, dur) they have feelings just like we do. It’s a theme we have covered time and again, but this landmark ruling by NZ is the first time this shift in […]
When it comes to your food, nature always has the last word. Most pro-organic documentaries make their point by taking stabs at the cruelty and other evils involved in the world of industrialized farming. In this short documentary portrait, Jesse Straight, owner of Whiffletree Farm, shows us a different approach. As he gestures to the […]
We’re raising our chickens in a model inspired by Vermont Composting Company and adapted to our situation. By bartering for whole organic grains from wonderful local farms we’re able to provide our chickens a great foundation diet. We incorporate truckloads of lawn leaf bags, woodchips, manures, and compost from local sources in windrows in our chicken […]
Bored chickens can be disruptive in the coop, so why not help alleviate their boredom and keep them happy with this nifty little chicken swing. The swing is an activity for all breeds and ages of chickens to use in the coop. It will help to reduce coop boredom and bring smiles to the people […]
Bee videos ave been making waves on social media as people begin to realize that the tiny insects are actually much more intelligent than anyone has ever given them credit for. Researchers at the Queen Mary University of London conducted experiments with bumblebees to test their intelligence and the little critters did not disappoint. The experiments […]
There was a time when chickens were viewed as exotic, fascinating birds. Descendants of exotic Asian jungle fowl, they were revered for their ferocity and intelligence, and domesticated around 8,000 years ago, more for cockfighting than eating. But then, we humans began eating them in ever-larger quantities, until we reached the point where we are […]