Step-by-Step Projects for Self-Sufficiency: Grow Edibles * Raise Animals * Live Off the Grid * DIY

by Cool Springs Press

Overview

Build a self-sufficient life with these 60+ photo-illustrated projects for growing and preserving your own food, keeping animals, harnessing alternative energy, and more.

Learning to do more things yourself is healthy, rewarding, and fulfilling, and benefits the environment. Whether you live in the suburbs or have 80 acres in the mountains, Step-by-step Projects for Self Sufficiency guides your way with clear plan drawings, precise instructions, and detailed photos.

Organized into the categories Chickens & Other Creatures, Nourishing Your Garden, Garden Projects, Food Preparation & Preservation, Homestead Amenities, and Outbuildings & Fences, projects in this volume include:
 

• A portable chicken ark
• Two types of beehives
• Solar cookers
• Firewood storage
• A potato-growing box
• Hoophouses and greenhouses
• Raised planting beds
• Rain barrels
• A cider press
• Compost bins
• Drying racks
• And more
   

With these easy-to-follow projects, make progress, step by step, toward your goal of more independent living.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781591866886
Publisher:	Cool Springs Press
Publication date:	03/15/2017
Pages:	352
Product dimensions:	8.50(w) x 10.20(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

The Editors of Cool Springs Press have produced the highest quality DIY home improvement books for more than 30 years. In conjunction with the experts at BLACK+DECKER™ they have combined resources to create more than 200 home improvement titles that provide consumers and weekend DIYers with the information they need to get the job done right. Their books have set the standard for do-it-yourself publishing, featuring clear, professional photography and concise step-by-step instructions that get straight to the point. View our full catalog at quarto.com.

Editorial Reviews

05/15/2017
For those interested in a self-sufficient lifestyle, this collection has something for everyone. The projects range from a simple garden trellis to more complex structures such as a greenhouse and chicken coop. Each project is well organized, with an exploded view image, cutting list, materials, and tools needed. Step-by-step illustrations do an excellent job of guiding users through the construction process. However, many of these projects have been lifted from the publisher's other books: The Complete Outdoor Builder (2016) and The Complete Guide to Greenhouses & Garden Projects (2011), which contributes to a lack of flow and cohesion throughout. VERDICT While great instruction makes this volume a strong contender, another option is Spike Carlsen's The Backyard Homestead Book of Building Projects.

Library Journal