Epic Homesteading Fiascos

...ters can be a lesson, particularly if you have the courage, as Eric does, to share them publicly. And, as our guest on the podcast this week Guy Frenkel pointed out, if you’re letting mistakes get you down it means your ego is in the way of the risk taking that’s essential to any creative endeavor. What’s your worst fiasco?...

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102 Beekeeping Controversies With Susan Rudnicki

.... Why most advice is pro-treatment. Keeping feral stock. Africanized bees. Mistakes. How often to inspect. Swarm prevention. When to take honey in a Mediterranean climate Dodgy bee removal services. The “Complete Idiots Guide to Beekeeping.” What’s wrong with package bees? The difference between swarming and absconding. That Flow Hive thingy. Darwinian concepts in beekeeping. “Scientific” beekeeper Randy Oliver’s change of opinion on feral stock:...

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104 Erin Schanen the Impatient Gardener

...s some of Erin’s recent blog posts and other subjects including: Gardening mistakes. Dealing with creeping bellflower (Campanula rapunculoides) and other weeds. Remodeling a cottage. Erin’s day job as editor of Sailing Magazine. You can hear more about Erin’s sailing adventures on Garden Fork Radio episode 421. How to plant a tree. Killing plants. Winter and gardening with climate change. The folly of taking shortcuts with your soil. The importanc...

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Solar Oven Triumph: Fluffy Egg Strata

...rose These are my notes from the process. I find notes help prevent future mistakes. And I think this gives you a sense of what it is like to work with a solar oven. 9:30 AM- 10:30AM: Preheated the oven to 300. Pro-tip: preheating solar ovens is not absolutely necessary, but really helps speed things up. Meanwhile, the strata soaked in the fridge, which is very good for it. 10:30 AM: Strata in. Temperature dropped to 250 from opening door. The str...

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How to Size a Breakfast Nook Table

...of. This conclusion comes from 20 years of horrific breakfast nook sizing mistakes. Our first table was the same length of the bench. It was difficult to get in and out of and caused considerable complaints. Version 2.0 of the table was considerably shorter. So short, in fact, as to be useless. A lightbulb went off in my head when I discovered this table in the 1925 Pacific Ready-Cut home catalog. Not only did it seem just the right proportion bu...

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