Every year I like to ask what kind of new skills people are wanting to learn either to be more self-sufficient or to finally pick up that hobby they've been wanting to try.Last year we didn't do as much canning and food gardening as we usually do, but we did get chickens! This year I'm looking into getting rabbits for fiber production and spinning, starting up a chicken poop composter (more on that later) and maybe I'll dust off that solar cooker.
Which of the following skills do you wish you knew more about or would like to learn?
- Food gardening and food storage (canning, dehydrating, pickling, fermentation, etc.)
- Seed saving and/or fruit tree grafting
- Foraging for wild foods, mushrooms, etc.
- Composting
- Animal husbandry (rabbits, chickens, goats or larger)
- Beekeeping
- Animal skinning, processing
- Sheep or other animal shearing
- Spinning wool
- Knitting
- Sewing
- Cooking, baking
- Making own cheese and/or yogurt
- Making beer and/or wine
- Solar cooking
- Alternative medicine and/or first aid
- Making soap (cold process from oils and lye)
- Making candles
- Carpentry
- Plumbing or electrical
- Bike maintenance and repair
- Appliance repair
What is the biggest thing preventing you from learning to do these things? Time, money? What would make it easier?
Related books:
The Backyard Beekeeper: An Absolute Beginner's Guide to Keeping Bees in Your Yard and GardenThe Backyard Homestead: Produce all the food you need on just a quarter acre!
Back to Basics: A Complete Guide to Traditional Skills
City Chicks: Keeping Micro-flocks of Chickens as Garden Helpers, Compost Makers, Bio-reyclers, and Local Food Producers
How to Brew: Everything You Need To Know To Brew Beer Right The First Time
Home Cheese Making: Recipes for 75 Delicious CheesesThe Soapmaker's Companion: A Comprehensive Guide with Recipes, Techniques & Know-How
My Bread: The Revolutionary No-Work, No-Knead Method
Homegrown Whole Grains: Grow, Harvest, and Cook Wheat, Barley, Oats, Rice, Corn and More
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