If there’s one positive to come out of our current situation, it’s the incredible surge of interest in gardening.  Now more than ever, people are realizing the importance of growing and producing their own food.  As any veteran gardener knows. your soil is perhaps the most important factor when it comes to successfully growing your own food.  While it’s not necessary for everyone to get their soil tested, on today’s episode I explain when and why you should do it, where you can get it done, and what you should do with the results.  Finally, I explain what happens when you have high levels of nitrogen or carbon and what can be down without it.  Whether you’re a veteran gardener or a total novice, this episode is a must listen!  Testing resources referenced in this episode: 
Colorado State University Soil Testing Lab
Crop Services International
International Ag Lab >> To begin this homesteading journey, head to http://www.theprairiehomestead.com/grow to access my full library of resources to guide you down the path.

>> Head over to www.theprairiehomestead.com for from-scratch recipes, homestead inspiration, and old-fashioned tutorials.

>> Get your Old-Fashioned on Purpose Swag at www.homesteadswag.com

>> Follow Jill on YouTube: http://youtube.com/theprairiehomestead
>> Follow Jill on Instagram: http://instagram.com/theprairiehomestead
>> Follow Jill on Facebook: http://facebook.com/theprairiehomestead 
 


113.  What We Learned from Having our Garden Soil Tested

Have you felt it? Something is rippling through humanity at this moment. It's a stirring... a longing... a remembering. A sense that we are more capable than we’ve been led to believe. We want to feel alive, not sedated.. but we've lost our way. We've traded a life intertwined with nature for asphalt and artificial lights. We've swapped natural movement for a sedentary existence. We've given up food from the earth in favor of food from the factory. We've sacrificed our traditional skillsets for apps and gadgets. But while our overdose on modernity may have made us sick, there is an antidote. Join best-selling author and mentor, Jill Winger, each week as she digs into a different facet of the old-fashioned on purpose lifestyle.

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Higher Education

K-12

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Home & Garden

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Sourdough bread made with freshly-milled flour. It's many a homesteader's dream, but those whole wheat loaves can easily turn into a nightmare if you're not prepared.  I am so excited to be joined by Mary of The Rose Homestead in today's episode. She's mastered the art of baking light, fluffy loaves with freshly-milled whole wheat flour and she's sharing her secrets with us. I learned SO much and I know you will too!

 Podcast Episode HighlightsMary's background and how she got passionate about whole wheat sourdoughWhy whole wheat sourdough is harderWhy bother with whole wheat if it's harder?Where do you get wheat berries and favorite typesFavorite grain mills and tips for using themAbsorption details for freshly milled flourExplaining autolyse Weighing vs. measuring flourTips for kneading the doughA closer look at the rising period for breadControlling the sourness of the breadTips for getting a good rise of whole wheat breadsTalking about einkorn and also favorite whole wheatsMaintaining a sourdough starterFinal thoughts on bakingPodcast Episode Resources and Links Mentioned Learn more about Mary here: therosehomestead.com

Learn more about the Modern Homestead Conference here: https://modernhomesteading.com/ 
 Get weekly musings from my homestead: http://theprairiehomestead.com/letter My homesteading tutorials & recipes: www.theprairiehomestead.com Our Wyoming-raised, grass-finished beef: http://genuinebeefco.com Jill on Instagram: @jill.winger Jill on Facebook: http://facebook.com/theprairiehomestead

 Apply to be a guest on the Old-Fashioned on Purpose podcast: https://www.theprairiehomestead.com/podcast-guest-application


Did you enjoy listening to this episode? Please drop a comment below or leave a review to let us know. This can help other folks learn about this podcast and we also really appreciate the feedback! 

S14 E16: Cracking the Code of Whole Wheat Sourdough

Ever been accused of being a "fun hater?" If so, you're not alone. In fact, it seems to be a common trait in those of us drawn towards old-fashioned things.  Find out the difference between fun vs. flow and why your fun-hating ways may actually be a superpower.

 Podcast Episode HighlightsPerceptions of 'fun'How an interview made me think about 'fun'Modern definitions of 'fun'Older definitions of 'fun'What brings me the most fun and joyThe idea of a 'flow state'Why I think the homesteading movement is growing like it isHow I find flow in my lifeFinal thoughts on 'fun'Podcast Episode Resources and Links Mentioned Learn more about the Modern Homestead Conference here: https://modernhomesteading.com/

 Find my Old-Fashioned on Purpose book here: http://oldfashionedbook.com/

 Get weekly musings from my homestead: http://theprairiehomestead.com/letter My homesteading tutorials & recipes: www.theprairiehomestead.com Our Wyoming-raised, grass-finished beef: http://genuinebeefco.com Jill on Instagram: @jill.winger Jill on Facebook: http://facebook.com/theprairiehomestead

 Apply to be a guest on the Old-Fashioned on Purpose podcast: https://www.theprairiehomestead.com/podcast-guest-application


Did you enjoy listening to this episode? Please drop a comment below or leave a review to let us know. This can help other folks learn about this podcast and we also really appreciate the feedback! 

S14 E15: Confessions of a Fun Hater

Note: Due to privacy reasons, Reesa has deleted her website.

Even though I live ON-grid with electricity and running water, sometimes I day-dream about what it'd be like to live completely off-grid in a tiny cabin. And today's guest does exactly that!  This conversation with Reesa of Morning Star Mama is packed-full of creative strategies and tactics for DIY-ing a small home and living off-grid. I love Reesa's out-of-the-box approach and I know you will too!

 Podcast Episode HighlightsWhat inspired Reesa in her off-grid lifestyleHow she started her off-grid lifeDetails on lighting, electric, sheet rock, heating, etc.Off-grid water detailsTalking about composting toiletsWhy off-grid doesn't need to mean inconvenient Looking at refrigeration for foodDetails on cookingHardest part of being off-gridRaising kids on an off-grid homesteadAdvice for someone wanting to go off-gridPodcast Episode Resources and Links Mentioned 
Get weekly musings from my homestead: http://theprairiehomestead.com/letter My homesteading tutorials & recipes: www.theprairiehomestead.com Our Wyoming-raised, grass-finished beef: http://genuinebeefco.com Jill on Instagram: @jill.winger Jill on Facebook: http://facebook.com/theprairiehomestead Apply to be a guest on the Old-Fashioned on Purpose podcast: https://www.theprairiehomestead.com/podcast-guest-application

Did you enjoy listening to this episode? Please drop a comment below or leave a review to let us know. This can help other folks learn about this podcast and we also really appreciate the feedback!   

S14 E14: How to Live Off-Grid in a Tiny Cabin

It's no secret-- I am an unfit sourdough parent. I often forget to feed it and I regularly leave it in my fridge for 8 months at a time. Yet-- even through my sourdough faux paus, I'm able to maintain a starter that creates delicious bread and more.  In today's episode I'm confessing my sourdough sins and sharing my sourdough CPR method for bringing neglected starters back from the dead.

 Podcast Episode HighlightsMy sourdough bad habitsMy typical sourdough routineMy most recent sourdough starter disasterHow I revived my sourdough starterSigns that indicate your sourdough starter is active againSigns that indicate you cannot save your sourdough starterHow to save and preserve a sourdough starter (esp. when you need a break)Wet vs. dry starter methodFinal thoughts and tips on sourdoughPodcast Episode Resources and Links Mentioned My Instagram reel on reviving an old sourdough starter: https://www.instagram.com/reel/C2swSt6PXvi/

 Find my free sourdough pdf resource here: https://meet.theprairiehomestead.com/no-stress-sourdough-main

 My sourdough starter tutorial: https://www.theprairiehomestead.com/2020/03/make-sourdough-starter.html

 My sourdough bread tutorial: https://www.theprairiehomestead.com/2020/04/sourdough-bread-recipe.html

 My favorite ways to use up a sourdough discard: https://www.theprairiehomestead.com/2021/12/my-5-favorite-ways-to-use-sourdough-discard.html    Get weekly musings from my homestead: http://theprairiehomestead.com/letter My homesteading tutorials & recipes: www.theprairiehomestead.com Our Wyoming-raised, grass-finished beef: http://genuinebeefco.com Jill on Instagram: @jill.winger Jill on Facebook: http://facebook.com/theprairiehomestead Apply to be a guest on the Old-Fashioned on Purpose podcast: https://www.theprairiehomestead.com/podcast-guest-application


Podcast Feedback Did you enjoy listening to this episode? Please drop a comment below or leave a review to let us know. This can help other folks learn about this podcast and we also really appreciate the feedback!

S14 E13: How to Bring a Sourdough Starter Back from the Dead

There's a lot of fear floating around the homestead community lately.  In today's episode I'll share my history with paranoia, how it ultimately will hurt your homestead, and why I no longer subscribe to fear-based homesteading.

 Podcast Episode HighlightsThoughts about the term' homestead'Concerns about current shifts in what 'homestead' meansWhy I think fear has creeped into the homestead movementMy background with paranoia-based cultureCycles, perspectives, and a closer look at historyReading suggestionsPreparedness and pleasure vs. fear and panicConfirmation bias and issues with social mediaOccam's razor principleBaader-Meinhof phenomenonFinal thoughts on being aware and asking questionsPodcast Episode Resources and Links Mentioned Get weekly musings from my homestead: http://theprairiehomestead.com/letter

 My homesteading tutorials & recipes: www.theprairiehomestead.com

 Our Wyoming-raised, grass-finished beef: http://genuinebeefco.com

 Jill on Instagram: @jill.winger

 Jill on Facebook: http://facebook.com/theprairiehomestead

 Apply to be a guest on the Old-Fashioned on Purpose podcast: https://www.theprairiehomestead.com/podcast-guest-application



113. What We Learned from Having our Garden Soil Tested

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