I have to tell you: the bank closures and bank runs remind me so much of the Lehman Brothers collapse of 2008. It made me pause as it reminded me of the anger, despair and hopelessness of the time.

Fortunately, this time is different. I recognized 2008 for what it was: a major life changing event that forever changed my mindset and direction of my life. That collapse set me on a course to where we are today: our jobs, our home in Western Wisconsin and even how I grow vegetables in my garden.

For more information and links, head over to Small Scale Life!

Now, I know many of you are not beekeepers and will never be beekeepers, but I hope you hold on and stay tuned to this episode. Like walking through a garden, each small business story can inspire you to start something of your own or teach you something new. After all, every gardener or homesteader might have an abundance of tomatoes, green beans, zucchini, eggs or milk that you can give the surplus away or sell to a local customer base.

For more about Adam, check out Small Scale Life Podcast Episodes 214 and 215 where we talk about his homesteading journety, gardening and taking care of animals (rabbits, quail, chickens and ducks).

To connect Adam, see the show notes for Episode 216 at https://smallscalelife.com!

If you want to find The Rapier Ranch or High Desert Hives, there are links to Adam and Kathleen's social media and website in the show notes on https://smallscalelife.com. Also, I have some photos of those awesome gardens too, so check them out!

1. Change is in the Air - Fall and Winter are Coming!
2. The Orchard - Criss Cross Apple Sauce
3. The Land Provides - Sweet Corn and Wild Grapes
4. Canning * Four Tips for Successful Canning * Corn Relish and Cowboy Candy Relish
5. How does my Garden Grow?
6. Project Updates * The BIG To Do List * Operation WW - Drainage Project, Front Gardens, Planting Grass * Removing Fence, Moving the Woodpile and Moving Poop Mountain #1 * Push before the Rains Fall and Snow Flies!
7. Gatherings - Family and Friends at the Farm
8. Connect to the Land - Animal Updates * Flying Young Eagle * Running Skunk * Watching and Counting Down - Oriole and Hummingbird Departures
9. Future Shows and What's Coming Up Next!

For show notes, links and photos, go to https://smallscalelife.com!

This is Part 2 of an earlier conversation about the Modern Day Back to the Land Movement that has been happening in the United States as society seems to be unwinding due to the global pandemic, increasing crime in urban area and unwraveling social structures in the United States. These issues coupled with shortages (fuel, food and other goods and services) and incredible inflation are pushing people Back to the Land and to start developing skills like growing food, preserving the harvest and having animals and livestock.

For Part 1 of this conversation, you have to go back to Small Scale Life Podcast Episode 204 titled "Modern Day Back to the Land Movement" which you can listen to by clicking this link.

Join the Back to the Land Movement in the country, the suburbs or the urban space. How you start this journey is up to you, and you can start right where you are. How can you do this?

• Grow some vegetables in your space
• Preserve foraged, grown or purchased vegetables or fruits
• Build community of like-minded souls

As Jay and I discuss, you don't need 3, 5, 10 or 100 acres. You can start right where you are!

1. Removing Fence from the Blue and White Pens
2. Cutting Box Elder Trees
3. Building Wicking Beds out of 55 Gallon Food Grade Barrels
4. Working on Operation WW
5. Prepping to Plant Potatoes

My Farm Journal posts, videos and podcast episodes document our progress and our observations of life at our little Driftless Oaks Farm.

For more links and show notes, please head over to smallscalelife.com!

1. My Farm Journal
2. Operation WW

My Farm Journal posts, videos and podcast episodes will document our progress and our observations of life at our little Driftless Oaks Farm.

Operation WW is focused on cleaning up the Weeds and Woods at Driftless Oaks Farm, starting with the overgrown flower gardens that surround our Little Farmhouse in the Big Woods.

For more links and show notes, please head over to smallscalelife.com!

Amy Dingmann is from A Farmish Kind of Life where she talks about her life on a little 5-acre farm in Central Minnesota. Amy is a writer, podcaster, blogger, YouTuber, and also has a snail mail paper newsletter (called The Farmish Papers).

During this episode, we discuss what is happening on our farms, all things chicken the chicken chat), gardening and her platform and plans at A Farmish Kind of Life. You can find more links and information at smallscalelife.com.

Chicken stock photo by freeimages.com/cholin. Free Image used according to use agrement.

For links to the recent appearances and to learn more about Driftless Oaks Farm, head over to smallscalelife.com .

As a reminder, you can now buy high quality grass fed meat (raised using Regenerative Agriculture protocols and principles) at the following site: https://www.amodernfrontier.com/

Use code SMALL (in all caps) and you will get $25 off and beef, pork or chicken box. That’s right, use code SMALL (in all caps) and get $25 off!

You can chat with Adam on the site if you have any questions, or you can email him at amodernfrontier@gmail.com.

For full disclosure: this is not an affiliate for me or Small Scale Life. I want to help a friend get this business going. I receive no payments or percentages from any sales; I am just helping a friend out.

April has come and gone, and we had a lot going on gearing up for constructing our Eagles Ridge Barndominium. The machine is MOSTLY in place, and the weather had cooperated; however, we hit a delay. We are in a holding pattering until some things get sorted out, and that gives us time to do other things.

One of those other things was the stairs from the middle of Eagles Ridge to the Apple River. The Ridge is about 60 feet above the river, and we have been working on a stair project from about half way up the ridge to the river. Things were going well last Fall, but we ran into some serious issues in the past two weeks.

We decided to make some drastic changes with the stairs, and I walk you through the project and the 5 Lessons Learned from Our Stair Project. For photos, links, videos and other information, check out the article titled "In a Hole? Stop Digging! 5 Lesson Learned from Our Stair Project" on smallscalelife.com!

• Hall of Heroes - Gratitude
• Chaos in the Time of COVID
• Consolidation and Remote Working
• Homeschooling
• Our Crazy 2020
• Discovering Star Prairie, Wisconsin
• "I blame Jules"
• Each river has its own tune and song
• Finding and Buying Eagle's Ridge
• The Universe is Talking to Us and....
• "I blame Jules"
• Our Vision for Eagle's Ridge
• "Let the River take Ya where it takes Ya!"
• Ending with Gratitude

How about You?
Julie asked a question at the end of the show: if you have built a home or homestead from scratch like we are, we would love to hear from your and hear your story! We would love to hear your Lessons Learned, tips, tricks and advice as we begin this journey and build Eagle's Ridge Homestead!

For more links and information, head over to Small Scale Life and click on the "Eagles Ridge: Discovering Our Homestead" post or the Eagles Ridge Homestead Tab!

In case you don’t know who Drew Demler and Michael Bell are, here is a quick introduction:

• Drew Demler is the Director of Horticulture at Big Tex Urban Farms at the State Fair of Texas. While Big Tex is a big hydroponic operation, Drew also grows vegetables at his house along his driveway.
• Michael Bell is the owner and operator of Dallas Half Acre Farms. When not planting thousands of salad greens plugs at 5:00 in the morning, he enjoys scooping rabbit poop in his backyard.

Both gentlemen give some great Gardening Tips and Advice that we can all use to improve our gardens and quality of our plants.

To find out more, check out the post titled "Gardening Tips and Advice with Demler and Bell" on Small Scale Life by clicking on this text for a direct link.

The last time we had Michael on the show, I talked with Michael about the Soup Gardening Concept that I used to plan my garden in 2019. My goal, at the time, was to grow vegetables and herbs needed that would make a hearty vegetable soup. Michael Bell and I came up with the concept, and it was a lot of fun growing those vegetables!

My how times changed since the Spring of 2019!

Since that episode, Michael Bell changed jobs, sold his old house, moved to a new house, sold his old half acre farm and found new farming properties. These new farming properties have provided new challenges and opportunities, and there are some clear take-aways from this conversation if you are starting your own garden or urban farm.

Remember: it always comes back to the three basic elements to grow plants: light, nutrients and water. If you have the right balance of these three elements, you can grow plants anywhere! If you are out of balance, then you have to adapt, adjust and overcome to get back into balance.

Get ready! It’s time for another exciting gardening podcast from Small Scale Life!

*[For the show notes and links to articles and podcast episode, see the article titled "Starting an Urban Farm with Michael Bell" on smallscalelife.com. Click this text for a direct link to that article.
*](https://www.smallscalelife.com/building-an-urban-farm-from-scratch-with-michael-bell)

History of Victory Gardens

Looking at history, one thing is clear: when times get tough, people get gardening! During World War I and World War II, people in America and around the world started victory gardens in their yards and in their communities to provide food for their families, neighbors and armed forces.

A new foe is here, and people are once again faced with rationing and shortages “on the home front.” What is the response from Americans and people around the world?

Return to the Land! Return to the Garden!

Many of you are starting your garden for the first time. There are a lot of things to think about before you start growing plants. While it does not have to be complicated, there are proven methods and techniques we can use to successfully grow food. This is particularly true if you are trying to grow food in small spaces: on your balconies, on your patio, or even on your driveway in your apartment, condominium, townhome, rental home or own property.

You CAN grow food; we are here to help you start!

Show Notes and Links

For more information, show notes and links, please go to the article titled "Modern Victory Gardens for 2020" on smallscalelife.com!

While you are there, make sure to subscribe to the Small Scale Life Newsletter Email and received your FREE Seed Starting Guide. I walk you through my tried-and-true process for growing plants (vegetables and herbs) from seed. This Seed Starting Guide also gives you "must have" and "nice to have" shopping lists of materials needed to grow plants from seed. As a bonus, you also get the Ideas and Inspiration Guide that shows you examples of seed starting set-ups from members of the Small Scale Life Facebook Group. Click on this link and get your FREE Seed Starting Guide today!

As we watch the country’s systems (financial systems, banking, supply chains, health care system, education and entire industries) grind to a halt with this global pandemic, it begs the question: how fragile is our system?

The answer seems to be: very!

Although I don’t act like it at times, I am an engineer. I look at problems and issues and look for solutions. Our country’s systems are impossibly complicated. It is almost too big for one person or a small group of people to impact one way or another.

While we cannot take on and change these massive systems, we can take on and change how we live our lives.

For those of you who have been following Small Scale Life for a few years have seen this platform change and shift. We have gone down some rabbit holes, and at times it might have seemed that we were flailing and blowing in the wind. I have to admit, I have felt the same way!

Two recent events have changed the way I look at Small Scale Life:

1. A visit by my friend Greg Burns and Contrary Farmstead Podcast about this platform and our story
2. The global pandemic and complete train wreck of our systems
   

I have been doing a lot of thinking and brainstorming. The result is this podcast episode. I was driving home and recorded this as I was driving in St. Croix County, Wisconsin. It was raining, and you will come along with me on this platform-defining journey where I answer the question:

What is Resilience?

Even though the homestead appears to have a lot of space, the property is on the side of a mountain and slopes away from the house. Mr. Tactical is looking at different approaches to growing food on his 2 acre homestead. Some of these method include growing mushrooms, microgreens and a ton of food in his 3 wicking beds.

It's all about wellness and sustainability, and Mr. Tactical Jay is looking to improve his skills while using everything his property has to offer: from berries to gardens to mushrooms. My hope is to inspire you to look at your location to find ways to use your resources effectively and grow food.

This was part of a 2 hour interview, and I am breaking it down into bite-sized chunks. We discuss a lot of different topics, books and blogs, so check out the show notes for this podcast on the article titled "Growing Mushrooms and Gardening in Virginia" on smallscalegardening.com!

Who is with me?

This long slog from January to April in the northland really gives a gardener cabin-fever, but it is these quiet, cold nights where we come up with new ideas and our garden plans for the new season. It is also almost time to start growing those seedlings!

If you are new to gardening, you might feel overwhelmed. Maybe you want to grow everything in that shiny seed catalog! Maybe you just don’t know where to start.

For veteran gardeners, you are probably so used to growing the same stuff that you don’t think about it too much. You might be curious how other gardeners “DO IT,” and by that I mean creating a 2020 Garden Plan. You can get your mind out of the rain gutter now!

In this podcast episode and post, and I am going to talk about the following:

• Looking Back at 2019
• My 2020 Garden Plan Step 1: My Ultimate Garden List
• Step 2: Reality Check: Reducing the List
• What is Whole30?
• Step 3: Finalizing My 2020 Garden Plan (List of Vegetables and Herbs)
• Next Steps

For show notes, pictures and links, head over to Small Scale Gardening site for more information!

Why is Small Scale Gardening important?

You might be new to gardening, a grizzled veteran of many summers or new to this Small Scale Gardening platform, and you might be asking that very question. After all, what can you really do with a small garden? Can you grow anything in a small garden? What is the point? After all, bigger is ALWAYS better!

Au contraire, my friends!

In this post and episode, I am defining Small Scale Gardening, and I discuss why it could be a game-changer for new gardeners; veteran gardeners; older or physically challenged gardeners; and renters. This post and podcast episode will serve as a framework for future gardening projects, articles, podcast episodes and videos.

Let’s begin!

For more on this topic and to see the show notes, please go to the corresponding article on Small Scale Life titled "Why Small Scale Gardening?"

I have to say: what a year it was!

In this post and podcast, I am going to talk about three major topics of Small Scale Life in 2019: Health and Fitness Renew You, Financial Freedom and Gardening. I will also share 2019 Year in Review: Top 10 Podcast Episodes and Top 10 Blog Posts of 2019. I will finish this post by talking about what is on tap for 2020.

For more links to the podcast episodes and articles on Small Scale Life, check out the show notes on Small Scale Life by clicking this text!

If you want to buy something from a company or vendor, time IS running out, friends! If you have been following Small Scale Life, you know I recently posted an article titled Holiday Gift Ideas from the Small Scale Life Community. This was an opportunity to provide links to folks who we have met through Small Scale Life, and it felt good to give folks from our community the exposure.

So what happens if you miss the shipping cutoff (which is around December 18th or so)? Well, wait no longer! It is time to pull out one or more of these 11 DIY Christmas Gifts for family and friends on your list! We also included 4 Bonus DIY Christmas Gifts that would be excellent, but they take some more time, planning and materials that might not be available with 8 days before the big day.

For the show notes, please go to the article titled "11 DIY Christmas Gifts" at Small Scale Life. Please click the text to go to the show notes.

You can find out more at smallscalelife.com including show notes, pictures, infographics and my previous post titled "Frost is Coming: How to Extend My Garden Season" that is effectively Part 1 of this episode!

I know what you hardened and veteran gardeners are saying: “Don’t stop now; keep growing!”

I know exactly how you feel!  I am feeling that way too!

The problem comes into how I set up the garden this year with vine crops on trellis systems.  Is the juice worth the squeeze for keeping these plants going?

Frost is coming, folks! You can’t stop it; you can just prepare.  I know others are wondering how to extend my garden season, so let’s dig into how we can do just that.

For about methods to extend your gardening season, check out the post on smallscalelife.com!