40 Projects for Building Your Backyard Homestead: A Hands-on, Step-by-Step Sustainable-Living Guide (Creative Homeowner) Fences, Chicken Coops, Sheds, Gardening, and More for Becoming Self-Sufficient

by David Toht, Gardening

Learn all about how to build sheds, feeders, fences, and other backyard structures to enhance your sustainable living! A companion volume to Backyard Homesteading , 40 Projects for Building Your Backyard Homestead provides details on how to build more than 40 projects to enhance your sustainable living. The projects in this book are designed with simplicity, convenience, and budget in mind. You will also find help on how to expand or contract the projects to suit your needs. With step-by-step instructions, tools and materials lists, exploded views, and easy-to-understand techniques, even if you are only moderately handy, you'll discover how to build your own feeders, fences, and structures. In the process, you'll save money and have the satisfaction of doing it yourself!

Genres: Gardening, Nonfiction, Reference, Survival

256 pages, Paperback

First published June 3, 2013

Reviews

[Haines Eason · Rating 4 out of 5]

One might think the internet would have killed books like this, but books like this survive because the best of them are able to do more than merely lay out a series of projects. This book stands with the best of them because it outlines projects that introduce at every turn skills that build upon those from previous projects. Though the sections on wind power, solar and electrical work could be more robust, in short, this book educates its readers and gives them the confidence they need to tackle some quite complex undertakings.

[Tim · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little light on the details, but enough to give you an idea if the project is a good fit for you or not. Subsequent research will be needed for any projects you elect to complete on your own.

[AJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great designs, great instructional photographs to guide you through the projects.

[Kari · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don’t know what I was thinking when I checked out this book on Hoopla. I am trying to get ideas on how to make raised planter beds for my garden next summer and this one was recommended to me on Pinterest. I don’t want to build a windmill, and I don’t need to build a shed (I mean that might be cool at some point), but right now, ALL I wanted was ideas on how to build a raised garden bed. This book had TOO much information! I’m making note of this book because it even told me what to buy to make the stuff.

[Jennifer Milan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This had some very useful ideas to use in our back yard. My husband decided in 2020 it was a great time to discover if we could be self sufficient when it came to feeding ourselves most of the year. There are two of us now that we are empty nesters. He has added hydroponics and aquaponics, meat and egg chickens, and hunts deer in the woods behind us. So we considered what beyond this could we grow to feed ourselves. There are a lot of proven ideas here to work with. I would recommend this as a guide for someone wanting to learn more about eating from your own yard.

[Casey Garrett · Rating 3 out of 5]

This has lots of DIY projects for starting a little homestead. It was a quick read as I am not ready to put any of these into action yet, but it was a great starter for getting ideas.

I love the beehives and garden boxes the most. This will be a good book to revisit once I am ready to really get started on making my little home oasis.

[J · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sharp book.....some crafty tips from a knowledgeable author. Thorough. Well done.

Plenty of good projects with comprehensive instructions, materials and step by step photos. Old time vibe. Projects are designed to last.

[Amanda Boehm · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of really good, instructive, step-by-step photos including diagrams with measurements for building anything from raised garden beds, fencing, sheds, chicken coops, beehives, etc. Also included basic wiring and plumbing guide.

[Toni Morgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is filled with diagrams and lists of supplies to build everything you need to get a homestead off of the ground. Although, there's not much here more than you could find on Pinterest; it's just consolidated into one place.

[Daniel Stokes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid fun book that serves as a primer for many different projects. Will definitely be coming back to this one.

[michael pinard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really more of a project guide than a book as id define it. Still a good resource though. Not unhappy to have bought it.

[Barbara Beck · Rating 5 out of 5]

A handy book to have.

An easy read with directions even I can follow. I wish it had included directions for a greenhouse but I guess that is a book all of its own.

[Juli Anna · Rating 2 out of 5]

While there are some worthwhile projects here and the directions are fairly straightforward, the book design is so distracting and difficult to follow that it doesn't feel at all user-friendly.

[Jack Doyle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great little book. Lots of great ideas

[Chelsea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good starter guide. Lots of projects were simple and/or not really what I was looking for. Definitely a few I will try a few though.

[Dawn Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

If your interested in homesteading or just having a garden this has lots of projects that can help. Loved plan to buy for my library.

[Elham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very practical and guided. I enjoyed the step by step and overview for the chicken coop and aquaponics.

[Michael Russell · Rating 4 out of 5]

First off, I'm a bit reluctant to pick up a book about homesteading simply because of my bias that the term seems to lean a bit end-of-days survivalist. But that didn't stop me from flipping through it in the library and ultimately checking it out. This has, as the title suggests, projects for your home farm, regardless if you're in the suburbs or you've got some land. If you're considering building gardens, raising chickens, planting an orchard, or other sustainable food sources, this is a great book to get some good ideas. There are full color photo illustrations that are easy to follow, and you'll likely find a lot more ideas than you have time to execute!

[JoAnn · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I first read the title I under-estimated the amount of knowledge the book would have. This book contains 40 projects that are all great, it shows step by step instructions with pictures on how to complete each project. I will just mention a few of the projects that I liked the most, building a chicken tractor, building a chicken coop, how to build beehives, installing fences, self-watering garden beds, aquaponics and hydroponics, solar and wind powered systems, and even how to build sheds for different animals. The book explains the basics of each chapter, such as basics for housing chickens or explaining aquaponics and hydroponics. If you have been looking at how to become more sustainable this book is a great start.

[Dara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Now that I am full-tilt planning for 1/3 of an acre, I am working my way through all the homesteading books I can find at the library. I liked that this book at pictures for different sizes of land and what was possible on them (though without the actual measurements). It has great information about different types of beehives and keeping goats in small spaces.

[Adrian Martínez lara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Surprisingly thorough and varied. It covers a lot of projects that would be of interest and does so in great detail. Each project covers skills and concepts that can be used on projects not covered in the book. Worth a read, definitely. It earned a place in my permanent library.

[Mills College Library]

630.973 T645 2013

[Heidi Ramsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! There are some huge projects in this book. It is very detailed. I like the goat house and will have to use that if we get goats. The self watering planter is pretty neat too.

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good selection of projects, including a self-watering planter similar to an Earth Box.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay just know this rating given from the reading perspective, not the building perspective, I haven't tried to actually build any of these things yet. :) But I'm feeling very inspired.

[Theresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great ideas and step-by-step instructions

[Hannah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is the ideal. It teaches a wide variety of useful chicken and gardening projects in depth with clear photos, including simple tutorials on plumbing and wiring. Worth the price.