Alejandro grows from ten years old to the age of seventeen, learning about life from his extended Mexican American family on a small ranch in 1940s South Texas.

Hobby Farms Chickens: Tending a Small-Scale Flock for Pleasure and Profit is geared toward the hobby farmer looking to begin his or her own flock of chickens on a small farm or even backyard. Author Sue Weaver, who keeps various exotic breeds and countless barnies on her farm, is an expert on all things livestock and an avowed chicken fanatic. This photo-filled guide begins with "Chickens 101" and details the physiology of chickens, members of the Phasianidea family, providing beginning hobby farmers with a basic education in the chicken's unique physical makeup (from wings and feathers to beaks and digestive tracts), behavior, mating, and its unexpected high intelligence. The author offers advice on choosing the right types of chickens to get started: meat, egg, or dual purpose, or maybe even "just for pets." The book is an excellent resource for selecting which breed of chicken is best for the hobby farmer, based on the birds' traits, such as aggression, personality, noise factor, tolerance for heat, confinement, cold, etc. Chickens also provides information on selecting or building a suitable chicken coop for the hobby farmer's brood, outlining the basic requirements (lighting, ventilation, flooring, waterers, insulation, safety, and so forth). A detailed chapter on feeding chickens offers essential guidance on nutrition, commercial feeds, supplements, and water requirements. For the chicken hobby farmer looking to start with a clutch of baby chicks (from his own hen or an outside source), the author provides excellent info on incubators and hatching as well as all of the accommodations and preparation required for hens in the nest box. A chapter on selling eggs and broilers provides timetables, requirements, and dos and don'ts to get a hobby farmer's business off on the right foot. All chicken keepers will find the chapter on health of particular value, with expert advice on preventing common problems and dealing various maladies and diseases. Much detailed information about all of the topics in the book is encapsulated in sidebars. A glossary of over 125 terms plus a detailed resource section of chicken and poultry associations, books, and websites complete the volume. Fully indexed.

A cookbook from the author of the popular website Nourished Kitchen, featuring over 160 recipes based on the "traditional foods" philosophy of eating, which emphasizes whole grains, dairy, red meat, organ meats, and fermented foods. The traditional foods movement is a fad-free approach to cooking and eating that emphasizes nutrient-dense, real food, and values quality, environment, and community over the convenience of processed, additive-laden products that are the norm on grocery store shelves. Based on the research of Weston A. Price, who studied the diets of indigenous peoples to understand the relationship between nutrition and health, a traditional foods diet avoids processed ingredients, but allows meat, animal fat, and grains. It embraces cultured dairy, such as kefir and yogurt, that contain beneficial bacteria; fermented foods, such as sauerkraut and kombucha, that are rich in probiotics; and organ meats that are packed with vitamins and minerals. It also celebrates locally grown foods. By choosing ingredients from nearby sources, you create a stronger connection to your food, and have a better understanding what you’re eating and how it was produced. In The Nourished Kitchen, Jennifer McGruther guides you through her traditional foods kitchen and offers more than 160 recipes inspired by the seasons, land, and waters around her. In the morning, fuel up with Eggs Poached in Fiery Tomato Sauce. On a hot summer day, Cucumber Salad with Dill and Kefir is a cooling side dish, and on a chilly fall evening, Barley in Broth with Bacon and Kale offers comfort and warmth. Old-Fashioned Meat Loaf with Gravy makes a hearty family meal, while Chicken in Riesling with Peas can be the centerpiece of an elegant supper. Satisfy your sweet tooth with Maple-Roasted Pears, and quench your thirst with naturally fermented Vanilla Mint Soda. With the benefit of Jennifer’s experience, you can craft a loaf of Whole Wheat and Spelt Sourdough Bread and stock your kitchen with Spiced Sour Pickles with Garlic. The Nourished Kitchen not only teaches how to prepare wholesome, nourishing foods, but also encourages a mindful approach cooking and a celebration of old-world culinary traditions that have sustained healthy people for millennia. Whether you’re already a practitioner of the traditional foods lifestyle or simply trying to incorporate more natural, highly nutritious foods into your routine, you will find plenty to savor in The Nourished Kitchen.

"I love your ideas, but I only have a few acres. How do I do this at my scale?" Success with domestic livestock does not require large land bases. Joel Salatin and his family's Polyface Farm in Virginia lead the world in animal-friendly and ecologically authentic, commercial, pasture-based livestock production. In Polyface Micro he adapts the ideas and protocols to small holdings (including apartments)! Homesteaders can increase production, enjoy healthy animals, and create aesthetically and aromatically pleasant livestock systems. Whether you're a new or seasoned homesteader, you'll find tips and inspiration as Joel coaches you toward success and abundance.

The author's fascination with family tales of their "good old days" growing up in rural Grays Creek, N.C., in early 1900's inspired her to write this collection of short stories entitled Down the Chicken Foot Road.

A Beginner’s Guide to Poultry Farming in Your Backyard Raising Chickens for Eggs and Food Table of Contents Introduction It Is Just Chicken Feed Sustainable Poultry Feed Crop bound Chickens Best Natural Food for Chickens Hatching Chickens How to Make an Incubator Fresh Water Supply Nesting boxes Free Ranging Birds Dust baths and Shed Floor Covering Bumble Foot Building Your Own Chicken Coop Egg Production Raising Broilers for the Market Well Ventilated Coops Protecting chickens from Predators Conclusion The Truth about Growth Promoting Feed Author Bio Introduction Ever since man found out that it was extremely easy to have domesticated sources of food, reared right in his yard, millenniums ago, is it a wonder that poultry especially chicken farming is one of the best methods to get easy access to a good source of food for your family? There is absolutely no country in the world, except perhaps the Arctic regions, – where man has not reared ducks, chickens and other poultry for table purposes down the centuries. Apart from these being an easy source of eggs to eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner every day, you also knew that you would have a tough old rooster for dinner, when a large number of family members popped in unexpectedly, demanding sustenance. We are going to be concentrating on chicken farming, for domestic purposes in this book. You have this dream of raising chickens in your backyard. You are interested in a continuous supply of eggs, and the occasional chicken for your pot of a Sunday. Layers are those chickens, which are normally raised for egg production. The chickens which are going to go straight into the pot are called broilers. Since ancient times, human beings have been raising poultry for domestic purposes and also for marketing purposes. Poultry farming has been a part of rural life in the east down the centuries. All the kitchen waste was fed to the hens. These hens came under the 21st century poultry farming term – free ranging. That meant they were allowed to scratch about in the backyard, getting their fill of insects, worms, green vegetables, organic matter, and was it a wonder that they laid delicious, nutritious, and proteinaceous eggs? Every intelligent householder kept three or four hens depending on the size of his family, and he bought a cock from the market, when he needed chickens. Once a clutch of chickens was hatched, Cocky Locky went into the cook pot. One of the common mistakes made by new poultry farmers is buying a large number of birds, because they are not very clear about whether they want these words for home consumption or they want to trade in the eggs and poultry meat. Around 50 years ago, one of my father’s colleagues was facing this problem. He had this huge garden and backyard. He had heard about dad rearing poultry in that garden successfully. So he also wanted to experiment in this exciting new activity which would keep his family well supplied with eggs, and fresh meat. So the next time dad went visiting to his base on a tour, he asked dad the best way to raise birds without too much of a hassle. You are going to get these easy tips in the book.