What's on Your Reading List this Winter?

If you're a homesteader like I am, or even just a beginner or veteran gardener, chances are, you've got some books on your list to dive into now that the outdoor growing, harvest and preservation season is just about over. (Of course, I am speaking for those of us who live in climates where we cannot outdoor garden year round!) It's important to find new ways of doing things on your homestead, or just refining what you already know. This is why I've got quite a few books on my list and my night stand to read during these long winter months. I'm an information junkie and my mind is like a sponge when it comes to learning about urban homesteading.

I learned early on that it's a good idea to glean as much information as possible from other gardeners and homesteaders who have a wealth of knowledge and experience to share. Who better to learn things from than those who have walked the path before you? Unfortunately, I do not know any homesteaders like me personally. I have a friend here in town who has grown a rather large garden for many years and I have often turned to her and her husband for gardening advice. My husband's late Grandma was also a wealth of information. Born during the depression, she grew a garden and preserved until she could no longer stand to do it. She was one of the people in my life who inspired me long ago to someday start my own garden and preserve its bounty for my family. Her garden fed not only her family, but others in need as well.

So other than reading blogs of people already homesteading, I turn to books to supply me with information to make my homestead a success!

Here are some of the books I'm reading right now and plan to continue reading this winter. A few of these books are older because I'm a big library supporter. Save a tree, borrow a book!

1. Growing and Saving Vegetable Seeds by Marc Rogers, Published by Garden Way Publishing, Vermont, 1978.
2. Homesteading: A Practical Guide to Living off the Land by Patricia Crawford, Published by MacMillan Publishing Co., Inc., New York, 1975.
3. The Self-Reliant Homestead: A Book of Country Skills by Charles A. Sanders, Published by Burford Books, New Jersey, 2003.
4. Greenhouse Gardening by Miranda Smith, Published by Rodale Press, Pennsylvania, 1985.

An original 5 Minutes for Going Green post. Come on over to see Beth at her blog Coming Up For Air and follow her family's journey into urban homesteading and organic gardening! It may be close to winter, but there's always something going on!