Five Acres and Independence: A Handbook for Small Farm Management [Paperback]

Maurice G. Kains (Author), J. E. Oldfield (Introduction)

Book Description

Publication Date: 1973

This classic of the back-to-the-land movement is packed with solid, timeless information. Written by a renowned horticulturist, it has taught generations how to make their land self-sufficient, with explanations of organic farming techniques and reliable advice on other topics, including irrigation, livestock, crops, greenhouses, fertilizers, much more. 95 figures.

Product Details

• Paperback: 397 pages
• Publisher: Dover Publications; Revised & enlarged edition (1973)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0486209741
• ISBN-13: 978-0486209746
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #35,374 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #3 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Science > Agricultural Sciences > General
  • #9 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Outdoors & Nature > Reference
  • #11 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Science > Nature & Ecology > General

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

172 of 177 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent guide to the realities of a small farm., August 26, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Five Acres and Independence: A Handbook for Small Farm Management (Paperback)

I have a 1946 edition of this book which my father used as a reference in supplying our family all of our food from 1948 until 1962 and a large portion of our food thereafter. I have referred to it on a regular basis since 1972. While the precise numbers for costs and quantity of production are dated, the basic principles for successful small farming are clearly elucidated. You can update the costs and quantities yourself. Some of the information on animal breeds should be updated by additional research. But the priciples are all here. The chapters on "City vs. Country Life" and "Tried and True Ways to Fail" are essential reading if you have never been involved in agriculture previously. I have many reference books, and this is one of the best...with a tattered cover and yellowed pages!

182 of 190 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I'd love to see a new edition, October 18, 2001

By 

BearMaster "bearmaster" (Tucson, AZ United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Five Acres and Independence: A Handbook for Small Farm Management (Paperback)

This book was one of my father's favorites, even though he never took up farming. For those considering a rural lifestyle, perhapse even self-suffiency, this has to be the starting point. However, it is the pre-war, 1940 edition. I literally cringed when I read about lining the cistern with sheet lead, or using mercuric chloride to sterilize wounds on fruit trees (it's a wonder our ancestors lived long enough to have children). I'm sure this book has a lot of good advice, but if this city boy ever moves to the farm my father never had I'll try to check all facts with a second or third source. Is there anyone who's qualified to write the 21st Century edition?

86 of 87 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good guide if the date of writing is taken into consideratio, May 16, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Five Acres and Independence: A Handbook for Small Farm Management (Paperback)

I found the info on cropping and farming to be excellent. It was very in depth and accurate, and pretty easy for a novice to follow along. I have some problems with some of the author's advice regarding livestock, however. For instance, he recommends Belgian Hares for raising for meat. This is quite possibly the WORST rabbit for food production, being strictly a show breed notorious for it's nervous disposition that inhibits weight gain, breeding, and quite often leads to the rabbit breaking it's own legs within it's cage from panic attacks. His section on chickens is pretty good though. The production figures he offers are evidence of the time period in which it was written, however, being nearly half what is often attainable by homesteaders of today. Overall this was a good book, especially with regards to raising fruit trees, veggies, and pasture crops, but I would recommend that other books were purchased in addition to it if one needs help learning about livestock.