Living on an Acre: A Practical Guide to the Self-Reliant Life [Paperback]

U.S. Department. of Agriculture (Author), Christine Woodside (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1, 2003

Whether maintaining a second home, starting a part-time farm, or going back to the land, LIVING ON AN ACRE is the leading handbook for the small-scale farmer, and a comprehensive approach to solutions to every land-related problem. LIVING ON AN ACRE covers:
· considering the rural versus the urban life
· choosing a region
· what to think about when remodeling an older house
· how to build a barn
· growing for self-sufficiency versus growing for profit
· beekeeping
· raising livestock
· taking in visitors
· farming fish.
· and much more!

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Who hasn't daydreamed at one time or another about selling produce at a farmer's market, keeping chickens, or planting an orchard of fruit trees? Inside every do-it-yourselfer is a longing for a more independent lifestyle and the satisfaction that can come from getting your hands dirty while turning some earth.
Whether you're thinking about a second home in the country, starting a part-time farm, or going back to the land, Living on an Acre is the classic USDA handbook, offering a comprehensive and fully updated approach to:.
· considering the benefits of rural versus urban life
· what to think about when remodeling an older house
· how to build a barn
· growing for self-sufficiency versus growing for profit
· beekeeping
· raising livestock
· land conservation
· and much more!

About the Author

The U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE's team of experts is an impressive array of authorities ranging from farm management specialists, to state farm advisors, to agricultural economists, to the former Secretary of Agriculture.

CHRISTINE WOODSIDE is a freelance editor and writer whose articles have appeared in The New York Times, the Christian Science Monitor, Backpacker, Yankee, Woman's Day, and Publishers Weekly. In 1987, she hiked the entire Appalachian Trail with her husband Nat Eddy.

Product Details

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Lyons Press; 1st edition (December 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1592281141
• ISBN-13: 978-1592281145
• Product Dimensions: 9.7 x 6.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #869,082 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

146 of 149 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars A book full of 30 second sound bites, April 29, 2005

By 

Send Gold and Oil Please (stuckinthemiddleoftheherd) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Living on an Acre: A Practical Guide to the Self-Reliant Life (Paperback)

This book offers very little useful information on rural living other than references for where to get real information. It gives a superficial overview of the many ways you can make a few dollars off of your cottage or hobby farm, but not enough details on any subject to be helpful.

This book was obviously not intended for people wanting information about living on a small, rural homestead. Instead, it seems designed for bored yuppie housewives who want "something rural" on their bookshelf or who are looking for a few hobby ideas and little more.

A better place to start for a Practical Guide to the Self Reliant Life would be : "How to Survive Without a Salary: Learning How to Live the Conserver Lifestyle," by Charles Long.

55 of 56 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Give me something I can use..., January 3, 2007

By 

Cultivation Hugger (Olympia, WA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Living on an Acre: A Practical Guide to the Self-Reliant Life (Paperback)

This book is great if you just retired and want to start a small hobbie farm and you have lots of money to spend, because that is what the Government wants you to do in this book. I think they really need to retitle this book because it is not fitting! It offers nothing of value if you really want to make a go at trying to live on a small scale farm and be self-suffient. They keep pointing you to buy this or spend money here to do that. But if your really trying to live off a small scale piece of land I would recommend Joel Salatin "You Can Farm."

Good luck to you if you are going to try and do this!

2 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Living on an Acre - Excellent Update, October 30, 2008

By 

David Sharrow (Anchorage, AK USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Living on an Acre: A Practical Guide to the Self-Reliant Life (Paperback)

"Living on An Acre" is an excellent update to the DoA publication "Living on a Few Acres". If you want to buy "Living on a Few Acres" due to it's recommendation in past articles or books pass on it and order this book instead. The base information is still the same just updated by a few decades.