About the Author

Marissa Ames

Editor of Goat Journal and Backyard Poultry magazines, Marissa Ames runs a small homestead in Fallon, Nevada, where she focuses on saving and propagating rare breeds of goats and garden vegetables. She and her husband, Russ, travel to Africa where they serve as agricultural advisors for the nonprofit I Am Zambia. She spends her free time eating lunch.
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Articles by Marissa Ames

Jobs Created Within Homesteading Communities
March 13, 2019 · · Homesteading

Add to Favorites Homesteading communities make a difference. From hobby farmers cherishing idyllic lifestyles to families who have ranched hundreds of acres for generations, each piece of actively managed homesteading land …

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A Complete Bug Out Bag List
March 13, 2019 · · Self-Reliance

Add to Favorites Some call it a 72-hour kit; others call it a get home bag. List what you need for three days, pack it in a portable container, and …

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Fighting to Save a Homestead Heritage in Salmon, Idaho
March 13, 2019 · · Homesteading

Add to Favorites Nestled in an isolated river valley, Lemhi County’s homestead heritage hadn’t changed much in a century. Sacajawea, Shoshone guide for the Lewis and Clark expedition, was born …

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Gift Guide for Those Favoring Self-Sustaining Living
March 13, 2019 · · Self-Reliance

Standard holiday gifts and baubles don’t work for homesteaders and a self-sustaining living.

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Homesteaders Are Not the Enemy
March 13, 2019 · · Self-Reliance

Add to Favorites I’m not a popular person. Sure, Facebook shows a different image. Snow peas and fresh eggs adorn my photo albums. As a homesteader, I post updates about caring …

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Simple Homesteading: Food Culture is About Sharing
March 13, 2019 · · Homesteading

Add to Favorites I’ve always gardened and cooked for my family. But I didn’t realize how much my simple homesteading centered on them until I no longer had family to …

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How to Make Fresh Pasta
March 13, 2019 · · Canning & Kitchen

Add to Favorites If you already grow tomatoes and keep chickens, why haven’t you learned how to make fresh pasta? It’s not difficult. First comes the garden. An overabundance of …

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How to Eat a Persimmon
March 13, 2019 · · Canning & Kitchen

Add to Favorites If you haven’t tried a persimmon yet, you’re missing out. It takes a little light reading to learn how to eat a persimmon and add it to …

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How to Make Vanilla Extract
March 13, 2019 · · Canning & Kitchen

Vanilla extract is so easy to create; what are you waiting for? Have fun learning how to make vanilla extract at home!

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Congrats on the Harvest! You Did It!
March 13, 2019 · · Canning & Kitchen

Add to Favorites A successful gardening season means you’re probably drowning in produce right now. And you don’t want it to go right into the compost pile. So how do you …

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Making Fresh and Wild Game Summer Sausage
March 13, 2019 · · Canning & Kitchen

Growing up, I knew a lot of hunters who made wild game summer sausage every fall and winter. I didn’t try making it myself until years later.

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How Does Freeze Drying Work?
March 13, 2019 · · Canning & Kitchen

Add to Favorites Freeze-drying has been around more than 100 years. But how does freeze drying work? And why is it better than simply dehydrating? People have developed many food …

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Food Preservation Methods Got us Through the Great Recession
March 13, 2019 · · Canning & Kitchen

Add to Favorites I should have made shirts declaring, I survived 2009. If I said that food preservation methods saved us, would you believe me? How many of us don’t …

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Does My Family Have Botulism Symptoms?
March 13, 2019 · · Canning & Kitchen

Add to Favorites Though it’s a rare chance you will witness botulism symptoms, recognizing and understanding the toxin’s effects could mean life-saving treatment. A byproduct of the bacteria C. botulinum, …

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Understanding How Botulism Causes Illness
March 13, 2019 · · Canning & Kitchen

Add to Favorites It’s the Big Evil in canning. Botulism causes paralysis, death, and long-term rehabilitation for survivors. But understanding how botulism forms, and how to prevent it, keeps you …

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