Category Archive

Blueberry season feels too short. Yes, international farmers keep the berry section stocked for several more months, but there’s nothing like the fresh and local versions. If you enjoyed tasting blueberries straight from the bush, you know there’s no c…

Many Americans already know that there is a homeless problem that’s continuously growing throughout the country. To some individuals, this doesn’t phase them in their everyday life that they live. To others, this problem needs a solution an…

In recent times, a growing movement has sought eco-friendly and low-maintenance lawn replacement to typical grass. A prime contender in this shift towards sustainable landscaping is Apetina, also known as Aptenia cordifolia or Baby Sunrose.1 This resil…

You don’t need a by-the-numbers guide to have a thriving garden. In fact, many successful farmers and home gardeners use a little creativity to solve common problems like pest prevention, ineffective seed starters, and landscaping designs. Best of all,…

The next time you’re cutting into a pineapple, don’t toss the spiky top. Instead, turn it into a houseplant that can eventually grow you another pineapple. You don’t need a tropical climate for this project, just plenty of space and bright light. If yo…

It’s a weed of many names, including common nettle, stinging nettle, nettle leaf, and burn nettle. But don’t let some of these names scare you. Nettles have six subspecies, and only five sport hollow stinging hairs on the stems and leaves that are pain…

Yes, you can grow avocados indoors. You may not live in a summery climate, but if you have room for a tall potted plant, you can try growing your avocado tree. Because these plants can sprout up to 80 feet, dwarf species are highly recommended for indo…

Everybody loves summer, but not everybody loves the creatures that it brings, specifically the pesky mosquito. There’s nothing more annoying than constantly having to swat away mosquitoes when trying to enjoy the outdoors. Fortunately, we have so…

Once you finish your paper towel rolls, don’t throw them away! There are so many nifty ways you can transform a simple cardboard roll into beautiful decorative pieces and storage utilities for your home. How to reuse paper towel rolls Organize Yo…

Summer vacation is synonymous with the great outdoors. Plans usually involve pools, beaches, picnics, barbecues, bonfires, camping, hiking, and many other activities that take advantage of the warm weather. However, summer days come with a major drawba…

When it comes to our homes, we often think of them as safe havens where we can relax and unwind. But what if you knew that your bed, the very place where you seek comfort and rest, could be filled with lung-harming bugs? Dust mites, microscopic creatur…

Nothing could beat a fresh strawberry on a breezy summer day. But many people are finding that store-bought strawberries taste blander than expected. They buy a box of perfect-looking, red, glossy strawberries only to experience a watered-down flavor o…

“Adulting is hard.” This is a phrase you commonly hear among college students and those new to the workforce, and you know what? They’re right. Being an adult is hard, but it is especially challenging when you don’t have much of the basic skills and kn…

The human body is an amazing thing and can do some pretty awesome stuff, but like most good things, there are also downsides. Let’s face it; there is an equal amount of ugly (and sometimes downright gross) for all the beauty and awesomeness of be…

No one wants to enter a house and face a bad smell. In a Facebook post, one woman suggests sticking cloves into oranges to counter this issue, and everyone loved it. Her home smells like citrus and spice heaven.   Kimmi Charlton from Manitoba…

A Montana couple built the cutest little tiny-house: An A-frame cabin that will make all of your outdoor living dreams come true. The best part? They spent only $700. This is how they did it. (1) Couple Builds a Tiny $700 Cabin Alla Ponomereva and her husband like tiny house DIY projects. With 20 acres…

The post This Cute-As-A-Button Cabin Only Cost $700 To Build appeared first on The Hearty Soul.

During the Cold War in the early sixties, the US government built 72 missile silos to protect an extremely powerful nuclear warhead. They didn’t use them for decades, however, so officials destroyed most of them. That being said, a few of these bunkers remain, including one that has been converted into a three million dollar…

The post Take a look inside a $3 million doomsday condo that can sustain 75 people for 5 years appeared first on The Hearty Soul.

There’s camping in a tent and then there’s camping in a trailer. Paul Elkins put both together to create a $150 mobile tiny home that could be towed around on a bicycle. All you need is some materials and Elkins’s printable instruction manual…

As the world evolves, so do our kitchens. With the rise of technology, our cooking and baking processes look very different from our grandparents’. Yes, some things haven’t changed at all, like the need for oven mitts or hiding cookies before little snackers eat them all. Our stovetop kettles haven’t evolved much, neither has our whisks, measuring cups, pots,…

The post 9 Things We Used To Do in The Kitchen That Just Don’t Happen Anymore appeared first on The Hearty Soul.

Thirty years ago, Kay Baxter and Bob Corker began seed-saving the heritage plant foods of New Zealand.  They founded the Koanga Institute, where regenerative farmers come together to fulfill this mission, in Kotare Village, Nother Hawke’s Bay. Together, they have collected over 800 heritage vegetable seeds and over 400 heritage fruit tree and berry seeds.  “If we…

The post Meet the seed-saving couple living entirely off the land (except for salt) appeared first on The Hearty Soul.

In 2017, a homeless man in Conifer, Colorado, finally was able to get off the streets and live in an RV on property he purchased himself. Not long after, however, by-law officers all but kicked him off of his property. Unfortunately, his isn’t the only tale like this. Homeless Man Kicked Off Of His Own…

The post This Formerly Homeless Man was Booted Off His Own Purchased Mountain Property, and he’s not the only one appeared first on The Hearty Soul.

One wouldn’t imagine using fire to preserve wood, but the ancient Japanese technique does just that. Shou Sugi Ban is an exterior siding method; it charrs the wood, cools it, cleans it, and finishes it with oil. Traditionally, they use Sugi wood (also called Japanese cedar).  Nowadays, Shou Sugi Ban is used as an environmentally-friendly…

The post Making Wood Last with Fire, Not Paint: An Ancient Technique appeared first on The Hearty Soul.

OBY is a housing company that is attempting two of the biggest problems we are facing today: lack of affordable housing and climate change. Short for our backyard, the California-based company is renting people’s backyards for 99 years to build tiny ho…

As wintertime approaches, all of the furry little friends outdoors will seek warmth. However, sometimes this means finding warm places inside people’s homes. For mice, this is the perfect time to find the best hiding spot with the best food. People tend to get worried about having unwanted guests during the holiday season. It’s a…

The post How To Set A Mousetrap appeared first on The Hearty Soul.

Windows and sustainability haven’t always gone hand-in-hand. Scientists at the Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) have set out to change that. Their newly-developed liquid window reduces both sun exposure and energy consumption…

Have you ever needed to open a can but couldn’t find the can opener anywhere? Or perhaps it broke the second you tried to use it. Either way, you have a can that needs to be open and nothing to open it with. That, however, is where you are wrong: You can open a can…

The post How to Open Any Can of Food with a Spoon appeared first on The Hearty Soul.

Architects can design structures that seem to be impossible. They are creatives while also being masters of math and sciences. Putting all that together has resulted in some out of this world creations.  Enter “the skinny home”, or more commo…

Let’s face it- very few people enjoy cleaning their bathrooms. When certain surfaces accumulate hard-to-remove stains, cleaning them becomes even more of a chore. This is particularly true of the toilet, which often eventually gets that pesky ring arou…

People didn’t always use to have refrigerators to keep their food from spoiling. A lot of the time, people had to rely on the finite sources that the land was able to provide. Forcing people to get creative on how they stored their food. Their imagination has brought convenience and survivability to a whole new…

The post 4 Forgotten Ways That Were Used To Keep Food Cold Without Electricity appeared first on The Hearty Soul.

A house can be an extension of an individual’s personality. Many like to plant raised garden beds and have luxurious lawn furniture. Some people decorate their homes to stand out among other houses in the neighborhood. However, some people like t…

Doomsday prepping used to be a fringe movement that many people regarded as a community of paranoid fanatics. In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, however, people across the country are looking toward preppers for survival advice. One way they stay prepared for possible disaster is by stockpiling emergency seeds. To some, the thought of…

The post 9 Seeds Everyone Should Grow and Store in Case of a Global Emergency appeared first on The Hearty Soul.

In Rio de Janeiro, where the average income is lower than the average cost of living, housing is difficult for many to afford. Meet one of the city’s most creative residents, The Sandcastle King, who has avoided paying rent for over 20 years. (1) Brazi…

Providing sustenance for people in need is an ongoing debate, with no clear solution on the horizon. So one man decided to make a difference on his own. John Fallon turned a traffic island into a garden and farms thousands of pounds of produce. He then delivers it to homeless shelters in Massachusetts.  Turning a Traffic Island into…

The post Man Turns Island Into Garden to Grow 7,000 pounds of Food for the Homeless appeared first on The Hearty Soul.