Agriculture

The honey bee is a miracle. It is the cupid of the natural world. It pollinates crops; making plants bear fruit and helping farmers make money. But in this age of vast industrial agribusiness, never before has so much been asked of such a small wonder. And never before has its survival been so unclear - and the future of our food supply so acutely challenged. In steps John Miller, or rather in he bounds. Miller tasks himself with the care and safe transportation of billions of bees. He is descended from N.E. Miller, America's first... read more

"A crackerjack story...the author struck gold....Nordhaus is a lively writer who...ably conveys the economics of the trade...and is just as able to describe the romance and miracle of honey....A smooth-as-honey "tour d'horizon" of the raggedy world of beekeeping."- Kirkus Reviews

Throughout the world, one breed of farm animal becomes extinct every month. This book outlines the history of the breeds of heritage livestock that were brought into, or developed in, New Zealand before 1950. Modern factory-farming methods rely on only a few breeds of livestock, and differentiated breeds are disappearing at an alarming rate; and it's up to dedicated conservators to save them. The call to conserve rare breeds, and therefore biodiversity, is now all the more important. Rare breeds: preserve living remnants of our dis... read more

This beautiful collection of portraits shows sheep as you have never seen them before polished, preened and styled to perfection prior to completion. The elegance and quirkiness of these adorable champion breeds is captured perfectly in the stunning studio photography.

Keeping bees is a wonderfully relaxing and rewarding pursuit. Whether you have a large garden, small backyard or roof terrace there is enough room for a hive or two - and that is all you need to produce delicious honey. Suitable for both beginner and the experienced beekeeper, this practical guide covers everything from setting up and locating a hive to harvesting honey and wax. This book includes step-by-step photographs, seasonal tasks and checklists and delicious recipes for your home-made honey.

Chickens are back in style with a vengeance: poultry breeders are struggling to cope with the increase in demand and gardens resound to the contented cluck of chickens. This trend can be in part explained by the huge demand for organic and locally produced food; after all, what could be more natural than keeping your own chickens and collecting their eggs? This beautiful and practical guide advises on all aspects of chicken keeping, from advice on the full range of breeds available, choosing and buying the right chickens for you, t... read more

As sustainability and organic living become increasingly popular, so does a desire to live a more self-sufficient lifestyle. This timely book will help you to achieve self-sufficiency and make beekeeping a reality. Beekeeping is about management, control and learning to understand the honeybee. It can also become a very enjoyable and sociable pastime - visiting others' hives and picking up vital hints and tips is all part of the fun - and farming and eating honey that your own bees have produced is a pure delight. Joanna Ryde cover... read more

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Self-sufficiency and organic living have never been more prominent and hen keeping is becoming increasingly popular. Part of a growing series of authoritative and inspirational titles, this book provides an introduction to some of the key aspects of aspiring to a self-sufficient lifestyle by keeping your own chickens and benefiting from the produce.You don

Living on a small block of land in the country is a cherished dream for many New Zealanders, and with the current boom in lifestyle farming this is a dream that is increasingly becoming a reality for these people. Running a small number of animals is the most popular use of lifestyle farms in this country, but for those without farming experience this can be a daunting challenge. Lifestyle Farming in New Zealand addresses this head-on. Written by a veterinarian with extensive experience of working with lifestyle farmers, and also o... read more

When Julia Hollander agreed to buy her small daughter a rabbit, she had no idea that she would end up with two hens as well. Finding herself at the wrong end of a very steep learning curve, she then had to master the many skills of hen husbandry in short order, from what to feed them to how best to fox-proof a small urban garden. "Chicken Coops for the Soul" is a record of the five years of trial and error that ensued, in which Julia charts the joys, challenges and inevitable moments of disappointment that face any aspiring poultry... read more

Critics of American agriculture bemoan the widespread decline of family farms. Gene Logsdon asserts that the solution to this crisis is cottage farming - farming part-time, for fun as well as profit. For those seeking a saner, more authentic connection with a piece of ground, Logsdon explains ways to combine a successful vegetable garden with raising livestock, pastures, grains, and woodlots, the values of pastoral economics ("Stay small and don't borrow money!"), and how to save expenses and avoid erosion by cultivating with hand ... read more

Temple Grandin, one of the most influential advocate of humane livestock treatment, has spent her life developing stress-free facility designs and standards of humane management. In an environment of growing concern regarding large factory farming practices, Grandin is a voice of reason explaining the benefits of keeping animals calm through every phase of their lives - benefits that include safer working conditions, higher yields of marketable meat, better-quality meat, and, of course, more humane conditions for the animals.The fi... read more

A truly lush, radiant enthusiast's guide, "The Backyard Beekeeper's Honey Handbook "goes beyond the scope of a cookbook to introduce to readers the literal cornucopia of honey varieties available. An intuitive follow-up to "The Backyard Beekeeper," this book will presume beekeeping experience but reintroduce the basics. It is an insight into the practical, back-to-the-earth beekeeping lifestyle and well as the artisan cultivation of honey varieties. Supplementary support for this book lay in the fact that interest in tapping honey'... read more

This comprehensive and easily understood book is intended to help goat and alpaca farmers of all kinds. It covers all aspects of farming, whether it be for two or two hundred animals. The husbandry consists of non-invasive drug free remedies that are as natural as possible. The book provides a good deal of technical information presented in simple terms. It also includes basic land care. Second Edition

Handy Farm Devices and How to Make Them, a classic from the Golden Age of American Farming, is as useful and pertinent for homesteaders and small-scale farmers today as it was when it was first published more than seventy-five ago. A wealth of labor- and money-saving projects fills its pages: spill-proof chicken waterers; a portable chicken coop; a lightweight orchard ladder; a small truss bridge; an easy fence-post and stump-puller; gates that don't sag; gates that lift over snowdrifts; a handy wood splitter - even a bicycle-power... read more

Large-scale agriculture tends to view a farm as a means for producing a certain amount of grain, milk or meat. This practical book argues instead for a holistic method of farming: the farm as a living organism. This is the principle of biodynamic farming. The author, an experienced farmer, takes a down-to-earth approach. Based on an example farm of around 60 hectares, he recommends the ideal numbers of livestock: 12 cows, 4 horses, 6 pigs, 10 sheep and 120 hens. This mix is drawn from Osthaus's deep understanding of nature, animals... read more

A manual providing information for organic and conventional sheep farmers. This second edition has been expanded in the areas of breeding for finer wool and meat, land management, sheep management, and treatment of health problems.

This book offers a comprehensive survey of new enterprise possibilities, but more importantly, it explains why change might be warranted and how to change with a minimum of risk. Topics covered include: farm tourism; energy conservation; self-sufficiency; dealing with degraded land and working with climate change.

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A revolution has been taking place in the New Zealand countryside, the number of smallholdings tripling in the past two decades. The Smallfarming Revolution provides amnd absorbing and realistic view of the smallfarming life. It covers the great range of farming activities carried out on smallholdings. And it describes how smallfarming is in harmony with emerging trends about working patterns and sustainable living. The book also contains detailed case histories of 21 New Zealand smallfarming partnerships, of varying ages and backg... read more