This week, Caite and Arlene are back with Season Six and kick it off with a conversation with Andrea from Three Birch Homestead in British Columbia about what she’s “growing” on her off-grid homestead: garlic, two milk cows, goats (now planning to sell them), pigs, a few chickens, and turkeys. She describes using milk for cheese, yogurt, and butter, feeding skim milk to pigs, and plans to expand pork production due to demand. Andrea explains her path into homesteading, their off-grid systems (solar plus propane and wood heat), and challenges of farming with limited power and infrastructure.

She shares family dynamics with two small children, a 14-year-old, and adult daughters, homeschooling logistics, and work income from her online job, her husband’s glass jewelry, and farm sales. She discusses failures like sheep, goals for more gardens, fencing, and kitchen space, and her chicken paper dolls (Henrietta and Roostopher). The episode ends with discussion of high grocery prices, appreciation for farmers, and barriers to starting farms.

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