Our hearts go out to those of you who have lost your homes and/or jobs during these difficult times. An economic recession was certainly the last thing we needed, on top of the challenges we face from climate change and other environmental problems. This issue’s cover story, Cut Your Food Bills in Half, should help us all, offering a selection of ways we can reduce our food bills as costs soar.
Self-reliance and simple living have always been a big part of what Mother Earth News is about. Some of us take pride in the many ways we manage to live on less. We hope most of you will be able to find a silver lining in the dark clouds currently overhead. Whether you need information on low-cost housing options, techniques to make gardening easier, or want to learn how to make your own beer and wine, you’ll find helpful advice in our online Archive. Just use the search box on the Web site and you’ll have nearly 40 years of wise living advice at your fingertips.
To make it easier to find the best of the best of these articles, we’ve collected them on a special Live on Less page. Here’s some of what you’ll find.
Country Lore. This is our longest-running department, and it has a wealth of tips (some practical, some zany) from our readers on everything about living wisely. For the Live on Less page, we’ve gathered the best money-saving ideas.
Bootstrap Businesses. In these articles, you’ll find dozens of ideas and success stories that will motivate you to start your own business.
Firsthand Reports. These inspiring stories from our readers cover everything from living on a sailboat to homesteading in the city, but the common thread through all of them is the joy and satisfaction of doing more with less.
DIY, Low-cost Home-building Ideas. If you’re out of a job or have lost your home, maybe now is the time to put yourself back to work by building your own home, debt-free. You’ll find a revolutionary new technique for snug, low-cost homes. Owner-built, no-mortgage home-building articles are among our most popular stories, and you’ll find many of them listed on the Live on Less page.
Hopefully many of you are in a better place to weather this financial storm, thanks to the skills you’ve learned from Mother that have made you more self-sufficient. If you have advice that could be helpful to others who suddenly find themselves without their homes or jobs, you can share it by posting comments to the specific articles listed in the Live on Less pages. You can also e-mail us and share your tips and stories, your triumphs and lessons learned.
If you’re thinking about moving back to the land or are in pursuit of that dream homestead, you’ll find a new feature on our Web site that will be helpful. It’s a huge national listing of acreages and farms for sale — look for the Land for Sale link in the top navigation bar.
Also, our free Food & Gardening newsletter now includes a biweekly feature, What to Plant Now, that gives you region-specific advice on which crops to sow when. If you need help knowing what to plant when, be sure to sign up for the newsletter here.
