Author: Lars Drecker

A humble homesteader based in an undisclosed location, Lars Drecker splits his time between tending his little slice of self-sustaining heaven, and bothering his neighbors to do his work for him. This is mainly the fault of a debilitating predilection for fishing, hunting, camping and all other things outdoors. When not engaged in any of the above activities, you can normally find him broken down on the side of the road, in some piece of junk he just “fixed-up.”
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    Offseason Garden Prep

    If you’ve got a fall garden going, you’ve still plenty of plants in the ground, so bookmark this for when you’re done for the year. If, however, like many gardeners, your growing season is over for the year, its time to begin thinking about prepping your ground for spring. Read on for some ways you…

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    NWTF Funds Wild Turkey Surveys

    As part of its 2023 investment in wild turkey research, the National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF) is helping fund state-of-the-art research that integrates multiple data sources – a first-of-its-kind approach in wild turkey management–to provide wild turkey managers with a more accurate picture of population abundance across the country. In 2019, a report in Science made headlines worldwide,…

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    How To Render Lard

    Harvest and butchering season is upon us. Given that, its a good time to brush up on some skills that may come in handy after the harvest, and maybe even learn some new ones. Lard has a number of uses as a cooking fat—from baking to frying, and everything in between. Ever wonder how to…

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    2023 Waterfowl Population Status Report Released

    The breeding population of ducks declined 7-percent this spring, while pond counts dropped by 9-percent compared to last year, according to the 2023 Waterfowl Population Status report released Friday by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). Those numbers resulted from the Waterfowl Breeding Population and Habitat Survey, which has been conducted annually by the USFWS…

  • CCI Releases Clean-22 Hyper Velocity Ammo

    CCI has launched Clean-22 Hyper Velocity, promising CCI shooters all the benefits of exclusive Clean-22 technology, with the flat trajectories and power of an extreme-velocity load. CCI Clean-22 Hyper Velocity clocks in at 1,550 fps, while the advanced polymer coating on the 31-grain, lead, round-nose bullet reduces fouling, especially in suppressed rimfires. “By adding the…

  • Templar Announces The Paladin

    Templar Knife has announced the debut of the Paladin Manual Folder. As with all its models, Templar spent countless hours designing and building the folding knife to be a solid, quality piece. “The Paladin is a long time coming,” said Shannon Cauble, chief executive officer at Templar Knife. “Our OTF’s certainly are our flagship product,…

  • Handling Harlequin Bugs

    Harlequin bugs. You can’t live with ’em, and it would certainly be more pleasant to live without them! Unlike their carnival-esque name, these mid-sized little garden pests are no laughing matter. Feasting primarily upon cabbage, broccoli and brussels sprouts–or basically any brassica they can find–these bugs tend to show up in clusters, leaving a path…

  • Garden Tips for a Rainy Year

    It’s been a wet year on the homestead. Between seemingly endless rain, and humidity that often sees 90-percent, I can’t remember the last time I actually had to go out and water the garden. While it’s hard to complain about rain when we often see so little of it, there can always be too much…

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    USDA Forest Service Report Highlights Threats

    The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service has published a report that provides a snapshot of current U.S. forest and rangeland conditions and projects conditions 50 years into the future. The Resources Planning Act Assessment report uses a mixture of scientific, climate and economic projections to identify drivers of change, resources and trends across all land ownerships,…

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    Vortex Switchback Carbon Tripod

    Developed for hunters who need a compact- yet-stable platform for precision shooting and backcountry glassing, the Vortex Switchback Carbon Tripod delivers a superior strength-to-weight ratio to support heavy rifles, large binoculars and spotting scopes. Weighing in at just 4.6 pounds, with a folded length of 29 inches and 44-pound maximum load, the Switchback Carbon Tripod…

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    6 Insect-Repelling Plants

    Looking to cut down on the amount of bugs in your garden, the natural way? Consider ringing it with a few of the insect-repelling plants below, and watch the bugs fly away. Lemongrass First up is lemongrass, as its an obvious choice for this list. Lemongrass naturally secretes citronella oil, the primary ingredient found in…