How to Make Your Land More Productive and Live More Self-Sufficiently in the Woods

Put your wooded land to work! This comprehensive manual shows you how to use your woodlands to produce everything from wine and mushrooms to firewood and livestock feed. You’ll learn how to take stock of your woods; use axes, bow saws, chainsaws, and other key tools; create pasture and pasture for livestock; prune and coppice trees to make fuel, fodder, and furniture; build living fencing and shelters for animals; grow fruit trees and berries in a woodland orchard; make syrup from birch, walnut, or boxelder trees; and much more. Whether your property is entirely or only partly wooded, this is the guide you need to make the best use of it.

Brett McLeod is an Associate Professor of Forestry and Natural Resources at Paul Smith’s College in upstate New York. Inspired by other creative farmers and foresters, McLeod’s 25-acre draft-horse–powered mountain homestead serves as a living laboratory for self-sufficiency. McLeod is also a professional lumberjack competitor and a former producer of the Stihl Ironjack Series and Stihl Timbersports Series. He coaches the Paul Smith’s Woodsmen’s team and founded the Adirondack Woodsmen’s School and the Adirondack Rural Skills and Homesteading Festival. He lives in Vermontville, New York. Pages: 240 Size: 8 x 10 Color: Two-color; Illustrations throughout.