Author

Julia Bayly

Julia Bayly, staff writer for Hello Homestead, has worked in print journalism for more than three decades covering the unique characters and life of northern Maine. When not wrangling critters on her Rusty Metal Farm, Julia travels the world seeking adventure and great food wherever she can find it. She loves dogs and chickens, tolerates cats, is unsure of ducks and does not trust goats.

DIY

How to make homemade hand sanitizer

Julia Bayly Mar 4, 2020 2

With a few ingredients you may already have in your medicine cabinet, it's easy to make an alcohol-based homemade hand sanitizer. With new reported cases of the coronavirus coming out every day now, it’s important to practice…
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Garden & farm

How to get started with straw bale gardens

Julia Bayly Feb 5, 2020 0

Planting seeds in straw bales? Really? If the idea of growing your garden without digging in the soil might sound a bit counterintuitive. But if you long to enjoy fresh produce, fruit or flowers grown yourself there is an alternative to…
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Garden & farm

How building science can help you build more efficiently

Julia Bayly Jan 29, 2020 0

Many people would like their home to be more self-sufficient and efficient. For those starting from the ground up and building their how home, there is solid, proven science behind methods to make your home both. This excerpt from…
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News

Midwest farmers learning what Maine farmers always knew about old tractors

Julia Bayly Jan 10, 2020 0

Farmers in the Midwest are increasingly looking to older model tractors to avoid the software issues of modern tractors.|Photo by Julia Bayly It turns out the nation’s farmers are just discovering what northern Maine farmers have known…
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Rusty Metal Farm

The truth about living with pets on the farm

Julia Bayly Jan 6, 2020 0

Ever try typing with a tiny dog resting on your arm? It's an acquired skill|Photo by Julia Bayly I’d like to say I’m the kind of person who stands firm in the face of demands from critters looking for extra food or attention. But it…
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News

Denmark set a record for wind sourced electricity in 2019

Julia Bayly Jan 2, 2020 1

Image by Julia Schwab from Pixabay Denmark sourced almost half its electricity consumption from wind power last year, setting a record in 2019 for its wind power production. The country received 47 percent of its electricity from wind…
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Animals & livestock

Poultry can be good pets, but skip the indoor chickens

Julia Bayly Jan 1, 2020 0

Chickens are great additions to a homestead, but should not be brought into the house.| photo by Julia Bayly There are few things cuter than a fuzzy, warm baby chick. But close interaction or cuddling with that same chick or its adult…
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Rusty Metal Farm

Who needs a knight in armor when there are farmers in Carhartts?

Julia Bayly Dec 30, 2019 0

When you get a tractor this stuck, the only thing to do is call a farmer with a larger piece of machinery.|Photo by Julia Bayly Forget knights in shining armor. When it comes to helping me get out of whatever jam I have gotten myself…
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Homesteading State Guides

How to start homesteading in Alaska

Julia Bayly Dec 26, 2019 0

Image by skeeze from Pixabay When you think of the Last Frontier, farming and homesteading may not be the first thing that comes to mind. Instead, you might think of gold rushes, dogsledding and wild rivers teeming with salmon. You’d be…
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Homesteading State Guides

How to start homesteading in Missouri

Julia Bayly Dec 24, 2019 0

Image by David Mark from Pixabay The Show Me State has plenty to show when it comes to farming and homesteading. More than 100,000 farms cover about two-thirds of the state, and nearly all of them are family owned and operated. Many of…
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Rusty Metal Farm

It’s a blue-stained Christmas on Rusty Metal Farm

Julia Bayly Dec 23, 2019 0

The Rusty Metal chickens look over the blue tinged bald spot on elder chicken Shoppie.| Photo by Julia Bayly It’s looking like a blue Christmas here on Rusty Metal Farm. Not blue as in sad or melancholy, though. Blue in color. And in…
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Homesteading State Guides

How to start homesteading in Idaho

Julia Bayly Dec 20, 2019 0

Image by David Mark from Pixabay Think of farming in Idaho and the first thing that springs to mind may well be potatoes. It’s for good reason: the state produces one-third of the country’s potatoes. But there’s a lot more going on in…
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