Welcome to the TGN Forum!
Whether you are new to our TGN Community or you've been with us for a while and are just now stopping by the Forum, welcome!
We'd love to get to know you better. If you would, please introduce yourself by leaving a comment on this thread and letting us know a little about you -- for example, where do you live; what are your interests; what gardening/homesteading/home medicine projects are you working on right now; and what are your biggest challenges?
Whatever your area of interest -- whether it's gardening, raising livestock, making your own medicines, foraging, DIYing, etc. -- we've got a category for you:
-->Current Events and Breaking News
-->DIY Projects
-->Composting and Soil Fertility
-->Growing Food
-->Cooking, Canning, and Preserving
Please also be sure to read through the Forum rules, here.
And, if you have a question but aren't sure where to post it, feel free to let us know that in the comments, too. One of our Admins or Mods will be happy to direct you to the right category.
Again, welcome! We're so glad you're here!
* A note to community members: this is a second welcome thread created because our first one was getting so large. It is a good thing!
If you wish to review past introductions, you can find them here:
Comments
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Hi All! I’m from Southern CA and enjoy gardening and growing my own food. I wanted to be a part of this awesome community to learn more and interact with like-minded folks. One day, I might like to get a few chickens, so I figured this would be a good place to learn about them.
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Hi Everyone, I live near Detroit, Michigan. I have a reasonably sized garden where I grow food for my family and friends. I try to get out to a family members hobby farm regularly as she is teaching me to take care of farm animals. Living in the city it has been a struggle, but I recently have been able to secure a permit to keep chickens! My husband and I have a goal of continuously becoming more self sufficient. We would love to eventually have a homestead where we can provide most of what our large family needs. I'm so excited to be a part of this community!
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@AN1981 & @Michelle D a big warm welcome to the TGN community. You've made a great choice to get involved with like minded people from all over the world who share a passion to become self sufficient and want to learn more. The forums are a wonderful way to get involved, pick up info and meet new people. The courses are a great way to broaden your knowledge base. Don't be frightened to ask questions, we've all got each others backs, just ask and someone will point you in the right direction. Have fun.
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@AN1981 Welcome! This is a great place to learn more than you could ever imagine! 😄 If you want to know about chickens, I love to talk about mine, and a few others here do too. Don't be afraid to jump right in!
@Michelle D Chickens! It is good that you were able to get a permit. Not many people get that priviledge. What breed are you wanting, or do you have any preference? If you want a comparison chart, I have one posted here somewhere. You could search Henderson Chicken Chart or Sage Hill Farm. I know that I have another from somewhere else posted here too.
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Hello! My name is Karen. I'm very grateful and excited to be here as part of TGN street team. I'm looking forward to meeting everyone :). I'm studying to become an herbalist and working on utilizing herbal healing in my day to day life and to help my family and friends. I love foraging and wildcrafting and delighting in these simple pleasures. I have a fairly large container garden on the porch in my suburban neighborhood but God willing I desire to move out to the country someday and start a hobby farm. I love animals and grew up around goats and chickens so raising livestock is a topic of great interest to me. I enjoy DIY and making useful things (I carved a spoon from a take out container once in a pinch when we had no silverware) and recycling and reusing items rather than throwing them out. I like to crochet, love a good herbal tea and homemade gifts for family and friends. Thank you for having me!
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@karenjanicki It sounds like you are in the right place! Welcome here.
Pay attention to @torey's posts. She is a very knowledgeable herbalist who has a passion for learning & sharing with others. :)
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@LaurieLovesLearning I'm still doing my research on which breed of chicken would be best for me. From what I have learned so far I'm leaning towards Orpington. We need something that will handle our extreme weather/temperature fluctuations. Also, I have small children so I need a breed that won't be very aggressive. I hear that they are good for a less experienced person to start with. I will definitely check out your chart! The more I learn the better.
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Welcome @AN1981 and @karenjanicki. Hi again @Michelle D.
@LaurieLovesLearning is our go-to person for all things chicken.
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@Michelle D Extreme fluctuations are the worst. I think that any bird is lucky to make it through those. It is hard on any animals.
I don't have any that can't survive (as a breed...individuals can vary) very cold temperatures. We have uninsulated housing and use a lot of straw, crushed chilis & scratch with corn to help pull them through. It is not uncommon to lose some when the temp drops suddenly. The ones that make it through are certainly your strongest, though and that makes for hardier offspring.
There are tricks for hot weather & not as many for cold.
Many people have Orps here. They are good layers & great moms. They are a docile breed. I prefer docile. We will have to talk about it elsewhere on the forum (the livestock category is a suitable place). Good stuff. 👏
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I'm excited to join TGN and look forward to learning various aspects of homesteading. I'm recently retired from the military and going to school again. Since the onset of this COVID-19 pandemic, I've been taking courses related to gardening, cooking, preserving food, herbal medicines and teas, and others. I hope to become proficient and confident enough to experiment in creating tasty, healing meals, herbal tea blends, and herbal medicinal remedies suitable for my family. It's a humble goal but honorable.
Currently, I'm moving cross-country, trading smoke filled air for hurricane season, but happy to start gardening again.
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@brownjoelle You have taken on a mighty task, but it is a rewarding one.
Welcome here.
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Welcome to TGN @brownjoelle. I;m sure you will find inspiration and advice on the forum as you progress in your journey. .
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Hello All:
I am glad to become a TGN. I look forward to learning and sharing my limited knowledge on gardening, homesteading and DIYing. This year we had an abundance to overflowing of cucumbers and summer squash. We were able to give away what we could not use to our Church. I am hoping that next year we will be able to continue giving.
I have begun studying PYTHON programming language. It is much harder to learn new things at an elderly age but is good to stretch my mind.
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Welcome @DurwardPless! Good for you, finding a home for your excess produce. This year it is beets that I am giving away.
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Welcome here @DurwardPless!
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Hello Everyone! I have a house and some land in west-central Missouri that should be a productive homestead by now, but at present is a jungle with a small garden and some fruit trees cut into it. In 30 years on the day job, there was just never enough time or energy left for the homestead,,,once I retired, health issues got in the way--even had to re-home my chickens when I was not able to take care of them. I've been on the edges of TGN for years--(love those Grow Your Own Food and Home Medicine Summits!)--but never very active here for all the same reasons. But now I'm making a fresh start--health is much better, some fall vegetables are up in the garden, big plans for a great garden and more chickens in the spring, and eventually turning this place into the food forest it should be! Besides gardens, chickens and permaculture, I am interested in herbal medicines, foraging, and a range of traditional crafts. I also want to participate in the wonderful TGN community, to contribute and to learn, to find the inspiration and motivation to be up and doing and, I hope, help pass that along to others. --Mary Ellen
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Welcome to the forum, @MaryRowe! It sounds like you had a tough go. I am glad that you are now doing well and are finally able to pursue the lifestyle that you dream of.
Participation is very encouraged here. Jump right in! Have fun!
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Welcome @MaryRowe! I'm sure you will find inspiration and encouragement here. I have.
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@MaryRowe kudos to you. I hope the TGN journey is fruitful and knowledgeable to all of us. Be patient and you'll be rewarded. Thanks for participating.
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Thank you :). I'm grateful to be here
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Thank you! Looking forward to learning from you guys :)
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Hi! I am Gil. I'm very grateful and excited to be here like TGN street team! I look forward to learning and sharing my knowledge on climate change, and Diy, gardening, homesteading and any other topic in which I can contribute or learn something. Thanks again for this opportunity.
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Welcome, Gil!
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Hi! I'm very excited to be a part of TGN street team!
We have a family farm that will soon be 100 years old. I hope to try several things that I have put off doing, due to "going to a job" and living in town. Look out farm, here I come! lol
I look forward to sharing ideas, conversations, and learning!!
Thanks for having me!
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@water2world welcome! I'm excited to hear what you have to share.
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@Michelle D Than you for the welcome!
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Welcome to new members of TGN, is amazes me the breadth of experience and expertise that is a part of the team and continually joining. I am lucky to have found this site and am grateful for the chance to learn.
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Hi @AN1981 - exactly the same way I joined - I wanted to do more. I get worried many times I am getting things wrong, as I am new to most things, but you say exactly why I joined!
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In anticipation of welcoming new members as a result of the upcoming summit, I have revived this more detailed introductions discussion.
Please read the first post in this discussion for suggestions as to what is appropriate. Please don't post personally identifiable information for safety reasons.
Please additionally indicate your area in the Introductions section which was created to help local like-minded folks connect. https://community.thegrownetwork.com/categories/introductions
Thank you & we are looking forward to "meeting" everyone!
Welcome!
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So excited to see all the new members. Yup, this is an awesome place to hang out, learn, share, and enjoy.
This Week's Leaders
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- 1.3K Our Garden: Growing Food
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- 35 The Bush: Wild Game and Survival
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