The Forgotten Skills of Self-Sufficiency Used by the Mormon Pioneers

What an easy way to read about what we have lost from the ways and skills of the last generations. I loved to read about things they did regularly that I had no idea of. This gave me a better perspective of how pioneers lived and survived from year to year in a deliteful narrative.

A really fun book... worth every penny. Great for kids and adults. I wish I would have purchased this in hardback vs kindle because I want to flip back and forth quite a bit. Ton's of great information!

People who lived in farm country 3 or 4 or more generations ago would probably find bits of familiar advice in this book, but most of us contemporary folks have forgotten them, or never knew them! Here is how your Great Grandparents did it. You can do it, too, but if you don't want to struggle trying to figure out how, here is a great reading tip collection.

You probably will not want to follow every path described in this book, but it is a comfort to be able to pick and choose the path best for you.

A really fun book... worth every penny. Great for kids and adults. I wish I would have purchased this in hardback vs kindle because I want to flip back and forth quite a bit. Ton's of great information!

People who lived in farm country 3 or 4 or more generations ago would probably find bits of familiar advice in this book, but most of us contemporary folks have forgotten them, or never knew them! Here is how your Great Grandparents did it. You can do it, too, but if you don't want to struggle trying to figure out how, here is a great reading tip collection.

You probably will not want to follow every path described in this book, but it is a comfort to be able to pick and choose the path best for you.

This book was very interesting, the photos were great, and I learned a lot from this book. It is an easy read and I understood and laughed at a few things that were written in it. I enjoyed the book, and will continue to use some of its information in the future. Thanks for a fun book.

This book is an easy read and covers what I consider to be the basics of self-sufficiency. At one time or another in our lives, we just might have a need to use the information contained in the book. I purchased the book for two reasons: (1) to gain more knowledge about being self-sufficient and, (2) to re-enforce what we already knew. I was pleased in both areas of my quest, and highly recommend having it around for possible future reference.

Honestly, I just picked this up at my post office and of course excitedly ripped the package open. I fanned through the book and quite a few pages caught my attention. The photography is beautiful and adds more to my intrigue. I am looking forward to reading through every page! Thank you for having this book available. :-)

Don't waste your money. The people who rated this book high must live in the city. Everything in this book can be found on the internet. There are no forgotten skills in this book if you already live in the country. An example is raised garden bed. This is not a lost skill as many people still use raise beds. The chicken section is "raising chickens 101". Anyone that has lived on a farm could have written this section. If you live in the country and are looking for some lost farming technique, animal husbandry, gardening, etc, and you grew up around farms and farmers this book doesn't have anything to offer you. On the other hand if you grew up in the city and don't know a chicken from a duck it would be a good book for you to have. I think the book should have been titled "the forgotten skills of self-sufficiency for city people".

I loved this book and will make it a staple as a gardening and self-sufficiency reference. The full color photos and detailed instructions make this a perfect guide for the gardener or personal preparedness guru in your home. Definitely got my moneys worth out of this. Thanks Caleb for such a great addition to my home library.

I enjoyed learning about the methods used by those who had to live without all the modern conveniences we have now. The book had lots of great ideas for heirloom planting and seed harvesting, as well as how to feed chickens without commericial feed. Great book!

If you have been interested in self sufficiency and doing anything in the space then you probably are not going to find a lot of practical info here. Either you will know it already or it will suggest some clues to start more research and info gathering. As may commenters said, must of this has lots of current info in many self sufficiency mags and articles. Forgotten skills they are not. As any skill takes practice, maybe you are not proficient yet but you know of it nearly as much as described here.

I got this book thinking it would be wonderful for helping my family and me become more self-sufficient. What it really was is things that we are mostly already doing--so that quite all that forgotten. The few things that were in the book that I was excited to read about (getting sugar from sugar beets, extending the gardening season, etc.) didn't help at all! Mostly it talked about how in his grandmother's journal they did it that way--he tried it and it didn't work--that doesn't help me! So, if you are new to chickens (which it does go into great detail about) or gardening, this would be an alright book--but I already do those things so. ..

I bought this book under the impression it was going to teach me self sufficiency skills. I was unpleasantly surprised that this book was more of a memoir than of a teaching book. It does have some information but not very much. The title is very misleading.

Not one piece of helpful information that I didn't already find in 20+ of my other books. Forgotten skills? By whom? Every gardening and preserving book has the information in this book, in my opinion. Spent a hefty price for it too. Waste of money.

This book is an excellent resource for folks working toward maximizing their gardening year and for folks working toward a self sustaining lifestyle. It's full of great tips and tricks - tried and true by people whose lives depended on it. Topics include seed saving, pollination, cellars, cold storage, greenhouses, grapes and fruit trees, perennial vegetables, long keeping vegetables, chickens, etc.

There is no way one book can completely cover all of the topics addressed, so the author has listed other resources that will help answer the questions that you might have. I had a great time exploring types of geothermal greenhouses after reading about the author's.

If you're already very knowledgeable about many of these topics, then you might find the treatment too cursory, but if you're just starting out, then I highly recommend this book. I consider myself a skilled summer gardener, but I really learned a lot about winter storage, greenhouses, and extending the gardening year.

I actually returned this book because it was not at all what I expected. The book did a nice job explaining vegetable gardening and food related skills (canning, etc.) but I was looking for more self-reliance type skills as well. However, that being said, I gave it three stars because the information they did provide (on food) was very nicely done. Maybe a different title is in order.

I thought this would describe how to do things but it is more of a 'this is what people did' book. Not helpful in passing on and teaching those skills at all. Would have sent the book back if I had not gotten very ill.

Just two weeks ago, the residents of Utah celebrated Pioneer Day in honor of the arrival of the Mormon pioneers in the Salt Lake Valley in 1847. I appreciate the hard work and sacrifices these determined people showed throughout their lives. It seems such a shame that so much of their knowledge and work ethic has disappeared over the generations.

I was surprised to read that our ancestors harvested nearly all year long, including during the winter. I am several generations removed from my farming and pioneering ancestors, so I was unaware of several of the aspects of self-sufficiency that the author talks about.

Did you know carrots were originally yellow and purple? I didn't.

Did you know it's possible to grow and harvest salad greens in the snow? I can't wait to try growing some.

In the age of supermarkets and fast food, it would do mankind good to return to a degree of self-sufficiency. In the timeline of history, grocery stores and processed "food products" are brand new concepts. We have become so accustomed to the appearance and taste of the items lining the shelves that it makes one wonder how people lived without Doritos, Oreos, and Diet Coke.

The first half of The Forgotten Skills of Self-Sufficiency covers heirloom plants and seeds, expanding the harvest, and storing the harvest. The author shows several examples of these concepts in his own garden and root cellar. He briefly covers pioneer yeast and bread making, then moves on to how to raise and care for your own chickens for the remainder of the book.

While covering several interesting topics, this book doesn't get into a lot of specifics of how to do these things and does reference additional material. If you have been feeling the pull toward becoming more self-sufficient and are interested in getting a good overview and general direction, The Forgotten Skills of Self-Sufficiency is a good place to start.

Review originally published on LDS Women's Book Review.

Mr. Warnock writes like I'm an old friend sitting across the kitchen table. He likes to share stories akin to regular conversation over tea. I feel like I'm visiting his very farm as he tells me what he's tried with success, heard of, or had failures with. Like a friendly neighbor, he's encouraging and very informative. His is the only book I've seen that doesn't focus on the negatives of chicken raising! I've read time and again what diseases my chickens will get or how they will die or be a pain in the neck. Rather he focuses on how to keep them healthy from the start and I can feel his joy of owning and raising chickens. I feel as if he is a scientist, trying to figure what works and so willing to share his results. Also, he covers more than a whole book on chickens in a few short, easy to read chapters. Thank you for your enthusiasm sir! Thank you for your desire to be different from other chicken raising books and not at all redundant to what else is written on the topic. I've started following your blog and can't wait to see your next forgotten skills book.

I have no knowledge of anything garden related. In fact, I kill all my plants but through this book I've learned how to have a green thumb. After reading this book, you start to understand plants more.

The info the author presents is easy to understand. Even my second grader niece adores the book. She spent an hour staring at the pictures.

The recipes in this book are killer. The succulent slow-roasted vegetables are my fave.

I purchased this book on a whim and I love it. This would be a great gift for a newly married couple or homeowner. Some great canning tips and tricks as well as great ideas for maximizing storage potential. Great photos and I love the overall look and design of the book. This made it to my permanent homesteading shelf.

Excellent reference book. Easy to use. I wish it was bigger and more comprehensive, but it is great. No single book on self sufficiency is going to be exhaustive. This is a good addition to the library.