I lost two hens in my first summer of chicken keeping because I underestimated how much water they drink. After that wake-up call, I started testing every automatic chicken waterer I could get my hands on, and our team has now run eight different models through real coops across two climates for this guide. Chickens … Read more
Last spring, I watched a sparrow empty half my chicken’s feeder in under ten minutes. That single morning cost me more than the feeder I was using, and it sent me down a long road testing gravity ports, treadle feeders, DIY bucket kits, and galvanized troughs. After three months of daily use across a flock … Read more
Last winter I lost two hens to a raccoon that pried open my manual coop door at 2 a.m. I bought my first automatic chicken coop door the next morning. After installing and stress-testing nine more over the past two years, I can tell you which ones actually keep your flock safe and which ones … Read more
When our team started keeping a 14-bird flock three years ago, we made the classic rookie mistake of buying a cute little coop from a big-box store. Six months in, our hens were stressed, eggs were scattered, and we were already planning a replacement. That frustration sent us down a rabbit hole testing every large … Read more
After helping my neighbor set up her first flock last spring, I spent three months testing 12 of the most popular backyard chicken coops on the market. We lost two hens to a raccoon in week one, which sent me down a research rabbit hole that turned into this guide. The best chicken coops for … Read more
Our team spent the last three frost seasons testing 24 different cold frames in raised beds, on patios, and in open garden plots across zones 4 through 8. After weighing durability, heat retention, ease of assembly, and real-world performance, we narrowed the list to the 12 best cold frames for gardening worth your money in … Read more
I spent the last three months setting up, taking down, and stress-testing eight different walk in greenhouses in my Zone 6b backyard, and the results surprised me. Some kits that looked flimsy online shrugged off 50 mph wind gusts, and a couple of the expensive models showed up with bent panels and stripped screws. If … Read more
I’ll be honest with you: the day I unboxed my first backyard greenhouse, I had no idea how much it would change the way I garden. After three winters of growing lettuce in January and starting tomatoes in February, I became the friend everyone called about greenhouses. So when our team set out to find … Read more
If you have ever tried to maintain a traditional compost pile, you already know the frustration. A soggy heap, stubborn clumps, and the inevitable visit from a neighborhood raccoon at 2 a.m. We have been there. After three months of testing rotating composters in our own backyards, we walked away convinced: the best compost tumblers … Read more
I built my first raised bed out of pine boards from the local hardware store, and within three years, the bottom row had rotted clean through. After that frustrating experience, I switched to cedar and never looked back. After testing 12 different models over the past two growing seasons on our 1.2-acre property, I can … Read more