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Build & Yardstead w/ Carolynne is happening in 12 days
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Yardstead Society Is Officially Open 🌱
Big news for this community! Something new has been quietly taking shape behind the scenes and today I’m excited to finally share it with you. We’re officially launching the Yardstead Society. For a long time I’ve believed something simple: You don’t need acres of land to build a more self-reliant life. You just need to start with the yard you have. More and more people are waking up to this idea. They want to grow food, build useful things, raise animals, and create backyards that can actually sustain them. That’s what Yardstead is all about. This free community will continue to be the place for sharing builds, asking questions, and connecting with other DIY builders. But for those who want to go deeper, we’ve opened up a paid tier inside Yardstead Society. Inside the Society members unlock: • Build & Yardstead Calls with me — live support on your projects, planning, and ideas • Yardstead Masterclasses — monthly sessions where we dive into specific topics around growing food, backyard infrastructure, and productive living • The Yardstead Resource Library — guides, tools, and resources to help you build a more productive backyard • Expert Sessions so we can learn together from expert homesteaders who have already mastered the skills we aspire to learn • A place focused not just on projects… but on actually living the Yardstead lifestyle We’re also opening this up with Founding Member spots. The first 50 people who join will lock in founding member pricing for life as a thank you for helping build this community from the beginning. If you want to join in and unlock all of these features you can do so here: https://www.skool.com/yardsteadsociety/about Want more info on what it's all about? Learn more here: https://thehillsidemarket.com/pages/yardstead-society Really excited to watch the yardsteading movement gain momentum and to see what this community grows into 🌱
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Start Here — How This Group Works
Hey friend! I'm so glad you're here. I'm Carolynne—the one behind every plan, testing every build with my husband Eric in our Alberta backyard, and running Hillside Market from our little homestead in Zone 3 Canada 🇨🇦. I created the Yardstead Society to support you in two ways: 1️⃣ Build Support (Free) Get help with your DIY projects from start to finish. Whether you're building a greenhouse, chicken coop, or backyard retreat, ask questions, share progress, and get guidance from the community. Eric and I are both here to help with build questions. 2️⃣ Yardstead Support (Paid Membership) Weekly calls with me, expert interview sessions, and access to resources for actually living the lifestyle—growing food, raising chickens, preserving your harvest, and working toward real self-sufficiency. 👋 Start by introducing yourself! Tell us where you're from, what you're building, or what you're hoping to grow or raise. Already finished a project? Post it under Progress Pics so we can celebrate with you. 📚 Explore the Classroom: - Build Spotlights – See what others have created - Project Planning Tools – Checklists and resources to help you succeed - Yardstead Resources – Growing, raising, and preserving (paid members) - Plus all Yardstead Society members get monthly discounts on guides and gear Tag me (@Carolynne Hill) or Eric (@Eric Hill) anytime with questions or to share what you're working on. Let's get building! ✨ — Carolynne PS: Say hi below! 👇
Garden/greenhouse layout
I am looking at the logistics of planning my garden - I will be building some raised beds and the focal point will be a Petunia greenhouse. 😍 Ideal placement would be to put the greenhouse on the north side of the garden , so the greenhouse doesn't shade the garden more than the trees do. But the slope of the room would then to the north and not maximize the sun energy. Has anyone moved the door to the other side of the greenhouse? I'd love to see pictures. I think it would be a super cute cottage feel to it. But the door would need to be shorter? haha - good thing I'm 5'. Leaving the door to the tall side would be inconvenient as we have Saskatoon shrubs on that side. I would also be building this on an existing garden bed that is SOOO soft, I need to find a way to pack the soil in that section. the other thought, is build it on the south side of the garden, and plan more shade crops in the closer beds. But there would be some trees to deal with. The septic field is east of the garden, so we can't expand too much that way. The trees to the north of the garden as Saskatoons, there is a shed behind the trees now, and it's a down hill path there. We have a steep hill that starts at the tree line behind the house, it's a little gentler near the garden, but after the sad it's steep. I do need to come up with a plan, as I start building my beds in the next few weeks, and need to know where I am putting this.
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Garden/greenhouse layout
Starting yard clean up
There is still a lot of snow here, but lots of work to do before outdoor gardening begins. We did a heavy pruning on the 6 Saskatoon bushes. They were very over grown probably 18 feet tall, we took them down to 5.5 feet and took out all the old gnarly branches. Next up front yeah shrubs
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Starting yard clean up
Where are you joining us from?!
As the community continues to grow I'd love to hear where you are all from! I'll go first. I am from Northern Alberta and located in growing zone 3. It just snowed another 6 inches last night and I am, for lack of better words, OVER IT. I am just about 8 weeks away from my last frost date, so this week I have to set aside some time to start tomatoes among other things. For some reason, seed starting is my least favourite part of the gardening process. Probably because what I love about gardening is being OUTSIDE. But... as I mentioned... 6" of fresh snow on the ground... on top of the 3ft we already had... So I guess I'll be starting seeds in my basement. Would love to hear where you are from and what you got on the go right now!
Where are you joining us from?!
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Yardstead Society
skool.com/yardsteadsociety
Free DIY building resources, project gallery, and builder forum. Plus, exclusive resources for turning your yard into a productive Yardstead.
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