The Prairie Homestead

Homesteading | Self Sufficient Living | Living off the Land

Jill Winger

53 Comments | |    Last Updated: August 27, 2025

Shredded Hash Browns Recipe

I had a dream... ...of being able to make shredded hash browns at home without them being completely gross. Because even my best-laid plans would leave me with poor results... Too soggy. Too gummy. Too raw. Too burnt. And hopelessly stuck to the pan. I can make homemade marshmallows and french bread from scratch, for goodness sakes. What was up with these stinkin' hash browns? I am way too stubborn to buy frozen shredded ...Continue Reading

105 Comments | |    Last Updated: September 1, 2018

6 Strategies for Fly Control in the Chicken Coop

"Keep your mouth shut..." That used to be my routine bit of advice for anyone entering my chicken coop during the summer months. Fly control in the chicken coop used to feel like a losing battle for me, and the results were... gross. The cloud of black, buzzing flies used to be so thick when you'd open the door, you almost needed a welding helmet to keep them out of your eyes and mouth. If you think I've been talking about bugs a ...Continue Reading

17 Comments | |    Last Updated: June 3, 2020

Creamy Spinach Quesadilla Recipe

So I really, really wanted to call this recipe "Weed Quesadillas" However, I was a little worried some folks might get the wrong idea. Ya know, considering we do live rather close to Colorado... But all you cool homestead folks know exactly what I'm talking about, right? Not *that* kind of weed, but rather those lovely plants we are constantly pulling and pruning and mowing from our gardens and yards. I've developed a whole ...Continue Reading

28 Comments | |    Last Updated: July 2, 2020

Homemade Bug Bite Relief Stick

It has begun. They're eating my vegetables. They're eating my cows. They're eating us. Just like clockwork, every summer I find myself spending an inordinate amount of time battling bugs. Hanging fly strips (best invention EVAH), making natural homemade insect repellents, sucking up moths with the vacuum, waging war with the fly swatter... It all comes with the territory when you live out in the country. Especially when you live ...Continue Reading

67 Comments | |    Last Updated: September 4, 2016

Our Deep Mulch Garden — Year Two

I'm really good at messing things up. Lest you think the Prairie Homestead girl has it all together and things always run smoothly, let me be the first to assure you, they most certainly do not. I've had more than my share of flops over the last six years of homesteading, including horrendously awful dehydrated eggs, a hugelkultur bed that refused to grow anything the first year (not even weeds), goats that annihilated my very ...Continue Reading

41 Comments | |    Last Updated: June 18, 2015

Sew Grown Essential Oil Carrying Case Review

Ziploc baggies... That's what I used to carry my essential oils in when I would travel. My personality gravitates towards the "just get 'er done" mindset, so if I have a choice, I generally prefer functional over frilly. But in reality, Ziplock baggies aren't all that functional... The bottles bang together, and leak, and rattle around. And considering how valuable essential oils are to my life nowadays, I figured it was time to ...Continue Reading

Nice to Meet You

I’m Jill. I’ve never been very good at following prescribed paths.

For the last 15 years, that instinct has led me through homesteading, entrepreneurship, and creating a life my younger self could have only dreamed of.

These days, I’m less interested in living the perfect "old-fashioned life" and more interested in knowing which ideas are worth carrying forward. The first half of this story was about building a homestead. The next part is about building a life that actually fits.
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