When chickens get lice or mites, it can cause a number of problems for your flock. From a dip in egg production to undue stress that negatively affects their immune system, these external parasites are bad news for your hens. When they show up, you want to get rid of them as soon as possible. So how do you do that? 

I’ve found MannaPro Poultry Protector spray to be the most effective and quick non-toxic way to get rid of lice and mites. The issue is I own over 75 hens, so when I used Poultry Protector spray to kill lice and mites, I would go through a bottle a day! With each bottle ringing up at $12, it was an expensive treatment and I couldn’t keep footing the bill. 
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So I did my research and came up with a DIY Poultry Protector spray that costs me a fraction of the price (1/5 the cost to be exact!) and works just as well. In this post, I’m going to share it with you so you can help your hens and save a chunk of change too.

Through the hubbub of holiday shopping I like to keep it simple here at Green Willow Homestead - today through November 30th at midnight enjoy up to 40% off!

Grab the Holistic Home eBook, the Chicken Tractor Build Plans, our handcrafted Cocktail Bitters, or even preorder the Cultivating Capital Course at a discount and start 2022 with your best foot forward. Scroll on to learn more about all four deals!

Want to learn how to use online marketing for your farm or homestead business? In less than a year, I doubled my income using online and digital marketing. So when I launched my very first roadside farmstand, I applied everything I learned and was completely blown away. Within one month, we hit our supply ceiling and had 150 super fan farmstand customers visiting our farmstand. 

So today I am opening up about my online marketing journey. It’s rare that I get to share this part of my story. Everyone always wants to hear about the farming + homesteading + sustainability side of my journey (all of which I am happy to talk about!), but today that changes. If you’ve been curious about my path to sitting here writing you this post, how I started multiple e-commerce businesses, or how much money my marketing skills have made me over the years - then I got a heck of a treat for you.

I did a whole podcast interview with Katelyn Duban on The Rural Women Podcast. We cover all things online marketing for your farm or homestead. Katelyn did an amazing job interviewing me and getting to the heart of my marketing origins.

This interview taught me how you can’t fit 21st century farmers into a box. We all have such eclectic journeys, from second-career to first-generation or (in my case) actress turned filmmaker turned photographer turned marketer turned farmer.

Click below to tune in! Happy creepin' on me!

The 2021 Green Gifting Guide for Ethical and Sustainable Gift Ideas is here! Every year I launch a lovingly and carefully curated holiday gift guide to help you find unique, eco-friendly, and thoughtful gifts for your loved ones.

I know how overwhelming holiday shopping can be. As someone who loves finding the perfect gift, I understand how daunting it is when there are so many people you hold dear that you want to make feel special. I will admit that sometimes it feels like I am buying “just to buy" and get it crossed off my list. Pair that with being someone who cares deeply about being sustainable, ethical, and low to no waste with my shopping - it can take hours of online searching to find companies and products I trust.

So I know firsthand when the holidays come around, the call to spend money on gifts is at a fever pitch. It can be hard to navigate everyone’s wants and needs, while also keeping in line with your own values. 

That’s why I created The Holiday Green Gifting Guide. 

With over 60 gift ideas (categorized by age group and interests!), you can easily shop for everyone from toddlers to besties using the guide and give the earth a big hug while doing so. I want to save other earthy-friendly shoppers the time spent searching so you can breeze through your gifting with a clear conscious.

All of the gift ideas shared in this guide can be purchased online, they benefit great companies or artisan makers, are non-toxic, and good for the environment. ​​

Are you a farmer or homesteader who wants to learn exactly how to use online marketing to grow your business? From Facebook to Instagram to blogging to email marketing - the online advertising world is vast and trying to piece together how it all can create profit for your farm/homestead business is overwhelming.

The Cultivating Capital Course was created by me - Kelsey Jorissen Olesen, a fellow farmer and seasoned marketer. I run an 80-acre farm in NW Wisconsin where I sell pastured eggs, various market produce, and value-added products. From running a roadside farmstand to doing multiple farmers markets to shipping our farm's products, I've made our farm profitable by utilizing the online marketing knowledge I've honed over the last 10 years.

Three years ago she developed the Cultivating Capital Course to teach fellow farmers, homesteaders, and home business owners how to use online marketing to grow their customer base, increase profit, and actually enjoy using social media. Every year Kelsey updates the course's tutorials to reflect current online marketing trends.

Today we are chatting about all things non-toxic and sustainable home renovation and remodeling. We have Lisa Tharp, an eco-minded award-winning designer. She founded Lisa Tharp Design, an international design firm known for its clean-lined artistic blend of the classic with the modern, a hand-crafted custom furniture line, and industry leadership in design practices that support the wellness of people and our planet.

If you live in an area that gets blasted with snow and cold temperatures during the winter months, then your chickens are definitely going to need the extra nutritional boost only supplements can give. 

Every winter on our farm in Wisconsin, I give a handful of high quality, natural supplements to my hens. In this post, I am going to share with you why you should consider supplementation during the winter months for your chickens, which supplements I recommend, and the benefits they provide for your flock.

Getting through your first trimester can be such a challenge. From morning sickness to fatigue to sleeping issues - your body is going through so many changes as you grow a human.  In this blog post and podcast episode, we are sharing tips and tricks on how to get through those first trimester symptoms. We also are going to share our go-to resources that helped us learn and understand the changes our bodies are going through.

 I want to take this blog post and podcast episode to share with our listeners who may be trying to conceive or in the same boat as me in their first trimester. What I want you to know is: if you are in your first trimester and just feeling miserable - you are not alone!

Tune in below and read on for all the info...

The growing season went by in a flash this year! I am sure I can chalk it up to doing two farmers markets, taking on tons of homesteading projects, and adopting four baby goats plus a puppy. What a summer it has been on Green Willow Homestead. I’m so excited to share with you our Summer Update Video and go into a bit more detail on how we did things during the warmer months on the farm - plus a BIG surprise! ​

In this guest post, my husband is going to share with you how he came up with the DIY Modern Rustic Bed Frame Build Plans based on the West Elm Alexa Bed Set. Our hope is you can build your own gorgeous and sturdy bed frame!

If you've suffered sticker shock at the price of modern rustic bed frames - you are not alone! Not to mention their overall construction and quality can be questionable at best. My husband and I found ourselves in quite the conundrum when we wanted to level up to a king sized mattress. ​Read on my fellow DIYers...