The word persimmon usually conjurers up one of two reactions when brought up. The most common result is that of the serious pucker factor when tricked into biting into a green fruit. But to those that know, the memory of a sweet, succulent fruit comes to mind. Diospyros virginiana, or commonly known as the American […]
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![Edible Wild Plants for Survival, (Not) So Fast! Seton_Rabbits](https://masterwoodsman.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Seton_Rabbits-220x180.gif)
Edible Wild Plants for Survival, (Not) So Fast!
One of the Survival 101 maxims is “Learn my top edible wild plants for survival!” Equipping yourself with this knowledge is empowering according to most instructors, whether it is a fight for survival or a recreational walk through the woods. Whichever experience is being sold, it comes down to being self-reliant. Therefore, many put learning […]
![Natural Insect Repellents Yes, that's me 20+ years ago.](https://masterwoodsman.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/chris-fish1-220x180.jpg)
Natural Insect Repellents
I was in my early twenties the last time I used manmade insect repellent. I hated what DEET did to my gear, especially plastic. And one can’t help wonder what it was doing to me! At that time in the eighties, I was really into hunting and fishing. Luckily those bug jackets that hold the netting […]
![Trees You Should Know… Two years later the branch has healed over from where I harvested the inner bark in the video. Do it ethically and with some forethought to minimize impact.](https://masterwoodsman.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Healed_Pi_st-220x180.jpg)
Trees You Should Know…
Willow Haven Outdoor has a great article posted on their website, 6 Trees Every Survivalist Should Know & Why. Here is their list, you’ll have to go their site for the why: White birch (paper birch) American Basswood White Pine White Oak Sugar Maple Willow Tree To supplement Creek Stewart’s article, here is a video […]
![Primitive Survival Skills in the 21st Century by Mark Warren (2 of 6) April 2013 in Smoky Mountain National Park. Stream along Parson Branch Road which was once covered in shade by Hemlocks now gets full sun raising the temperature in this microclimate.](https://masterwoodsman.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/SAM_0065-220x180.jpg)
Primitive Survival Skills in the 21st Century by Mark Warren (2 of 6)
Hemlock, Gift Giver of the Standing People If you missed part 1, it’s right here 😉 The gifts of the forest are legion. Today those gifts are thought of as arcane anecdotes to a fast and furious culture disconnected from its environment. Just five centuries ago, the lore of plant foods and medicines and craft […]
![GIVE ME 2 HRS AND I’LL SHOW YOU HOW TO SAVE THE WORLD Permaculture can fix this!](https://masterwoodsman.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/desertification-220x180.jpg)
GIVE ME 2 HRS AND I’LL SHOW YOU HOW TO SAVE THE WORLD
But… It will also work on a small scale, say, your yard or land. Own less than an acre? No problemo. This will work on the most basic of individual holdings to the Worldwide pandemic of desertification. Here’s the problem: Nobody really cares! Heh, I bet you could care less what happens in some butt […]
![Back To Eden Gardening Method Back To Eden Gardening Method](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/53/Compost-dirt.jpg/220px-Compost-dirt.jpg)
Back To Eden Gardening Method
The Back To Eden Gardening Method is a very basic one that only requires the composting component and wood chips. *Note: If you are offended by religion, turn away now. This video is not for you. The author reinforces simple compost gardening with Scripture from The Bible. 🙂 BACK TO EDEN shares the story of […]
![Firewood Quality primitive survival skills](https://masterwoodsman.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/fire-220x180.jpg)
Firewood Quality
I am not the original author of the national firewood quality data you will see below. I archived it for myself several years ago, long before the idea of this website. My apologies for not providing the proper credit. Whether it’s your fireplace, woodstove, or campfire, having some knowledge of wood properties and how a […]
![Trees Start'em young. Note the book.](https://masterwoodsman.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Trees-Book1-220x180.jpg)
Trees
I have always loved trees. From the time I was seven years old, I knew I wanted to be a Forest Ranger or something along those lines. Ultimately, I became a Forester. Many of my childhood memories escape me, but for whatever reason I remember specific trees and their location vividly. Is that engrained in […]
![Primitive Survival Skills in the 21st Century by Mark Warren primitive survival skills](https://masterwoodsman.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/fire-220x180.jpg)
Primitive Survival Skills in the 21st Century by Mark Warren
The physicality of satisfying our essential needs today is virtually effortless – like strolling through the aisles of a grocery store or turning a knob to heat an oven. So why turn back history and roam forest and field to dig up edible roots? Why twirl a stick in your hands to near exhaustion in […]
![Survival Foods in the Forest: the quest for protein by Mark Warren Mark Warren](https://masterwoodsman.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Mark-Warren-222x300.jpg)
Survival Foods in the Forest: the quest for protein by Mark Warren
Very few people actually plan a strategy for survival foods and survival when lost in a wilderness for a substantial length of time. As research has shown, however, a little survival training can go a long way when one is truly confronted with life-threatening circumstances. These days, it is worlds easier to simply stroll down […]
![The Tinder Bundle Tinder Bundle made from the inner bark of Tulip Tree (Yellow Poplar). Click on photo to enlarge.](https://masterwoodsman.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/SAM_0244-220x180.jpg)
The Tinder Bundle
For fire and its continuation (chain reaction) three components need to come together: heat, fuel and oxygen. So many folks into Outdoor Living Skills focus on the ignition or heat source. While obviously a critical component, the other two-thirds are equally important… So let’s put ugly on the table. Can’t tell you how many […]
![Tree ID 101 Chris e](https://masterwoodsman.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Chris-e-220x180.jpg)
Tree ID 101
Most of us have been there… on that nature walk with a local expert who points out 20 or so different trees and plants giving them a brief description while you feverishly take notes. The notes will last, informing you about that tree; and you may have even have snapped a picture or pressed a […]
![Firestarters: Fatwood I have never been in the presence of anyone else who has made and used a fatwood candle before. In my limited # of samples depending on conditions, I get 5 to 10 minutes burn time.](https://masterwoodsman.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/IMG_2189-220x180.jpg)
Firestarters: Fatwood
When I got out of college back in the 90’s, I thought I had the best job in the world as a ‘dirt’ forester. Responsible for all land management activities on 100K acres, I spent over half my time in the field cruising timber, mapping, writing management prescriptions for reforestation, prescribed burning, and more… Then […]
![USING THE SIBERIAN ELM FOR BUSHCRAFT siberian elm samaras](https://masterwoodsman.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/siberian-elm-samaras-220x180.jpg)
USING THE SIBERIAN ELM FOR BUSHCRAFT
To most it’s a weed tree. Considered useless and unwanted. To me, it’s a part of the heartland now. A permanent fixture across wind breaks and homesteads as well as in the cities and for Bushcraft. It was after the dust bowl that started in Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas, that these trees were widely planted […]
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Survival Entertainment, Friend or Foe? An exclusive interview with Cody Lundin June 26, 2014
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Leave No Trace killed Woodcraft… almost March 2, 2015
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Steven Miles Watts March 22, 2016
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Promoting Outdoor Living Skills January 2, 2015
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Your Guide To Survival Using A Trash Bag June 25, 2013
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