Farm Anatomy: The Curious Parts and Pieces of Country Life

From keeping chickens to raising vegetables, the allure of farm life is permeating popular culture. Noted artist and illustrator Julia Rothman has caught the bug, and from her Brooklyn studio she offers Farm Anatomy, an enticing visual guide to the parts and pieces of rural living. Dissecting everything from tractors,  pigs, and sheep to fences, hay bales, crop rotation patterns, and tools, Rothman paints a richly entertaining and informative picture of life in the country. 

Readers will discover fascinating facts on every page, from the shapes of squash varieties to the parts of a goat; from how a barn is built to what makes up a beehive. Every corner of the barnyard is uncovered, revealing its own distinctive vocabulary and creating a new appreciation for the complexity of living close to the land.
 
Rothman provides an irresistibly browsable book that will appeal to people of all ages. The practical and the curious combine in instructions for everything from making cheese to spinning wool. Farm Anatomy makes a great gift for gardeners, locavores, country-living enthusiasts, design fans, and anyone who enjoys exploring new topics in a fun, visual format.

Bantams and Buckwheat, Hackles and Harrows

Talk the talk of the country with Julia Rothman's entertaining and informative visual tour of life on the farm. Her drawings, diagrams, step-by-step sequences, and dissections reveal everything from the parts of a milking machine and the anatomy of a pig to how to plow a field and shear a sheep. You'll be delighted by how much there is to discover.

What's the difference between a weanling and a yearling, or a farrow and a barrow? Country and city mice alike will delight in Julia Rothman's charming illustrated guide to the curious parts and pieces of rural living. Dissecting everything from tractors and pigs to fences, hay bales, crop rotation patterns, and farm tools, Rothman gives a richly entertaining tour of the quirky details of country life. From the shapes of squash varieties to the parts of a goat; from how a barn is constructed to what makes up a beehive, every corner of the barnyard is uncovered and celebrated. A perfect gift for gardeners, locavores, homesteaders, and country-living enthusiasts alike. 
 

Julia Rothman has created illustrations and pattern designs for newspapers, magazines, wallpaper, bedding, books, and subway posters.  She is part of the award-winning three-person design studio ALSO and runs a blog called Book By Its Cover. She lives and works from her studio in Brooklyn, New York.

Chapter 1: Breaking Ground
Layers of the Soil * Topsoil Chart * The Texture Triangle * Mineral Nutrients * Crop Rotation * Contour Farming and Terracing * Windbreaks * Predicting Weather * Composting * An Acre Is...

Chapter 2: Raised in a Barn
Barn Styles * Timber Construction * Trusses * Barn Doors, Bracing, and Hardware * Barn Cupolas * Barn Birds * Farm Buildings * Animal Housing * Feeders * Fencing

Chapter 3: Tools of the Trade
Tractors * Tractor Implements * How to Plow a Field * Inside a Combine * Other Machines * Felling, Bucking, Splitting and Stacking * In the Toolshed

Chapter 4: Plant a Seed
Average Frost Dates * Vegetable Anatomy * Squash Varieties * Build a Bean Teepee * Dry Bean Varieties * Pepper Varieties * Tater Tower * 4 Ways to Grow Tomatoes * Tomato Varieties * How to Can Tomatoes * Herb Chart * Growing Grains * Planting an Orchard * Apple Varieties * Good Bugs * Bad Bugs

Chapter 5: Separating the Sheep from the Goats
Animal Terms * Parts of a Rooster * Comb Styles * Chicken Breeds * Fresh Eggs * Duck and Goose Breeds * Heritage Turkeys * Parts of a Beef Animal * How a Cow's Stomach Works * Cow Breeds * How to Milk a Cow * Parts of a Goat * Goat Breeds * Hoof Trimming * Knots * Parts of a Horse * Horse Markings and Tail Styles * Parts of a Hoof * Draft Horse Breeds * Draft Harness * Mules * Parts of a Pig * Pig Breeds * Livestock Water Consumption * Parts of a Sheep * Sheep Breeds * Shearing Sheep * Parts of a Rabbit * Rabbit Breeds * Rabbit Coat Types * Parts of a Bee * Anatomy of a Beehive

Chapter 6: Country Wining and Dining
In an Old-Fashioned Country Kitchen * Wine-Making Equipment * Edible Flowers * The Basics of Breadmaking * Dairy Terms * The Basic Steps in Making Cheese * Butchering Knives * How to Cut Up a Chicken * Prime Cuts of Beef * Build a Barrel Smokehouse * Prime Cuts of Pork * Dry Curing * Prime Cuts of Lamb * Freezing Meat * Pressure Canning * Root Cellaring * Making Maple Syrup

Chapter 7: Spinning a Yarn
Carding and Spinning Yarn * Natural Dyes * How to Make a Flower Press * How to Make a Cornhusk Doll * Making Rag Rugs * Making Candles * Quilt Patterns