The number one reason why people begin homesteading is so that they can become more self-sufficient and rely on the food industry less. Milk and dairy are one of the biggest of these products, particularly for those who have children.
Monthly Archives: September 2017
100 Days of Useful Homesteading Skills: Day 3 – Gardening
Gardening is a very basic homesteading skill but almost anyone can start gardening anywhere, even in an apartment with very little light. Continue reading
100 Days of Useful Homesteading Skills: Day 2 – Bartering
Western society, especially in the US has taught us for too long to rely on the almighty dollar. In recent years many of us have learned it isn’t as almighty as we, as a country, had once believed it to be.
Communities of swappers, barterers, and work-traders have cropped up all over the US. Sites like Craigslist, Freecycle, Timebanks, “really, really, free markets” and the like have also become incredibly popular.
100 Days of Useful Homesteading Skills: Day 1 – Chicken and Poultry Care
Knowing how to purchase and raise/care for chickens or other poultry animals is an important homesteading skill. If you’ve never cared for more than a fish or housecat, being a homesteader is going to be a very big jump for you. You may think to yourself that you will start small but, like potato chips, you’ll soon find you can’t just stop at one or two. Well, maybe YOU can but we haven’t met any homesteaders yet who have been able to.
Poultry care can begin as early as brooding an egg or as late as adopting a retiring animal from an ailing “crazy chicken lady” or an adoption agency. Either way, there are basics you need to know.
Homesteading on a Shoestring
One of the first things people often ask us when they meet us is how we managed to save so much money, so that we could “retire” and homestead. The fact is that we didn’t.
Permaculture With Goats
Goats are often considered to be very destructive critters and rightly so. They are not grazers or lawnmowers as popular culture might have us believe, they are browsers and prefer the leaves and bark of trees and shrubs.
For some, this might be a bad thing. Who would want a goat nibbling on their prize rosebushes or freshly planted orchard? For others though, it is incredibly useful.