Revisiting the rural lifestyles of your ancestors is becoming simultaneously trendy and necessary. Increasing climate-related pressure on the planet requires humans to interact with the Earth differently than technology has conditioned them to. Many are flocking to homesteads on green acres instead of white-fence suburbia, wanting to live a self-sufficient lifestyle separate from societal pressures and technological overload.
However, making the shift to a homestead requires preparation. Acclimating to a new neighborhood outside of town requires planning, but the execution doesn’t feel foreign. Planning for a homestead requires engagement in topics city-crawling humans may have removed themselves from, such as knowing the native flora and fauna or how to get cheese without going to the grocery store.
So, what is most vital to distill when first settling in? The breadth of information for homesteaders is vast, so research beforehand to walk confidently into the homesteading lifestyle.
Distinguishing Homesteads From Other Land
Before molding the land for productivity and relaxation, familiarize yourself with how homestead land differs from farms or traditional residential homes. All homeland types have crossovers, but pinpointing the distinctions will allow homesteaders to optimize their qualities more intentionally — or choose a different land dynamic entirely.
Homesteads exist in rural areas. Though farms, farmsteads and countryside residential homes all fit this criterion, the goal of a homestead is what sets it apart. Farms earn money by selling their crops or livestock products — the size doesn’t matter. Megafarms on hundreds of acres operate differently than a backyard plot, but the mission remains similar. They contain a medley of buildings including but not limited to greenhouses, granaries and silos.
Adversely, homesteads strive to produce enough food to meet the home’s needs without prioritizing profits. They don’t need a milking parlor or stables like some farms and ranches, but they could if the household chose to include it in their homestead plan.
Urbanites are also melding homesteading qualities into city living to bridge the gap between the lifestyles of the modern age. Countertop composters and hydroponic gardens are just a few ways city dwellers can taste agricultural life.
Knowing the Importance of Place Before You Buy
How a household executes its homestead will rely on geography — every planning step will refer back to the area. The homestead’s location will determine what to grow based on climate and what is native to the region. Learn what’s accessible, resilient and — in some cases — illegal to grow in the area. If you aren’t satisfied with the climate or produce options, you must consider alternate options.
Because homesteaders grow crops seasonally, it’s crucial to know how to grow plants that thrive and rotate gracefully into the next batch of produce. Plot placement must also be strategic to prevent blights and maintain soil quality. Analyze how close these areas are to water. Is there a creek, lake or pond on your property or a public body of water nearby? Without water access, the homestead can’t endure.
Though growing your plants is more environmentally friendly, it puts immense stress on the soil as your garden saps nutrients from the ground. Knowing what and when to plant certain crops will be the foundation of a hearty, reliable and nutritious garden.
Have appropriate expectations for how much time and energy you must devote to learning about the region. You may have a list of crops available to you, but here are some other considerations that will not only affect your growing choices but determine the success of your homestead:
- What plants cannot grow near each other due to toxicity or pH imbalances
- Invasive species or pests in the surrounding areas that may enter your region
- Contagious illnesses in livestock or plants that have affected your site in the past
- The health of local waterways and forests and how they’ll help or harm your plants
Resources like local homesteading groups on social media or Departments of Agriculture provide countless aids for staying up-to-date with must-know homestead wellness information. Check in with the free resources available to you to increase your knowledge before homesteading.
Designing the Home for Agrarian Living
Homesteading focuses on how the environment functions to benefit the home. Though the land requires countless hours of dedicated attention, designing the house and the habits of the residents is key to the land’s success. If the homesteaders do not have the right mentality, dedication or routine, the synergy of the homestead will dissipate.
Some resources are more prolific than others, so there will inevitably be a surplus of food. Homesteaders are responsible for storing produce for off-seasons while minimizing food waste. They must design areas of their home to jar, can or vacuum seal for freshness to have delicious and varied food year-round. Plus, proper ventilation will push odors out from pungent foods and prevent smells from nearby livestock outdoors.
Having adequate storage space in environments with suitable temperatures is essential for storing food for delectability. Storage spaces — inside and outside the house — should be thoughtfully constructed and stocked with objects you regularly use in suitable locations. Freezer storage, animal feed and farm equipment should be where they will be easy to access for efficiency and reduced frustration.
Changing Your Household Mindset
Designing a home is more than just examining the physical space and what’s inside helps the outside. The mindset of everyone living there must prioritize the wellness of the homestead by understanding the physical, emotional and financial burdens of their responsibilities.
Households may incorporate urban homesteading elements to increase productivity and reduce resistance against reverting to antiquated housing practices. Regardless, every change should focus on sustainability, prioritizing reuse before purchasing something new and working with what’s available instead of believing you need additional supplies to accomplish laborious tasks.
Weather will certainly be unpredictable and mess up plans. Burnout may arise after seemingly endless months of toiling with no payoff. Unexpected maintenance tasks and expenses will appear as tools and tractors break or injuries occur from not wearing personal protective equipment — this is all normal. The goal is to overcome the barriers toward the more eminent objective.
Every moment on a homestead is a time to learn something new. If you don’t already, become willing to research and ask for help. Local libraries and neighboring homesteaders will have priceless and inexpensive knowledge to help you reach stability or champion hurdles.
Shortly, you’ll be analyzing your land to design the landscape. It may be easier for you to do this with a perimeter fence. Even if this may not be in the budget yet, know where the home stands within property lines to accurately visualize how far structures, animals and plants will be from your front door.
Surveying the Land for Optimization
Perhaps you’ve purchased the land and sorted out the home. Now, it’s time to make a blueprint for the rest of the homestead. It may take multiple property surveys before becoming familiar with what’s available. Every decision you make is easy when you choose from one factor — the wellness of the land. Each square foot should have a purpose, so stake off as you go to ensure adequate space for every homestead addition.
If planting crops in one area would be detrimental because of low access to water, move it. If grazing livestock don’t have enough space to eat safely, readjust. Go through all the basic needs of plants and animals — water, sun and food, for example — and ensure you tick every box before outlining a section of your land.
How’s the tree coverage of the property? Are there obstructions to sun penetration, like power lines? Picking sunny locations for planting fruit trees or garden rows is almost as paramount as water access. The same goes for certain animals who love sunlight, like chickens. Outline the best areas for vegetation so no other structures or animals influence them.
Though you can transport water with vehicles and remove some sun-blocking obstacles, you want to work with the environment instead of manipulating it too much. If you must cut down trees, ensure you reuse the resources for other projects, such as fencing, firewood or building other homestead buildings.
Manipulation may be necessary, especially if flat stretches are absent on the property or fire and flooding hazards appear. Building other buildings like sheds will be challenging if the ground below isn’t level and sturdy. It affects water flow and sun exposure if there are even the slightest angles in the land.
Additionally, you may need to plant additional grass if there isn’t an optimal place for a pasture. Too many rocks or areas prone to mud may not provide the best environment for grazing animals.
Dreaming of Future Implementation
You won’t be able to enact every vision for your homestead all at once. After creating the foundation for sustaining your home, you can use your dream to inform future decisions. Basic farming and livestock care are enough to get you started, but every homesteader wants to improve the land daily.
Homesteads have countless opportunities for experimentation, like incorporating technology. Internet of Things (IoT) technology could automate everything from soil analysis, shed temperature regulation, feed dispensing and water testing.
Whereas you’ve mainly focused on practicality when designing the homestead, there are plenty of fun additions you can make for beauty and leisure, including:
- Constructing rock or flower gardens, which promote pollinators as a bonus.
- Digging an artificial pond or pool for swimming.
- Building a natural sanctuary by installing a hammock.
- Establishing a safe area to make fires, a wood-fired oven or a fire pit.
Maintaining the upkeep of a homestead is hard work, even with help. Make every nook a special place for joy and celebrating your accomplishments.
Experimenting with Operational Methods
A myriad of methodologies exists for homesteaders and farmers. It will also hinge on personal values, budget and what environmental objective the homestead wants to accomplish.
Particularly if you’re seeking to develop a permaculture homestead, every facet of the homestead must promote the land’s natural systems for self-rejuvenation. A circular economy is ideal, where the homestead minimizes waste with the help of compost and renewable energy and created resources are reused or repurposed.
Some other frameworks could achieve your homestead goals:
- No-till farming: Plant crops while minimizing soil disturbance by practicing no-till. No-till farming promotes soil fertility and reduces chemical fertilizer reliance and agricultural runoff.
- Organic: Eliminate synthetic and chemical products everywhere on your homestead to achieve organic greatness. These additions are unnecessary if animals and plants are in the right conditions.
- Polycultures and crop rotation: Instead of monoculture farming — where only one crop exists in one area — consider mixing different plants. Some provide additional nutrients to other species, boosting growth and stability.
- Xeriscaping: To minimize water runoff or usage, xeriscaping focuses on reducing irrigation by using other mediums like mulch or tending to damaged soil.
- Certified wildlife habitat: The National Wildlife Federation encourages anyone to create an environment that promotes harmony between humans and nature. Follow the criteria to prove the homestead boosts biodiversity and sustainable practices to obtain certification.
Varying structures could promote some or all of these ideologies. Cisterns — or rain barrels — encourage water reuse, while composting decreases food waste and helps your crops. Solar panels can generate the electricity necessary for one or all the buildings on the property. Perennials assist with carbon sequestration initiatives. From one philosophy to another, it all depends on personal preference and what works best for the land.
Planning Your Homestead Land for Self-Sufficiency
Preparing for your new homestead is one of the most fulfilling growth opportunities. Anyone wanting to move off the grid or have a better relationship with the planet will benefit daily from the transition.
Though infinite information is available, it’s not necessary to know it all before living your first day on the homestead. Don’t let information overload delay your dreams further, because a lot of perfecting a homestead is trial and error, alongside becoming more familiar with your land. Every day is a learning experience, encouraging families to return to their roots to build a more sustainable planet.
[Note: This was a guest post.]
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