One of the most common misconceptions about homesteading is that you have to own a large acreage to start living self-sufficiently. But the truth is, you can homestead anywhere, even in your backyard!
Want to get started? Here are five simple steps to turn your backyard into a self-sufficient homestead.
Build a garden
Learning how to grow crops is an excellent way to start your self-sufficiency journey. It’s one of the first skills you have to learn if you want to have a steady food supply from your garden. While there may be some challenges to it, it all starts by finding out what you can grow in your area and when. Once you have a list of crops that you want to grow, the next thing you do is consider your garden space. If your yard doesn’t have good soil quality, you can build raised garden beds to have better control over the quality, condition, and texture of your soil.
Start composting
Composting is a process of recycling organic matter into a natural organic fertilizer. You need to start composting now to support your crops’ health as it provides nourishment for both the soil and plant.
Plus, you’re also contributing to the environment as you recycle food or other organic wastes instead of having them thrown in landfills that can pollute water resources via leachate.
Raise farm animals for meat
While you may not be able to raise a cow, goat, or pig in your backyard, there are other options like chicken, quails, and rabbits. But before you start raising animals for meat, consider checking local zoning ordinances to ensure you don’t get in trouble for the animals you plan to raise. And don’t forget about your neighbors too; make sure that the animals you keep won’t be a nuisance to them.
Learn self-reliant skills
Homesteading comes with many do-it-yourself jobs, even if you’re just doing it from your backyard. So, you need to learn skills that will enable you to be more self-sufficient. Here are some of the basic skills that you need to learn:
- Gardening
- Preserving food
- Raising and breeding animals
Start DIY Projects
You’ll be working on some projects if you want to start backyard homesteading. For example, if you need a chicken coop or a simple raised garden bed for your crops, you’d rather do it yourself than spend hundreds of dollars hiring someone to do it for you.
To make your way to a more self-sufficient lifestyle, you need to learn how to do jobs yourself. Whether it’s as simple as leveling your yard to avoid standing water or as complex as building a small greenhouse, learning how to DIY is an essential part of homesteading.
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