When you hear the word homestead, you might picture living on acres of land, off the grid, and with livestock grazing on your front lawn. However, the reality is that a homestead can be all of those things and none of them at the same time. It’s possible to homestead on less than an acre of land or even while living in the city. Here are a few basic homestead skills that you can use to start homesteading no matter where you live.
What is homesteading? What are basic homesteading skills?
Simply put, practicing homesteading is a move towards becoming self-sustaining. It involves growing and making your own food, living more simply, and going back to the basics.
Of course, there are different levels of being a homesteader. Therefore you can commit full force or just move some of your lifestyle towards the homestead practice.
8 Basic Homestead Skills to Do Anywhere
1. Buy less and make more.
A staple of a homestead lifestyle is making more things from scratch and staying out of the store. Of course, you don’t have to start making everything from scratch right away. However, you can make soap, laundry detergent, or bread. Then slowly build your list of things you make homemade over time.
2. Start a garden, even if it’s small.
You can have a small herb garden on your windowsill. Conversely, dedicate an entire portion of your backyard to a garden of fresh produce. Find produce or herbs that grow well where you live. Then start planting those seeds.
3. Rethink food storage.
If you want to become a homesteader, think about food storage. Not only because this will prepare you to enjoy all your favorite foods when they are out of season, but because this is a great way to be prepared for any situation. This practice usually stems from most homesteaders living further away from grocery stores. However, having an emergency food supply never hurts.
4. Learn about food preservation.
Whether you grow your own food or not doesn’t mean that you can’t start stocking your pantry and freezer for colder months. You can make and preserve everything from wine to pickles. Learn the techniques of canning, cold storage, freezing, and dehydrating.
5. Make your own cleaning supplies.
The next time you run out of your favorite cleaning supplies, swap to something you can DIY instead. You can make everything from an all-purpose cleaner to dish detergent fairly easily. Many recipes use household ingredients you already have at home.
6. Raise livestock in your backyard.
If you live in the city, this one can be pretty difficult. Your odds of getting a cow in your backyard will be pretty slim. However, even some urban areas let you have chickens or goats as long as they’re contained well.
7. Embrace a frugal lifestyle.
Frugal living isn’t something you must do to be a homesteader. Although the two usually go hand in hand. Be more conscious about your money and how you are spending it. As a result, embracing frugal habits such as bartering or shopping secondhand are staples in most homestead households.
8. Reduce your food waste.
Homesteaders aim to waste less food and find new ways to repurpose leftovers. For example, instead of throwing out an old batch of leftover onion peels, they might save them to create vegetable stock or use it for their compost.
Save our basic homestead skills!
Feeling the pull of simple country living while you’re stuck in a city or in the suburbs? Try out one of these basic homesteading skills to start moving toward a simpler way of life.
Photos: Gerard Pfeiffer, Uriel Mont, Diana Light, Monika Grabkowska, Annie Spratt
