GitLab

Even if you follow all of the rules, you might sometimes lose out on an expected harvest.This can happen due to mistakes in planting or caring for the garden, a drought, a storm, insect or animal pests, failure to rotate crops, or an illness striking the garden.Monthly groceries in the event this happens easily run up to hundreds of dollars, or even $1,000 or more for families, so be sure to research the particular plants you’re growing and develop a specific plan for their planting and care to minimize the chances this will happen to you!Sick AnimalsA sick animal can be disastrous for a homesteader who relies on them for protein, be it meat, milk, or eggs.In order to keep your animals healthy, ensure that you’re following the rules for their care to the letter.This especially applies to the amount of space in which you’re keeping them.Not having enough space is very stressful to animals, and high levels of stress harms their immune systems, making it more and more likely that they’ll get sick.Providing them with adequate shelter from the elements, which should be properly insulated and/or heated in cooler climates, will also prevent them from getting sick by providing relief from extreme weather.Having a dry place to go prevents thrush, a painful but unfortunately common foot infection.Be sure that animal grain feed is stored in a clean, dry place in airtight containers, as this will prevent mold from proliferating.Never feed an animal moldy feed.Damage to BuildingsWhile climate should factor into your decision about where to homestead, you’ll likely still have to deal with storms at some point, especially as the progression of climate change increases the frequency of extreme weather around the world.Buildings can be damaged during storms, when animals escape, accidents, or from simple wear and tear.Damage to the dwelling can cause draughts, vastly increasing your heating cost, while broken wood, glass, and nails sticking out are a safety risk to people and animals.Your emergency fund should include at least a couple thousand dollars for the purpose of repairing buildings in the case of damage, and in most cases, you can repair small amounts of damage on your own.Sometimes, you have to improvise before doing things properly, such as during a storm when it’s not feasible to make full repairs immediately.Scrap wood, tarps, or plastic sheeting can be used to quickly cover cracked windows or holes in roofs until proper repairs can be made.Additional fencing material such as barbed wire and chicken wire can be kept in storage at the property in case a fence needs to be mended.Sometimes you just want to relax after doing your chores.Boredom on a homestead can be an issue as it leads to irritability, causing problems between family members, or lack of motivation, which makes it harder to keep up with the tasks of homesteading.If family time is a concern, keeping a few board and card games around can facilitate this during indoor time.The only issue is that depending on how remote your property is, you might have trouble getting a company to send a technician out for a hookup.Calling around to local phone or internet companies can inform you as to whether they’re willing to provide service to your area.Satellite internet can be set up in more remote locations, and despite the cost, many homesteaders are extremely satisfied with its reliability.Homesteading GroupsHomesteading groups and organizations can be a lifesaver for new homesteaders.Homesteading groups can also direct you to resources or groups to help you with the task of homeschooling your child.The internet is your best friend when it comes to finding homesteaders in your area.Homesteading forums not only provide a number of resources for determining the costs of properties, dwellings, animals, and more that’s specific to your area, but they can also help you find homesteading organizations in your own community.On the other hand, we’ve also shown that people are able to greatly reduce their reliance on power and running water when they live off the grid, slashing their expenses and allowing them to experience a very natural way of life.Furthermore, we’ve seen that you don’t have to rely on the grid for food, as you have the ability to raise plants and animals on your homestead that are free of industrial antibiotics and pesticides.With a supply of canning jars and a little creativity, you can not only feed yourself through the warmer months but also stock up for the winter, cutting your reliance on grocery stores down to a minimum.Remember that homesteading is really about living the way that you want to live.Homesteading provides this sense of security, along with the freedom to decide what’s important to you and plan your spending accordingly.While the cost to transition to the lifestyle can be steep, it can be a great investment.Producing your own power, water, and perhaps even food excuses you from many of the recurrent bills that are the bane of modern workers.These bills add up, and once your homestead is up and running, you might be surprised at how much you were previously spending.Besides the financial benefits, homesteading has a number of advantages that might not be apparent when you’re still in the planning phase, or just setting up your homestead.It’s not just knowledge of the land that you’ll naturally pick up while homesteading.Canning, hunting, caring for animals, gardening, and foraging are all skills that most of our ancestors would have learned in childhood that many now consider unnecessary.As generations pass by, fewer people know how to do these basic things that are necessary for survival.These skills can have great cultural significance, and by learning them, you help preserve that knowledge for future generations.Furthermore, knowing these skills, and having the ability to pass them on, will be of the utmost importance in the case that our society changes drastically and is no longer able to provide for people’s needs.While looking to the future shouldn’t be all gloom and doom, the lingering threat of climate change and other potential disasters is enough to make many people pause and consider how they’ll meet these needs in the event that the grid no longer exists.On the lighter side, getting away from the concrete jungle and into the great outdoors can help you feel happier now by conferring some important mental health benefits.Living outside of the city can be very good for you in a physical way.Now that you probably have some idea of what your homestead will look like, what’s next?