What homesteading projects have you taken on?

[Weeg]

Over the past few weeks, I've been looking for ways to become more self sufficient with farming and gardening. Of course, we all own some type of poultry, or most of us do, so thats a fantastic start. I do have a small garden, chickens, and horses, which produce good compost. I've been interested in expanding my self sufficiency.
The idea that got me started was raising more chickens for meat. I tend to get very attached to my animals, so only on occasion do we do meat birds. Yet, I still eat a lot of chicken. I actually read up on factory farming today, and it really sunk in how cruel it is. We buy Organic chicken, but I know that doesn't mean it was raised in a pasture chasing butterflies like my chickens. This really got me thinking, its not easy to cull roosters and extra drakes that you've raised since babies, but they are far far better off and much happier than the chickens in any farming industry, or packaged up with smiling mascots on the package in grocery stores. I have the space and experience, why not raise them myself. So with that idea, my projects to pursue started to spiral.

Rain barrel for garden water (Could use for chickens, but with biosecurity, seems the garden could use it more)
A real compost bin
Mushroom bed
Apple Orchard (I already have apple trees, but they could stand some nurturing to get to their, "full potential")
Mealworms, or BSFL
Bees

I'm sure I can expand the list from there.
With this subject in mind, I wanted to hear what homesteading, or self sufficiency projects you have implemented on your farm. What do you want to add to your homestead soon, or in the future? And why do want to add that to your homestead?

Looking for some inspiration over here, and its a great subject for anyone with chickens.

 

[Banana01]

Over the past few weeks, I've been looking for ways to become more self sufficient with farming and gardening. Of course, we all own some type of poultry, or most of us do, so thats a fantastic start. I do have a small garden, chickens, and horses, which produce good compost. I've been interested in expanding my self sufficiency.
The idea that got me started was raising more chickens for meat. I tend to get very attached to my animals, so only on occasion do we do meat birds. Yet, I still eat a lot of chicken. I actually read up on factory farming today, and it really sunk in how cruel it is. We buy Organic chicken, but I know that doesn't mean it was raised in a pasture chasing butterflies like my chickens. This really got me thinking, its not easy to cull roosters and extra drakes that you've raised since babies, but they are far far better off and much happier than the chickens in any farming industry, or packaged up with smiling mascots on the package in grocery stores. I have the space and experience, why not raise them myself. So with that idea, my projects to pursue started to spiral.

Rain barrel for garden water (Could use for chickens, but with biosecurity, seems the garden could use it more)
A real compost bin
Mushroom bed
Apple Orchard (I already have apple trees, but they could stand some nurturing to get to their, "full potential")
Mealworms, or BSFL
Bees

I'm sure I can expand the list from there.
With this subject in mind, I wanted to hear what homesteading, or self sufficiency projects you have implemented on your farm. What do you want to add to your homestead soon, or in the future? And why do want to add that to your homestead?

Looking for some inspiration over here, and its a great subject for anyone with chickens.

Just finished building a brick house for my spouse and I on a seperate lot from my chickens. We no longer have to sleep with chickens above our bed. The chickens and ducks now live in my old house, which is now a dedicated chicken coop on one acre. The chickens and ducks have their own dedicated water source, and i walk to the lot every day to put food and water out.

I lack basic gardening spaces on both my homestead lots. The hard part is free ranging chickens eat the seedlings. So my new initiative is to try some raised bed gardens to grow vegetables. I have plenty of decorative garden plants, ferns, coconuts, etc. So I have been leveling the lot of my new house in preperation for raised beds. My old house lot is just a natural swim pond for the ducks, and where the chicken flock lays eggs and grows up.

 

[Alagirl]

step by baby step:
starting a garden. I have some sunflowers and a couple of vegetables growing.
Meat animals is not going to happen. I know my limitation. So if I get Roos, or anything that needs culling, I will have to find somebody able to do it. I know in theory how to, but I am not starving.
Water tanks is a good idea (they would overflow tonight, we have had some torrential rain all day). Other than that, if the sun comes out tomorrow, by Thursday the ground will be bone dry. The soil is poor so I am trying to make my potting soil last by mixing in last season's leaves. My fruit trees are in containers, I am not sure where they go (and the stinking squirrel dug out one strawberry plant already, Pox on the little rat!)
I am thinking about putting solar cells on the coop I am going to build (I need to hurry, my crew is in the brooder!) so I can power lights, perhaps a door, the brooder, or a fan, or any electric yard equipment I might need, I mean I can run a long extension cord, but I have a bad record of running over them with the lawn mower.
More is not in the cards. My lot is small and I have neighbors to consider. So no cows or goats and definitely no pigs either (although, in lieu of a tiller, a pig would be nice to have right now to break the ground for the garden)

Instead I am thumbing through various books about the self sufficient life.

 

[TheFatBlueCat]

This is a cool thread!

Currently I only have a 1/3 acre property to work with, but we are moving soonish to 2.5 acres.
I've been pottering about with mini homesteading/permaculture for a few years now. I've got the hens obviously, and a rooster. My chickens are my main hobby. I used to have horses but haven't got the time or space for that anymore. I told my husband the chickens would be cheaper than getting back into horses and so far i'm not wrong (note, I didn't tell him they wouldn't be expensive.... just less expensive )

I use their special skills to help me in the garden but only when I haven't got something growing for me in them. I use their run to make wood-mulch compost, and coop bedding cleanouts get dumped onto my garden beds over the winter.

I have several raised beds and general gardens I've stashed all over the place. And a little mini greenhouse I use for winter greens and spring starts. I have something growing all year around but predominantly over spring and summer. The gardens are thoroughly fenced off against the chickens during the growing season. After harvest the chickens get let loose to clear them up and tackle any bug population build ups.

I maintain my lawn as a pasture and that works really well. I even cut hay for bedding if the grass is really taking off.

I've got plum trees currently and I plan on planting an orchard once we do move. The plum trees are in the chicken run and thriving from all the lovely fertilizer, and the mulch. I had a huge harvest this year. I've got frozen plums, dried plums, canned plums and lots of jam.

I try to do something new every year, be that plant a new crop or learn a new food preservation skill, or a new way to look at my garden ecology. I've learned how to use a drill but I wouldn't trust my building skills yet! Cable ties and bungie cords are my friends.

 

[WIchickMama]

I love this!

I have gardens, raised and in ground, anywhere and everywhere I can put something. I put melons around base of trees, started an herb bed and added grapes, raspberries, blueberries and gooseberries this year. I have chickens which I adore. Would love to do meat birds but wouldn't be able to butcher, nope can't do it, but we do have an Amish community close that will butcher for $3 a bird so that is on my list for next year.

I would really love to turn my homestead (2 acres) into a small food forest but it takes a lot of time and I will get there eventually, I just have to remember to start small and take on what I can handle. I did plant clover in our home yard and we let the dandelions grow to bring in the wildlife needed.

We converted to 95% wood heat this fall, so we have been harvesting and cutting trees at our other property (7 acres of woods). I can, freeze and dry food/herbs that I can for future use.

I really want two goats and someday a couple feeder pigs. and bees, though deathly afraid, I do have a lady in the neighboring town that might just do the leave a hive for some honey on my land.

 

[HollowOfWisps]

Ahhh yes I have found my tribe There is just something that feels so good for the soul when you spend time in the garden growing your own food and raising your own farm animals. We are converting part of the old barn into an insulated/heated greenhouse to grow veggies that don't keep well and warmer climate dwarf fruit trees year round. I'm currently raising chickens and ducks for eggs (soon chickens for meat as well). In the back field we're building what I have called my "Eden" which hopefully by the end of the year will be fully fenced in. We currently have (4x) 50'x100' tilled garden plots back there. I grow my own beans, lentils and chickpeas for drying and canning (super easy the grow). I also grow and store about a years worth of potatoes, dried corn for cornmeal and musque de province pumpkins that I store in our basement so they take up a lot of space growing. I'm hoping to grow enough tomatoes and peppers to supply a years worth of sauce and salsas. We are also adding a fruit orchard with peach, plum, cherry and apple trees and a covered berry patch with strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and blueberries. We've been composting in piles, but I would like to build a nice and organized composting site with large separate bins. I've also ordered quite a few red sugar maples to be planted in the fall. I am planting them perfectly spaced around the entire property to help as a wind break, but also I grew up tapping trees to make our own maple syrup so I would like to make our own here as well. I removed quite a few invading species of plants that were here when we moved and replaced them with native wildflowers for the butterflies and bees. My husband wants goats for milk/cheese and to raise our own beef, but I told him he has to take care of those because I have reached my limit since I've been running the farm while he's at work

 

[HausOfEggwards]

Okay so we are in our first year and we're relatively space limited, but we already have in a mushroom bed, plum trees, and an annual garden.
I'm looking into perennial veggies, just got some garlic chive seeds, hoping to get some egyptian walking onions too.
Hoping to expand into bees and BSF, nut trees, get a compost system in place, and maybe a tiny pond at some point.

 

[Weeg]

Just finished building a brick house for my spouse and I on a seperate lot from my chickens. We no longer have to sleep with chickens above our bed. The chickens and ducks now live in my old house, which is now a dedicated chicken coop on one acre. The chickens and ducks have their own dedicated water source, and i walk to the lot every day to put food and water out.

I lack basic gardening spaces on both my homestead lots. The hard part is free ranging chickens eat the seedlings. So my new initiative is to try some raised bed gardens to grow vegetables. I have plenty of decorative garden plants, ferns, coconuts, etc. So I have been leveling the lot of my new house in preperation for raised beds. My old house lot is just a natural swim pond for the ducks, and where the chicken flock lays eggs and grows up.

Thats so neat! Sounds like they have quite the coop! Lucky birds.

A garden is a must. We currently have 4 raised beds we use for our garden. It holds a decent amount of vegetables, though I would love to add more. I also want to add winter garden frames, so I can grow year round.
I love my raised beds, I'm sure you'll find it a great addition to your new property. Congrats on getting that done!

 

[Weeg]

Meat animals is not going to happen. I know my limitation. So if I get Roos, or anything that needs culling, I will have to find somebody able to do it. I know in theory how to, but I am not starving.

I'm the same way. I can raise them if I am prepared to what is going to come. I can't do the culling or processing myself though. Luckily my family does some hunting, so they can do that part for me. I could never do it myself.

I love the solar idea! Thats something we wanted to put on our house for years, the chicken coop is a fantastic idea.

Space is the biggest issue with most homesteading ideas. We have 8 acres, but most of it is forested, and the open parts are all an open yard. Not somewhere you would turn out a pig, or some cows. As much as I would love to have pigs, A) I don't think I would be able to eat them, they would steal my heart and run with it, and B) We aren't really setup for it.

I think a garden is the very best way to start. Find some vegetables you like, that grow well in your location, and then you can get creative from there. Eventually your running rain water to the garden, and trying to protect your beds because you want your chickens there for insect control. Then your planting a second garden for your chickens, and herb garden, and an orchard. Since you like the rain barrel on the garden area, your putting up more. The creativity goes fast.

 

[Pettycoat Prepper]

I’ve been on my homestead about 4 years now. Chickens are my recent add, so now I must compost! I bought a very small walk behind rear bagging mower for the “green” part of compost during the none gardening time. I built two compost containers out of free pallets and cardboard. I wired 4 pallets together on top of a cardboard bottom (smothers the grass and worms will compost it too) plus cardboard around the inside as I add coop bedding and fresh grass. After 1 day it’s cooking at 150°F!