[Boards: 3 / a / aco / adv / an / asp / b / bant / biz / c / can / cgl / ck / cm / co / cock / d / diy / e / fa / fap / fit / fitlit / g / gd / gif / h / hc / his / hm / hr / i / ic / int / jp / k / lgbt / lit / m / mlp / mlpol / mo / mtv / mu / n / news / o / out / outsoc / p / po / pol / qa / qst / r / r9k / s / s4s / sci / soc / sp / spa / t / tg / toy / trash / trv / tv / u / v / vg / vint / vip / vp / vr / w / wg / wsg / wsr / x / y ] [Search | Free Show | Home]

homesteads

This is a blue board which means that it's for everybody (Safe For Work content only). If you see any adult content, please report it.

Thread replies: 125
Thread images: 14

File: homestead.gif (411KB, 768x1024px) Image search: [Google]
homestead.gif
411KB, 768x1024px
are there any people who live/work towards living on a homestead? how self sufficient are you? is it a nice fulfilling life? what do you live on?
t. someone who considers it for the future
>>
>>886279
I'm working towards it. My dad is retiring in a couple of years and they want to move and leave me the house and land.

It's exactly half an acre and already has a well for water.
>>
>>886279
My parents were into it. I only lived the life style until I was 9 (father passed away, we had to move to town) it was amazing from what I can recall, we still have the land and all in the family.
>>
>>886279
You want the garden area fenced so you can let the chickens roam, but not be crapping on the backyard or patio- or running out the front driveway.
They'll eat caterpillars grasshoppers and such that would damage crops- no need for pesticides and lower feed costs.
Beehives are strictly based on surrounding area.
They'll travel up to 5+ miles a day to forrage. But if you're in the middle of a pine forest, there will be nothing for them to eat and the colony will be in poor health- just a single hive can have 50,000 bees easily, that would require 5 acres of flowers (whether that's weeds, wildflowers, fruit trees etc).
>>
>>886689
I know your pic was just an example, just pointing out some things people usually don't see until they get into it.
Chickens are great. Even if you never kill any, free eggs are a bonus.
Chances are you'll have more eggs than you need- don't get 12 chickens just because you have the room. Don't add chickens, they have a pecking order. Get them all from one clutch or all as chic's at the same time. Good layers will lay an egg damn near every day during the summer.
Americana's lay colored eggs, knd of cool. They're a good all around size chicken. Rhode island reds are "roasters"- for cooking- nice plump chickens.
Don't have rabbits unless you plan on eating them or sknning for hides, otherwise they're a waste of time and resources.
>>
>>886690
Fruit trees and berrys take years to produce.
Blueberry's take 4-5 years to get a crop. Finding someone with older plants that have root suckers you can transplant are better than fresh plants from home depot or mail order.
Things like apple trees rarely breed true from seed, many are actually male sterile and have to be pollinated by another type (like honeycrisp) so you'll never get one from a seed- you have to buy a grafted plant from a nursery. Even if the seeds produce a "true" plant, crop production and quality vary greatly.
Always plant proper trees for your area. Even if it lasts for a few years, its a big loss to have half a dozen avocado trees die during a cold snap after you've nursed them through a handful of mild winters.
Bartlett pears are zone 4-7.
Hass avocados are zone 9-11
You can't just have a plant because you like it.
>>
>>886691
Goats are popular for milk production.
You can get 2 gallons a day while having 1/10th the feeding cost of a dairy cow.
Slightly different taste of course- but you could make proper cheese (like feta or brie).
Quail and pheasant are also popular.
You can even get turkey(s).
Learning how to properly can will drastically cut down food costs.
Tomato's, string beans, potatoes and the like pretty much grow themselves. Food is a lot healthier than store bought- no pesticides on produce or livestock injected with growth hormones and antibiotics.
Well water is also (usually) superior. Water reclamation has some serious issues, including medications that can't be filtered out and wind up in your tap.
>>
I hunt/fish 99% of my meat. I only buy steaks or franks when family is visiting and have a cookout.

I grow all of my potatoes and green beans. Also planed some fruit trees. Can't wait for those. And a blackberry bush.

Utility wise, it would take me 38 years for the cost of solar to actually pay off from not having a utility bill. I hardly use any electricity so it's not really worth it. My goal isn't to be off grid, just to grow my own food and know what's in my body.
>>
>>886690
Are chickens high maintenance?

I'm away from home 2-4 weeks at a time and afraid I couldn't care for them, but I really miss chicken breasts and eggs. Trying to boycott grocery stores. Could I work out a deal for a farmer? Buy his chickens and in return I get 2 dozen of eggs a week and lb of chicken breast?

And dwarf fruit trees only take a couple years at least to produce fruit for you. Yes you have to pollinate some but not all. I got 12 trees planted a little over a year ago and they are growing well.

There should be a website where you enter your zip code and it shows you everything you can grow and their seasons. Would be helpful. Do you know of any?
>>
>>886706
Chickens won't survive 2 weeks without care.
I mean, maybe with a large enough run and shit growing for them to eat and an automatic waterer....
But if you're in an area with neighbors who have chickens, they're usually easy to work a deal for.
I personally want to make some cheese but I don't want to have goats.
I'm waiting for temps to drop so I can get my "cheese cave" going- I'm just going to buy goat milk from the local Amish.
Everyone I know that has chickens winds up either giving away eggs or selling them cheap (I get free eggs, more than I can eat).
>>
>>886706
I don't know of any master list for a given zone- not sure if I've just missed it or if people just prefer not to list it that way. I usually look for specific plants.
>>
>>886691

Having multiple cultivars of trees like apples helps in other ways too. Not only do they pollinate one another, different varieties bear fruit at different times in the season. Having all your apples at once isnt as good as three trees bearing over four months.

When you're planning, look carefully at harvest times. You want to budget your time and labor and storage space. Learn canning, pickling, salting, preserves. Know how to stockpile. What grain has over vegetables through history has been perishability.
>>
Got 6 acres out in oregon plenty of fruit trees solar panels 2 year round creeks we eat a lot of deer raise goats for milk and cheese and have a couple dozen chickens not totally self sufficient yet but getting Closer
>>
>>886279
>are there any people who live/work towards living on a homestead?


I was/am working towards living on a homestead. Got enough money to do so but in the process I have gotten a girlfriend and started my master degree. So i put the whole thing on hold for after ive worked some years with my masters degree to earn some more money so i can live off the interest/income. Gf is up for the homestead idea just not out in the complete nowhere which is ok with me
>>
>>886279
I've been reading about permaculture and it looks interesting, would be cool for a sustainable build. I don't know how legit it is though, kinda feels like a hippie meme.

One of the prominent permaculture figures in Europe is about an hour drive away from me, I'm thinking of cheking it out.
>>
>>887375
I once had a look at Sepp Holzers permaculture.
Was a sound garden but the wheat....
Like every 5th plant had a poisonous parasite mushroom on it.
In Germany it's called Mutterkorn.
Happens if you don't use fungicides.
>>
There are books like "roses love garlic" that lists companion plants.
For example, one plant repels common pests that would normally devour its neighbor.
>>
>>886279
top tier book
>>
is it hard work? i can imagine sowing and harvesting season must be tough but what is there to do between those periods (next to feeding the animals and repairing stuff and the like
>>888496
what book? i got this from some info thread but if there's a book full off this kind of stuff i'd be very interested
>>
I am on a homestead in the UK.

Bought it a few years back, slowly moving down full time. Still spend a few days a week in town for work.

I have a poly tunnel for veg but will be planting some outdoors next years (hardy ones like potatoes, carrots etc). Have had some great chillis, grapes, cucumbers, potatoes, tomatoes and more.

I have chickens in a small orchard with apples, plums, cherries and meddlars (a weird fruit).

I would estimate I eat about 20% of what i produce on average over the year. This is higher in summer - a meal could be chicken, potatoes, carrots and peas all home grown - and lower in winter. Im aiming to get up to maybe 50% average over the year with better planning and storage of food. Getting into my deer stalking recently so that should bump up the average considerably.

Have my own water supply, feel better for it (less oestrogen etc)

Have solar power, solar heating, small wind turbine and 4 wood burners. Try to mostly use wood, but also have coal and kerosene for backup. Plan to build a small hydro system.
>>
>>888631
>I would estimate I eat about 20% of what i produce on average over the year
what do you do with the rest of it? or do you mean that 20% of what you eat is homegrown
>>
>>888631
Sounds like a pretty good setup.
Contaminated water supply always sounds like tinfoil hat crap, but the reality of it is frightening.
Something like 97% of the water used by Las Vegas hotels is returned to the reservoir after "treatment". The list of drugs and chemicals that aren't removed is staggering.

>>888627
Planting season is nothing if you scale for how much acreage you have.
Something like OP's pic you can do by hand in a couple days max. If you have acreage, then hopefully you have a tractor to plough and the hardest part is filling the hopper with seed and it spreads or plants automatically.

Harvesting is simple, go out and spend 10 minutes every couple days picking what's ripe.
>>
>>888662
Yes, 20% of what i eat on average is home grown.

>>888741
Thanks.

Its having an effect on marine life so why not us if we drink it for decades?
>>
Grew up on a dairy farm in rural Ontario. We had a massive vegetable farm, bees, chickens, collected maple syrup, you name it. Almost never went to the grocery store.
>>
what about grains? are they good crops to have or do they take up too much space to be an efficient crop?
>>
>>891080
Grains are simple.
They don't need upkeep while growing.
But its low yield per square feet- you need acreage to make it worthwhile.
Also processing is more time consuming.
I can pick some green beans, put them in a jar, boil it and they're "canned".
With grains you have to harvest- and its alot of bulky grass with a small amount of grain- a large volume of chaff that has to be mechanically separated somehow, then the grains themselves milled into powder.
>>
I grew up on a homestead. We raised pigs, sheep, and chickens and had large diverse gardens. I would say it put me far ahead of my peers in terms of overall skills and experience with problem solving. Theres always something that has to be done and if you're not always willing to do it then you'll have a bad time
>>
>>889254
Our recycling of water, will be the downfall of western civilization.
Autism has increased 10,000% in the last 50 years.
Gender identity issues because of estrogen in the water supply.
9 year old girls with D cups because of growth hormones in the food chain.
Pacific ocean radioactivity went up 500% after Fukushima.

We're poisoning ourselves.
Only people in the sticks with well water and free range livestock will survive.
>>
>>891856
Animal hormones influence breast growth more. Xenoestrogens have limited bioavailability and 4chan overstates the effects.

Really the worry is cancer.
>>
>>891953
YOU MEAN THIS THREAD?!?
>>
>>887398
in english it's known as an ergot

>>887375
I know some successful biologists that think there's substance to the permaculture thing.
>>
>>891953
xenoestrogens are one thing, but the water supply is contaminated with plain old estrogen

the worry hasn't done any damage, but the chems have.

however:
>Autism has increased 10,000% in the last 50 years.
can be attributed to changes in diagnosis practices. 60 years ago even the most autismal wouldn't get a diagnosis, only fucking nutters got psych treatment by means of being locked in a nuthouse
>Gender identity issues because of estrogen in the water supply.
gender identity issues still affect a tiny minority of a minority. it's vastly more visible because of the internet, porn and SJW-run media
>9 year old girls with D cups because of growth hormones in the food chain.
as far as I'm aware there's no other explanation for this
>Pacific ocean radioactivity went up 500% after Fukushima.
pretty meaningless. radiation can be harmful in large amounts but small amounts are laughable. people have been living in the Chernobyl zone of alienation for decades without negative effect
>>
File: 1420653015331.jpg (15KB, 441x411px) Image search: [Google]
1420653015331.jpg
15KB, 441x411px
>>892117
>people have been living in the Chernobyl zone of alienation for decades without negative effect
>>
>>892117
>autism
There's no proof that it was under-diagnosed in the past.
Its a common theory- one that I don't deny is plausable-.
But.
I see ALOT more "weird" kids today than I did 20 years ago (yes I'm old). And I'm a little off myself, so I'm not judging kids just because I'm "a square".
>gender identity
Again, its more than possible that this was just taboo and hidden in the past.
But there's no empirical evidence proving that.

Think of all the women partying in las Vegas, on birth control.
Every time they pee in the toilet, that artificial estrogen is flushed to water reclamation plants and back to lake mead.
Las Vegas hotels return about 97% of their water to the lake- then it gets pulled out again.
Guess what happens to juvenile lab animals when they're pumped full of estrogen....
>>
>>892172
Kids are weird today because of the Internet and acceptance of everything
>>
>>892117
>people have been living in the Chernobyl zone of alienation for decades without negative effect
Fun fact. Radiation doesn't spread out equally in the environment. In the Chernobyl exclusion zone there are pockets of land with virtually no radiation. Other places you will get really sick.
>>
>>892288
>>
File: wrong.png (22KB, 139x141px) Image search: [Google]
wrong.png
22KB, 139x141px
>>892288
>>892289
wrong!
>>
File: 1425643234248.gif (726KB, 300x168px) Image search: [Google]
1425643234248.gif
726KB, 300x168px
>>892117
>people have been living in the Chernobyl zone of alienation for decades without negative effect
>>
>>892288
Some of the plant mutations are pretty cool.
Like a sun flower thats only 2 feet tall and the stalk is 6" in diameter.

So sure things are still alive, but the cellular damage is extreme
>>
>>889453
How is maple syrup collected?
Do you just tap the tree? Or is there some kind of refining process later?
>>
>>893330
you tap the tree to collect the sap, and then you have to boil it down to refine it into syrup
>>
File: one quarter of an acre.png (352KB, 768x1024px) Image search: [Google]
one quarter of an acre.png
352KB, 768x1024px
>>886279
do others have similar pics? Pref some with info
>>
>>893561
I have a really big one but its somewhere on my external and i forgot what i titled the pic as, i will search for it
>>
File: using paint to make a homestead.jpg (251KB, 1000x775px) Image search: [Google]
using paint to make a homestead.jpg
251KB, 1000x775px
>>893561
I have a really detailed one but ill have to search my external for it
>>
>>893561
I want a pdf of this book
>>
>>893569
the backyard homestead is the name of the series, i dont know where free pdfs are though
>>
>>892095
Its more because of water utilities BEING CHEAP and not properly filtering shit out/like some communities not using necessary chemicals to prevent lead from old pipes leaching into the water supply.
UV treatment to KILL BACTERIA AND VIRUS'
Sand and Glass Beads to filter out larger particulates(can be cleaned and reused almost forever)
Membranes and Reverse osmosis to remove water borne chemicals(most common drugs and such)
just LOOK at all the water filtering/purifying methodologies available, and then look at costs.

Main problem with estrogen and shit is that its just DUMPED into the environment, along with human waste and other shit/literally. Only with several feet/hundred feet of sedimentary rock and soil to filter it before it hits the water tables.

Chicago's river dumping of sewage is an example of this.
>>
>>893571
>you will need at least 2 acres to be self-sustainable
I wonder how much money you actually save by doing something like this >>886279
>>
>>893593

>Its more because of water utilities BEING CHEAP

You should read up on the PUC. Utilities are allowed to recover all legitimate costs plus a profit. What you are suggesting is that your hallucinations are not reality. Read a book nigger and then kill yourself
>>
anybody have any good reading materials to recommend on permaculture?
>>
>>892288
even the most contaminated areas are flush with wild animals

the radiation doesn't affect larger animals as much and mutants get eaten.

>>892158
>>893005
which don't you believe? that people have been living there, or that there are no negative effects?
>>
>>893605
probably none. a smart person can earn a lot more money doing stupid boring jobs for banks

a smart person can also drive himself to suicide doing stupid boring jobs for banks.
>>
>>893605
it's not about money, it's independence that is valuable
>>
>>891856
Autism rates have increased because it's only in the later years that we've been able to diagnose it properly.

Gender identity issues have always existed, it only seems like there's a lot more now because
1) Everyone has the ability to show themselves as they truly are online
2) It's trendy to be trans*

Children maturing faster now than before correlates with better nourisment, not fucking oestrogen. Or would you correlate oestrogen to increased height as well?
>>
Imagine what you can do with several extra acres of land?

Fuck I want to leave Miami so bad! I just want to live a nice and comfy life.

Only problem would be working if I left, where would I work?

Gonna have to save up a bunch of money, and hopefully be able to buy some land and shit.

Anyways do you guys keep Weed plants in your homestead? I would like to have one at least.
>>
>>894037
bumping this question
>>
>>894207
>Fuck I want to leave Miami
> leave Miami
Fuck you are retarded. I live near the Alps. Wanna trade?
>>
>>894061
>no negative effects
Not him, but probably this. The rate of congenital heart defects around Chernobyl is astronomically high compared to the rest of the world and generally attributed to the radiation.
>>
>>894196
Yeah, it would be nice to see the rate of real autism but don't act like chemicals can't fuck up a body and don't pretend our chemical pollution problem didn't went out of control a few decades ago.
>>
>>894196
>gay people used to literally be murdered in the streets
>gay people are now generally accepted
>wow theres so many more gay people
doesnt take a rocket science to figure this one out, guys.
rates of autism have increased because we figured out vaccines, jenny mcarthy told me and it was based on a disproven article written by a disgraced scientist
>>
>>886689
They will eat the seeds too and damage the plants when they dig.
>>
>>886706
I don't like chickens because the food you give them can be either cooked for another meal or used as material for a compost.

It's either a big pile of compost or chickens. It's even worse with rabbits, there is no point if you can hunt them.
>>
>>888741
100% of the water used on the ISS is returned after treatment, and their water processing unit have the size of a cat.

Water is water, once you remove the crap it is drinkable again. The cleanest water you can think of have been drunk and pissed a million time.

>>891856
Chemical pollution in water is due to the lack of proper water treatment, not to the fact that water is reused.

>>891796
That is based. Tell us stories of your childhood.
>>
>>895584
We can't ignore the fact that their was a gay "epidemy" in the 80's and now that it's part of the normal, there is no so many gay men around but the number of lesbians explode.

The bandwagon effect is very real.
>>
My fiance and I just closed on a house with 10 acres and a barn in Vermont, it's not offgrid yet but we do have septic and well water, and we're planning on getting solar soon. Planning on goats, horses, and a large garden
>>
>>893652
>PUC
some infamous city with lead in their drinking water tends to point to instances of neglect for money making/savings/politics
>>
>>886689
the chickens don't get attacked by motivated cats? that must take a serious fence
>>
i have started to work towards self-sufficiency but i know it's just too unpractical to be totally cut off , in my situation: i just bought a house so i have to work to pay for it but i like to take actions in that direction.

here's where i am at:

- i have a garden and experience with produces; winter squashes were a dud this year so i will try to grow as much potatoes as i can next year

- i try to walk in the forest every few days to pick up firewood , material for arts and craft to do and possibly to sell, mushrooms. i haven'T found a rare berry spot yet, maybe this will turn out eventually. did walked on some rinky dink pot plantations tho, lol.

- i planted 5 nut trees of various species. not holding my breath but that could be fun eventually

- i inseminated with shiitake plugs 40 logs of 4 feet of length, 3 to 4 inch of diameters earlier on this summer. with my leftover plugs i inseminated some random recently dead trees in the wood for a giggle. i hope this will be a reasonable success.

- i grow some plants indoors , have started to sell a few.

i want to get even more into this trip, i plan on learning to fish to save some money while lowering my stress. also i would like to do my own fish sauce. garum time. i want to learn more about bushcraft, survival stuff. preppers have some good ideas even if their motivation is often nutty as fuck.

i wonder what should i learn next. any suggestions?
>>
>>886279
>>893561
>>893562
>>893563
>>893571
can anyone contribute related pics?
>>
>>897102

Hey brah. Ive got some brahs from Burlington. Do you mind if we come squat on your land? C'mon man. Everyone knows Vermont has the most headiest bud and souls on the Earth.
>>
>>898499
More variety of trees if you have room.
Apple, cherry, pear, avacodo. Depending on what you like and climate of course.
Im working on avacodo and cherry right now myself,also scored a ponderosa lemon from my friends place (its bigger than a softball)- I'm hoping it has viable seeds.
>>898494
My cat brings me rabbits, rats, mice, moles- even an owl once.
She attacks dogs, including my friends coon hound and black lab when he brought them over (both are actual hunting dogs, not "pets").
She chased a chicken once- for like 5 feet, then lost interest and doesn't care anymore.
>>
My dad has a farm and I'm planting permaculture style crops, old stone houses (roofs fallen in) all over the place, might run electric up there but water, heat and food sufficiency would be a good start
>>
I'm waiting on the county to process the deed for my 1.25 acres in the desert off rt 66. Are the underground green houses suitable for that climate? Obviously I'd need to truck in tanks of water
>>
the garden i have in my yard is too small to grow a boatload of food for the winter , i think: i will have to google how many tatter i would need to cook for one (1) for like a year or maybe someone here knows.

anyway i was thinking of complementing my garden by growing stuff in some spots in the forest. anyone have tried that? i was thinking of going where lumbers have cut whole chunks of forest to the ground ... that could be a good spot to grow something that takes care of itself liek potatoes. what else is no hassle. i remember i had tomatoes one year where i neglected the shit of my garden.
>>
>>891756
Grain is what starving people eat, handy to store but other plants like oca and potatoes can just be left in the ground until you need them
>>
>>899555

Learn 2 drip agriculture. You're basically exactly the scenario it was invented for.
>>
>>899602


i think i will grow amaranth too. sunflowers and squashes too altho i'm affraid someone will end up walking on them and take them from me... i will have to do some proper scouting to find a discrete spot but on the other hand people who grow pot are all over teh place where i live and there is probably no hiding from them.
>>
>>887091
Nice. Sounds awesome.
>>
>>886690

I was planning on having 40 rabbits for milk, since I can't get a cow. Thoughts?
>>
>>894037
John Seymour's works
Masanobu Fukuoka's books
Gernot Minke for buildings
All of them are on PDF's
>>
>>902413
yea i have thoughts about that
>>
>>902490

Do you think they should be free roam, and that I should just catch one when I get thirsty, or should I set up an automated milking machine, like they use for cows? I'm a big milk drinker, and so are my kids. We drink about a gallon a day.
>>
Waiting on those PDFs
>>
>>887091
this sounds like my dream
>>887334
>I have gotten a girlfriend and started my master degree
I'm worried about this desu
My line of work requires me to work in the cities.
I'm thinking of just making a compromise and buying a homestead around an hour and a half north of the city, and just have to spend 3 hours commuting every day
>>
>>887375
Rely on perennials, annuals are for starving peasants
>>
>>888461
Companion plant apples and blackberries, great job
>>
awesome thread.. i've got 7 acres on a stocked trout river in the Va Mts. I had an Airstream RV that i got an insane deal on that i was staying in but now decided to change my workshop into a small cabin while we build the main cabin in the spring. it's fucking awesome gaining independence from the system;

We are leaning heavily on permaculture techniques to increase the yield from traditional gardening. We're placing 8 ft long raised beds along our driveway with south facing sides. this keeps the plants way from deer but also extends the growing season significantly b/c they heat up so much faster; also using cold frames to start plants earlier.

in the beds, we're using hugelkulture techniques including wood scraps, brown/green veg, and compost to reduce the water needs.
>>
The Backyard Homestead i believe
>>
>>902413

This will probably work. Let us know what happens!
>>
>>902413
get goats if you can. having THAT many rabbits for milk is a lot of work for the amount of milk you get.
>>
>>892172
20 years ago kids got bullied at school if they were weird and they couldn't go on the internet and find support for their wierdness. So it was either a) conform and act socially normal or b) Be a weird social outcast with no friends.

Now the kids have option c) Retreat onto the internet and only talk with people who have the same weird tenancies, reinforcing them and turning them into socially autistic adults.
>>
>>892172

>estrogen in d water
>muh conspiracies
>USA USA USA
>>
>>886279
Wife and I have been planning to move off the grid for about 5 years now. We've been doing a lot of homework. Currently, looking at acreage (20+) and prepping out city home to be sold.
>>
>>893562
>>893563

My issue with layouts like this is the way pasture is allocated. If you keep your sheep/goats on the same browsing area for a long time, parasites will start to build up. So you need to rotate your pasture space to break the reproductive cycles of the parasites (ie so they'll hatch while the animals are in another pasture space and die for lack of a host).

This >>893562 one has what I think is far too little browsing space for the sheep/goats at the top of the picture, then compounds the error by having no provision for rotating it, and having the space adjacent to perennial crops that would be browsed unless carefully fenced away. Sure "large animals" might not be sheep/goats... but the parasite issue applies no matter what kind of animal we're talking about.

The one here >>893563 does have pasture rotation... but only for cattle. Goats and sheep have one big plot. And if you keep a billy and a ram, then each of those need to be kept from the others and from each other (rams will seriously injure the goats if there's a fight).

To me, it seems smarter to have your home, then the truck garden up close, and then your pens and enclosures, and then if you're going to have big red meat animals at all, give them broad pastures that you rotate among, probably the areas separated in part by your fruiting trees. All these sites IMO drastically underestimate the amount of room you'll need for pasture, except if you're planning on depending primarily on commercial feed.
>>
>>903981
>Everyone gets nalgene bottles.
>massive anti-war pussying
>Obama wins election
>The country switches to BPA-free plastic
>No more pseudo-estrogens in water supply
>Trump wins election

I'm not saying... I'm just saying, you know?
>>
>>902413
>>
>>903092
Yeah im getting a masters in economics which is pretty useless outside of cities. Still possible but might be hard.

I'm gonna buy a cabin in sweden (dane here) and use it when I have time. When i get older I'll see if I can make it work. 3 hours a day commuting is too much but if you dont have any other option i get it
>>
>>891856
that bit about the Daiichi accident is inaccurate. they've bermed off around the water intake structures and i believe the ocean floor paving contract went through months ago.

really is sad how little people know of an electricity generating industry that, regulated and managed correctly, could produce for us for hundreds of years to come. at least until sustainable, macro alternatives are developed.
>>
i want to buy some land for my dog and i to live on. set up a garden. get some sheep and chickens, maybe pigs too.

for those of you with large properties, did you fence all of it or just smaller areas?
>>
>>902480
>John Seymour's works
this. he has very good, encyclopedic-like books with how-tos on almost everything
>>
>>888627
Idk if this is it but it includes the pictures

http://theoffgridcabin.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/The-Backyard-Homestead.pdf
>>
>>886279
I live about 20 minutes east of Portland i got 7 aceres. 22 fruit trees a chicken house a that I normally raise about 40 chickens a summer in though I am down to 8 chickens now for the winter. (raise meat chickens in the summer keep layers for winter) I have a 3kw solar array 2 year round creeks. Last summer I grew enough marijuana to pay off my house.
Had a pretty huge food garden last year.
Also I have an abundance of wild animals such as deer rabbits and squirls
Pretty nice start but I'm like 4/10 in mho
>>
>>893569
Not a PDF but here it is online for free
http://www.reading-everyday.com/15/The_Backyard_Homestead_split_005.html
>>
>>898494
Skunks are the greater threat in my opinion. We used to have chickens and skunks would always be pulling shit. Just make sure to make the area secure and do a patrol every evening for anything trying to go after your stuff.
>>
>>886706
>There should be a website where you enter your zip code and it shows you everything you can grow and their seasons. Would be helpful. Do you know of any?

Farmers Almanac
http://www.almanac.com/gardening/planting-dates/
>>
>>905228

MA or MS?

Because with the math of a good econometrics program, you're about halfway through most undergraduate engineering programs.

Once you're done, take an occasional course in the basics of civil,mechanical, and electrical engineering. Like one every year or two. It wont be enough to get a job with, but it's plenty for being able to do basic projects yourself and being a solid assistant to someone who does know his shit if TSHTF.

Abd for project planning and budgeting resources, a microeconomics background comes in very handy. The whole point of micro is the optimal use of limited resources.
>>
>>893330
>>893400

Yeah, there was a Curious George episode about that.
>>
>>905306
I personally don't have any fencing on my 15 acres.
Only people that have fencing around there have livestock. Its annoying when dogs go on a 3-4 mile run chasing deer or just roaming around, its common for them to get hit by cars.

Fencing isn't free. Even horse fence and t-posts will cost a fair amount of cash. Just one side of my property is a 1/4 mile.
>>
>>907256

And George saves the day with butter! It was quite a hoot.
>>
>>907248
MS. Already had a couple of econometrics classes.

I'm probably just gonna work for a couple of years saving up and then getting a job where i manage timber production since I have taken a couple classes in optimal usage of ressources
>>
>>898499
For those of you who do grow their own mushrooms, how successful is it in general to see the mushrooms take off and spread to other fallen logs?
>>
>>891756
Yeah, but grains are more nutritionally and calorically dense, they can also fit into a crop rotation nicely. You also get the added bonus of something that won't Parrish easily after the processing and drying, plus unlike taters, most grains have fats and proteins. Here's a list off the top of my head of good seed crops to consider:oats, corn, buckwheat, wheat, barley, rye, sunflowers, and other seeds that can be eaten, processed, stored, and used for different things such as oil and animal feed, or cooking ingredients. Buckweat, sunflowers, and brassica crops are also great for honeybees.
>>
>>895517
Source
>>
>>886690
we have chickens at home (it's not a homestead, just a house in rural area in Europe), 4 of them, they're not high maintenance. You should see them daily to care for them. they *might* survive a good week without attention.
they give us 12-24 eggs per week, enough for the whole family (5). we have like a pen ehind the house, fenced, originally meant for around 15 chickens, but it was too many eggs for just the 5 of us, and after a lot of grandparents friends died we didn't have anyone to give our eggs to, so we sold a lot of them.

>>886706

Also on the topic, I'm wasn't alive when we build our house, but it is basically a homestead, with some goats/cows/pigs we could live just from our land. If I fail uni, I'll probably just do that and work some part-time job for utilities.
>>
>>908317

what part in Yurope are you, fellow european?
>>
>>886279
I own a small farm reminiscent of the one in the image, though it is 3 acres. Just chickens, veggies, fruit, orchard, pond for fish, sugar bush, mushrooms, and bees for honey.

It takes a long time to properly gear yourself towards self sufficiency in whatever level you mean. I still spend about $75 a month on food from the grocery store and I trade and sell food stuff with family, friends, and neighbors. As time goes on I become more and more self sufficient.
>>
>>909796
>sugar bush
What is this?
>mushrooms
What does your setup look like?
>>
File: 1306288594685.jpg (24KB, 400x400px) Image search: [Google]
1306288594685.jpg
24KB, 400x400px
>>902493
>rabbits
>just catch one when I get thirsty
>>
>>903981
How do you explain that boys today are having larger breastgrowth in Dk than in Finland?
>>
Ausfag city boy living in brisbane. Perants bought afew acres of farmland up in gympie before i was even born but due to lack of fore thought and apathy have left the property get pretty rundown. The place has bore water but the pump equipment has been left unchecked for years and in all likelyhood is broken beyond repair. The guttering had rusted through and needs replacing along with allot of the facilities (toilet plumbing and bathroom). The place has a plethera of other problems which ive left unmentioned. My thought is if i invested enough time in i could make the place convieniently livable which would be a dream to me as ive always wanted to live a self sufficient rural lifealstyle. Im currently working a casual job that makes decent money and am going into uni next year (currently 18.) Would it be acieviable to make that dream come true? Or is that just the idealic fantasy of a cityboy?
>>
>>912185
Also any ideas on how to effectively tackle the water problem will be appreciated. Biggest limiting factor for how long i can stay up there to work on it is the amount of water i need.
>>
File: DSCN6035a.jpg (662KB, 2040x1500px) Image search: [Google]
DSCN6035a.jpg
662KB, 2040x1500px
>>909955
>What is this?

A stand of Maple trees used to gather sap to make maple syrup and maple sugar.

>What does your setup look like?

My old shiitake setup was just a few logs lining various blackberry briar beds. I'm moving to Pearl Oyster stuff now and only have a few jars inoculated. Once these are done, I'll pasteurize straw, bag it, and inoculate it. The only equipment that is special is the pressure canner I used to fully sterilize the used coffee grounds in canning jars. I could have pasteurized the grounds, but I needed to store it somewhere other than my freezer until I was ready to use them. Hopefully, at least 1 jar will colonize fully, without mold infection, and I can use it make make straw mushroom kits.

I'll pasteurize the straw using a large stock pot and candy thermometer.

pics related
>>
File: DSCN0085a.jpg (211KB, 1024x768px) Image search: [Google]
DSCN0085a.jpg
211KB, 1024x768px
>>912185
>>912190
In the USA, there are many stores you can buy everything you need to easily fix/replace anything in a house. I'd just replace the pump and all waterlines and fixtures as needed. I have the option of using PEX piping which is ultra easy to install, though I'd prefer to use a copper line for the line you get potable water from.

For me, I use an submersible water well pump for a 60' deep well ($650usd). That is the most expensive thing. I've replaced it twice in 35 years. Once due to old age then later due to the torsion arrestors not preventing the electric wires from rubbing the pipe and breaking (pic); which shorted and destroyed the pump motor. The rest of the water system in the house cost about $300usd, not including fixtures. Price increases would make everything cost about $1200usd today I think. I recall that AU prices are much higher I think ($800+ for a 80L/m pump).

I'd recommend checking the pump's electronics for electrical shorts by using a cheap continuity meter/voltage meter BEFORE you turn it on. Install a pressure switch if there isn't one already. Fire it up and run around looking for leaks. Replace pipes as needed or run all new lines if there's too many leaks. I can't image there being all that many leaks if you area isn't seeing freezing temps in winter. Make sure the highest pressure setting on the pressure switch is less than what your pipes are rated for. Otherwise, they can leak at their joints (which normally stops when the pressure is reduced to normal.)

You will also need a pressure tank. The larger the better. Those reduce the number of starts on/off the pump has to do. Pumps have a limited number of starts before they die. The larger the tank the fewer the amount of starts over time and the longer the pump lasts.
>>
File: 1480563446791.jpg (40KB, 508x403px) Image search: [Google]
1480563446791.jpg
40KB, 508x403px
>>893561
subsequent pic
Thread posts: 125
Thread images: 14


[Boards: 3 / a / aco / adv / an / asp / b / bant / biz / c / can / cgl / ck / cm / co / cock / d / diy / e / fa / fap / fit / fitlit / g / gd / gif / h / hc / his / hm / hr / i / ic / int / jp / k / lgbt / lit / m / mlp / mlpol / mo / mtv / mu / n / news / o / out / outsoc / p / po / pol / qa / qst / r / r9k / s / s4s / sci / soc / sp / spa / t / tg / toy / trash / trv / tv / u / v / vg / vint / vip / vp / vr / w / wg / wsg / wsr / x / y] [Search | Top | Home]

I'm aware that Imgur.com will stop allowing adult images since 15th of May. I'm taking actions to backup as much data as possible.
Read more on this topic here - https://archived.moe/talk/thread/1694/


If you need a post removed click on it's [Report] button and follow the instruction.
DMCA Content Takedown via dmca.com
All images are hosted on imgur.com.
If you like this website please support us by donating with Bitcoins at 16mKtbZiwW52BLkibtCr8jUg2KVUMTxVQ5
All trademarks and copyrights on this page are owned by their respective parties.
Images uploaded are the responsibility of the Poster. Comments are owned by the Poster.
This is a 4chan archive - all of the content originated from that site.
This means that RandomArchive shows their content, archived.
If you need information for a Poster - contact them.