Virily Editor
The days of homesteading purely out of necessity are over. Long ago, pioneers went out and sought land to establish themselves as there was really no other way to live. Nowadays, people homestead out of choice. It is a choice to live in a natural way that is close to the ideals of those settlers of old to reduce our carbon footprint and live closer to a natural pace of life.
There is no one particular way to be a homesteader, and these days it is very fluid as people do still want to live in the modern world. So, it can be a challenge to be a successful homesteader in this day and age. In this article, I will go over several ways that you can become a homesteader and still live a modern life.
Commit to sustainability
The biggest reason to be a homesteader is to not contribute to global warming. It takes a commitment to practice this in reality. Before you even buy your land or break ground on your garden, you should be committed to the idea that you will be a sustainable homestead.
This involves doing your part to use renewable energy and to be as self sufficient as possible to not use limited resources.
Even raising your own livestock is part of this commitment and you need to be mindful about everything from livestock nutrition to how much meat you eat from your animals. You should be thinking of your homestead as a circle with every aspect of life feeding into another part so you can stay within your circle.
Urban vs rural
Being a modern homesteader is a bit tricky when the issue of finding the right land comes up. Some people insist that it has to be done out in the country where you have the space and freedom to live on your own terms. Others want to continue being connected to modern society and need to be close to urban services like schools and even jobs.
You can be an urban homesteader if this is the dilemma you face. As long as you have a bit of a yard and are able to do what you want with it then you don’t have to go too far outside of the city or suburbs. Just watch out for areas with strict HOA bylaws that restrict what you can do with your land.
Start small
Before committing to going all in on the homesteader lifestyle, you can start with small steps. Before going out and buying goats and a cow, try your hand at raising chickens or rabbits to see how it goes.
Your garden needn’t provide all of your nutrients for your family right off the bat. Start by growing a garden to supplement your groceries that you are getting from the supermarket or farmer’s market.
Once you get a sense of what works for you then you can go deeper into it. Starting small will be far less overwhelming and will ensure that you actually go through with it. If you go in too hard, then it may prove to be more difficult than you imagined and you end up abandoning the idea.
