Homesteading in the city is about doing things to be more self sufficient even while still living within city limits. You don’t have to go completely off the grid to be more self sufficient and you don’t even have to have a house! That is what being an urban homesteader is about.
I currently live within city limits with a yard just over 6,000 square feet. I try to grow as much of our fruits and vegetables as possible; cook most of our food at home; Preserve my harvest including dehydrating, canning and freezing; and compost with worms. Being able to reach into the pantry and pull out a jar of cowboy caviar (sweet jalapeños) in the middle of winter is an amazing feeling.
There are many things you can do to become more self sufficient and you don’t have to start doing them all in one day. This is actually part of the joy of homesteading. There is always something new to learn or try.
What is Homesteading?
Homesteading has become a buzz word lately and more and more people are gravitating to the idea. Normally people envision homesteading as living on a few acres with farm animals, a huge garden and living off the grid. There are still many traditional homesteaders that do just that. I love the idea of this myself but I know that where I live I could not afford that much land nor convince the hubby to do it.
Homesteading originally came from the homesteading act that was enacted in 1862 during the civil war. The act gave citizens 160 acres of public land as long as they lived on it, improved it and paid a small registration fee. You can read more about the original Homestead Act Here.
Homestead laws still exists today. They are normally setup to allow people to declare a portion of their property as a homestead and prevent them from being affected by collectors. This protection is to prevent you from losing your homestead in bad economic times. You can find links to homestead laws by state here.
Urban Homesteading
Urban homesteading is trying to be more self sufficient in any way possibly in your current living conditions. There are many ways you can practice urban homesteading and none of them are wrong. Urban homesteading becomes a personal journey. Even if you have dreams of owning a large homestead one day you can start where you are today. The largest thing you gain is knowledge and that never goes away.
In my urban homestead I currently have a nine large and six small raised beds for vegetable gardens, some fruit trees, berry bushes and canes, and multiple potted or bagged plants. In the home I tried to cook a lot of our food at home including making yogurt, baking bread, homemade vegetable stock. I also preserve a lot that comes out of the garden by canning, fermenting, dehydrating and freezing. I have a worm composting bin and a regular composting area.
Even though I already do a lot I still have a list of things I would love to do in the future including raining my own chickens (currently can’t have chickens with the size of my lot), make some of my own body care products, Solar panels, capture my own rain water and the list continues….
Benefits of Urban Homesteading
Urban homesteading allows you to choose how you want to be more self sufficient. You do not have to jump feet first in to the deep end. You can start small and as you expand your skills and desire you can continue to grow. I love that I can still run to the store if I do need something and I have the many amenities of the city close by. Homesteading in the city is the best of both worlds because I am becoming more self sufficient without going completely off the grid!
Some of the benefits of urban homesteading include:
- Better Health – Better Nutrition – More Movement
- Less reliance on the food industry
- Knowing what is in your food
- Save Waste (Reuse, Recycle, Compost)
- Save Money
- Appreciation of Nature
- Food just tastes better!
There are many more but these are some of the main reasons that I have become an urban homesteader. Part of what pushed me into this lifestyle was the few years we lived in Italy. In Europe the food laws are a lot stricter in what can be in the food and what chemicals can be used on the crops. They had a love and respect for food that we don’t have in the United States. Many of the restaurants had gardens where much of the produce came from. Italy was one of the only places my husband would eat a fresh tomato because they tasted so much better. Processed and fast food was very limited.
After we moved back from Italy I became a lot more aware of what we were eating and what was in our food. I started cooking a lot more at home and learning about our food industry. I started a small garden and the journey began.
Where to Begin
Homesteading is a journey and you are not going to be fully self sufficient tomorrow. You need to start by taking a look at what excites you the most or an easy change for you. That might be cooking dinner one night a week or going to the local famers market for your produce. If you need some ideas to get you started Pinterest is a gold mine for recipes and is an amazing way to tag recipes you want to try. Below is a board with some of my favorite recipes.
Once you add one new thing to your lifestyle then add another next month. That could be starting an herb garden in your kitchen, baking your own bread, or learning about having your own chickens. This is a personal journey and once you start it has a way to snowball so start small and before you know it you will be well on your way to your own urban homestead.
Where are you in your homestead journey I would love to know in a comment. If you enjoyed this post please considering sharing or pinning.
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