12 Ideas On How I Will Make An Income From Homesteading
I'm not homesteading yet, but here's what I'm thinking about right now before I do get started. I've only spent a handful of hours on the property thus far, and I will have to figure out my living situation before I get started, but brainstorming around ideas has led me to this list.
One income source I ruled out right away was a market garden in the form of a J.M. Fortier, Urban Farmer Curtis Stone type operation. Greenshine Farmers, @greenshiners, is making a good go of that type of business plan, and its an incredible idea and opportunity for those with the physical ability and motivation to take on the challenge. If I were younger and/or more physically capable, I am in love that farm model and would definitely be trying to do that. Kids, if you want more freedom in life, get you some land and start learning how to grow quick turnaround, salad type crops.
From a recent YouTube video from Urban Farmer Curtis Stone, a guru and one of my heroes.
https://www.youtube.com/user/urbanfarmercstone
#1 – PIGS!!!
I think I can pull off raising some pigs. No, I KNOW I can pull that off. It's not like I have to pick them up and move them around, so my physical weakness can be worked around. A long water hose and a garden cart to help haul feed, and I'll figure it out. I've got plenty of land to raise a good number of pigs, granted I'll have to buy in feed for them, but that will be true of anything I want to raise on 2.8 acres of forest. I'm thinking 5 feeder pigs to start for the 6-8 months until they are at butcher weight, and not getting into breeding them until the future. Who knows, maybe I'll get some feeder piglets from @papa-pepper a couple hours away from me. :)
(Picture from @papa-pepper who just had some piglets and is a recently found hero I've found. Go upvote this post please, its still active and those piglets are awesome.)
https://steemit.com/homesteading/@papa-pepper/more-little-piglets-on-the-homestead
The back half of my property should be good a great place for pigs in the heat of summer with plenty of shade provided by the trees. What I'm thinking is putting a main pig pen in the center of that space for the water and feed and shelter, then using portable electric fencing to rotate the pigs around in 6-8 paddocks. I'm still researching the types of plants that pigs will eat that will grow in a forest so I can start building the permaculture system in that area, but I believe that will be a good start. I can also bring the chickens behind the pigs to help smooth things out and perhaps confuse any pathogens.
Picture from Google maps satellite view doctored up by me.
I'm also still trying to source organic pig feed, but I've already found GMO-free feed that I would certainly use to get started if I have to. I'd really like to be as natural as possible, but that's just a goal I might have to reach for when I can afford it. It's a big range, but I figure I should be able to make $200-$300 per pig selling them whole, half, or quarters.
#2 CHICKENS!!! – Pullets or newly laying hens.
I want to pick one heritage breed of chickens and become the best breeder of that breed in the whole state. If you want the best Buckeyes or Delawares or New Hampshires or Marans or whatever breed I end up with, I want to be the best source for that breed within a 4 hour driving distance.
I've heard it said, that your typical chicken has the most value the day before she lays her first egg. Most backyard chicken flock owners like a variety of chickens and they like to get pullets right before they start laying so they don't have to worry about raising them from chicks and so that the hen has the maximum egg laying life ahead of them. Those consumers will pay for the convenience, and I'm willing to capitalize on that.
Photo from The Livestock Conservancy
https://livestockconservancy.org/index.php/heritage/internal/buckeye-chicken
I'll try to start out with two batches of the same breed of chicks from two different sources, and then go from there. Select the best rooster and hens from each source to start a breeding program, sell the extra hens, and put almost all of the extra roosters in my freezer. I should be able to get $20-$30 per pullet (female "teenage" chicken that hasn't started laying yet), and that can be a decent source of revolving income.
#3 MORE CHICKENS!!! - Baby chicks.
Hey, if you've got people that want your pullets, you'll probably find some who will want your baby chicks instead of going to Tractor Supply and perpetuating their mass production type systems or putting the chicks through the ordeal of going through the US Mail. Yikes. $3-$6 per baby chicks is a fair price in my region of the US.
#4 CHICKEN EGGS!!!
Well, I will have the heritage breed chickens, and they will be laying eggs so I can produce chicks and pullets, and I'm just a single dude who can't eat a lot of eggs, so I'm bound to have a few dozen extra eggs each week to pull in a little bit more income. If it buys me some pizza ingredients, hooray!
Photo from me, assortment of chicken, duck and quail eggs from my friends at Natural Living Homestead in Illinois.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCv4I5wpW8Qho8Y8onQAGkFQ
#5 CUT FLOWERS!!!
Did you know that 70-80% of the cut flowers sold in the United States come from outside the country, mostly Columbia and the northern part of South America, because of the war of people who use drugs? I did a video on YouTube touching on this if you want to learn more. (5 minutes)
Basically, I'd like to plant flowers which I can cut and sell anywhere and everywhere I can find on my property that they will grow. Annual or perennial, it doesn't matter to me. Love me some dahlias and zinnias. Those flowers coming from outside the country have a shelf life several days shorter than what I could produce locally and local florists or even grocery stores that sell flowers will welcome a local source almost anywhere in the US. I'm going to give it a try on small scale at least.
#6 PLANT STARTERS!!!
I'm going to be starting flowering plants early for my cut flower business, so why not sell some of them as baby plants at a buck or two a piece? And I can throw in some other plant starts and see what sells. Everybody has seen plant starts outside the home improvement and grocery stores, why can't I get a little piece of that action?
By the way, I'm thinking one day a week I'll be getting a booth at one of the numerous farmers markets within a 2 hour drive of me to sell some of my products listed above and below. Russellville, Fort Smith, Little Rock, Hot Springs, and wherever else I can "pitch a tent" for a few hours and sell my wares.
#7 POTTED PLANTS!!!
No, not pot plants (cannabis), not that I think there's anything wrong with that, I'm thinking more along the lines of mums or succulents or herbs or the like. Consumers like convenience, and if I can pull of a cheap greenhouse or indoor grow area, there is money to be made there.
No comment on source, but I'm not stealing this photo ;)
#8 BIRDHOUSES!!!
I love birdhouses, and I don't know why. With scraps I've probably got laying around the property, I'm betting I can make a good number of birdhouses. Something else to fill my table at the farmers market that I can make a few dollars from. 20 birdhouses a year making $7.50 each helps pay the internet bill for a couple months.
I've got a previous Steemit post about birdhouses here:
https://steemit.com/homesteading/@bobbleheadstead/birdhouses-are-simple-and-awesome-w-pics-and-yt-video
#9 TURKEYS OR DUCKS OR GUINEAS!!!
Pigs, chickens, and flowers are probably more than I can handle to get started, so this option is lower on the list. Still very much a viable source of extra income on a homestead, but I'll have to play it by ear as to how much I can do. Turkey for the meat, ducks potentially for meat and eggs, and guineas for the tick and chigger protection and potential keet sales.
#10 HipCamp and AirBnB!!!
Further down the road when I can run water and electricity, I could offer a campsite. And then if I can turn a yurt or a pro-fab shed into a cabin or restore an old AirStream, AirBnB might be possible. Blue Mountain Lake is right there, you can see Magazine Mountain, the highest elevation in Arkansas, from my front yard, there's a huge bluegrass music festival a half hour away that happens twice a year for four days, and the hunting season for the Ouachita National Forest across the street from me is another big lure.
Heck, trapping small game like beavers and skunks and squirrels and the like is also still legal in-season in the Ouachitas. More than 300 species of birds have been identified around Blue Mountain Lake. There is a world class bird dog training area at the lake also. Location, location, location. It's not the location for everyone, but I'm thinking I could make some extra income from my location, so I'm gonna try when I can afford it.
https://www.hipcamp.com/
https://www.airbnb.com/
#11 SOCIAL MEDIA!!!
I may not be able to go out and weed the market farm an hour every day, but I may be able to spend that time writing a few posts on Steemit and make a few video for YouTube. Hey, I'll take all the legitimate income I can get. I'm approaching 9,000 views on YouTube, which means I'm also approaching 10,000 views and that is the point where you can start making a few dollars. Steemit has already been awesome to me, so I'm hoping once I get started and things start getting more interesting, if I'm any good at telling my own stories, I will welcome any extra income I can gain from that.
I've already met so many wonderful, helpful, generous, wholesome people through social media, so the investment of time is worth it for that alone.
#12 CHARITY!!!
I wouldn't be where I am with this homesteading income opportunity without charity. Relatives, childhood friends, college frat bros, and even perfect strangers have been there for me to help get this chance. Makes me tear up thinking about it, that's a deep thought. I'm not counting on it, and I rarely ask for it, but some people are just exceptional at this thing we call life and will undoubtedly help invest in my future. I could never express enough thanks, all I can do is promise to pass the kindness forward.
BONUS IDEA – BARTERING!!!
I used to love going fishing, primarily for catfish. With a 3,000 acre lake down the dirt road, I plan on doing a lot of fishing, and hopefully catching a lot of fish. Free food for me, and hey, if someone wants to trade for some fruits and veggies I can't grow, I won't say no. Not as easy to sell fish, but bartering is fair game. :)
It's all good.
You can also check me out on...
YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/c/PeoriaDude
Twitter
https://twitter.com/Bobbleheadstead
Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/bobbleheadstead/
Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/peoriadude/
Good thoughts, but it's going to be the practice over the ideas. My advice is to spend your time on market research. By that I mean, find your markets, especially for the plants you intend to grow, first! Then consider, how much labor you will have in getting your crop to market.
In the animal departments, I suggest, just trying to raise some to eat first. Animals have a steep learning curve!
Great point, you can never do too much market research before starting out. I have done a fair share of that to help inform these ideas. That would be a helpful topic and a good idea for another post. I just deleted a long ramble about that and will do another post on that sometime. :)
I have done some market research including following the closest farmers market for the past few years, I have relatives in the area that all eat pork and eggs, I do have enough experience with pigs and raising chicks to know its more about the right equipment and environment than the amount of time with only 5 pigs and a few dozen chicks to start. I'm clueless about flowers, that'll be the bigger learning curve probably. But you never know what the homestead and the market will throw your way. Thanks for the advice, the more informed the better, and I still have much to learn. If I can do $4k next year and progress to $10k the year after, I'll be very happy.
Its often been said, we tend to over-estimate what we can do in a year, but we under-estimate what we can do in five years. I'm keeping that mind.
If you haven't already I would look into the profitability on some of those endeavours. I'm not saying that you shouldn't do them - I absolutely think you should, but there are ways to improve your margin and it is always good to have a realistic view on things. One of my heroes, as I'm sure you would dub him, is Aust from Homesteady. Check out his shows (podcasts and youtube videos) on the profitability of most of your planned endeavours if you haven't already :)
Best of luck man, I will be here cheering you on with my two cents.
good advice he does have some great info that I'm sure could be utilized all over the globe :)
You are so right, Aust at Homesteady is great. I've been following him, and many, many other YouTubers for the past couple years. My friend Dan from The Grass-fed Homestead is going to be working with Homesteady pretty soon on an interview or something, I look forward to that. Aust has broken down his pig costs very well in the past. His east coast market is very different from Arkansas, but that info was still very useful.
I've also learned a great deal about pig costs from Cog Hill Farm and Pratt Family homesteads. Oh, and John Suscovich, who has been on Homesteady a few times also. Thanks to people like them I've got a pretty good grasp on how much feed pigs need, etc. Lumnah Acres inspired me on having a small main pen and using portable electric fence for paddocks. Just enough info to be dangerous, probably. And the more of their food I can provide from my own land, the lower those feed costs in the future.
Chickens are another matter, hardly anyone on YouTube is doing a breeding program like I want to do. Many do the meat birds, and a few are doing eggs, but I just don't see people doing chicks and pullets for income. I've had to turn to books for my research on that. Harvey Ussery's book, The Small-Scale Poultry Flock, is beyond awesome, along with his articles in Mother Earth News. Very few people on YouTube or wherever make any money from chickens, that is something I've noticed.
Flowers and birdhouses and potted plants etc, are mostly labor with little investment needed, so I'm not too worried about that small investment. Chickens are my biggest worry for not breaking even, and I know they won't for a couple years. It takes 6 months before a chick starts laying eggs, so I know that will be a challenge. I've debated waiting to start with chickens because of that, and just get a few guineas to help with bugs.
I really appreciate the feedback, it helps me flush out these ideas even further. Thank you for the encouragement, I'm gonna try stuff, and fail at it, and that's cool too as long as something works.
Sounds like you have really done your homework sir. Chickens would be my biggest concern too.
I hope you get to sell a ton of those bird houses. That is such a great idea.
Don't forget about microgreens - super easy to grow, usually a good market for them in most areas, and the margins are incredible...provided you can sell the product.
I used to sell them in my area to high-end restaurants and made a pretty penny for a while!
Microgreens are totally on my radar. Arkansas has some wonky food laws, so I'd have to find my way around those, but I'm sure it can be done. Not much of a high-end restaurant market in Arkansas, unfortunately. Little Rock and Fayetteville would be the two closest cities that even have them, and they are 2+ hours away. I'm thinking I'd have to do a lot of volume for those trips to be worth it.
My county, Yell, has a population of 22,000 and we are a dry county with no alcohol sales. Same with Pope County next door, so without wine or alcohol sales its harder for those types of restaurants to operate. What I'll be looking for is maybe partnering up with someone else local and adding to what they are offering. That'll just take some time to do some networking to figure out how to sell some microgreens or other produce.
With the food rules to work through, I'm really looking at non-food items to help me get started. The flowers and plant starts and birdhouses and the like, I can sell at farmers markets or flea markets without much hassle. And while I'm giving that a try I can hopefully meet other vendors and find someone to work with and supplement their products to both our benefits. Sounds good in theory, anyway.
With the pigs, I can pre-sell them and have them butchered at a USDA facility and its all good. Same with any meat product in the state. There are at least three small independent processing shops nearby I've found, luckily for me there is lots of deer meat being processed during the season. Eggs will be more of a by-product and I can sell all of my extras to friends and relatives, but there'd be more rules if I were selling those to the general public.
Now you've got me thinking I should at least get started with some microgreens just for my own personal use and any extra going to the livestock. Then if the opportunity arises I'll be more ready with some experience. I really appreciate the suggestion. Oh, I just found your YouTube channel also, so I've got another great source of info and ideas I need to look at. Hydroponics has always fascinated me also, there might be something I can pull it that area also. Thanks for contributing!!!
Microgreens are great as a test, for sure. Glad to hear you are also thinking about eggs - lots of good info out there on how to produce eggs at relatively low cost. Thanks for checking out the YouTube channel...appreciate that!
Wishing you the best of luck in anything - feel free to hit me up!
Awesome ideas! I had considered some of those and decided to focus on my business instead. I didn't want to get into something that needed resources I may not be able to get to produce resources. I already had most everything I needed to keep myself in business making things from Leather. I have at least 7 cow hides and various other hides laying around that were an instant source of income or barter. (Planning on stocking much more.) If things go wrong in this world I can still produce items for barter or to sell that would be practical in times of need. No electricity needed if all stitched by hand. I also started into Blacksmithing and now have a coal forge in my backyard. Again I have all the tools and anvils along with the coal and steel I may need to produce items to barter or sell. My way of thinking getting into these trades was I don't have to feed anything or water anything. Weather really won't play a role in my profits and there is always a need for a good Leather worker or Blacksmith. Besides I can produce knives and make my own sheathes to boot. Good post and hope you get where you want to in your homesteading dreams. Best to you!
Those are essential skills to develop also, thanks for sharing that experience. I have so many of those types of skills to learn. Birdhouses are my level of skill right now :) Homesteaders, or anyone really, need many diverse sources of income/inputs and you hit on several more that people can try. I really need to add some skills like that in the future.
Well thought out and written, bartering (catfish) can be a bait stand also. Sharing to get others to chime in on their thoughts.
Thanks again @weetreebonsai. Bait is another great idea. Worm farms are cheap to start. I will do that, and I'll have to look for bait shops in the area also. Now I'm wondering about bait fish and how possible that might be. Thanks for spurring more ideas, I like that!
quite the read sir nice plans I wish you much luck getting each one off the ground :) I look forward to seeing each project get blogged about as the ability come your way :D thanks for sharing
Thanks @freakygeak. It'll be nice to finally put some actions to back up all this talk. Soon :)
Pigs need good fences or electric. We ran Kunekune (New Zealand) and Pot Bellies (Asia) and sold mini-pigs for a while for pets as well as meat. You will have litters every 3 months, 3 weeks, 3 days with pigs. Ours were good at unassisted births, but once they get the taste of escape they will become a nuisance to you and your neighbors. We ended up getting out of pigs for a while as they were about to invade my neighbor's cannabis grow and I didn't want to get sued for that destruction... Another source for profit could be quail, rabbits or goats. Rabbits and quail can make consistent money, but with goats it's best to know your market. If I didn't have pigs on my property I probably would have raised goats for hallal as there is a big demand in my community. Hope this helps and you will only learn from doing it! best of luck!
That's some great experience, thanks. Fencing is hugely important, and even then, a momentary lapse can be costly. The north and west lines are fenced for cows by one neighbor, but I wouldn't trust it for anything else. After shopping on PremierOne I'm looking at the rolls of electric rope for the perimeter around all the paddocks, and doing three lines with that. Then use the portable pig fencing inside to form each paddock. I'm hoping that's enough.
I've even priced some GPS devices you can put on your pigs to help find them if they do escape. Not much for them to destroy at my neighbors, but the Ouachita National Forest is another neighbor and they could disappear in there fast. Don't want to contribute to the wild razorback problem Arkansas already has.
Breeding your own is the best way to make money, but I don't plan on trying that for a while. A few practice runs before that will probably help. Goats have been suggested by a few people, but I'd have to have people pre-pay for the meat like I will do with the pigs to want to take that chance. I just don't see many people making money from goats, but they sure would be helpful cleaning the brush out.
I had some experience with milk goats and pigs 25 years ago without electric fencing, the goats were major problems getting out but the pigs only got out once. But if it happens I might have to invest in those GPS collars.
I'll keep my eyes out on the classifieds and farmers markets for rabbit and quail, I don't know much about the profit potential from them. I do know rabbit poop itself is almost worth the investment for the fertilizer, but I'll have to learn more about breeding them. I don't have much population within a couple hours of me, so my market is pretty small and I'll have to look out for other opportunities like that.
Bro, all of this will really help after the infrastructure is in place. Let me know if you want some help
Thanks, good to see you here :) I definitely would love some of your help and I hope we can arrange it sometime soon. And I plan on stopping by for another visit sometime soon also. Maybe there's some way I can help you out too.
We are definitely going to do cut flowers next year. We had great luck with zinnias this year that my daughter grew just for beauty. She placed at the fair with them this week! If we add some varieties, we could be in business!
We also looked at pigs this week. We looked at heritage breed pigs that take longer to grow to butchering weight, but don't require as much feed and really thrive on pasture! So many decisions!
Very cool. I really think cut flowers can be a profitable product almost anywhere in the US right now, either large or small production. With a little hustle to find buyers I'm hoping they can at least be a decent side income. I hope you can do it, and I'd love to hear about your experiences also.
There are so many breeds of pigs out there, its like trying to pick just one chicken breed. I've been watching Pratt Family Homestead on YouTube, and they're trying like 4-5 different breeds this year and then picking one breed to start breeding. They've got red waddles and mangalitsa and then some crosses. A couple other channels I watch have the American Guinea Hogs, Cog Hill Farm and The Grass-fed Homestead. One piece of advice I've taken to heart, is to find a local breeder you can get established with and who is doing things similar to what you want to do, and go with the breed they are raising. When you find your breeder, then you've found you're breed. Makes sense to me for someone getting started.
Good luck with your ventures, I really enjoy seeing people getting started doing some of the things I want to do also. Thank you for sharing in the fun :)
All great ideas. Pigs are a lot of work, I worked on a heratige pig farm for a month and ... well, I'd never get pigs. Goats and goat milk sound better to me (;
That's interesting, I wouldn't mind hearing more about those experiences. Maybe a good blog post - hint, hint - :) I really should pay more attention to people who didn't like raising pigs in addition to those who love them to get a better balance of opinions and experiences. THat would probably be helpful.
Way back when I was 20-23 and finishing college I had some experience with pigs and goats, and I found the pigs much easier. Mainly because I didn't have to milk them. Just give them food and water and make sure they don't get out and they are good to go. The goats were constant escape artists, which was more our fault than theirs, but still... My biggest hang-up about goats is that I just don't see how to make them profitable for me. Lots of products can be made from goat milk, but I don't think I can make that every day commitment to milking. I love goat milk based cheese, just if someone else does the work. :)
Thanks for sharing that, I really appreciate other perspectives.
And there you go, I've never raised sheep (or worked on a farm with them) so I hadn't even thought of those points! I guess there are pros and cons to everything and it's nice to be able to share perspectives freely to help each other out. Steemit rocks ( :
Can't wait to hear more about your adventures!
Yes, SHEEP! Katahdin or Dorper hair sheep that don't need sheering, specifically. They would be my first choice for livestock if I had pasture and grass instead of forest and trees. Maybe if I can convince one of my neighbors with pastures to rent me some land in the future? :)
Steemit does rock. I've discovered @papa-pepper is only a couple hours away and he breeds pigs, and you never know, I might be able get started with some feeder pigs from him. Just all around coolness. Thanks.
Wow that's pretty damn cool about having @papa-pepper so close. You can be homesteading allies!
Sheep! Of course sheep would be a good choice. I'll have to research that more. It might be perfect in the rocky mountains too.