Winter is nearly here in our little slice of Alaska. Trees are barren and we’ve already had our first frost. Seeing as winter is our longest and harshest season, we use the rest of the year to prepare for it. So what does preparing for winter on an Alaskan homestead entail? Continue reading “Winter Prep On An Alaskan Homestead”
Category: Garden
Rookie Mistakes We Made As Beginning Homesteaders
I’ll be the first to admit that when we first started our homesteading journey, we made a lot of rookie mistakes. We spent too much on things we didn’t need. Then we turned around and didn’t buy things we really should have. We skipped around when adding animals, buildings, and tools. That is, until we learned to prioritize better. We have learned a lot of lessons the hard way. Starting a homestead from scratch, and building all our own infrastructure, is much harder than I had ever imagined it could be. Hopefully, writing this all down will help you avoid a few of the mistakes we made!
Our biggest rookie mistake was not planning anything.
Sure, we had ideas for what we wanted to do, and we wrote things down, but we never really had a set plan. There was no “house goes here, chickens go here, garden goes here” kind of plan. Not until we had already put the chickens too close to the house. So as we expanded, we just threw things where it was convenient right then, rather than were we knew we wanted them permanently. If we had planned better, we could have saved ourselves from a lot of the other mistakes. A homestead planning binder is necessary to keep everything organized.
Another mistake we made was jumping in to new things without preparing.
We’d get an idea and go for it. More chickens? Heck yeah. Pigs? Let’s do it! Greenhouse and garden? Check! And then the inevitable fail. We wanted everything to work and be productive right away. Kyle was so disappointed to find out our chickens wouldn’t lay until the spring after we purchased them. At least we were able to push our pig order back to this summer, and have learned enough to hold off on beehives (Amazon) and other animals until next year.
We didn’t understand the weather in our new area well, either.
Personally, coming from a desert area, I didn’t truly understand what living in a rainforest meant until we were hit by our first rainy season here. A little drowned garden and a lot of mud later, know I know how wet it can be! It also helps to know where the low spots collect so we can avoid building there. We also thought we were prepared for long winters, but they are much longer and darker than I could have imagined!
Also, we made the mistake of not budgeting from the beginning.
We have spent so much money on materials for our homestead, when we should have just invested in a sawmill from the beginning. Small purchases can add up really quickly. We should have figured out sooner that just because something is new doesn’t make it better. At least we have a few places we know to go for cheap homestead goods now!
The biggest lesson we’ve learned in starting our homestead from scratch is that it’s okay to go slow.
There is no reason to push to the point of injury to get everything done in one day. Pacing yourself in the endless work (it is endless) of beginning a homestead is extremely important. There should always be a realistic timeline for goals to be completed. This will save so much frustration down the line.
All things aside, we are still learning on our homestead journey. I’m sure there will be many more mistakes and lessons for us in the future!
Three Surprising Places To Find Cheap Homestead Goods
Homesteading is not cheap. From animal feed to fencing (Amazon) to the animals themselves, there are quite a few things a beginning homestead will need. When we first started out we made the mistake of purchasing everything from a big box store. We spend thousands of dollars before we realized we could buy things way cheaper, we just needed to know where to go.
Second-Hand Stores
One thing we’ve figured out is that second-hand stores are often full of tools. Shovels, picks, drills, chainsaws. You name it, a second store probably has it. I’ve even seen a few bigger ticket items at the second-hand stores around here, like tractors. Second-hand stores are also great places to purchase homestead goods because you can usually haggle the price.
Peoples Yards
If there is something in the neighbors’ yard they don’t use that you could, why not ask to buy it? While this may seem somewhat odd, anyone who’s seen the show Pickers (Amazon) knows that it’s worth it to ask. We’ve gotten old trampolines, building materials and even a saw mill this way. It’s also possible to get plant cuttings or seeds and bulbs like this. Even if the person says no, you didn’t lose anything by asking. Just make sure to have cash in hand for an offer!
It seems like Facebook is taking over the world (or at least the internet) these days. We’ve purchased second-hand cars, goats and chickens this way. Facebook is also a great way to get information. Our peninsula has Facebook groups just for animal and garden advice. Take a look around. Maybe there is a group in your area that will be useful. I also find Facebook especially helpful when I have something in mind that I need. It’s easy for responders to tag friends who might know something in the comments. Even if the person reading my question doesn’t have what I need, they usually know someone who knows someone, and I end up getting the things I need.
I’m sure there are a lot of other great places to find cheap homestead items, but these are the main three that we use here. Where do you find your homestead deals?
Trials Of Living In A Rainforest Environment
I am a desert baby.
I’ve always lived where it’s hot and rain is there and gone in a flash. I planned my gardens around heat loving plants with low water needs. Moving to South Central Alaska’s rainforest environment has been a huge adjustment for me. I didn’t expect it to be so hard to adapt to this area and it’s more… interesting challenges. Continue reading “Trials Of Living In A Rainforest Environment”
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