# What would you do with ONLY one acre?



## retiredbop (Mar 9, 2007)

It is a common misconception among those just starting out that they need lots of land to homestead and/or practice self-sufficiency. Several years ago there was a fascinating discussion on the Simple Living Network titled "What would you do with only one acre". It had probably gotten up to about 9 or 10 pages when I saw it. I could have sworn that I saved a word.doc copy of the thread but I can't find it anywhere. I'd like to start a similar thread here with the intent of sharing it with my DD and SIL. They are just now coming to realization that they aren't ever going to own a 500 acre horse ranch in MT. I'd like them to get a picture of what can be accomplished on just a one acre homestead.

I plan to record the production of our tiny little 200 sq ft raised bed garden this summer. When we add this to our 30 hens and their eggs it's a nice little start for a 1/4 acre. I want to add another 200 sq ft or so in the front yard ("grow it, don't mow it") and maybe put in four or five dwarf fruit trees in the hen yard.

Thanks for the help.


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## kvr28 (Feb 15, 2009)

I would recommend these 2 books if they like to read

The Backyard Homestead

The Backyard Homestead Guide To raising Animals

Here is a sample layout from the book, both books have a great amount of information


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## MontanaKJ (Aug 10, 2009)

We own 1.22 acres in Montana and there is A LOT you can do in that space. We have a large garden, fruit trees, hops vines for brewing, a canning shed & smokehouse, an outbuilding for tools and equipment, compost bins, a wooded area, large play area for the kids, and a fire pit with horseshoe pit for adult recreation. It is all about land management. I recommend the book "Living on an Acre". This is a great resource for crop rotation and livestock management on a small space.


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## ronbre (Apr 26, 2009)

i would definately put in a food forest garden to get the most out of it..might I suggest a book called Gaia's GArden by toby Hemenway


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## TxGypsy (Nov 23, 2006)

Square foot gardening and bees! If you eat meat I'd add rabbits and chickens for eggs.


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## AmberLBowers (Nov 28, 2008)

kvr28 said:


> I would recommend these 2 books if they like to read
> 
> The Backyard Homestead
> 
> ...


I totally agree! I use my Backyard Homestead book daily! Also, I believe it is critical to have animals in movable pens to be able to rotate areas. Our chickens and goats are in movable pens made of cattle panels, as will the Asian Heritage Hogs when they get here. Also, outside of poultry, use of mini livestock is important. Not expensive ND goats that are bred for flashyness but ones from good milking lines or maybe even a Dexter heifer. Its all about maximum usage of what you have.


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## CIW (Oct 2, 2007)

I used to work in a small machine shop. One thing I learned was to think verticlly as they didn't have much room after they brought in all the machines. There is one good thing. They made more money persquare foot than any other business I've been around. I believe this line of thinking applies here also.
The type of plants that you put in will greatly effect the amount that you can produce. Using plants like pole beans, fruit trees, grapes on the perimiter fence and trellising squash. Small watermelons will even work well on a trellis.
Along with your chickens you might look into a couple of hogs each year. They don't take up much space and if built right can be moved over each year to churn up the next spot. Are great for transforming compost and don't have to be wintered over. (They go to freezer camp in 6 or 7 months.)
I hope that these ideas help.


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## AmberLBowers (Nov 28, 2008)

They also need to get over any ideas of having a huge expansive lawn and think about edible landscaping. We have 3 acres and DH still gets nervous when I get out the tiller. He didn't want any beds of edibles in the front. LOL. Oh well, I already have beds of strawberries, herbs, sweet potatoes, and tomatoes right outside my front door. I just tell him it's not my fault the front lawn is south facing and full sun.


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## Raven12 (Mar 5, 2011)

LOVE the use of the front yard for gardening. There are so many homes with wasted space. I am considering top hats for the front door entry.


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## retiredbop (Mar 9, 2007)

All great ideas! Please, keep'm comin'.

I have considered adding that Backyard Homestead book to my own library but didn't know if it was worth the money. Sounds like I'll be hitting Amazon for a copy.

I'd love to add a feeder piglet or two to the backyard, but my neighbors would NEVER let me get away with it. I just barely won the argument over my chickens. It seems they are considered "small animals" and thus legal in the village. Pigs, however, are livestock and thus are not legal.

Now meat rabbits ,,,,,, a distinct possibility.:goodjob:


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## Raven12 (Mar 5, 2011)

kvr28 said:


> I would recommend these 2 books if they like to read
> 
> The Backyard Homestead
> 
> The Backyard Homestead Guide To raising Animals



Thanks! I am going to look these up tomorrow.


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## DarleneJ (Jan 29, 2012)

My husband and I have an acre. It came with a 990 sf house and a small shop. We added a chicken house/run and have started off with 53 chicks, will butcher then pair down to 20 -25 layers/meat including roosters. The birds will be encouraged to go broody to continue the layer/meat bird production naturally over time.

We have a small flock of Guineas for bug control and (dark) meat. They also help with the snakes and rodents. Three or four will be kept in the rabbitry for bug control and predator control (so I can hatch out the keets.) Since our area is an acre and the birds roam, we have spoken to the neighbors and gotten their buy in since the birds roam.

Attached to the chicken run we have planted a 22 x 30 fenced garden. It is dug, instead of raised beds. Our soil is clay and we've dug out the clay and added soil mix instead of taking years to ammend/work the existing soil. Last year we planted two blueberry bushes. This year a peach and apricot tree. We will continue to plant fruit trees (smaller varieties). We have some old pecan trees that we will utilize more this year as well as nurture the pecan start that I unearthed a few days ago. We also have a couple black walnut trees and will begin to utilize them as well. On the back of the shop we have attached a dog kennel and fenced in the top. My husband is working on a roof as I type. This is our rabbitry. My husband built the cages and we will put our three female New Zeland rabbits out there and breed them with a male Californian when they're old enough. So there's chicken meat, rabbit meat, rabbit manure for the garden, compost from the chickens. To this we will add a few turkeys each year. Two dairy goat does and a boar billy for milk and meat production. We are collecting pallets to build a goat house when our spring projects are complete and fencing in.

In our area everything must be built predator proof, so it takes quite awhile on the startup side.

I have a few more garden plots outside the fenced area and we can expand the fenced garden as needed. Also we use chicken and rabbit tractors because we cannot free-range our livestock safely here.

We make solitary bee housing because we are not set up for honey bees but desperately need the pollinators. ...and they are simple to make.

Black soldier fly larvae for a protein source for birds and fish.

Someday, an outdoor kitchen for summer canning...

Would like to dig an old freezer into the ground to use as a small root cellar. Rain barrels to collect water for the livestock and the garden. And my husband has "off-grid" ideas for electricity, heat and heated water, etc.

I would like to plant a sugar maple one day for maple syrup. Sugar beets for making sugar. Quinoa for simple grain production for our pantry and livestock feed. Etc. There is more to do than I can keep up with... On just an acre...


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## MikeC (Mar 29, 2012)

Allow me to add another vote for The Backyard Homestead! That little book is full of information and points you in the right direction for lots more reading.


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## kvr28 (Feb 15, 2009)

I wish I had that book available to me when we started our place 5 years ago. We have just over a 1/3rd of a acre fenced in and we have 12 fruit trees, grapes, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, 12 chickens, we raise 2 pigs a year and have 12 4x16 foot raised beds, the chicken coop and pig pen we have outside our fenced in area, a huge part of our yard is taken up by our pond, if we didn't have that the chickens and pigs would be inside the fenced in area, it can be done










We use the fencing as a growing medium with our grapes, brambles and such planted along the fence and use the fence as support, our strawberries we planted in between the boulder retaining wall. We try and utilize every space we can and keep adding stuff each year


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## oldasrocks (Oct 27, 2006)

Dig a one acre hole. Fill it with water, buy a houseboat and go fishing.


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## AmberLBowers (Nov 28, 2008)

retiredbop said:


> All great ideas! Please, keep'm comin'.
> 
> I have considered adding that Backyard Homestead book to my own library but didn't know if it was worth the money. Sounds like I'll be hitting Amazon for a copy.
> 
> ...


Hmmm... how about Asian Heritage Hogs (AKA potbelly pigs)? Most places consider them pets, not livestock. Of course, when the time came, butchering would have to be done offsite or in an enclosed garage. When the neighbors ask where "Dear Wilbur" went, get all teary eyed about his unfortunate accident...


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## Haven (Aug 16, 2010)

Anything extra is just = more hours on the tractor mowing, unless you live in the woods.


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## Sandi (Oct 4, 2011)

loving all the great ideas and inspiration and photos! one note--beware of black walnut trees anywhere near your garden. their roots, leaves, and nuts are toxic to a wide variety of plants including most annual vegetables. we are having two removed this year because they have been poisoning the garden for a long time and we just couldn't take it anymore...


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## oregon woodsmok (Dec 19, 2010)

It's very possible to have a beautifully landscaped front yard that produces food.

Use fruit trees for the trees; many of them are beautiful. Inter-plant cabbage and tomatoes with flowers in the flower beds. Carrots are beautifully ferny. Pepper plants are attractive and well mannered. Lots of veggies look like landscaping if they are planted in the landscaping and not in orderly rows.


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## oregon woodsmok (Dec 19, 2010)

Even that lawn can be used to produce food for the chickens and rabbits.


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## chewie (Jun 9, 2008)

we have many more acres in pasture, but for the house itself, I am aiming for almost no 'yard' in the traditional way. the front is just gravel, and past that is a large grassy spot we fence for horses, and someday it'll be a round pen. the backyard is where I'm doing all the gardening. I have just never understood doing all that work to get a lawn growing just to complain all summer long that you now must mow it?!! and the noise of a mower, eww. 

my backyard is maybe 1/4 or so acre, and its got lots planted like others said. in the end, I aim to be able to use a few passes with either a small push or even a reel mower. the rest will be on my plate. 

the barnyard pens are built in a 'wheel' type idea--the barn and water is in the hub. so to feed and water its just a matter of a hose and a bucket. the pens go long, a hutch in each, and feed pans etc. at the top/hub. 

last summer I went to visit mom in iowa. took a different, more scenic route. I was totally amazed at the size of some 'lawns'. I'm talking several acres to mow???? they plant a few bushes or flowers around the house, I seen NO gardens to speak of. buildings (new) were placed at such far out spacings, that it left tons of land just to mow. and it was all obviouslly seeded and groomed, looked like a golf course. that doesn't just happen, they had t put sooo much effort/money/time into....lawn. I do not get that??!!!


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## kvr28 (Feb 15, 2009)

you can have them watch this

[YOUTUBE]7IbODJiEM5A[/YOUTUBE]


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## unregistered168043 (Sep 9, 2011)

Sell it, go to a cheaper area and buy 5 acres.


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## kvr28 (Feb 15, 2009)

this is a larger spread at 4 acres, but gives good ideas and suggestions

[YOUTUBE]tl01au5pXm0[/YOUTUBE]


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## retiredbop (Mar 9, 2007)

My youngest brother used to live in this "estate development" in Stafford VA. He owned the smallest lot and the smallest house permitted in the place; 3500 sq ft (not including the basement) on 3 acres. Everything else was larger and some of those manicured properties were 10 acres. And you are right, not more than one shrub or tree per half acre. Truly sad. They probably spend more on lawn care than I spend on electricity each month. Where is the logic in that?


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## BakerBen (Apr 2, 2012)

i think people get caught up in having enough acreage to raise cows, horses etc. In reality your first farm is PROBABLY not going to go in that direction. you can get anything on an acre. 
I have more than an acre but IF I had one acre it would look similar to the diagram posted earlier. i'd have fruit trees but more than a dozen chickens, a very large garden, some rabbits, but no bees, i'd also only plant certain herbs for a little organic pest prevention but growing herbs for myself really iisnt my thing as of yet.


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## jwal10 (Jun 5, 2010)

We have 1 acre, 3 pygora goats, 3-5 chickens, 2 rabbit does and a buck and 20 pigeon pairs. Large garden, raised beds and a small 6'x8' aquaponic greenhouse with yellow perch. Yard is very small, I only hand mow a 12'x20' area with a lot of clover but the rabbits keep most of that nibbled down. I make my hay by hand from the meadow with a walking scycle mower. I glean a lot from the forest land behind us, hunt, fish. We buy very little....James


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## MO_cows (Aug 14, 2010)

The problem for me with just one acre is the likelihood of neighbors. Usually a one acre lot is surrounded by other lots and neighbors. This really limits what you can do. The example illustration of beehives and pigs on the back property line would probably have your neighbor behind you in a tizzy in about 15 minutes. 

If you get more rural and have more land, you can still intensively use and manage your "core" one acre around your home but also have a buffer zone between you and any neighbors.


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## Wags (Jun 2, 2002)

Yes neighbors could be an issue, as could zoning regs with that small of a lot. But it is doable and the books previously mentioned are a good place to start for ideas. My major gripe with those books is that they barely mention Nigerian Dwarf goats. 

Many cities are now allowing Pygmy or Nigerians goats. Pygmy's are a meat breed, Nigerians are a dairy breed. And if you get goats from a breeder that is breeding for milk production there is no reason you can't be getting a 1/2 gallon or more a day from a 20" tall doe. Of course in that small of a space you may not be able to have a buck, so its best to have a buck lined up for breeding before you buy does.

The goats and chickens can share the same pen, IF you set up separate housing and a way for the chickens to be fed without the goats being able to get into it. The chickens will scratch around and distribute the goat manure, keeping down parasites and the few flies that might develop. (Goat poop does not draw flies like cow poop does.) 

I got my start in goats from folks that have less than an acre and have a single buck & his wether companion in a small pen. Nigerian bucks generally are not as smelly as their larger counterparts mostly because the does cycle year round so there isn't one big rut season - although fall does bring stronger heats and a little more smell. All that to say, if the neighbors can't see the buck pen, and it isn't bordering their property and there isn't zoning to prevent his being there you could get away with a buck. Or get a young buck (less than a yr old) every year to bred your does and then sell or butcher him once you have bred your does so that you don't have one year round.

So on one acre - 1/4 acre for your house/garage, 1/4 acre paddock for Nigerians & chickens, 1/2 acre for garden/orchard. Some of what is grown in the garden/orchard can also be used to feed the goats/chickens. Or if you don't want as big of garden you could give the goats/chickens more room. And you can plant fruit trees in the "pasture" providing you give then adequate protection from the goats. (5' no-climb horse fence works for us.)


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## farmgal (Nov 12, 2005)

you can buy the grafted fruit trees that have branches of pears, say on an apple tree to save space in the yard. terr gardening too.


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## wes917 (Sep 26, 2011)

I would be ecstatic with an acre LOL. I have far less than that and have half a dozen blueberry bushes, raspberries, blackberries, grapes, kiwis, strawberries, and a decent garden in a city lot. I use the front yard a little with edible landscapes. There's a lot you can do if you get creative.


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## Big Dave (Feb 5, 2006)

7/8 of an acre is what my friend grows on. They have 23 acres. He got 20 grand off his farm last year. Yep that is his selling crops. He has a garden to feed his family.


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## wes917 (Sep 26, 2011)

farmgal said:


> you can buy the grafted fruit trees that have branches of pears, say on an apple tree to save space in the yard. terr gardening too.


You could also purchase columnar apple trees.


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## Wildfire_Jewel (Nov 5, 2006)

We have 9/10ths of an acre. I have ALOT of raised beds for veggies and strawberries. Rasberries along a fence line. Chickens (hens only) and ducks. We do raise a batch of the mutant cornish and we are trying meat ducks (Pekins) this year as well. We have about 20 breeder rabbits as well. I have also planted mulberry and apple trees and hope to get a nectarine or pear this spring yet. And we have 3 grape vines as well. I want to try hops at some point and hope to put in some type of nut tree, probably hazelnuts. I will be putting in more raised beds to increase the amount of pumpkins and winter squash I can grow for the animals winter feed. I also grow several long rows of sunflowers but it is a race to see who gets them first - us or the goldfinches! This is ALL in our back yard as we are in a pretty restrictive township that unfortunately I don't see us getting away from any time in the near future. I figured, I would just do as much as I could, where we are right now, rather than waiting in frustration until we could move.


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## Shenandoah (Jun 13, 2008)

I'm going to be moving to a very small 0.12 acre yard with a tiny house on it this summer. I plan to do raised beds, have chickens and rabbits and eventually try to have a few goats. I also want to try to build a small hoop house for winter gardening/aquaponics system, not sure if there's going to be room for that, but it's in the plans. The Dervaes are a huge inspiration and I would really like to be as productive as them; although it will be harder since it's only me and my 6 yr old. I will try to do as much vertical gardening as possible and utilize as much of what little space that I will have. I am pretty excited about moving and can't wait to get started


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## stef (Sep 14, 2002)

retiredbop said:


> All great ideas! Please, keep'm comin'.
> 
> I have considered adding that Backyard Homestead book to my own library but didn't know if it was worth the money. Sounds like I'll be hitting Amazon for a copy.
> 
> ...


I'm glad you can have chickens. Any limit as to how many? I recently found out that in our little town we may have up to three as long as we keep them no less than 15 away from the fence. 

By the way...Williamsport, lovely town. Hope you like it there. **


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## Sanza (Sep 8, 2008)

retiredbop said:


> My youngest brother used to live in this "estate development" in Stafford VA. He owned the smallest lot and the smallest house permitted in the place; 3500 sq ft (not including the basement) on 3 acres. Everything else was larger and some of those manicured properties were 10 acres. And you are right, not more than one shrub or tree per half acre. Truly sad. They probably spend more on lawn care than I spend on electricity each month. Where is the logic in that?


They haven't been hungry yet, or got sick with e-coli, salmonella, mrsa or listeria from their store bought food, but once people start realizing how much contaminants are in their store bought food they might start growing their own.


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## ChristieAcres (Apr 11, 2009)

Sell it and buy more acreage! As long as it doesn't have a pond or creek on it, you could do a lot with 1 acre, however, CCR's, Zoning Restrictions, even City/County can get involved in restricting use. Then, add neighbors, ouch! We had 1 acre, had 20 fruit trees (semi-dwarf mostly), 12 Blueberry Bushes, Grapevines, massive Kiwi Vines, 20 ft Raspberry Row, Strawberries, Currants, and a very nice garden. We also had lots of noise, couldn't have chickens there (zoning...), couldn't have pigs (zoning & CCR's), but we could have had a few rabbits. 

Now, if you had an acre, out in the country, bordering forest or other undeveloped property, that is a different story. It would still be too small for our purposes. Out of 6.68 acres, we cleared almost 2, which is all in use, and the remaining property is in forest (we heat with firewood). In fact, we have 2nd growth bordering all 4 sides of our property, for added privacy. We can see one neighbor's home through the trees on the N side, also peaks of the Hood Canal. If the neighbors cut down their trees, we would have a nice view and higher taxes (no thanks). Here, no CCR's, more than 2.5 acres, so we can do a lot with our property. After research on zoning restrictions (County specific), I wouldn't be on less than 5 acres!

I could care less about grass and eventually want it all gone. DH doesn't care if I turn our backyard into a Permaculture garden. When I have the funds available, I will be doing that. We currently have 9,000 sq ft devoted to garden areas and our orchard. Another 1/2 acre will be set aside for raising pigs (2 1/4 acre fenced areas for rotation). Another 1/4 acre will be fenced for 2 mini-goats (for milking). Also, I am deciding where the future greenhouse will be built... We currrently have (2) 10' X 20' garden cabins, a little greenhouse, a chicken house, and a pighouse.


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## Guest (Apr 15, 2012)

My orchard and garden are each about a quarter acre. I have a couple of chicken lots though, both small. I let the chickens out in the day to roam around, so I don't have to feed them. I have 23 chickens right now, I grow more than enough fruit and vegetables. Not much of a meat eater, but I obviously eat a lot of eggs!! Other than spices, flour, and sugar, I'm self sufficient using just a half acre. I do have a half acre front yard, which I once set about to plant in fruit trees. I just don't need any more fruit trees. The rest of it is just a buffer, I guess. I DO have another garden which I'm no longer using simply because I grow more than I need already.


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## retiredbop (Mar 9, 2007)

Stef said:


> I'm glad you can have chickens. Any limit as to how many? I recently found out that in our little town we may have up to three as long as we keep them no less than 15 away from the fence.


*Stef*, no such considerations here. And my neighbor, bless him, actually went to the town board when I got a rooster claiming a "noise nuisance". Board said there wasn't anything wrong with it. The breeding hasn't worked out anyway, so I think Bullwinkle might be headed for the freezer this fall. Some parts of Williamsport are pretty, but if you read our local paper you wouldn't want to live in the city. And I can pretty much guarantee I'd never get away with chickens inside the limits. I live a few miles out.



Sanza said:


> They haven't been hungry yet, or got sick with e-coli, salmonella, mrsa or listeria from their store bought food, but once people start realizing how much contaminants are in their store bought food they might start growing their own.


*Sanza*, I write a chicken column for a monthly newspaper which focuses on independence doing as much fr yourself as you can. (*The Valley Newspaper* can be viewed online) I have made several references to that very situation in the last 18 months that I've been writing it.


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## 7thswan (Nov 18, 2008)

We have 40 acres,but my little "yard" supplies most of our food. The rest of our land is the hay fields and pastures that are for our cattle. We looked at a piece of property/house Friday so that we can sizedown, found out yesterday that someone else snagged it up. It's under a mile down our road. I'm actually kinda sad. But, I believe it's Gods will. So back to tending all of my gardens,and critters in my "yard". I'd list everything I have growing , but it's pretty much everything that has been mentioned in other posts. 32 fruit trees ,4 kinds of grapes,3 kinds of raspberries, ect. ect. I cann between 600 to over 1000 jars per year and dehydrate, we have 3 freezers(only 2 in use ,but 1 in case we have a extra good year hunting!) heat with wood etc. Really the only reason we need more than the "yard" is because I like to have distance between me and other people.


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## kvr28 (Feb 15, 2009)

I can't believe I forgot this vid, you can order her dvd off her website, Marjory's family has a large spread but the footprint they grow their food on is amazingly small. The DVD covers all the systems they incorporate into their homestead. For people down south I would recommend it, the challenges she faces in Texas is different then what we face here in Maine, but I did get a few good ideas from her.

[YOUTUBE]ms9_NQxImpE[/YOUTUBE]

Watch 1 Minute and You'll Know If You Are In the Right Place | backyardfoodproduction.com

she also did a great lecture on increasing food costs, if you don't want to buy her dvd, she does cover some of her systems in the lecture, peace

Why your grocery bill will double


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## Julia Winter (Jun 25, 2013)

We've done quite a bit of homesteading on our acre in Wisconsin, and if I didn't work full time I'm sure I could do much more! Chickens, apples, peaches, cherries, blueberries, raspberries, hardy blackberries, black currants, rhubarb, strawberries, jerusalem artichokes, and that's just the perennials I can think of.

It would not be hard at all to raise meat rabbits, given that we have a 45' x 45' outbuilding in which to house them, and tremendous soil that produces bunny greens at a prodigious rate. 

Sadly, we have to move, so our suburban "homestead" is for sale. I posted about it here: one acre homestead near Madison WI


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## Ernie (Jul 22, 2007)

Most of the human race that came prior to us survived on homesteads that were about a quarter acre in size.

There's some sort of misconception today that makes everyone think a "farm" has to be hundreds of acres with heavy equipment and feeding hundreds of families while earning the "farmer" a $40k a year income. 

Produce enough food to feed ONE family (your own) and you've got a farm.

In Illinois I had 5 acres and we got by, even though I only actively worked about 2 of those acres. The other 3 were just grazing pasture for the livestock. 

On 1 acre you can still garden, raise birds and rabbits for protein, keep bees, grow fruit trees. 

AND here's a couple of added bonuses:

1. You'll live in your house surrounded by all of the agrarian things you love.
2. Your property taxes will be a lot lower and it will make whatever work you have to do for cash a lot simpler to handle.


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## Taylor R. (Apr 3, 2013)

Backyard Homestead is an absolutely invaluable resource. It doesn't get exceptionally specific about much, but it really breaks down the options and opportunities you have on a small property (barring zoning regs don't mess everything up for you..they don't make my life easy, that's for sure). The same publishing company also has a book about back yard livestock (which I haven't purchased since I can't have any anyways).


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## Wolfy-hound (May 5, 2013)

I grew watermelons on a lattice one year. When the melons formed, I made hammocks out of the mesh bags that produce comes in. So each melon had a hammock to support it. Worked a charm and looked so silly. They were mid-sized melons, not giants but not small.

Eventually if I stay here on my 1/3 acre, I'll have my backyard set up something like the diagrams, but without the pigs or goats or chickens. Zoning prohibits. Considering my backyard has grown up with blackberry bushes and brush, I'm tempted to sneak in a goat so I don't have to manually clear the sticker bushes.

My front raised "flower beds" usually have vegetables in them. I put some flowers around the edges, but squash, potato, tomato, melons, all look similar to landscaping if you're looking from the road. Just don't plant rows and no one thinks it's a garden.


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## Taylor R. (Apr 3, 2013)

Wolfy-hound said:


> I grew watermelons on a lattice one year. When the melons formed, I made hammocks out of the mesh bags that produce comes in. So each melon had a hammock to support it. Worked a charm and looked so silly. They were mid-sized melons, not giants but not small.
> 
> Eventually if I stay here on my 1/3 acre, I'll have my backyard set up something like the diagrams, but without the pigs or goats or chickens. Zoning prohibits. Considering my backyard has grown up with blackberry bushes and brush, I'm tempted to sneak in a goat so I don't have to manually clear the sticker bushes.
> 
> My front raised "flower beds" usually have vegetables in them. I put some flowers around the edges, but squash, potato, tomato, melons, all look similar to landscaping if you're looking from the road. Just don't plant rows and no one thinks it's a garden.


I myself have often wondered if I could talk the city inspector into believing a couple little milk goats were dogs. We have neighbors with chickens, and I've been meaning to go over and ask them if they somehow got permission, or if they're just rebels and no one actually cares.


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## simi-steading (Sep 27, 2012)

I think I'd make my acre into a paintball course so I could make enough money to go buy a bigger property that would give me room to do all the things on it I want... like hunt and graze some farm animals..


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

1/4 acre at the homesite. Still large enough for several good sized gardens, brambles and blueberries, asparagus patches, one small nut tree, an apple tree (want to add more), peach tree (although the squirrels will most likely get those), and a spot for keeping some small critters that can be kept confined. There is room for a small pigeon coop, considering making one and getting back into pigeons. I also have several potted herbs and lots of flowers to keep bees around. There is room for a hive but I haven't taken that leap yet. I could put up a pergola and plant some grapes but that would put too much shade on the garden.

Most of my yard is shaded by a very large, very old tree. One I do not wish to part with. Besides, there really are a lot of food plants that grow and produce abundantly in that shade.


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## katlupe (Nov 15, 2004)

Our homestead here is just an acre. We are surrounded by the state forest and hunting camps (which for most of the year are empty). No neighbors that we can see. One guy lives up the road and we see him if he drives by, but just to wave. I garden in 11 raised beds, have a 2 story barn that my husband built from the wood he cleared from our land. We have 3 horses, and a beautiful lawn. From the forest I harvest much food, especially berries and medicinal plants. We have lived here for 14 years now, no electric or heating bills in all that time. Our taxes are very low for our overtaxed state and we are able to live very frugally here. 

After all that I just said, I will say that we could raise smaller animals such as poultry, rabbits, pigs or goats, if we chose to do so.We have a big lawn and a good sized paddock for our horses who really don't use all that is available to them. We could grow more food in those two areas if we got rid of the horses and the lawn. I suppose it depends on where you live and how many people live with you. Just the two of us here and we don't want to take on the job of raising livestock. Maybe if we had started at a younger age. But you can do a lot with an acre.


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## I_don't_know (Sep 28, 2012)

oldasrocks said:


> Dig a one acre hole. Fill it with water, buy a houseboat and go fishing.


Though I do enjoy fishing, for me it would depend on where the acre is. Say Manhattan,  sell it and buy some land on a river with a high point that I could build on and avoid flooding. 

Then I would invite you over to use the boat ramp.


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## Nicole Irene (Jun 12, 2011)

When I lived in suburbia, I loved this site:

http://urbanhomestead.org/

They produce 7,000 lbs of produce on 1/10 acre in the middle of Los Angeles. (No, that is not a typo)


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## Wolfy-hound (May 5, 2013)

Taylor R. said:


> I myself have often wondered if I could talk the city inspector into believing a couple little milk goats were dogs. We have neighbors with chickens, and I've been meaning to go over and ask them if they somehow got permission, or if they're just rebels and no one actually cares.


I actually have neighbors who have some loose chickens. Apparently if they run loose, no one complains. If you have them neatly penned up, you're told you have to get rid of them??

Luckily for me, my aunt keeps chickens and I get plenty of eggs from her. I've briefly held a single goat here for maybe a week until it could be picked up or transported elsewhere.


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## katlupe (Nov 15, 2004)

I forgot to add that in my case, the state forest surrounds us, but anytime they could sell and populate the area. So packing up to move wouldn't be so hard I guess.


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## Ernie (Jul 22, 2007)

If I'm ever forced off my current homestead for some reason (a 30 year drought comes to mind) then I'd want to buy 1 acre out in the middle of nowhere, perhaps as part of someone else's bigger spread. 

Then I'd take the "1 acre challenge" and see what I could do with it. Right now on our 10 acres, I could probably cram 100% of all of our life into that 1 acre.

The garden is only about a quarter acre. The workshop (which provides all my income) would take up a space about 12' X 20' along a back fence. The chickens could free range, so long as I was on the "right 1 acre" where I'm surrounded by a lot of empty land and the neighbors didn't mind. Rabbit hutches and fruit trees could be squeezed in there too.

The only reason I like lots of land is because I like to be surrounded by emptiness. I don't like being crowded up against other people. I also like to get out into the wilds quite a bit.

If I had some sort of arrangement with a farmer or a rancher where I could buy 1 acre right smack in the middle of their 800 acres of empty, then I'd be happy as a clam. I'm always curious why more people don't make arrangements like that. It would be advantageous to the larger landowner because they'd have somewhat of a permanent gillie to watch out for poachers or to feed and water the cattle. 

I think too many people are just mired in the traditional methods of dealing with land ownership and they don't think outside the box.


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## Northstar (Jun 11, 2013)

I have a 6 acre homestead and I am driving myself nutz trying to figure out what to do.. we are in an exceptional drought and not much will grow anymore.. but we also have another 75 acres attached that we can farm hay or wheat that we are trying to partition. Love the ideas here..


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## Johnny Dolittle (Nov 25, 2007)

I would recommend a small high tunnel maybe 24 x 48 feet (could be smaller). You can extend the growing season and using intensive techniques such as relay cropping or inter cropping you can produce multiple crops on the same plot. The tunnel is also insurance against crop failure.... Read Four season Harvest by Eliot Coleman


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## texican (Oct 4, 2003)

Imho, the trouble with having one acre is this........ it means that you probably have a neighbor on four sides of you, probably also one or so acres. A good neighbor can make their world a blessed place... a bad one can make it a living hell. Rock chunking distance is too close for comfort, even if they are Saints.


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## jwal10 (Jun 5, 2010)

I started with 14 rented acres when I was 12. A small garden and a few old homestead fruit trees, rest pasture. I grew my farm to over 2000 acres, 1/2 pasture 1/2 tilled. Wife and 2 kids. Same size garden. I now am 57 and we have 1 acre, mostly pasture, a creek and a small greenhouse. Raised beds for most of the garden and a small traditional space for vining crops and some of the corn. Just my wife and I. Gardens are smaller than ever. We grow as much or more than ever but fewer and more easily grown crops. We start earlier and prolong production longer, grow some year around. We can and freeze less now than ever. We do dehydrate nearly the same amount. We store more and eat more fresh and in season. It is much cheaper and easier now than ever. We are smarter and have learned what is best to plant, easiest to grow, most productive AND what we like best. We spend way less time in the garden and live better than ever. We raise almost all we need and spend way less time, energy, resources and money than ever. Only reason we have gone to town in the last 10 months was for banking business because of our move, to check on my MIL in a care home and our 5 year dental appointments, he checked our teeth and said "see you in 5 years"....James


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## Wendy (May 10, 2002)

We have 3.5 acres. I have a huge garden, grapes, blackberries, strawberries, pecan trees, apple, peach, plum, cherry, & pear trees. (drives my aunt nuts that I planted them in the front yard ) I also have Nubian dairy goats, rabbits for meat, chickens for eggs. I also raise at least 100 broilers to butcher every year along with about 10 turkeys. We also have ducks & just got some geese to raise for meat. I have a few guineas for fun & a llama. I have also had some Dexter cattle, but recently sold them to build up my goat herd. I like the goats better. I would say 2 acres of ours is pasture. The rest is used as much as possible with very little to mow.


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## mickie8 (Mar 31, 2013)

We currently have a quarter acre urban farm - 10 raised beds and 3 chickens - that I can't wait to get away from. Not the farm, but the neighbors. We also own 1.5 acres in the mountains surrounded by timber company land and bordered by a river. We are currently planning the lot and this info has been great  we just built the cabin "shell" and will be building raised beds up there this weekend. You can do a lot with an acre - the question, like others have posed, is whether the acre is worth it. We are not without neighbors in our mountain property but they are certainly farther away!


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## clovis (May 13, 2002)

We have a really small garden. I am amazed by the amount of produce we grow each year.

The book, _Square Foot Gardening_, radically changed my thinking about gardening and the need for space.


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## MDKatie (Dec 13, 2010)

We have 1 acre. About 1/3 of it is fenced in as permanent pasture. We have a fairly large garden, along with meat rabbits, 25 chickens, 4 goats, and 5 sheep. I rotatational graze the ruminants, and sometimes use part of the lot next door to us (no house on it, owner never maintains the lot, so I offer free lawn services ). We've also had turkeys, guineas, and pigs. We have a LOT of space that we don't use, so I imagine we could do a LOT more if we had the time/money. It takes careful planning, but there is a LOT that can be done on an acre!


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## Ernie (Jul 22, 2007)

Let me ask another question ...

If you could only come up with a limited amount of money, enough to buy 1 acre in the country somewhere and build a small, very humble house, on it.

Would the fact that it's only 1 acre prevent you from doing so?

I don't think so. That's room for a big garden, some animals (the right animals), fruit trees, bee hives, etc.

AND, if you were able to pay cash for it then you could live there while you continued to work your city job for awhile, and be out from under the heavy hand of a mortgage or rent ... allowing you to save up money for a bigger place one day.


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## kentuckyhippie (May 29, 2004)

think up not out and get things that have more than one use. my 'shade' trees are fruit and nut trees and anything that will climb goes around the fence instead of sprawling and taking up more space. my chickens are for both eggs and meat. when they are too old to lay they get butchered. I don't feed anything that's not producing. my landscaping is all herbs and pretty veggies. if it don't have a use it gets dug out of the flower bed and something edible goes in. my property lines are planted with hazelnut, grapes, etc that form a windbreak and a barrier to trespassers. surprising how hard it is for the neighbor kids to run wild thru a six foot tall hedge of blackberries and raspberries LOL. I have raised beds everywhere there is enough sun to grow something (yes even in the front yard) my front porch that I never got time to sit on got closed in with salvaged windows and thats where I start my plants in the spring. I'm doing great with just half an acre. I grow enough fruit and veggies to keep my grocery bill down to less than $50 a month and have extra to barter to hunters in the community for deer and turkey to add to the chicken I raise. they especially like to barter for homemade wine from my less than perfect fruit and berries. the main thing is to think outside the box. for instance instead of sitting pots of flowers on top the gate posts I have pots with a sweet potato in them. the vines are beautiful and I will have several potatoes in the pots later on.


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## Megaputz (Feb 4, 2013)

I have 3/4 of an acre just outside of the city limits. Pigs and cows are a no no here. I do raise chickens, ducks, rabbits and have about 600 square feet of garden. 150'x150' is the front lawn and is just grass and lines of pines. The animals and garden occupy an equal amount of space behind the house.

Really considering cutting down the pines and planting fruiting trees. Most of the pine trees are old and dying at this point. Not sure what to plant or how long until will see fruit... or if they will prosper. Pines do serve some purpose in providing a wind break and a microclimate.

More than half of the land is woods. Unfortunately I am bordered on both sides by neighbors. The land is underutilized but I'm slowly expanding both garden and flock. It's either money, time or weather hampering plans. Almost a month strait of rain is killing me... I long for last years drought.

Neighbors are a concern... On one side my neighbor insists he loves to hear crowing and insists my hens free range. The other neighbor... I can't stand him. He freaks out if my son even looks at his property but he's sees it as fine if he can ride his four wheeler on my land.

Can't stand mowing and grass is worthless. Mow my front lawn to make it look ok but don't bother with the back yard. Like to see he flowers bloom. Do let ducks and chickens range in movable fences and they do a great job of keeping the grass and bugs in check.

Can see a person having a pretty successful homestead on an acre or less of land depending on goals and local laws.
I say go slow and work with what you have. Find what you like and what your successful with and expand. Make it a hobby and not a chore.

Love some of the ideas I see/hear of here


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## Peggy (Feb 14, 2010)

I am in the process of digging out my flowers and planting vegies, herb and fruit. it is hard digging out some flowers. most of the trees are fruit trees. last year I planted elderberries and native roses ( rose hip jam). I would like to get meat rabbits. I can't have chicken in my area.
vegie garden is in the back of the property. strawberries are in the front flower beds. cukes and squash and in the flower bed on the side of the house as are blueberries. I am getting ready to rip out a evergreen bush and plant several more blueberries.

herbs are in all my flowerbeds. would like to plant more grapes on the fence.


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## FarmboyBill (Aug 19, 2005)

I would think, IF I only had an acre of BARE LAND, and was contemplating what kind of house id build, Id think id be considering a barn/house like they have in Europe, combined.. There could be a car port/porch/cook shed/canning shed between the 2. ESPECIALLY IF I wasn't going to have cows or horses or hogs. BUT, Even they could be accomaidated, to a degree, by a lean to shed at the far end of the barn, with stuff like grainery, tools, wood shed, ect in between.
Id have a celler underneith as much of the house/barn as I thought I needed for , canning doing laundry, who knows what. id use the dirt Id excavated to either level around the house/barn, or make raised beds with it. Id also put in a Cistern on 2 the short ends of the house/barn, and do as said before with the dug dirt.


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## 2happymamas (Dec 28, 2012)

We have just under 1.5 acres in Indianapolis. We currently are raising 36 meat birds, 12 layers, 3 dairy goats for milk, and a couple bee hives for honey. We have two gardens, one 25x15 bed with 65 tomato plants in it and another larger area with raised beds. We tapped 6 of our maples this past year and got 1.5 gallons of finished syrup.

We raise about 3 batches of meat birds each spring/summer and they last us through the year. We hope to plant a small orchard with 2 apple, 2 cherry, and 2 peach trees next spring. Also looking at setting up a small tilapia operation within the next 1-2 years.

There is a LOT that can actually be done on an acre.


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## jgalvan8804 (May 9, 2013)

We have 1 acre in West Va. Its in a community that sits on a hilltop over looking a valley. We knew that our homesteading plans were going to happen when we did a drive by before we bought the place last April. We saw neighbors with Goats, Horses and Lots of Chickens. 

We have a Pie like yard with the house near the street. Its very narrow at the front and wide in the back. Our back yard goes down gently in the back. We have mostly woods but we have a nice open area behind the house in the shape of a rectangle. In the back we have a fenced area that is about 50ft deep by 60ft wide. 

The first thing we did in April was start our gardens. We planted a little of everything. Corn, Onions, Herbs, Lettuce, Broccoli, Cucumbers, Ocra, Beans...

We did alright but already have a much better idea of whats happening next year. We fixed up a shed in the fenced area and ordered 20 chickens from McMurry Hatchery. We just recently brought home 2 Nigerian Dwarf Goats. 

Next year I plan on figuring out a water system to utilize rain water for the garden and animals. We plan on clearing some shady trees and gardening far more compact. We are looking forward to adding 20 more meat chickens and the birth of the baby goats. Looking forward to another human birth too. 

We have been learning as we go. We have no idea what we are doing with the goats. I had to really go crazy on the old fencing by adding some new fencing and then adding solar powered electric fencing to keep them from jumping the fence. Its been a learning process. 

We want to add more blueberries. Maybe Bee's. There are so many projects to do in our yard, while I think about how nice 5-20 acres would be... I would not be able to keep up on it. There is always something to fix, add, or do on our 1 acre homestead.


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## jgalvan8804 (May 9, 2013)

I forgot to mention that Nigerian Dwarf goats can jump. Our one escape artist was witnessed jumping a 4 foot fence. Remember that these goats are smaller than normal goats. They are 22 inches tall. They are great jumpers. Since I have added 3 wires of electric I haven't seen her attempt a jump. If she does there will be some barbwire strands going up. I held off on adding that for now being as I really don't like the prison look to their area.


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## Zimobog (Aug 31, 2013)

I'd get me a bred heifer lowline or a mini herford and an AGH boar and two sows. I like the idea of living over the barn. Good fencing and call it good. Raised beds and bucket gardening. The bucket gardens I had on my front and back porches years ago worked great and here in Alaska where the weather is unpredictable I could carry the buckets inside when winter decided to come back suddenly. A day or two inside until the good weather came back. Some of my best gardening years happened that way. Safe from moose, hares, etc also.


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## AmericanStand (Jul 29, 2014)

Nice old thread to reopen. 
With a small amount of land I'd look for a farmer to buy things like corn , wheat , hay and wood from. 
I could then feed a few more animals than the property would support and heavily manure rotating areas to develope great tilth for more valuable crops.


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## Redtractor (Jan 16, 2012)

I agree this is a good topic to bring back up. We just moved and now have 3 1/4 acres, but I came from the city (40'x175' lot). We had honeybees and two chickens although we did not meet the set back requirements for the chickens. The key was a moveable chicken tractor to spread out the droppings thus keeping to nearly no smell and neighbors on both sides that thought it was neat I had both. Also acting like you are allowed to have them. Confidence and a friendly smile can win some over. I was also prepared to butcher if the city ever did come 'round.


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