7 Strategies for the Successful Suburban Homestead

Reader Contribution by Karen Lynn
Published on May 5, 2015
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Suburban, urban, and micro-homesteading is growing by leaps and bounds with many people adding bees, chickens, rabbits and more to their backyards. At our suburban homestead we have so enjoyed our adventures, but we have learned a few things in the past 15 years from our time spent urban and suburban homesteading that we would like to share to help others be successful in their urban and suburban homesteading adventures.

No. 1 – Make sure to befriend your neighbors and include them in your homesteading plans. Send your neighbors over some eggs or some honey; this way they will see the rewards of those chickens and bees in your backyard. Share the wealth from your garden like those delicious tomatoes, and bake your neighbors some fresh zucchini bread. Such gestures that won’t go unnoticed.

No. 2 – Fences make great neighbors. If you are going to have chickens or bees, a fence is going to be extremely helpful. Case in point: Make sure your chickens or goats aren’t getting into your neighbor’s garden. This is not going to bode well at all for good neighborly relations.

No. 3 – Do not discuss culling your chickens or that you might be raising rabbits for meat with your neighbors. Most of them will not understand. This requires really making sure they understand that you are a good steward of the animals you raise and that you really care. Many people will not equate the chicken behind your fence as the same chicken that is in their meat package at the store. Often many don’t understand that there comes a time you may have to cull that chicken from your flock.

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