Becoming Self Sufficient in the City

[Soybean]

I'm a vegetarian so no need to raise up meat animals. I will eventually switch to vegan so even when I have a real homestead, I won't have to have dairy animals. I will need dairy and eggs on occasion though for the animals I keep as pets.

I plan on growing a few things in the "garden" this coming Spring, including: Carrots, Corn, Beets, Radishes, Potatoes, Tomatoes, Garlic, and Mint. I was hoping to have chickens at some point but I'm not even allowed to have more than two cats in my townhouse and I live with 3 cats, 3 ferrets, 1 small dog, 1 sugar glider, a rat colony, mice, and gerbils. Oh and I can't forget 12 snakes. To reduce spending and gas usage, I've taken to breeding my own rats for my ferrets and snakes. My cats and ferrets are also on a raw/whole prey diet so I can buy local meat for them and eventually raise my own when I have a homestead.

I plan on using gray water from showering and such for use with watering the garden as well, so I'll have to start finding natural shampoos and soaps that won't harm plants if I use the shower water.

 

[ScottyG]

I agree with Beekissed on the CSA thing. I lived in a city for a while, and joined a CSA that not only gave me fantastic local produce every week (and a "storage" share over the winter), but gave me opportunities to go out to the farm, pick my own stuff, work on the land a bit, and generally get to know the dirt and the plants. I don't do one here, as I'm more just buying up produce and meats from local farm markets (another fine option) and the CSA options in my area aren't so great. But it's an excellent way to plunge into things.

 

[RTRChick]

I'm a vegetarian so no need to raise up meat animals. I will eventually switch to vegan so even when I have a real homestead, I won't have to have dairy animals. I will need dairy and eggs on occasion though for the animals I keep as pets.

I plan on growing a few things in the "garden" this coming Spring, including: Carrots, Corn, Beets, Radishes, Potatoes, Tomatoes, Garlic, and Mint. I was hoping to have chickens at some point but I'm not even allowed to have more than two cats in my townhouse and I live with 3 cats, 3 ferrets, 1 small dog, 1 sugar glider, a rat colony, mice, and gerbils. Oh and I can't forget 12 snakes. To reduce spending and gas usage, I've taken to breeding my own rats for my ferrets and snakes. My cats and ferrets are also on a raw/whole prey diet so I can buy local meat for them and eventually raise my own when I have a homestead.

I plan on using gray water from showering and such for use with watering the garden as well, so I'll have to start finding natural shampoos and soaps that won't harm plants if I use the shower water.

I want this lol http://www.henspa.focuspage.com/hencondo.htm

Maybe with that you could trick your neighbors into thinking it was just a trashcan..

 

[FarmerChick]

RTR that is cool
a stealth coop
sad it comes to that, no animals in certain zoning etc.

but surely for the price we can make one cheaper. great idea though!!

 

[keljonma]

I agree with Beekissed on the CSA thing. I lived in a city for a while, and joined a CSA that not only gave me fantastic local produce every week (and a "storage" share over the winter), but gave me opportunities to go out to the farm, pick my own stuff, work on the land a bit, and generally get to know the dirt and the plants. I don't do one here, as I'm more just buying up produce and meats from local farm markets (another fine option) and the CSA options in my area aren't so great. But it's an excellent way to plunge into things.

Check with your local CSA... As crazy as this sounds, the ones in our area DO NOT allow anyone to work on the farm or come pick their own foods. They do not even have summer interns to help with all the work.

 

[FarmerChick]

yea I am the same with my farm. So many people want to see the goats and hogs and chickens and nope, we don't do it. For liability reasons and honestly I ain't got the time for tours..LOL

 

[keljonma]

I'm a vegetarian so no need to raise up meat animals. I will eventually switch to vegan so even when I have a real homestead, I won't have to have dairy animals. I will need dairy and eggs on occasion though for the animals I keep as pets.

I plan on growing a few things in the "garden" this coming Spring, including: Carrots, Corn, Beets, Radishes, Potatoes, Tomatoes, Garlic, and Mint. I was hoping to have chickens at some point but I'm not even allowed to have more than two cats in my townhouse and I live with 3 cats, 3 ferrets, 1 small dog, 1 sugar glider, a rat colony, mice, and gerbils. Oh and I can't forget 12 snakes. To reduce spending and gas usage, I've taken to breeding my own rats for my ferrets and snakes. My cats and ferrets are also on a raw/whole prey diet so I can buy local meat for them and eventually raise my own when I have a homestead.

I plan on using gray water from showering and such for use with watering the garden as well, so I'll have to start finding natural shampoos and soaps that won't harm plants if I use the shower water.

As mentioned earlier, Path to Freedom might be a site you want to look into. They have two solar showers in their Pasadenda city lot and the water is used for their gardens. They have a cob oven in their garden that they use for baking. They raise bantam chickens and ducks for eggs and a couple dwarf goats for milk.

 

[patandchickens]

Has anyone mentioned community garden plots yet? Cuz a LOT of cities have them now. If there's none near you, talk to the city or to the owner of some likely-looking vacant lot(s) and see if you can organize one When I used to rent a plot in community gardens in a coupla places, like fifteen, twenty years ago, it was something like $20 for the year for, I forget, I think a 10x20 plot? Pretty good deal anyhow.

Pat

 

[PotterWatch]

I am also in the suburbs. We have a decent backyard for this area of Southern California, but I still think it's pretty small given that I grew up in Alaska where the yards were much bigger. We have chickens, a plot that is soon to become a garden, fruit trees to be planted soon, and goats that will arrive in a couple weeks. I am not nearly as self-sufficient as most people on here, but I am trying. We hang our clothes, never wash them in hot water, and make our own detergent. We have a tankless water heater that is fantastic. We recycle as much as we can. When it comes time to build a chicken coop or goat "barn", we go to local construction sites to ask if we can salvage wood from their dumpsters (we just recently started to do this). I think having a garden and goats is going to make a big difference in our lives. I can't wait to be able to eat produce that we grow and get milk from our goats. I already love getting eggs from our chickens (and I bet they will taste good too)! Hoping these steps will get us on the path to greater self-sufficiency!