Self-Sufficiency: Security For You and Your Family
Self-sufficiency is among the most valued, venerated, and celebrated American values. This is also true in other countries, especially those with strong, traditional ties to their history, heritage, elders, community, and country's prosperity.
What Is Self-Sufficiency?
Self-sufficiency is the ability of an individual, family, or community to survive and thrive solely on the fruit of their labor and efforts.
Self-sufficiency is most commonly found in small, close-minded communities. It is primarily a necessity rather than a desire or deliberate lifestyle choice, though this is not universally true.
In such communities, each individual's homestead produces enough produce (be it food, materials, labor, or other goods and services) to sufficiently provide for their own families, along with produce that serves as profit and a significant source of income for both themselves and the community as a whole.
To this end, food is the backbone of independent and familial self-sufficiency. When your means of survival are assured and protected, you will not have to rely upon anyone to survive.
Independent Food Production, Independent Living
Where To Start: Land
To start, 1 acre of land, if used correctly, can provide enough for you and your family—although it takes a lot of work, education, knowledge, and time.
You shouldn't have this mentality of restricting your land to just 1 acre. You may need more land depending on your livestock and the crops you want to raise on your land.
You'll want to know each animal and crop's base needs and requirements before you decide how much land you need to accommodate them all.
First, concentrate your efforts on the land itself. While a single acre can be turned into a plot suitable for growing crops and livestock, you will want to tailor your land to the specific arrangements you plan to establish.
Soil Fertility
First, you'll want to tend to your soil. Just as food is the backbone of sustainable living, soil is the backbone of sustainable food production.
You'll need to provide your soil with the necessary nutrients to be most fertile, productive, healthy, and resistant to erosion, overwork, and overgrazing/overfarming.
You must provide your soil with a complete range of soil minerals, including primary NPK minerals, secondary nutrients (including sulfur, calcium, and magnesium), and a complement of trace materials naturally found in healthy soil.
In addition to these nutrients, you'll need to periodically build organic matter within the soil to allow these nutrients to function within the ecosystem, such as using soil acids. You'll want to ensure these soil acids are also nutritionally balanced.
After you've learned what is needed for healthy, productive soil, you'll need to understand your area's zoning regulations.
Zoning Regulations and Livestock Needs
Most areas have regulations on what kind of structures and animals you can have on your property. For instance, you most likely cannot have animals like cows or horses on your property but might be allowed a handful of chickens or other small livestock.
As mentioned earlier, you need to understand your livestock's needs and how much land they require (for grazing and living). You also need to account for the resources necessary for each type of livestock to satisfy their needs and the zoning regulations that govern your area.
If you want to be self-sufficient, you'll need to grow your hay and produce your feed for your animals. What kind of diet each animal needs will differ for each animal, and you'll need to know and be able to produce these dietary staples to be self-sufficient.
Food Production Planning
You'll want to establish what food to produce on your property immediately. Do you want to produce livestock for meat? If so, what kind of meat do you wish to make?
Do you have the skill to butcher and process these animals? And if not, can you outsource such services to someone you trust?
Next, you will want to decide what vegetables and other crops you want to grow, what their needs are, and how they need to be harvested to avoid waste and maximize your efforts and profit.
You'll want crops that provide a complete nutritional diet to you and your family, aren't too demanding to grow and maintain, and are in demand so that you can sell your surplus to make a profit.
Lastly, consider growing secondary flora on your property. Such plants can nourish the soil, provide your vegetables with additional nutrients, and add to the character and look of your property. Because of this, it is beneficial to add these to your land.