One Easy Way to begin Homesteading!
One Easy way to begin Homesteading is CHICKENS!
One way to begin homesteading
I hear so many people talk about how they cannot start their homestead because they don’t have enough property, time, or knowledge. Little do they know all it takes is a changed mindset. Think more along the lines of what is easy for me to learn and handle. The answer is…CHICKENS!!! – I may be just a touch biased since my daughter is a huge poultry fan…we keep adding to our flock on a whim.
If you look up chickens and all that they can provide for you it is so simple and rewarding. Chickens can provide both a meat and egg source. Different breeds provide differently, I highly recommend doing some research on where to start.
What do you look for in chicken breeds?
- We live in Michigan and have hot summers and harsh winters, we needed to have a chicken that could withstand both climate changes.
- Do you want a dual-purpose bird? One that’s good for both meat and egg production?
- Do you want one that just produces a ton of eggs?
- How big are you wanting the chickens to be? There are different sizes and weights for each breed.
- How many are you wanting to get?
What are you going to be needing to start?
- Where are you going to put them on the property?
- What are they going to use forย feedย andย water?
- What shelter will they be in?
- What will you do for climate or weather relief?
- Will they be free-range?
I highly suggest using galvanized steel forย feedersย andย waterersย like these. They last so much longer than any of the other ones I have tried over the years. I also opted to do aย DIY chicken coopย like these plansย HERE…for me, it’s about sustainability and saving money. In the beginning, the coop might cost a bit more to build however comparing the wood used to build your own to the store-bought kits it will last so much longer. For my coop, I also painted the outside with weather sealerย paintย to keep all of the harsh conditions from rotting the wood out.ย
Beginner chickens I always recommend starting with.
Some Dual Purpose Chicken Breeds Include:
- Orpingtons
- Barred Rock
- Rhode Island Reds
- Australorps
- Cochin
The benefit of having a dual-purpose chicken is that when they’re done producing eggs for you then you can utilize them for meat as well. The cost of feeding the larger breeds is more than feeding the small ones however you are feeding them for egg production and meat.
Some Small Egg Layer Breeds Include:
- Silkies
- Sebright
- Cochin Bantam
- Serama Bantam
Even though these breeds are smaller they all still on average produce between 130 – 180 eggs per year. Depending on how many chickens you purchase that’s roughly 2-3 eggs per week per chicken. Another bonus of having smaller chickens is that they don’t require as much feed as the larger ones.
For more information check out Homesteaders of America HERE!
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