Want to learn new homesteading skills but have no idea how to go about it or where to start? Well, not too long ago I was in that same place! But over the years of trial and error, I’ve come across some super easy ways to learn homesteading skills. And today I’m sharing them with you! So grab your pen and paper to jot down the ones that resonate with you!
Ways to Learn Homesteading Skills:
- YouTube Videos
- Online Blogs
- Volunteer At a Local Farm or Nursery
- Read Homesteading Books
- Talk To People At The Farmers’ Market
- Join Social Media Groups
- Take Courses
- Jump In And Try It Yourself
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TOP WAYS TO LEARN HOMESTEADING SKILLS
There are so many ways you can acquire new skills. But since homesteading is such a foreign concept to most people, finding good resources on how to homestead can be difficult!
However, once you know where to look, it’s easy to follow the breadcrumbs into a huge homesteading community!
And most people that are into homesteading are more than happy to share what they know – myself included!
But one disclaimer before we jump into it.
If you just go through the materials and never do anything about it, you probably won’t accomplish much!
So the best tip I can give you is to pick a few new skills per year, and focus on those. That way, you’ll keep expanding your homesteading knowledge, but you’re not spreading yourself too thin!
And here are my best homesteading goals for beginners, if you’re looking for a good place to start!
1. YOUTUBE VIDEOS
YouTube has become such a resource base of information over the recent years. And you can literally learn anything you want from the platform.
It’s not just for funny cat videos anymore!
From watching YouTube videos I’ve learned how to propagate herbs, how to care for chickens, how to incubate chicks, how to preserve food, and so much more.
So if you want to learn a particular homesteading skill and don’t want to spend money on a course, you can go to YouTube and you will find tons of free videos. It really is the best option for beginners!
Plus, you can always ask questions in the comments sections of videos and most people are happy to answer back.
So come on over to the Mini Urban Farm YouTube channel and say hi!
2. ONLINE BLOGS
Online blogs like this one are a great resource to learn homesteading skills!
For example, Mini Urban Farm is a homesteading blog for people who garden and homestead in the suburbs. I talk about my family’s journey to grow our own food, raise our own meats, and overall grow as a small scale homestead.
You can find all types of blogs for homesteading – some for urban homesteaders, some for people with tons of acreage, and some for people who only want to talk about plants.
So basically, if you look for it, you’ll find it!
But, I have to warn you.
If you clicked on this link (whether you found this blog on Google, Pinterest, YouTube, or somewhere else), you won’t benefit as much from reading this as if you were to click around the site and find related articles.
For example, if a blogger wrote an article about ways to learn homesteading skills, there’s a good change that they also wrote a bunch of other articles about homesteading #shamelessplug 😉
And one of my favorite ways to read a blog is by clicking around the site and finding other posts that interest me. Then I bookmark them for reference later!
After all, if a blogger took that much time to write about one topic, they usually know what they’re talking about!
3. VOLUNTEER AT A LOCAL FARM
If you want to get down and dirty right off the bat, you can volunteer at a farm in your area and start getting hands on!
Not only is this a great way to learn new homesteading skills, but you’ll be learning from people who actually do it for a living!
The best way to go about this is to find a farm that has the kinds of skills you want to learn, and contact them directly about volunteering.
Another great resource is wwoof.net – a site for global opportunities on organic farms. Once you sign up with them you can apply for spots on local (or non local) farms in exchange for some type of room and board, usually.
Now, this might be more for people without young kids at home, but it’s definitely a great option for jumping right in and getting first hand experience!
For example, processing chickens and other farm animals is not a job for the faint-hearted.
Learning it firsthand from an experienced farmer can help you get over your initial fear – and learn to do it the right way!
4. READ HOMESTEADING BOOKS
At my house we have a huge library of gardening, cooking, and homesteading books. I love seeing them all lined up on the bookshelves and being able to reference them whenever I want.
And as it turns out, there are tons of amazing books on homesteading with knowledge and skills that you can’t find anywhere else!
So chances are, if you want to learn a specific skill, there’s a book on it.
Plus, having physical books allows me to lend them to family and friends! Because, of course, a huge part of homesteading is community!
Here are some of my all time favorites:
- Mini Farming: Self-Sufficiency on ¼ Acre – perfect for urban homesteading
- Floret Farm’s Cut Flower Garden – a great resource for learning to grow flowers
- Grow Food for Free – amazing resources for low cost gardening
- Fresh Eggs Daily – great for newbie chicken keepers
5. TALK TO PEOPLE AT THE FARMERS’ MARKET
If you want to learn some homesteading skills such as gardening, raising chickens, and other animals, what is a better way to learn than hearing it from people who already do it?
A farmers’ market is a great place to marketable homesteading skills – like growing food or keeping bees!
And the great part is that most people selling at the local farmer’s market love to talk about their craft! They are usually more than happy to help you get started and point you to the right resources.
Plus, you make some great friends in the process and get to see the business side of things. Because, after all, hobby farms do cost money!
I’ve met so many people at my local farmer’s market – some that have even helped mentor me in gardening and pointed me to amazing resources on permaculture!
6. JOIN SOCIAL MEDIA GROUPS
Even if you’re not big into social media, you can learn a ton from other like minded people who are part of specific online groups.
The main value in this is being able to connect and have conversations with other homesteaders, gardeners, bee keepers, etc.
And there are many platforms you can use to do this – Instagram, Facebook, and Reddit are the main ones I use.
I follow people on Instagram who are doing things I want to get into, and join Facebook groups for local homesteaders, local plant swaps, and local chicken keeping clubs.
And even though I don’t usually post on those groups, I benefit a ton from reading other’s posts and comments on questions!
Plus, there’s always tons of inspiration to be found from people who are more advanced than you are in specific skills!
7. TAKE COURSES
Did you know you can also take courses in homesteading?
Well, it’s a thing.
And I’m not talking just about online courses from your favorite YouTubers and bloggers – although those are definitely some of my favorite!
Many community colleges also offer gardening, homesteading, and food preservation courses! And the same applies to your local homestead extension.
I know that my local extension office has even partnered with the university around here to provide free and low cost classes year round!
These include maintaining soil health, choosing the right plants for your climate, water and pressure canning, and other specific skills that homesteaders should learn!
Plus, these courses are usually also offered online. So if you want to take a class from a college 1,000 miles away from you, all you have to do is call and ask if they offer it online!
8. JUMP IN AND TRY IT YOURSELF
Sometimes it’s hard to find the right information if the skill you want to learn is not very common.
Or maybe you found the material, but it’s very expensive and there’s no free version.
In that case, the best thing you can do is try it out yourself!
Because chances are, you’ll figure it out eventually!
And getting hands on is by far the fastest way to learn a new skill – even if you have to get it wrong a few times first!
Plus, it gives you an opportunity to figure out if you really like doing it!
For example, I recently decided I wanted to try leatherworking.
I ordered all the supplies, did a little bit of research, and dove right in. And as it turns out, it wasn’t for me.
So the supplies went back to the store, and I can say for sure it’s not my thing!
HOMESTEADING SKILLS YOU CAN START TODAY
No matter what skills you want to acquire in the future, there are some basic homesteading skills that all homesteaders should have in their back pocket.
If you start with these and build on to them, soon enough you’ll have a great toolkit of homesteading skills and be well on your way to self sufficiency!
- Organic gardening – Most, if not all, homesteaders are also gardeners. And learning to garden organically and grow your own food will not only help the environment, but it will also lower your grocery bill a ton!
- Sewing, knitting, and crocheting – Being able to make and mend your own clothes, pillows, and textiles is a huge part of homesteading. And these skills are super easy to learn!
- Baking your own bread – There’s nothing like fresh homemade bread! Especially when you combine it with fresh goat cheese and garlic roasted tomatoes! I use a bread machine for my family’s daily bread needs, but making bread by hand is something everyone should do at least a few times!
- Cooking from scratch – Pre-packaged meals and ingredients are not only super expensive, but they are usually bad for you! So learning to cook from scratch is an easy way to start homesteading, even if you just learn the basics!
- Composting – This sounded super scary to me when I was first getting started. But after years of making homemade compost, it really can’t be easier!
- Money management – one of the most important homesteading skill is learning to manage your money. Budgeting, buying feed and seeds for livestock and the garden, and knowing how to save for a rainy day!
- Simple household fixes – learning how to use a drill and other basic power tools is essential to running a homestead. Plus, you can learn that anywhere and it’s easy to master!
And don’t forget to check out the complete list of homesteading skills!
HOW DO I PREPARE FOR HOMESTEADING?
If you’re not in a place to have a homestead right now, there are definitely ways to prepare yourself for your future homestead!
The biggest way is to do your research.
Make a list of the top homesteading skills you want to learn, and break them down into year 1, year 2, etc.
Then do research on those specific topics, and get as hands on as possible.
For example, even if you don’t have space for a huge garden right now, you can always have a few plants or a small herb garden!
And there are even tons of ways you can start homesteading in the city – some of them you’ve never even thought of!
So even if you live in a small space, or have city rules telling you what you can and can’t do – there’s always a way around it!
pin ways to learn homesteading skills!
