Urban homesteading has become more popular as people seek to reconnect with their food sources, reduce their environmental footprint, and gain a sense of independence from industrialized food systems.
We sat down to interview Carol Skyring, Co-Founder of The Sydney Library of Things and long-time homesteading practitioner to deliver a three-part series on homesteading. Part 1 unpacked what homesteading is and how it can be applied to an urban setting; Part 2 below speaks to some of the challenges and myths associated with urban homesteading and finally, Part 3 looks at strategies and how beginners can get started.
Part 2 – Challenges & Myths
What challenges have you faced while practicing homesteading in a city setting?
My main challenge has been the growing of food while living in an apartment with a small balcony. You can grow a surprising number of foods on a small balcony, but probably not enough to meet all of your needs. I’ve overcome this to some degree by being active in my community garden. This gives me access to a very large area of land along with many fellow gardeners to help with the growing. This way we can grow a large variety of fruit and vegetables, have chickens for eggs, and share the produce.
You can also belong to a crop swap group where you can swap your excess lettuce or your delicious bread or cheese for something you don’t grow or make yourself.
What are some misconceptions people often have about urban homesteading?
People often think that homesteaders are weird hippies – not true – they come from all walks of life and are all ages. Some people think that you homestead because you’re poor and can’t afford to buy ’things’! Choosing to homestead is a deliberate choice to live a life with minimal impact upon the environment and means you won’t be poor because you’re saving so much money! (Search out the book “Frugal Hedonism” on this issue.)
I also think that people think you can only homestead if you live in a rural area. I have lived rurally with enough land to have a productive organic food garden. My challenge in moving back to an urban area was how to continue this lifestyle with no land. I’ve achieved this living in an apartment and you could certainly achieve this if you live in a house with a decent sized garden – I know many people who have.
Click here for Part 3 – Advice for beginners
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