Homesteading is a practical way of having nearly everything you need readily available. It is also a full-proof way of earning extra cash, if you are smart enough to see the potential in your cultivated land. In this article, we will walk you through countless ways to effectively use your cultivated land and turn it into something productive and income generating one.
Earn from your livestock and produce
- Consider the plants – Having a constant supply of fresh produce is perhaps the primary reason for homesteading. However, one way to augment income is to sell these hand-sown and harvested products. High value crops that require low time investments — such as mushrooms, maple syrup and grafted fruit trees as well as vegetable plant starts and saved heirloom seeds — are sure fire produce that will rake in the cash.
- Set your eyes on wilder things – Due to the heavy usage of land, less estates are becoming off-grid. As a result, food fares that grow wild crops such as morels and ramps are becoming more uncommon. Wild medicinal plants such as sumac are no exception to this exploitation. This is a great opportunity to convert at least a portion of your land into a growth patch for these wilder, less common edibles that may fetch dollars in the urban market.
- Turn to beekeeping – It is no secret that the pollinator bees’ population is rapidly declining, and turning to beekeeping not only contributes to their survival but also ensures a steady cash flow through honey sales. Setting up bee colonies may also do your garden a favor, as more pollinators could mean increased harvest yield.
- Eggs can make a difference – While chicken and duck eggs can be easily sold, contemplating on selling readily-fertilized eggs might be a good opportunity especially if people are planning to start their own home poultry business. You may invest in incubators and set forth with a hatching service to ramp up your income.
- Consider livestock breeding/butchering – Livestock breeding for personal consumption is easy, but not for everybody. Offer livestock breeding services for people who barely have time to look after their flocks. On the other hand, butchering services have been displaced. Opening one might be a good call, especially in places where supermarket-ready meat cuts are not readily available.
- Rake in dollars with dirt – Composts are a typical staple in homesteads. One way to increase your income is to sell these nutrient-rich material to both starters and professional homesteaders.
- Use traditional/electronic sales – Setting up a roadside stand to sell farm fresh products and livestock is a surefire way to earn extra cash, as today’s customers are clamoring for all things organic. On the other hand, promoting your products online has always been a good practice to augment your revenue.
Activities to do on the ground itself
While homesteading primarily focuses on the farm products and livestock, the land itself could be of great use too. Here are a few ways to convert your land into an income-generating site.
- Have the land rented – Sometimes, homesteaders buy more more land than they can really attend to. In this case, boost your income by renting it out. This ensures a steady cash flow without the added effort and upkeep on your part.
- From homestead to backdrop – If you have taken the time to beautify your homestead, then make the most out of it by having it rented as an open air photo session backdrop. Homesteads provide a homey feel to any photo, making it them ideal on photo shoots.
- Offer camping areas – Earn extra income by offering to turn your cultivated land into a seasonal or year round camping site for outdoor enthusiasts.
As you can see, there are many ways to use your land so that it can also serve as a lucrative asset.
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