In a previous post. I talked about some reasons to be more self-sufficient. Some of you may ask, I would like to start but don’t know how. It’s not as hard as you think, and anyone can start today. Here are a few things we do, and will do in the future, as we move towards being fully self-sufficient.
Recycle and Upcycle
My wife gets angry about the amount of glass bottles I collect. And it’s a pretty impressive collection. But when it comes down to it, I can’t even count the amount of times I’ve reused these glass bottles.
Wine bottles work great for storing freshly squeezed apple juice (especially if you buy reusable wine bottle stoppers). Larger jars from pickles can be used for fermenting sauerkraut. We don’t even own any cups. We just use recycled jars from tomato paste, pickles, and almost anything.
Larger glass jars are great for fermenting. Just find some airlocks, put almost any vegetable, 3% salt, and water, and set it on your shelf for a week or two.
Before you throw anything away, think to yourself, “Is there anything I could use this for.” If you look and think about it, you will be pleasantly surprised.
Make your food from scratch
Making your food from scratch is something anyone can do. Making a fresh loaf of bread is easier than you think, costs nothing, and tastes better than anything you can buy in the store. It takes literally 15 minutes of work (not including rising and baking time), and only uses flour, salt, sugar, yeast, and water. Try baking a few loaves at a time and sticking the extras in the freezer.
Some other things that can be easily made are juices, tomato paste and ketchup, kombucha, and pickles. Making food from scratch won’t necessarily save you time, but can save you some money. And it will always taste better and be healthier than store bought products.
Grow a small herb garden
When people look for ways to be more self sufficient, the first thing they probably think of is growing food. This might be where people throw the idea out the window. Believe it or not, you do not need a large commercial farming operation to be self sufficient.
We have already covered this in a post about how to grow an endless supply of herbs at home. It’s extremely easy and you do not need any knowledge of gardening.
Starting a mini garden in your kitchen means you always have fresh herbs available and you don’t need to worry about running to the store because you forgot to buy parsley.
Switch to renewable energy (if possible)
Renewable energy, if possible, is one of the ultimate ways to be more self sufficient. I know this is not an option for everyone, but if possible, it is something to consider. Many states (and countries) offer tax incentives for upgrading to solar power. Additionally, many areas will actually buy some of your power if you create too much.
Don’t limit yourself to only solar power either. If you have access to a well on your property, try a solar powered water pump to cut the cord (pun intended) on both electric and water. In some homes, gas burning heater could be replaced with wood burning ones.
Homeschool your kids
Ok this one isn’t really a way to be more self sufficient, but homeschooling your kids allows them more time to work on the farm.
That’s a joke by the way.
Homeschooling though can be a great advantage though because it allows you to spend more time as a family. It also frees up time because you are not running around the city all the time to take them and pick them up. Our daughter is only two but we have already started doing lessons at home. We tried taking her to pre school but for how much we were paying and how much she actually went, it just wasn’t worth it.
My personal opinion too is that I like to know what my children’s heads are being filled with. There’s some questionable content being tough in a lot of schools and I feel more comfortable knowing what they are taught.
