Becoming a Perpetual Homesteader

Back in January 2019, I started looking at what if an EMP occurred and we were without power for a lot time.

This exercise led me to start a patio container garden at our townhouse in Springfield, Missouri. I grew tomatoes, potatoes, strawberry plants, onions, lettuce, and a few Lima beans. My husband said that all I needed were a few chickens to round out my patio homestead. Over the next several months, we stuck with this theme and my husband suggested that if we could find a place in the country (again) that we could start over. Our goal was to get a place that we could pay cash for. In August 2019, we closed on that place. We had a place with water and electricity on it.  A few months later we closed on an old trailer that my eldest son and wife had with it came an outdoor wood furnace. Our homestead was ready to become a reality.

In November 2019 I started Matt Power’s The Advanced Permaculture Online course. I spent the next several months immersing myself into permaculture ideology. Once I finish my permaculture design and create a permaculture project, I will receive my certification as a permaculture designer and instructor.

In March 2020, COVID-19 entered the picture. My job as a substitute teacher was put on hold and I was laid off for the rest of the school year. I decided that the best thing for me to do was to move to our new home. During the spring and summer and into the fall I worked on getting the place established.  I now have a large vegetable garden space, chickens that are laying eggs, my wood stove is heating our home, and we are in the process of planting a fruit orchard.

Today I am starting my permaculture project which I call The Perpetual Homesteader book series. In this series I will demonstrate how we can create perpetual food, health, and energy systems at our own homes to improve our lifestyles.