VIDEO: Inspirational Small-Scale Permaculture Homestead | Low Cost Self-Sufficiency on Less Than an Acre

 

  • Health challenges leading to lifestyle change: The speaker, formerly working for a rugby club, faced severe health issues due to a malfunctioning thyroid and vitamin deficiencies, leading to extended bed rest. This prompted a shift towards a more sustainable and less stressful lifestyle on a small-scale .
  • Discovery and acquisition of the homestead: During a difficult health period, the speaker and their partner, Mr. J, purchased a homestead less than an acre in size. Despite physical limitations, they were motivated by the belief that living in a natural, self-sufficient environment would improve their health.
  • Adoption of and sustainable living: The speaker committed to growing their own as a means of contributing to their household, replacing the need for a traditional income. This led to the development of a small-scale permaculture , learning through trial and error about the specifics of local conditions and sustainable practices.
  • Community involvement and impact: The homestead now supports a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) scheme, providing weekly vegetable boxes to local families. This initiative helps to promote local, chemical-free food production and educates others on the benefits of small-scale farming.
  • Personal growth and broader implications: The experience has been transformative, allowing the speaker to connect with nature and community while promoting sustainable living. They have also documented their journey in a book that explores the transformation of their land from a simple paddock to a productive, biodiverse food garden, contrasting this with industrial agriculture practices in the surrounding areas.

Video source: Huw Richards /

30 thoughts on “VIDEO: Inspirational Small-Scale Permaculture Homestead | Low Cost Self-Sufficiency on Less Than an Acre

  1. Today is a very special day. It is the launch day for Liz's fantastic book Grounded, which is a biography of turning her field into a thriving small-scale Permaculture Homestead in only 4 years. It is such an inspiring story and I know this because I was fortunate enough to read it a few months ago to write the foreword for it. You can order your copy of Grounded here: https://shop.permaculture.co.uk/grounded.html Or check the description for other places to buy. Happy watching๐ŸŒฑ๐Ÿ˜€

  2. Almost the same journey for me! I was "hitting the wall" in 2013 and my garden really became a big help to get where I am now, not the same person in mind or body but quite well. I have been gardening for 30 yrs but more conventional with a lot of flowers and a smaller vegetable garden. But in 2010 I started to size up with raised beds (bad back) and this year I will put up a new greenhouse, three times bigger than my old, I am so looking forward to it! Living on my husbands salary I have the same feeling as Liz, trying to give us good food for hopefully a lower cost so I see gardening as my work but a pleasant one and a work where I can control the amount of psychological and physical pressure. I think most of us are not made for living in big cities, I would probably get depressed if I had to. Being able to go 100 meter away from my house for picking berries and mushrooms or fishing in the river…that is heaven to me! Greetings from Sweden!

  3. Want to be a smallholder or homesteader since I was a kid. Became an agricultural engineer and postgraduated in local sustainable development… Yet the bug of becoming a half acre farmer is still here. She is truly an inspiration.

  4. I hate how amazing you are at doing videos! Every time I have tears in my eyes because I feel so happy for the people and their absolutely gorgeous gardens. Thanks for your work and showing us so many amazing gardens and ideas and life stories! ๐Ÿ™‚

  5. my wife gets mad at me for this sometimes but it's incredible for how long I can go on with just Eggs Onions Garlic and some other accompaniment such as sausages bacon or Kale Broccoli etc etc… you really don't need much to survive… and it feels great too! never feel bloated or inflammed

  6. it's been years since I research about all of this but in my region there are not many opportunities in this field… anyone would be willing to sponsor a work visa? (I pay the fees of course, my problem is not money, my problem is paperwork) At this point I have no particular country I would go to, I just want to find like-minded people who value simplicity (on top of farm work I also have knowledge on growing oyster mushrooms and I plan on learning how to make my own fresh pasta… delicious) Germany UK Croatia, doesn't matter… if you know anyone, please let me know, I can arrange a way for us to talk without you having to reveal identity, talk anonymously, thanks in advance

  7. Absolutely lovely!! This year was our first year with our garden and it brought us so much joy (and food!).My partner works at a hospital in the city, but will retire to work in the garden and use her medical knowledge to work with indigenous and medicinal plants to help people. This lady and her beautiful garden have inspired me to want to create food boxes to bring to local people in our area! Great story and video! Thank you!

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