Off-grid living | New garden setup | South African Homestead

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[@cazomega]

Another suggestion - maybe a goat or two to clear out that area for you? Maybe you can borrow a couple from someone in the community? You can use the structure you had at the back and add a small portion of wall/roof for shelter for them? I wish I had that much land. Trying to do a food forest in a small backyard in a residential area.

[@millennialhomesteader]

Thanks for the suggestion. We make decisions based on what is a priority for us. This includes time and money. Goats even if they are our neighbours would need fencing to protect them and our gardens. We would also have to supplement their food as we are under 2 hectares of which at least 1 is not pasture. We would then have to invest in their structure and also the time required to make sure they are okay. So although it looks like they would help with grass maintenance we would have to invest first in about R 10 000 minimum when we can cut grass for R200 once a month.

[@cazomega]

@@millennialhomesteader Makes sense. :)

[@WandiLu]

I'm learning so much for you two. Thank you for sharing. Also, I'm here for the laughs. So entertaining.

[@millennialhomesteader]

😂 so glad you find this informative. Also, if you don’t don’t laugh, you will cry on the homestead so that’s why we have to make light of whatever is happening 😂😂

[@amagglady]

THIS. IS. MY. DREAM!! You guys are so lucky to have each other on this fulfilling journey. Can't wait to binge watch all your videos. INSTANT SUBSCRIBE.

[@millennialhomesteader]

😊 so glad to have you on our journey. It’s definitely a life worth living. It’s lots of work but very rewarding.

[@lebogangsehume4135]

Great stuff guys. No one wants to do this on a piping hot day, but needs must...

[@millennialhomesteader]

Absolutely 😂 the show must go on.

[@nelsonletshweni2746]

Great job I’m proud of you guys and inspired too, you the reason why I started practicing planting in my backyard I got rabbits for compost and rabbit urine as fertiliser..how ever I’m looking for a market to sell my rabbits.

[@millennialhomesteader]

So glad to hear we could motivate you to do this. Have you considered selling them as pets as well? People could be in the market for some fluffy friends. Rabbit meat is a good protein source but needs some educating to get people on board. Perhaps you would need to make patties, wors, minces etc.

[@bronwynking3586]

Where are you in South Africa? It's great to see fellow S. African's getting self-sufficient and working with nature. X

[@millennialhomesteader]

We are located in Mbombela/ Nelspruit. 😊

[@icewolfmaiden]

Loving watching your Channel! So interesting to see homesteading in SA! Well presented and editted! look forward to watching your garden Grow!

[@millennialhomesteader]

Thanks so much for watching and offering your advice. This is really why we started the site, not just to share but to learn 😃

[@Sirona_ZA]

Rent a tractor to plow the area 25:00 and grow yellow maize which you'll feed your chickens

[@Sirona_ZA]

Or get some sheep that'll be their grazing area.

[@millennialhomesteader]

Thanks for the advice. Renting a tractor is a few thousand rands. Then getting maize means we would have to invest in a pump and pipes. And labour to plant them out. It would end up being expensive without including the need of fertilising that maize has as it is a heavy feeder. There is also de weeding. We have also planted maize before and there are animals that eat the corn so we would have to invest thousands to re fence the area. Sheep also need investment to get them there. We will have sheep later but they are not a priority at the moment, it is much cheaper to pay someone to cut the grass monthly.

[@betsiemarais6918]

You both are so sweet! I enjoyed your video!

[@millennialhomesteader]

Such mighty praise 😊. Thanks so much for watching.

[@natashakhan8870]

Amazing....God blessed... If u have extra always give to homes where there is a need.... Enjoy ur homestead...so blessed

[@millennialhomesteader]

Thank you. We hope to be able to produce much more and give surpluses. And share what we learn.

[@susankuhn5030]

My first time watching you too and i really enjoyed watching especially the romantic flower presentation at the end. Look forward to seeing how the beds get on. I watch off grid SA homesteaders in Portugal so am interested that we are also doing it. From Sue in Gordons Bay.

[@millennialhomesteader]

Thanks so much Sue. So glad to have you watching. There is definitely a big homesteading community in our country but there is a need to share the journeys. We love seeing other SA homesteaders going off grid or being more self sufficient.

[@Keletsoentle]

This is life worth living 💯

[@FifiVanTonder]

I am not sure how hot it gets where you are. We are in Kakamas Northern Cape and there is not much i can grow without shadenetting. We wish you all the best

[@millennialhomesteader]

It can get very hot over here. We will be experiencing on average 29 degree sun. Fortunately we are blessed with rain although it’s been rather dry this year. We could get away without a net but we do prefer to have it some places to shade a few of our crops. We had been growing lettuces and cabbages (and other brassica).

[@cazomega]

Ever think of trying swales to hold the water and the soil and prevent run-off while saving you water? Was thinking that might work there on the light downward slope.

[@millennialhomesteader]

We have tried them on smaller scale. We had mixed results. In some areas they seem to work (where it’s a bit more flat). Where it’s very steep the water had a tendency to wash it away or erode it. It does help to slow down water as well but for us terraces made more sense as we wanted to be able to stack compost without fear it will get washed away.

[@nature_secret_vault_za]

This is such an awesome idea, can't wait to see it all come together.😍😍

[@millennialhomesteader]

Thanks ☺️. Looking forward to the possibilities.

[@VusiMashiyane]

Very inspiring keep up the goog work guys.

[@millennialhomesteader]

Thanks so much 😊

[@malesedee]

So creative guys I can't wait to see the results

[@millennialhomesteader]

Stay tuned. We will be starting seedlings soon 🙂

[@jonathanredman2153]

awesome channel!! literally my dream right there and its in my own country showing me i can do it too

[@millennialhomesteader]

It’s definitely possible. There are amazing homesteads and off grid homes out there. Just needs some planning, some sacrifice and resources. It can happen.

[@thabangseabi378]

Dope content. Keep it comin🐎

[@millennialhomesteader]

Thanks so much 😋

[@icewolfmaiden]

Also remember that Horse Manure needs to rest before you plant - ideally no less than three months with a tarp covering it... its acidic and full of grass seeds

[@millennialhomesteader]

Thanks so much for this. We are trying other composting methods. We are close to water so get blessed by a variety of cobra species here. We have had some surprises when we composted with tarps so have to be careful. We are now using the manure mainly as mulch. The ratio is heavily on the hay or wood shavings side and sometimes we get the older more composted variety and add it to our compost bin. Hoping to create a place where I can put some chicken mesh and be able to use the tarp without snakes.

[@lindiwemalaza1438]

The weed mat is a great tool. From which shop did you buy it

[@millennialhomesteader]

Hey, we got it from Kath [phone]. Here is their business number they should ship around the country but they are based in Whiteriver

[@lindiwemalaza1438]

@@millennialhomesteader thanks so much

[@ellisandking]

Check out the biggest little farm. You'll love it

[@millennialhomesteader]

We will definitely check it out ☺️

[@bronwynking3586]

Horse ma-what nows? Magaga's? 🤣

[@millennialhomesteader]

Makaka’s 😂. That’s common slang for poop 😂😂😂.

[@lebogangsehume4135]

Yay for icies🎉

[@millennialhomesteader]

So refreshing ☺️

[@Keletsoentle]

❤

[@malesedee]

Removal of weeds one of the worst chores the garden will offer. 😢Also I have a lot of earth worms in my soil so I always feel bad whenever I dig because I always pull two or three😅

[@cazomega]

Have you tried no dig gardening? Earthworms are so good for your soil and using no dig methods prevents soil disturbance to all it's inhabitants.

[@millennialhomesteader]

So true. We avoid digging whenever possible because of this but also to avoid bringing up weed seeds but no dig is not always possible for us as it requires more investment in compost or soil and cardboard. 😄

[@malesedee]

@@cazomega will definitely look more into it so I can minimize the disturbance 🌻

[@MalesediMaakane]

Wer exactly is ur farm situated? If u dnt mind

[@flowermsibi]

Do you normally use organic seeds?

[@cazomega]

Organic is more about how you grow than about the seeds you buy. GMO isn't available to the home grower so all seeds you buy in the shop/online is non-GMO. Grow without artificial fertilizers and pesticides and your fruit and veg is organic. :) Even better if you make your own compost.

[@flowermsibi]

​@@cazomega Thank you for your response.

[@millennialhomesteader]

You answers this perfectly 😊 thanks so much. Also, we tend to harvest our own seeds when we grow veggies. We use local seedling suppliers to provide us with seedlings that are ready to plant. It is important to know that these providers may spray the seedlings to protect them from pests so that’s why we made the greenhouse, so we can start our own seedlings and know exactly what’s going in them.

[@tyronherman4963]

where in SA are u from like wgat u doing

[@millennialhomesteader]

We are located in Mbombela.