Sustainable Living - Part 2

Sustainable living - home style. Owning your own home offers the best opportunity for beginning a self-reliant, self-sustaining lifestyle today.

Depending on where you live you can take advantage of any natural heating, cooling, sunlight or water resources to help eliminate costs and live more sustainably.

Take a walk around your property. Do you have southern exposure on your property? What is the axis of your house? Does the front door face South? East? West or North? Each offers different methods and approaches to energy and light capture. Are there tall trees on the property that might block sunlight from the house?

Is there an area that has good morning and afternoon sun for a small garden? Where does the water run off from your gutters? Is there a location close to that run-off where you can put a rainwater harvesting storage container? And if so, where would that be in relationship to the garden area location?

Do you have a spot in the yard with adequate sunlight for two or three fruit trees? If not perhaps there is enough room to plant a berry bush or two. What types of trees currently are on the property? The property that my wife and I live on have many Sugar Maple Trees that can be tapped for syrup. (In the New England area many homes tap their own trees for sale and home use).

When I lived in Southern California, almost every house I lived in had a least one Lemon Tree, or Avocado, or Plum. One house I lived in had a wonderful old Walnut Tree. Here in Connecticut, Apples, Pears, and Peaches thrive. When I lived in Colorado and while spending time in New Mexico friends and I would gather Pinion nuts (seeds) from the Pines.

The point I am making is that no matter what region of the country we live in, there are regional fruit and nut trees to add to your sustainable backyard.

What are the regulations in your community for backyard chickens? Chickens are easy to keep and fresh eggs are part of every self sustainable home. In my home we keep chickens for eggs and entertainment, free-ranging outside the barn. Some people will also keep chickens for meat (my neighbor for one), my wife and I will continue to just enjoy our chickens for eggs.

No matter where you live a greenhouse is beneficial to a self-reliant and sustainable home.
Greenhouses small and large can be built easily and inexpensively using materials available at every Home and Garden Store.

Being able to provide food from gardens, fruit and nut trees, chickens (other livestock) is essential to the long term security for you and your family. Being able to can, dry, or freeze home grown food is empowering.

Being able to collect and store rainwater as a backup to your water system for irrigation, cooling or fire protection, help to relieve the stress on wells, reduces electrical costs for pumping or commercial water bills.

So take the time to do an inventory of your home, your regional resources and local regulations for chickens. Plan to do one thing at a time in this walk toward self reliance. This will keep you focused and make it easy to complete one step at a time. An easy start is to make a call to your local town or city center and ask about regulations for chickens. Its a good and easy way to start the blood flowing for change.

Brett