Website owner: James Miller
Items for which cash would be needed in a self-sufficient
homestead:
- property taxes
- sugar, salt, spices, etc.
- gasoline for truck, tractor, etc.
- propane for heating and cooking
- electricity for lights, refrigerator, water pump,
washing machine, etc.
- fertilizer for garden
- seeds for garden
- feed for animals
- bulk rice, beans, flour, etc. for use as food
staples
- clothing
- shoes
Note. Some of the above you could do without. You could do
without gasoline if you didn't have a truck or tractor; you
could do without propane by cooking and heating with wood;
you could do without electricity by not having electric
lights or refrigerator; you could minimize the need for
fertilizer by using composted manure; you would need no
feed for animals if you raised no animals.
How could you minimize the expenses on the above items that
require cash?
Property taxes
- own property that is not worth much (small house with
unpainted, poor-looking exterior; small amount of
land)
- own property in a locality where there are no property
taxes or where the tax rates are very low
- live on someone else's property (caretake someone's
property)
Sugar, salt, spices, etc.
- adapt your cooking and eating habits to foods in which
very little sugar, spices, etc. are used
Gasoline for truck, tractor etc.
- don't own a truck, tractor, etc.
Propane for heating and cooking
- use wood for heating and cooking
- use Chinese wok, pressure cooker, and other low-energy
cooking techniques
- have a well insulated house that holds heat in
- generate your own propane from manure as the Chinese
do
Electricity for lights, refrigerator, water pump, etc.
- generate electricity from wind or solar cells
- use propane, kerosene, gasoline or battery powered
lights
- use fluorescent lights
- use a propane powered refrigerator or do without a
refrigerator
- modify refrigerator by making walls thicker (i.e.
adding more insulation)
- use a small refrigerator
- use old fashioned manual water pump
Fertilizer for garden
- use intensive gardening techniques (Chinese raised-
bed, French intensive, etc.)
- keep a compost pile
- use manure
Feed for animals
- raise animals such as goats, geese and ducks that will
scrounge for their own food and require little
store-bought food
- don't raise animals; hunt and fish for meat supply
Bulk rice, beans, flour, etc.
- buy in bulk at good prices (use an old chest freezer
for pest-proof storage)
Clothing
- wear blue jeans the most of the time
- buy second-hand clothing
- ask for give-away used clothing
Shoes
- wear home-made wooden sandals or go barefoot in the
warmer months.
Oct 1982
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