Time

It has been just over 1 year since we bought the ranch/farm, and we are more than halfway through our second growing season. What I am most impressed with, if I can use the phrase correctly, is how much time it takes to get significant food production on a small holding.

It takes several years to amend and compost a vegitable garden, which in our case is about 100' x 100' (does not include the corn, wheat, and potato plots - these require MUCH more ground). Give this some thought: to make a 10,000 sqft garden plot fertile takes about 4 inches of composted manure plus another inch or 2 of wood chips, leaves, or straw. That is 5,000 cubic (not sqft, we are talking volume here, not area) feet of organic material. This takes some time, and then the material has to react with the soil before it is bio available... Say 3 to 4 years for optimum fertility - and you must continue your efforts or production will decline.

For the most part you have just one growing season. Here in Middle Tennessee it starts April 15 and ends, in stages, from July 15 to September 1. If you make a mistake, have a storm, suffer a pest invasion, disease... well, that's it till next year. This is why most farmers prior to WW II maintained 1 full year's food supply in their larder - in case something bad happens to the crops. Even if your growing season is successful, your food preservation needs to successful, too, or you won't be self sufficient for long. During harvest season it is EASY to keep the table well supplied, how well you do so come February or March is the real issue.

Fruit trees don't produce for their first few years, even if you buy dwarf (I recommend them) trees. You will need at least 3 trees of each kind of fruit you plan to grow, so I would plant 5 or 6 as you will lose 1 or 2. That means 30 or more trees to be dug in and planted (apple, pear, plum, and peach all will grow in much of the lower 48), so in addition to time you better have a strong back... Say 3 to 4 years for fruit production.

Cattle, sheep, and goats for meat consumption and milk production take several years to breed and grow. Chickens, rabbits, and pigs take less time but still their feed supply is at least 1 season, and probably 2, away.

Provisioning your homestead with tools and implements will take more than 1 year, unless you make it your full time job, and learning how to use them all is no small feat.

If you are thinking of providing any important amount of food for your family, the preparations take much longer than many might think, and I think the "time to prepare" element must fit more prominently in your calculations.