

When searching for the definition of the term homestead, the primary results include something like this: To be profitable means finding a balance between cost of equipment, supplies, labor and the maximum scale of the operation that can be accomplished with those available resources.

This tendency to special is due to the cost of specific equipment needed to scale up that particular operation. Dairy farms will usually only raise dairy cows and grow food to support them. Combining the wheat during harvest takes specialized and expensive equipmentĪnother characteristic of a farm is that farms will often times specialize in a certain type of agriculture such as strictly cash crops like corn, beets, and beans, or strictly beef cattle with supporting feed crops. Since generating income is the primary goal, sustainability can get put on the back burner and creativity in farming methods can be diminished. While farms are often sustainable, they tend to focus on the most conventional farming methods to increase profit, first and foremost. It is an ongoing cycle that is reliant on consumers financially supporting it by buying products so that the farm can continue planting or raising animals to then sell back to consumers.
Hobby farm vs homestead how to#
In this article we will talk more in depth about the differences between these two systems as well as how to get involved in them. The primary difference here is not the activity but the motivation. Homesteaders will often raise livestock or plant crops to then harvest and consume, while farmers grow crops or raise animals for sale. On a homestead, you cultivate your own land with more of a purpose to become self-sufficient and live off of the land, less so to sell products. What is the difference between a homestead and a farm? A farm generates money by selling their products, whether they be from livestock or from land. In general terms though there are some differences between the two.

Many if not most activities that occur on one also happen on the the other. Often, people confuse a homestead with a farm because they are centered around similar practices and models.
