Ok, so there are a lot of summer farm activities to tackle: gardening, chickens laying eggs like crazy and it is HOT out! But, once October hits, what are some Fall farm activities that you should be working on?
Keep reading for some great ideas that will keep your homestead goals going.
Here are 5 Fall Farm Activities to get you started:
- Fall Garden Crops
- Garden Clean Out
- Goat Breeding
- Building Projects
- Food Preservation
Now, let's dive into a little more detail on each of these activities so that you can get your homestead started in the Fall right.
Fall Garden Crops
A lot of garden crops are grown in spring in summer, like growing summer squash and growing cucumbers, there are also several crops to harvest in the Fall. For instance, pumpkins, peppers, tomatoes, cabbage and broccoli.
Planting time for these veggies is earlier in the season, but harvesting and processing time runs into the Fall. One thing we love to make in late summer/early Fall is this salsa.
Garden Clean Out
Once the garden settles down, we let the chickens go into the garden and dig around. This lets them eat yummy leftovers as well as to eat any yucky bugs we don't want around next season.
Chickens love to eat a plethora of fruits and veggies. Chickens can eat zucchini and chickens can eat watermelon, but be aware of tomato plants because chickens can eat some tomatos.
Additionally, letting chickens into the garden helps to turn up the soil.
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Goat Breeding
Early Fall is perfect time to breed your goats. They typically start coming into strong heat during this time, so it is easy to get them bred. Also, it gets them ready to kid right in late winter/early spring.
Building Projects
Now that the weather is nicer (and before the cold of winter sets in), it's a good time to start some of the bigger outside projects that there haven't been time for during the heat of spring and summer.
Think about getting chicken coops and chicken runs predator proofed, chicken runs patched up, stalls, fencing and other structures cleaned and fixed up as well.
Basically, take advantage of the little more time you have have and the likely nicer weather and get things all set up and ready to go into the winter.
Food Preservation
Whether you fell a little behind during peak harvest time, have fall harvest crops still coming in, or found some great sales in the store, Fall is a great time for food preservation.
Typically, there is a little less going on outside on the homestead at this time and getting food preserved and stocked up going into winter and the coming year is a great idea. Having a stock pile of preserved food is also a great way to save money on your homestead.
One of the easiest things to do is freeze vegetables, fruits and anything else you want to preserve.
If you found this helpful check out, The Fruitful Homesteader: A Goal Setting and Project Planning System so that you can get your homestead working for you.
