A homestead, or a smallholding, differs from simply growing food for consumption in a kitchen garden (or similar)because the goal should be to achieve as high a level of self-sufficiency as possible. It often includes livestock and the growing of surplus food that can be sold for profit, with the idea that this can be used to cover costs such as electricity, equipment and buying new stock. However, in practice it is very hard to achieve complete self sufficiency.

If you are new to smallholding, then it is not a good idea to rely fully on your smallholding to support your household,...