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When you’re young, strong and healthy, you’re ready to take on all the challenges life can throw at you. After years of homesteading, the work begins to seem more challenging, it’s harder to maintain the level of activity you once did. Let’s face it, we’re all going to age, and with the passing of time, adaptations may need to be made on the homestead to allow us to stay there and maintain the lifestyle we love so.

Let me clarify, this does not apply to everyone. I’m well-acquainted with some senior folks who can seriously work a 30 year old into the ground. There are many healthy and vibrant elder ranchers and farmers out there keeping pace with the younger folks.

Unfortunately, all it takes is one illness or accident to change our lives, no matter what our age. The risk increases as we get older, our reflexes slow, and our bodies are more tired and sore. Injury and illness are an all too present risk as older folks live and work on their homesteads. 

The good news is, adaptations can be made to your homestead workflow and routines that will enable you to cope more easily and work smarter, rather than harder.

Feeding Animals and Hay Management 

Using horse power in the form of a small tractor, a lawn tractor or an ATV is one of the best investments you can make in working smarter. Get something that can haul a small trailer and carry a couple of bales of hay or feed sacks. Reduce the amount of heavy lifting you need to do on a regular basis.

One way is to feed larger quantities at once, so you don’t have to move heavy bales as frequently. If that’s not a good option, you can have your hay squeezed onto a flatbed trailer in blocks, and then there is no need to stack or move it. You can simply put it under cover, and push the bales off as you need them. 

Pour your bulk feed into watertight barrels for storage so that you only have to lift them twice. Use a scoop to measure out the feed into individual buckets or pans for easy lifting.

Set up your feed the afternoon before to make it quicker and more convenient to feed everyone for the next morning. 

Getting Around A Large Property

While healthcare experts recommend walking for your health, it can become difficult to walk the distance of larger properties. That’s where that horsepower, (ATV or lawn tractor)can be a real life-saver.It is also more financially responsible to use these smaller gas engines, rather than a full-sized truck for moderate amounts of acreage.  Driving small vehicles can also come in very handy in case of an emergency where you need to get out to the back 40 in a hurry.

It’s also helpful to have easy access for moving or loading your animals to brand,vaccinate, vet, or take them to market. A series of alleyways and gates is the simplest way to accomplish this. With this type of set-up, you can corral your animals for veterinary care or breeding purposes, as well as control pasture rotation for even grazing with cattle and sheep.

Cleaning Pens and Manure Management

Depending on what types of animals you’re raising, manure management is a constant issue. 

One way to work smarter on this task is to create piles that allow the manure to compost. You can use your tractor bucket to scrape the pens or use a deep bedding method that allows you to pile clean bedding upon the dirty bedding in layers, then to scrape them to the bare dirt a few times per year.

Creating manure piles is sustainable in that you can use the composted materials for your garden beds or to spread on fields. There are also nearly always local gardeners or nurseries that will come haul it away for you, some will even pay you for the privilege. 

If your set up doesn’t allow for the tractor to drive in and out, you may have to do this one by hand. If you clean daily or weekly, depending upon how many animals you are housing, you can usually keep up with it without an issue. If you’re physically unable to maintain the manure situation, you may need to consider downsizing the amount of livestock you’re keeping or hire someone to do it more often.

Splitting Wood for Burning

When you get to the point that swinging an ax is no longer feasible, there are a few pieces of equipment that you can purchase that will allow you to keep splitting wood for your wood burning stove. 

Wood splitting machines come in both gas -powered and electric models.  You can set the splitter up to be horizontal or vertical. Then comes the challenge of lifting the rounds up onto the splitter.

Amazon.com: DCAUT 50.9inch Heavy Duty Steel Logging Tools Log Jack, Timberjack Log Lifter, Adjustable Log Roller Cant Hook : Patio, Lawn & Garden

Buy yourself a “pickaroon” and “log lifters” and find a comfortable stump or stool to sit on. This means you have assistance to lift the rounds to the splitter, and you can be seated while doing the work, and save your back.

Amazon.com : Fiskars 8 lb. Splitting Maul – 36″ Shock-Absorbing, Comfort Grip Handle – Rust Resistant Forged Steel Blade – Wood Splitter Maul for Hardwood – Split Wood for Campfires – Bushcraft Gear : Patio, Lawn & Garden

Another option is to buy cord wood that has already been split and pay the extra fee for the seller to stack it at your home.

One of the major draws of homesteading for young families is the desire to be independent, to have food sustainability and a place of one’s own. Beware of being too insular and independent, because the time may come when you will need to ask for help. Being a good neighbor creates good neighbors, and you never know when you or they may need assistance.

Ongoing maintenance is always an issue on the homestead, and you may need to enlist the help of a hired hand or one of your adult children to help with things like fence repair, felling trees, cutting firewood, building, roofing, and other heavy work that you cannot manage on your own.

The trick is to catch the problem right away before it falls further into disrepair. It doesn’t take long for things to break down if you don’t keep up with them. You’ll turn around and see that your place is beginning to look dilapidated and poorly maintained. None of us wants that, so do your best to keep up with small repairs, and yes, you might need to hire someone to help with larger projects. There’s no shame in it.

This is the part no one really wants to talk about but should.

Downsizing

Part of being smart about your homestead as you age is to look at the present and future practically and realistically. Nobody wants to admit that they can’t manage, but there may come a time when you have to face this fact. What can you do then?

  • You can lease out parts of your property to be farmed and managed by another rancher
  • You can hire someone to manage your place for you, and reduce your active role in the daily operations. It would be great if you had an adult child that wanted to take over, but that’s not always the situation, so seek out someone you can trust that comes highly recommended, with a proven record of success
  • You can sell off some of your acreage, and keep the main homestead as your home 
  • You can reduce the number of animals in your care to reduce the workload
  • You can sell out and move to a smaller property that is easier to manage or move away from rural living altogether

It’s a good idea to have a family meeting, and discuss what the next 5-10 years may look like for you, and what your options are. This all depends on the economy, financial concerns, the real estate market and the livestock market. It’s important to develop your strategies and explore your options now, for the near and distant future. 

Here at  http://homesteadeducationchannel.com/, we are dedicated to helping you find resources, education, and information regarding all aspects of the homesteading lifestyle.

Photos courtesy of Pexels.com

2 Responses

  1. We invested in a wood splitter a couple of years ago. Best investment ever!

    Next will be an ATV. I’d love to find a used four-seater so I can take my elders (well into their 80’s) around the property.

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