Homesteading Skills: Top 25 Must-Learn Skills

If you want to succeed in homesteading, then there are a few skills that you should know before jumping into the journey.

I was born and raised in off-grid conditions, and this taught me several skills that I couldn’t imagine not having.

I’ve also learned that you never really stop learning, but a few skills that, once learned, make everything else slip into place much more effortlessly.

I’m going to list several critical skills to know for a successful homestead to come to fruition.

We recommend that you learn them before jumping into it, but that’s not to say you can’t learn these skills on the spot.

Learning on the job, so to speak, is essentially just as good, if not better, than learning on paper.

1: Gardening

I often see many novices inquire about which skills are the most important to learn.

Knowing how to garden is an essential skill that, if known, can and will provide for as many people as necessary.

It’s also essential to become educated on your climate and soil type and which crops are best planted during certain times of the year.

2: Butchering

If you plan on livestock being at least a partial source of food, then you’ll need to learn how to butcher them.

It’s not entirely complicated, but it’ll undoubtedly have a small learning curve.

I’d recommend chain gloves if you do not have much experience with butcher knives. Otherwise, you’ll be able to learn this skill in no time.

3: Making Money

You’ll need an income of some sort unless you want to live like a caveman (which seems fun, by the way), which can quickly be done on a homestead.

Beekeeping, livestock meat, fur, milk, cheese, and more, can be an excellent income source.

Sure, it’ll require an initial investment but will provide long-term income and food.

4: Food Preservation

All the sourced food will need to be put in storage, as you’ll likely have more than you can consume.

This can be done by canning the food, dehydrating it, or fermenting it.

Luckily, all of this has a low learning curve, and it’ll extend the shelf life of the food by a considerable amount if done correctly.

5: Farming Cows

If you have enough space, farming cows is a great thing to get into. This will require skill, though, such as milking the cows, sheltering them, and making sure they stay healthy.

Cows shouldn’t be an investment for livestock novices.

Still, once you’ve had the opportunity to raise smaller livestock like chickens, goats, or pigs, cows are an incredible addition to any homestead.

6: Water Sourcing

One of the most critical skills necessary to sustain a homestead is water sourcing.

This can be done in several ways. Rainwater harvesting, sourcing water from a creek, or filling up via a portable tank are the best ways.

Portable tanks are great for homesteads located in the desert, as you can fill them up in town when needed.

7: Farming Chickens

Learning how to raise chickens and use them for food or income is a skill in itself.

You’ll need to learn how to raise, butcher them, and process them for sale. This may seem challenging, but in reality, it’s enjoyable and rewarding.

You must also need to know how to incubate the eggs if you decide to raise the chicks into adult birds.

8: Hunting Wildlife

If you have enough land, hunting can be an excellent way to source meat if you know how to preserve it properly.

You’ll need a hunting license, a firearm, and know-how of when and how to hunt individual animals.

They each require slightly different methods to be hunted successfully, but with enough research and experience, it’ll become second nature.

9: Off-Grid Cooking

If you desire to cook your food using more traditional methods instead of using finite electricity, then learning how to cook off-grid is critical.

You can do this by a wood-burning stove, solar oven, a gas or charcoal grill, or by only cooking over an open fire, to name a few.

There are tons of off-grid cooking recipes, so this should prove easy to do after some trial and error.

10: Beekeeping

This is one of my favorite skills, and I recommend that everyone try it. Beekeeping can provide honey, candles, candy, medicine, and much more from a single hive.

Plus, if you have enough of them, they can be used as an income source, making you thousands of dollars per year.

Harvesting, processing, and selling the honey all require know-how that takes time.

Check out our guide to homestead beekeeping.

11: Composting

This is one of the several underrated skills that should be learned. Composting is super simple to learn, and it’ll give you excellent fertilizer.

Just about anything can be tossed inside a composting bin, such as food, cotton, and more.

This will provide you with an edge on growing a healthier garden, leaving you with beautiful and tasty produce.

12: Farming Pigs

If you want to have plenty of pork to put on the table or simply want to breed them for an extra income, them learning how to farm pigs is a great skill to learn.

Luckily, it’s not difficult to wrap your head around, but they are very messy, so you’ll need to be prepared for regular cleaning around their pen.

Their feces also make for excellent fertilizer, as just about any other wastes do.

13: Fire Starting

Unless you want to use up the power in your battery banks, learning how to start a fire is essential. It’s not always easy, especially without proper tools.

You should know how to create a fire without any means available, as you may not have access to them during critical situations.

Some lighters won’t even light up if it’s too cold outside.

14: Trapping

Something that you may not have thought of is livestock predators, ones that will make every attempt to take down your livestock.

They can be challenging to catch or kill, so learning how to trap is very important.

This is legal in most states, specifically for nuisance animals like raccoons or possums.

15: Tool Maintenance

Tools such as chainsaws will inevitably need repairs done to them, such as blade replacements, engine repairs, and more.

If you have tractors, lawnmowers, or tillers, these will also need maintenance. Luckily, there are several guides out there to help you along with this.

You’ll also need a reliable toolset, and some of them require a learning curve before proficiency is met.

16: Farming Turkeys

Turkeys are some of the best birds that could ever be put on a homestead. They lay edible eggs, make for delicious dishes, and sell like hotcakes at auctions.

Raising turkeys and growing them into healthy adults comes with a need for specific skills, but after some time, this will be an easy task.

Plus, they can be raised alongside chickens, too, saving on space.

17: Heating Your Home

This is a challenge I ran into when I first lived off-grid, and it’s something you should become knowledgeable in before you live off-grid full time.

Learn how to start a fire, find a power-efficient heater, perhaps consider propane, or use a solar heater.

This may seem simple, but you should allow yourself time before counting on yourself to keep your home warm on day one.

18: Knife Sharpening

Butchering and processing all of the livestock are undoubtedly going to dull your knife.

I’ve butchered more animals than I can count, both as a career and personally on my property.

Having a good knife sharpener is critical because you’re asking for trouble attempting to process animals with a dull knife. There is undoubtedly a learning curve, though, so be careful.

19: Sourcing Electricity

If you want to have access to electricity on your homestead, it has to be off-grid.

You can source electricity off-grid via a windmill, solar panels, or water wheels, although, in my opinion, solar is best.

Learning how to operate them and make them the most effective is a skill in itself, but it’s not all too difficult. The real skill is making your homestead power efficient.

20: First-Aid

An essential skill to learn is first-aid. You more than likely live out of town, and if this is the case, you may put yourself or others at unnecessary risk without a first-aid kit.

You should also have a snake bite kit as well, as this could literally save a life, and not just a limb.

Make certain to have at least a basic first aid kit for livestock, and understand how to use them both ASAP.

21: Farming Goats

Goats have an innumerable amount of uses for a homestead. For starters, they can provide delicious milk, so learning how to milk a goat can go a long way.

This can also be used to make cheese, which makes for great additions to dishes.

You can also use the goats for wool, but doing this requires a bit of skill, so make positive to do your research beforehand.

22: DIY Condiments

You’re going to have a lot more food than you probably think, and you likely want it to be tasty.

This means that unless you want those unhealthy bottles of ketchup or seasonings at the store, you should learn how to make your condiments.

This isn’t hard, so buying a recipe book should teach you how to make them after harvesting.

23: Foraging

If you desire to take even more advantage of what mother earth has to offer, then learning how and what to forage for is pretty neat.

You can forage for things like mushrooms, berries, and more. It’s essential to identify the plants; this way, you can find more safe plants and less dangerous ones.

There are also commonly several medicinal herbs just waiting to be picked.

24: Fishing

Even if you do not have a pond or an area where you can fish on your property, going to the local fishing hole is a great way to put some tasty food on the table.

There is undoubtedly a skill for fishing, but it’s not that large for common fish like bass or catfish.

There are tons of resources to learn from, including books, youtube fisherman, and much more.

25: Firearm usage

Finally, learning how to use a firearm properly is essential, as it will not only provide ample protection for you, your family, and the livestock, but they can be used for hunting as well.

I’d recommend a regular file for hunting, such as a 30-30 or 30-06.

Although ARs and shotguns can still be used to hunt and for protection, ARs have a higher skill gap, so pick your poison.

Frequently Asked Questions

How Can I Learn These Skills?

The skills may seem helpful and all, but how can you learn them? I’ve thought about this, so I’m going to recommend a few ways.

The best way you can use to learn is by asking other homesteaders in the desert questions. Find a few and befriend them; they’ll love to chat with you.

You may also like the idea of homesteading books or perhaps subscribe to a few homesteading YouTube channels.

Which Firearm Is Best?

I typically recommend a 30-30 for most novices, as they are straightforward to shoot, simple to clean and maintain, plus they can pierce through thick brush easily.

However, 30-30s are not great at long-range shots, and since you’d be in the desert in wide-open spaces, I’m going to suggest the 30-06 or 7mm.

Those two are great for long-range hunting, but if you’d like a self-defense weapon, a shotgun is more than enough.

Is Trapping Legal?

As mentioned before, trapping is a great way to catch nuisance animals such as raccoons, possums, and coyotes.

This is regulated by law, though, and the regulations are very different by state and county.

I’d contact your city hall to get the specifics, as it’s challenging to answer this question generally.

Verdict

There are hundreds of more homestead skills worth learning, but if you understand the skills listed here, all of the others will inevitably fall into place.

Jumping into homesteading blind with no skills is possible, but being at least prepared by understanding this list is going to benefit you significantly.

I believe preparation triumphs over all things, which is why I made this list. You’ll certainly face a few mountains, but if you take the time to learn these skills, it’ll be a breeze.

You can’t anticipate becoming an expert at them all at first, but with time, everything will become second nature.

I hope you’ve discovered a thing or two here, and if you have, consider sharing this with your friends; this way, they can learn from this too.

Now, check out our more detailed articles on homesteading skills:

Homesteading Skills Articles