Cornerstone Acres Farm 

This will be a small acreage homesteading tutorial lasting about 5 hours. We will be showing what it is possible to do on 2 acres (or less) to allow you and your family to become less reliant on the grocery store and a bit more self-sufficient.

1) We will be highlighting some of the best small acreage livestock. (This won't be a course focusing too much on the care of the livestock, but what the livestock can provide.)

Goats of course happen to be our favorite all around small acreage livestock - able to provide milk, meat and fiber!!

Rabbits are great for even the smallest of homesteads! Rabbits excel at providing you with meat, warm pelts, fiber and awesome ready to use fertilizer.

Chickens are a superior source of manure, eggs and meat. We’ll show you how you can propagate your chickens so they provide you with a long term source of meat and eggs.

Pigs are masters of the soil - providing rototilling, weeding and some insect control they are beneficial both in the early spring garden and in the freezer! Did you know there were alternatives to the HUGE farm hogs? We’ll show you!

2) Need to make some cash to supplement what you can’t raise on the farm? Let us show you different ways to provide a little extra cash from the fruits of your labors using valued added products and services.

3) What homestead would be complete without a garden? We will show you ways to be creative with limited space. Go vertical!! Go container planting!! We will show you ways to utilize that livestock previously mentioned to give back to the soil what the plants remove. We will also show you the necessary tools to preserve you harvest with a few different methods. Seed saving will also be demonstrated.

4) Certain perennials may take a while to become established but are an investment well worth the wait! Adding edible landscape items to your acreage can be one of the best investments ever. From fruit trees and blueberry bushes to rhubarb and asparagus we will show you some basics on how to grow and maintain these valuable additions.

5) If you think homesteading is an “easy” life, we might be changing your mind a bit. However if it is the way you decide to live your life there is NOTHING more satisfying at the end of a day to say “I made (grew, raised) this!!” We will share with you both the trials and the tribulations that may be faced during this never ending journey.

6) Is minimalizing your impact on the world around you also an important part of why you would like to begin the homesteading lifestyle? From collecting rainwater to no till (or minimal till) garden bed preparation we will show you ways to accomplish that.

7) Want some ideas for in the house? We are now “making our own” for MANY things. From laundry soap and dishwasher detergent to toothpaste and taco seasoning we will provide you with some interesting ways to get “processed” out of the process of living!!

8) Interested in some wild foraging? While we will not be taking any off farm tours, we will share with you some ideas for what (and when) to look for different wild items that are abundant here in Michigan.