best books on urban homesteading
This list of the best books on urban homesteading will help you to find all the help you need to start add a bit of homesteading to your suburban or city life.
Homesteading tips are not just for young country folk; they are for everyone, no matter where they live or their age.
I have been living a homesteading lifestyle for a few decades now and it has made our lives more intentional and less stressful.
Over the years I have learned so much including
- How to streamline our home so we have less clutter lying around.
- How to raise and grow our own food so we rely less on the stores.
- How to make what we need so we keep more of our money.
- How to create a realistic budget that is easy to stick to.
- How to make food that is healthier for our entire family.
But more has happened in the last decade that has really brought homesteading to the forefront. People have found ways to add some of it to their life no matter where they live or what age they are.
Homesteading isn’t an all-or-nothing deal. You can set up a homesteading kitchen, for example, even if the rest of your home is the opposite.
Homesteading a little is better than nothing at all and that is the best news yet.
What does Urban homesteading mean in today’s world?
Homesteading mainly means living a self-sufficient lifestyle in which you depend more on your home skills and less on outside help. This includes food, clothes, skills, health care, and other areas.
By breaking homesteading down you can add one area at a time until you have a more self-sufficient home supporting how you want to live.
best books on urban homesteading
I love to have a library in my home, with books that I can bring out whenever I need to research an area I want to learn more about. This list centers on urban homesteading and includes topics you can add to your learning catalog.
#1. Urban Homesteading
This is a great book to have mainly because it is full of practical tips but also because it includes stories from people already living this lifestyle. It focuses on sustainability, growing food, and DIY projects that anyone can try. If you are a city person longing for a simple life, this is a good book to have.
Urban Homesteading: Heirloom Skills for Sustainable Living
#2. The Backyard Homestead: Produce all the food you need on just a quarter acre!
This book tends to be on many of my lists mainly because it is the best book, in my opinion, for small-scale homesteading outside the home.
Even if you live on smaller than a quarter acre, this book still has so much information to give. From growing food to vine care, raising bees, and canning making it a resource that is valuable to own. My favorite pages are the layout maps that help you to visualize this small scale setup.
The Backyard Homestead: Produce all the food you need on just a quarter acre!
#3. A Starting Point for Urban Homesteading
I love this book! Not only is it full of practical tips, but its whole focus is also on city homesteading. It not only talks about soap making, personal care items you can make, bread making, and medicinal options, it also touches on the mindset of a homesteader.
Even if you have neighbors all around you, you can still be a homesteader in the way you live and the way you think.
#4. The Backyard Homestead Book of Kitchen Know-How: Field-to-Table Cooking Skills
Growing your own food is only part of a homesteading approach, knowing the best way to preserve and cook it is the next. This book will walk you through the best way to make the most of your food.
Yes, this is more of a large-scale approach, but one visit to a farmer’s market will have you stocked and ready to try some of these tips out.
If sourdough is something you want to learn more about, this book is a great place to start.
The Backyard Homestead Book of Kitchen Know-How: Field-to-Table Cooking Skills
#5. Beginner’s Guide to Successful Container Gardening
Let’s face it, if you live in an urban area you may not have the room for a traditional garden setup. Don’t think that means you can’t grow your food, you can and all you need is a bit of sun and the right container.
I love to grow our garden using containers and this book will give you the best information for doing it the right way.
You’ll learn how to maximize space, choose the correct container for the plants you want to grow and tips on seed saving so you can make the most of your stock.
#6. The Prairie Homestead Cookbook: Simple Recipes for Heritage Cooking
I have been a long-time fan of Jill’s, and her cookbook doesn’t disappoint. Her focus is on heritage cooking, and you may recognize a few from her grandmother’s kitchen.
There are recipes that cover every niche of food with a few hidden gems included as well.
The Prairie Homestead Cookbook: Simple Recipes for Heritage Cooking in Any Kitchen
#7. The Simple Home: A Month-by-Month Guide to Self-Reliance
This book is a bit different from the rest as it focuses more on a schedule rather than the overall picture. This can be super helpful, especially if adopting this new way of life is overwhelming at this point.
Each month focuses on a different topic, so by the end of the year, you will have learned 12 self-sufficient lessons. She covers laundry, food preservation, crafts, and baking. Great topics that you can start out with as you get your footing with this lifestyle.
The Simple Home: A Month-by-Month Guide to Self-Reliance, Productivity and Contentment
When learning about homesteading, books can be incredibly helpful. Take them out from your local library and begin scouring through the pages. If you find a book you know will be a valuable asset, you can purchase it and add it to your home library.
Keep this list of the best books on urban homesteading so you can refer to them whenever you want to add more books to your home.
