Welcome to Backyard Farming!

Growing up I always wanted to live on a farm. I wanted to spend time outdoors - able to hear the wind blowing through the trees and fields - to spend time with animals - to work with my own hands. That desire continued into my college years and as I started my own family. Together my husband and I dreamed of moving out to a piece of land after we finished school to live more simply but life took us in a different direction. We applied for jobs - looked at different communities and homes and found ourselves in the middle of a large suburb of an even larger city. We longed for the lifestyle we had dreamed of, but we also enjoyed the benefits of living in a place so close to friends, schools, churches, shopping, and work. We were torn between living in two seemingly opposite worlds.

After a few years we realized that it was possible to enjoy many of the activities of rural living in our suburban home. We planted a highly productive herb and vegetable garden and enjoyed our harvest for many seasons. Still though, we wanted more, we wanted animals! We visited local feed stores and farms and investigated what, if any, farm animals could live happily in our backyard. Around this time some friends of ours started their own backyard flock of chickens. After some encouragement we went to the local feed store and came home with four baby chicks. For the first six weeks they lived in a box in our pantry while we designed and built a simple chicken coop in our backyard. We were hooked and our quest for a backyard farm had begun! Little by little we are adding small activities to give both simplicity and joy to our daily lives.

Backyard farming is the idea that we can bring a little piece of a simple country life to the city or suburb where we live. Whether you live on 1/16 of an acre or 20 acres there are some simple and healthy activities that can be incorporated into daily life that are good not only for your own family - but for the planet. This site is dedicated to those things. We hope not only to give you a glimpse into the things that bring us joy - but also to provide some practical instruction. Whether you're interested in adding a small herb garden to your patio, having your own compost pile, or obtaining a flock of backyard chickens - this is the place for you!

-Megan Knorpp