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Planning your backyard farm is one of the most exciting, and most important, things you can do before you dig your first hole or bring home your first animal. After more than 15 years of homesteading across three different properties, I can tell you that the homesteaders who thrive are almost always the ones who spent a little time planning upfront.

The good news? You don’t need acres of land or a huge budget to get started. Whether you’re dreaming of a few raised beds on a suburban lot, a small flock of backyard chickens, or a full working homestead on several acres, the planning process looks similar — and we’ve got resources here to walk you through every step of it.

This page is your starting point for everything related to backyard farm planning: assessing your space, setting realistic goals, choosing what to grow and raise, and building a homestead that actually fits your life.

Planning a Backyard Farm? Fabulous – we’re here to help

Whether you’re new to backyard farming, are moving and starting a new modern homestead, or are just looking to reassess your backyard farming goals, there is a lot to think about and consider.

• Do you want to raise animals?
• How big should you plan your garden?
• What fruit trees grow best in your climate zone?
• What are the best tools for backyard farming?
• How to practice sustainability in your home?

Spending a little time planning your backyard farm will save you time and money in the long run. We’re here to help! If this is your first time here, START HERE, or explore the articles and links below.

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Learn more about getting starting with your backyard farm, garden and animals

Looking for inspiration: Check out our 100+ Homesteading Quotes.

Hello I'm Gretchen!  We've been homesteading for over 15 years and sharing our stories to help you on your journey.  Here at the Backyard Farming Connection we are connecting the dots between gardening, raising animals, and from scratch cooking and baking.  Make sure to sign up for our newsletter to get up to date recipes, gardening tips, and support for raising backyard animals. 

What to Think About When Planning Your Backyard Farm

Your space and what it can support. Before anything else, take a honest look at your yard. How much sun does it get? Is the soil workable or are you starting with clay or compacted ground? Do you have areas that stay wet? Working with your land rather than against it will save you enormous amounts of time and money. A shady yard might point you toward fruit trees and shade-tolerant greens rather than a sun-hungry tomato garden. A wet corner might be perfect for a duck setup.

Gardens, animals, or both, and in what order. Most new homesteaders do best starting with a garden before adding animals. Growing your own food builds the rhythms and routines that animal care also requires, and it gives you a real sense of what your time and energy budget actually looks like. That said, a small flock of chickens is surprisingly manageable and pairs beautifully with a garden. There’s no single right answer, the right answer is the one that fits your life right now.

Your climate and growing zone. Your USDA hardiness zone shapes almost every decision you make, what you can grow, when to plant, which fruit trees will survive your winters, and whether certain animals need extra shelter. If you don’t know your zone, it’s worth looking up before you buy a single seed packet.

Your budget and how to stretch it. It is entirely possible to spend more on your homestead setup than you’ll ever save on groceries. Starting small, using salvaged materials, and adding infrastructure gradually is almost always the smarter path. Decide early on what your biggest priorities are good soil, the right tools, a solid raised bed setup and put your money there first.

A plan that can grow with you. The best backyard farm plan isn’t the most ambitious one — it’s the one you’ll actually stick with. Start with two or three goals for your first year, build the skills and systems that support them, and let the homestead grow from there. The resources on this page are designed to help you do exactly that.