Part of our mission at Homeplace is to educate people about agriculture. This can take many forms, from learning about historical methods of planting and harvesting, hosting historical re-enactments that celebrate old traditions and techniques, and preserving the buildings on the historic farm, to implementing the most cutting edge growing practices on our cropland and hosting a recipient goat herd in our pasture land. We want to connect people to the land to their food, and to each other!
Homesteading as a lifestyle has undergone a tremendous rebirth and has a rapidly growing following. People all over the country and in fact the world are reclaiming old knowledge of self sufficiency and living off the land. Many are working to infuse old methods with new techniques as they focus on sustainability not just for themselves and their lands ability to provide for themselves, but on their lands health and connection to the greater ecosystem we all share. Homesteading as a lifestyle has no set parameters, and can people can be involved in minimal ways like growing a simple summer vegetable garden, or roof-top bee keeping, all the way to raising alpacas to harvest and process fiber for one's own clothing, and preserving enough homegrown meat, fruits, and vegetables to last their families through the winter. At its core, Homesteading, is making a choice to produce the necessities of life in the home or community, rather than from a store.
In the early part of 2021 we were approached by folks from the Kentucky Preparedness Network (now the Mutual Assistance Group Network) about partnering in the production of a Homesteading conference. Intrigued, we dove into deep discussions about what that could look like. We concluded that not only is this type of event one that aligns with our mission as an organization, but one that the beautiful spaces and buildings here at Homeplace are perfectly suited for. In September of 2022, we held South Central Kentucky's first ever Homesteading conference. All things considered it was a great success and cemented our partnership with The Mutual Assistance Groupto make this event an annual occurrence. We hope to grow this event each year to serve the going need for education on empowering people to live sustainably and in harmony with nature.
