On our Own Homestead

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On our Own Homestead Welcome to our little slice of heaven, or as we like to call it, "The Plantation of Questionable Life Choices."

We're humble homesteaders, attempting to turn this plot of land into a thriving ecosystem of chaos and veggies.

10/05/2026

New Tea Blends - available now!

We’ve been working on something new here at On Our Own Homestead, and we’re finally ready to share it!Over the past seve...
09/28/2026

We’ve been working on something new here at On Our Own Homestead, and we’re finally ready to share it!

Over the past several weeks, we’ve been blending, experimenting, taste testing, and finding new ways to use some of the herbs, fruits, and botanicals we grow right here on our homestead.

The result is four new products that we’re really excited about: Second Spring, Moringa Sunshine, Hearth & Harvest, and our Elderberry Hearth DIY Elderberry Syrup Kit.

Each one is a little different, but they all reflect what we love about homesteading: growing what we can, making things ourselves and finding useful and delicious ways to enjoy what we harvest :)

We wrote a new blog post introducing all four, sharing what’s in them, how they came together, and a little more about why we decided to start creating our own herbal blends.

We’d love for you to give it a read and let us know which one you’d like to try first!

https://www.onourownhomestead.com/post/something-new-is-brewing-on-the-homestead

Please enjoy ❤

09/17/2026

UPDATE on Trump’s “PROCESS THEIR OWN FOOD” announcement

USDA just announced a $50 million program to help states create or expand their own meat inspection programs. That could mean more processing options for small farmers and ranchers.

But there’s an important distinction.
Federally inspected meat can generally be sold across state lines.

State-inspected meat can generally be sold within that state. Qualifying small state-inspected processors can sell interstate if they participate in USDA’s Cooperative Interstate Shipment (CIS) program.

Custom-exempt meat is different. It’s still generally marked “NOT FOR SALE.” This announcement does NOT mean farmers can butcher a steer themselves or take it to a custom processor and then sell the packaged beef.

So yes, this could expand access to inspected processing, which is good news for small producers.

But we’re still waiting on the bigger question: Will the law actually change to allow commercial sales of custom-exempt meat?

That’s where Massie’s PRIME Act could become very important...

If you have Bidens alba growing all over your property like we do, don’t be so quick to yank it all out. 😂Turns out... i...
09/14/2026

If you have Bidens alba growing all over your property like we do, don’t be so quick to yank it all out. 😂

Turns out... it’s basically free chicken snacks.

Chickens can pick at the tender leaves, flowers and seeds, and the plants also create a great little hunting ground for bugs. But what makes Bidens alba even more interesting is that it’s a genuinely useful forage plant. The greens contain nutrients and plant compounds, and letting chickens browse a variety of safe plants gives them something commercial feed alone doesn’t provide: the ability to choose, peck, scratch and forage naturally.

And there’s another reason we leave plenty of it growing. Those little white flowers are constantly covered in bees, butterflies and other pollinators. So one plant can help feed the chickens, provide habitat and food for insects, and support the pollinators around the garden.

Considering Bidens alba grows here like it has absolutely no intention of ever leaving, we might as well put it to work. 😂

Sometimes the weeds are useful. Sometimes they’re chicken food. Sometimes they’re both....

09/10/2026

Evening Homestead Vibes ❤️

09/05/2026

We just realized we have 1,758 followers and... WHAT?! 🤯

Seriously, when did that happen?!

We are absolutely floored that 1,758 of you decided our little corner of the internet was worth following. Whether you've been here forever or just found us, THANK YOU for being here, commenting, sharing, laughing with us, and following along with all the chaos.

We genuinely appreciate every single one of you. ❤️

1,758 people. That is WILD.

Thank you for being part of this with us! 🥹❤️

Well, it finally happened. I have officially fallen victim to the Porch Goose Industrial Complex. 😂I resisted. it... que...
09/05/2026

Well, it finally happened. I have officially fallen victim to the Porch Goose Industrial Complex. 😂

I resisted. it... questioned it and I wondered why grown adults were buying concrete/plastic geese and then spending actual money on tiny seasonal outfits for them. And yet...

There will be a porch goose at my house.

And because apparently I have zero ability to participate in anything at a reasonable level, I have also acquired the appropriate Halloween attire. Because obviously the goose cannot just stand there NAKED during spooky season like some kind of uncivilized barnyard animal.

So here we are. I own a porch goose and my porch goose has a wardrobe.

And we're not even into Thanksgiving and Christmas yet, which means I can already see where this poor financial decision is headed.

I blame all of you.

09/05/2026

BEEF & Processing UPDATE today September 4th:

Trump has now signed the actual executive order on meat processing. Here’s what it REALLY does.

Remember last week when Trump announced that farmers and ranchers were going to be given the right to “PROCESS THEIR OWN FOOD”?

Well, we finally have the actual executive action.
And there IS some genuinely good stuff in it.
Trump is directing USDA and FSIS to expand programs that allow smaller and state-inspected processors to access interstate markets, cut unnecessary regulatory requirements, provide technical assistance to small processors, and make it easier for states and processors to participate.

That could absolutely help small American ranchers and independent processors compete with the giant meatpacking companies.

BUT...

Despite what that original announcement sounded like, this does NOT mean a rancher can now take a steer to a custom butcher and start selling the steaks.

Custom-exempt meat is still generally NOT FOR SALE.

On-farm slaughter for your own household was already legal under certain circumstances, and this order does not suddenly make that meat commercially saleable.

Federal/state inspection requirements haven't disappeared either.

So what DID Trump do?
Here's where it gets interesting.
He ordered USDA to identify the federal laws preventing state-inspected AND custom-exempt meat from entering interstate commerce and report back within 60 days.

And THAT matters. Because some of those restrictions aren't merely USDA regulations that Trump can erase with an executive order.
They're written into federal law.

Which brings us right back to Thomas Massie's PRIME Act.

Massie's proposal would actually change federal law so states could choose to allow qualifying custom-processed meat to be sold commercially within their borders.

In other words:
Trump: “USDA, remove the unnecessary barriers you legally CAN remove and tell me which ones you CAN'T.”
Massie: “Congress, let's change the actual law creating some of those barriers.”

Those two approaches could actually complement each other very well.

So my verdict so far?
This executive order is meaningful progress for small processors and ranchers.

But...

No, farmers still cannot simply custom-process their cattle and sell the meat. That part of the original “PROCESS THEIR OWN FOOD” announcement still comes with a pretty substantial asterisk.

Now I'm REALLY interested in what USDA comes back with during those 60 days. Because that's when we're going to find out which barriers Trump can eliminate administratively...
and which ones are going to require Congress to actually do its job.

For those of you interested in the Beef/Slaughter etc thing Trump made a big deal about (Shoutout to my fellow Homestead...
09/02/2026

For those of you interested in the Beef/Slaughter etc thing Trump made a big deal about (Shoutout to my fellow Homesteader/Farmers

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Hastings, FL
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