I'm not homesteading yet, but here's what I'm thinking about right now before I do get started. I've only spent a handful of hours on the property thus far, and I will have to figure out my living situation before I get started, but brainstorming around ideas has led me to this list.

One income source I ruled out right away was a market garden in the form of a J.M. Fortier, Urban Farmer Curtis Stone type operation. Greenshine Farmers, @greenshiners, is making a good go of that type of business plan, and its an incredible idea and opportunity for those with the physical ability and motivation to take on the challenge. If I were younger and/or more physically capable, I am in love that farm model and would definitely be trying to do that. Kids, if you want more freedom in life, get you some land and start learning how to grow quick turnaround, salad type crops.

From a recent YouTube video from Urban Farmer Curtis Stone, a guru and one of my heroes.
https://www.youtube.com/user/urbanfarmercstone

#1 – PIGS!!!

I think I can pull off raising some pigs. No, I KNOW I can pull that off. It's not like I have to pick them up and move them around, so my physical weakness can be worked around. A long water hose and a garden cart to help haul feed, and I'll figure it out. I've got plenty of land to raise a good number of pigs, granted I'll have to buy in feed for them, but that will be true of anything I want to raise on 2.8 acres of forest. I'm thinking 5 feeder pigs to start for the 6-8 months until they are at butcher weight, and not getting into breeding them until the future. Who knows, maybe I'll get some feeder piglets from @papa-pepper a couple hours away from me. :)

(Picture from @papa-pepper who just had some piglets and is a recently found hero I've found. Go upvote this post please, its still active and those piglets are awesome.)
https://steemit.com/homesteading/@papa-pepper/more-little-piglets-on-the-homestead

The back half of my property should be good a great place for pigs in the heat of summer with plenty of shade provided by the trees. What I'm thinking is putting a main pig pen in the center of that space for the water and feed and shelter, then using portable electric fencing to rotate the pigs around in 6-8 paddocks. I'm still researching the types of plants that pigs will eat that will grow in a forest so I can start building the permaculture system in that area, but I believe that will be a good start. I can also bring the chickens behind the pigs to help smooth things out and perhaps confuse any pathogens.

Picture from Google maps satellite view doctored up by me.

I'm also still trying to source organic pig feed, but I've already found GMO-free feed that I would certainly use to get started if I have to. I'd really like to be as natural as possible, but that's just a goal I might have to reach for when I can afford it. It's a big range, but I figure I should be able to make $200-$300 per pig selling them whole, half, or quarters.

#2 CHICKENS!!! – Pullets or newly laying hens.

I want to pick one heritage breed of chickens and become the best breeder of that breed in the whole state. If you want the best Buckeyes or Delawares or New Hampshires or Marans or whatever breed I end up with, I want to be the best source for that breed within a 4 hour driving distance.

I've heard it said, that your typical chicken has the most value the day before she lays her first egg. Most backyard chicken flock owners like a variety of chickens and they like to get pullets right before they start laying so they don't have to worry about raising them from chicks and so that the hen has the maximum egg laying life ahead of them. Those consumers will pay for the convenience, and I'm willing to capitalize on that.

Photo from The Livestock Conservancy
https://livestockconservancy.org/index.php/heritage/internal/buckeye-chicken

I'll try to start out with two batches of the same breed of chicks from two different sources, and then go from there. Select the best rooster and hens from each source to start a breeding program, sell the extra hens, and put almost all of the extra roosters in my freezer. I should be able to get $20-$30 per pullet (female "teenage" chicken that hasn't started laying yet), and that can be a decent source of revolving income.

#3 MORE CHICKENS!!! - Baby chicks.

Hey, if you've got people that want your pullets, you'll probably find some who will want your baby chicks instead of going to Tractor Supply and perpetuating their mass production type systems or putting the chicks through the ordeal of going through the US Mail. Yikes. $3-$6 per baby chicks is a fair price in my region of the US.

#4 CHICKEN EGGS!!!

Well, I will have the heritage breed chickens, and they will be laying eggs so I can produce chicks and pullets, and I'm just a single dude who can't eat a lot of eggs, so I'm bound to have a few dozen extra eggs each week to pull in a little bit more income. If it buys me some pizza ingredients, hooray!

Photo from me, assortment of chicken, duck and quail eggs from my friends at Natural Living Homestead in Illinois.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCv4I5wpW8Qho8Y8onQAGkFQ

#5 CUT FLOWERS!!!

Did you know that 70-80% of the cut flowers sold in the United States come from outside the country, mostly Columbia and the northern part of South America, because of the war of people who use drugs? I did a video on YouTube touching on this if you want to learn more. (5 minutes)

Basically, I'd like to plant flowers which I can cut and sell anywhere and everywhere I can find on my property that they will grow. Annual or perennial, it doesn't matter to me. Love me some dahlias and zinnias. Those flowers coming from outside the country have a shelf life several days shorter than what I could produce locally and local florists or even grocery stores that sell flowers will welcome a local source almost anywhere in the US. I'm going to give it a try on small scale at least.

#6 PLANT STARTERS!!!

I'm going to be starting flowering plants early for my cut flower business, so why not sell some of them as baby plants at a buck or two a piece? And I can throw in some other plant starts and see what sells. Everybody has seen plant starts outside the home improvement and grocery stores, why can't I get a little piece of that action?

By the way, I'm thinking one day a week I'll be getting a booth at one of the numerous farmers markets within a 2 hour drive of me to sell some of my products listed above and below. Russellville, Fort Smith, Little Rock, Hot Springs, and wherever else I can "pitch a tent" for a few hours and sell my wares.

#7 POTTED PLANTS!!!

No, not pot plants (cannabis), not that I think there's anything wrong with that, I'm thinking more along the lines of mums or succulents or herbs or the like. Consumers like convenience, and if I can pull of a cheap greenhouse or indoor grow area, there is money to be made there.

No comment on source, but I'm not stealing this photo ;)

#8 BIRDHOUSES!!!

I love birdhouses, and I don't know why. With scraps I've probably got laying around the property, I'm betting I can make a good number of birdhouses. Something else to fill my table at the farmers market that I can make a few dollars from. 20 birdhouses a year making $7.50 each helps pay the internet bill for a couple months.

I've got a previous Steemit post about birdhouses here:
https://steemit.com/homesteading/@bobbleheadstead/birdhouses-are-simple-and-awesome-w-pics-and-yt-video

#9 TURKEYS OR DUCKS OR GUINEAS!!!

Pigs, chickens, and flowers are probably more than I can handle to get started, so this option is lower on the list. Still very much a viable source of extra income on a homestead, but I'll have to play it by ear as to how much I can do. Turkey for the meat, ducks potentially for meat and eggs, and guineas for the tick and chigger protection and potential keet sales.

#10 HipCamp and AirBnB!!!

Further down the road when I can run water and electricity, I could offer a campsite. And then if I can turn a yurt or a pro-fab shed into a cabin or restore an old AirStream, AirBnB might be possible. Blue Mountain Lake is right there, you can see Magazine Mountain, the highest elevation in Arkansas, from my front yard, there's a huge bluegrass music festival a half hour away that happens twice a year for four days, and the hunting season for the Ouachita National Forest across the street from me is another big lure.

Heck, trapping small game like beavers and skunks and squirrels and the like is also still legal in-season in the Ouachitas. More than 300 species of birds have been identified around Blue Mountain Lake. There is a world class bird dog training area at the lake also. Location, location, location. It's not the location for everyone, but I'm thinking I could make some extra income from my location, so I'm gonna try when I can afford it.

https://www.hipcamp.com/
https://www.airbnb.com/

#11 SOCIAL MEDIA!!!

I may not be able to go out and weed the market farm an hour every day, but I may be able to spend that time writing a few posts on Steemit and make a few video for YouTube. Hey, I'll take all the legitimate income I can get. I'm approaching 9,000 views on YouTube, which means I'm also approaching 10,000 views and that is the point where you can start making a few dollars. Steemit has already been awesome to me, so I'm hoping once I get started and things start getting more interesting, if I'm any good at telling my own stories, I will welcome any extra income I can gain from that.

I've already met so many wonderful, helpful, generous, wholesome people through social media, so the investment of time is worth it for that alone.

#12 CHARITY!!!

I wouldn't be where I am with this homesteading income opportunity without charity. Relatives, childhood friends, college frat bros, and even perfect strangers have been there for me to help get this chance. Makes me tear up thinking about it, that's a deep thought. I'm not counting on it, and I rarely ask for it, but some people are just exceptional at this thing we call life and will undoubtedly help invest in my future. I could never express enough thanks, all I can do is promise to pass the kindness forward.

BONUS IDEA – BARTERING!!!

I used to love going fishing, primarily for catfish. With a 3,000 acre lake down the dirt road, I plan on doing a lot of fishing, and hopefully catching a lot of fish. Free food for me, and hey, if someone wants to trade for some fruits and veggies I can't grow, I won't say no. Not as easy to sell fish, but bartering is fair game. :)

It's all good.