Links and Resources
Urban Homesteading in the San Francisco Bay Area
Here are classes and resources in or near the SF Bay Area.
18 Reasons, San Francisco, CA. Butchering, cheesemaking, tastings, and more.
Bay Area Sustainability Resources Wiki
BeeKind, Sebastopol, CA. Beekeeping supplies and classes.
BioFuel Oasis, Berkeley, CA. Urban farming classes, info on fuels and vehicles, and more.
Farm and Food Connect. Directory of urban farmers, edible gardeners and the like with descriptions of what they'd like to share. In turn, their profiles are searchable by location for those looking to trade, learn or buy.
Fatted Calf, Napa, CA. Meats and sausage for purchase, plus classes on pig butchery and sausage making.
Gray Water Action, around the bay area. Learn how to build and install your own gray water system.
Happy Girl Kitchen, Oakland, CA. Food products for sale and workshops on fermentation, pickling, canning, etc.
Her Majesty's Secret Beekeeper, San Francisco, CA. Beekeeping, soapmaking, more.
The Institute of Urban Homesteading, Oakland, CA. Classes include animal husbandry, beekeeping, backyard chickens, goat keeping, raising rabbits, cheesemaking and much more.
Merritt College, Oakland, CA. Pruning and gardening classes.
Urban Kitchen SF, San Francisco, CA. Classes on bread baking, composting, pickling, brewing kombucha, butchering, and more.
Places to buy food:
Animal Welfare Approved - search by zip code for family farms raising their animals humanely, outdoors on pasture or range. Also includes stores and farmer's markets that carry approved products.
Informational (Mostly) Sites:
Backyard Chickens - lots of great info and a very active forum
Do It Yourself - Lots of great ideas
Homestead.org - the name says it all
The Small Farm Resource - Many articles on livestock and gardening
Mother Earth news article on urban homesteading
Countryside & Small Stock Journal - The magazine of modern homesteading
Urban Homesteading Supplies and Stores:
Homesteader's Supply - lots of products, plus forums and recipes
Lehman's catalog - A great resource for supplies
SKS Bottle & Packaging: containers for gardening, canning homegrown fruits and vegetables, preserving homemade jams and sauces and more.
Some of my Favorite Blogs and Sites:
I love reading what others are up to and get very inspired reading these blogs below.
Facebook page on urban homesteading
Schell Urban Homestead blog - living a rural lifestyle in the midst of the hustle and bustle of Denver.
Grown in the City blog - group blog about city growing
Crunchy Chicken blog - Seattle urban homesteading
Root Simple blog - back to basics, DIY
Urban Veggie Garden blog - Canadian veggie growing
Modern Victory Garden - WA state homesteading
Ghost Town Farm - Oakland, CA urban farming
Dog Island Farm - Vallejo, CA urban homesteading