If I handed you a normal backyard and asked how much food you could get out of it, what would you say? Most people have no idea, and most guess far too low. This week we look at what a rental backyard, a suburban block and a small acreage can really produce, why food production isn't only measured in kilograms, and how to work out what's worth producing for your own household without hype or guilt. WHAT'S IN THIS EPISODE - Why the lawn might not be doing much for you, and what could go in its place - A farm update: parsley that got eaten, trimming hooves, and the meat boys heading off for processing - Where it started: milking cows and making butter as a teen, then a rental backyard in suburban Canberra growing cherry tomatoes, pumpkins and strawberries around plants already in the garden, and making bread and yogurt on a single mum's budget - Two and a half acres at Gunning: two milking goats, 10 to 15 hens, fruit trees, veggie gardens and bees, all in less than an acre - How to size it down: using a "what can I grow on one acre" layout as a guide and picking out only what matters for your block - Why food production isn't only measured in kilograms: count what you stop buying. Herbs, eggs, salad greens, tomatoes, honey, bread and yogurt all count. - Real examples: herbs that cost about $20 to $30 to grow versus around $100 a year to buy, sourdough at about $1.50 a loaf at home versus about $9 for a good loaf in the shop, and baby spinach at about $49 a kilo - Which crops save the least (carrots, potatoes, onions, zucchini) and why you might still grow them - Thinking in categories, not an annual food supply: vegetables, fruit, eggs, meat, dairy, pantry staples and household products. Pick a couple, not all seven. - Worked examples: eggs per hen per week, litres from a goat, kilos of honey per hive, and meat birds at roughly $7 to $10 each to raise - A supermarket trolley exercise: could I grow it, raise it, make it, buy it direct from a local producer, or will I always buy it? - A tip: record your trolley on your phone while you shop, then use an AI tool or Google to compare your costs with growing it yourself, and double-check the numbers - The reality check: water, feed, fencing, soil, equipment, knowledge and especially your time. If you don't enjoy it, don't do it. - When paying to learn is worth it - The next Ditch The Store 5-Day Challenge: 23 to 27 November, inside the Skool community RESOURCES MENTIONED - Join the Ditch The Store community on Skool (free to join, with a paid tier at $19 USD a month that you can leave any time, for much more access to me and the information I share): https://www.skool.com/ditch-the-store-6174/about - The 5-Day Ditch The Store Challenge: 23 to 27 November, free inside the Skool community - From Brooder to Plate, my book on raising meat chickens (start with the Kindle edition, then buy the paperback if you decide to go ahead; the paperback has the colour photos): Kindle: https://link.amazon/B0fq89feL Paperback: https://link.amazon/B080SYcCL - Eggs Without Cartons: Kindle: https://link.amazon/B01mDroZD Paperback: https://link.amazon/B09pwYzr6 - Not The Farmer's Wife clothing store, with a 15% birthday sale this weekend https://www.notthefarmerswife.com - Episode 176 (Your Spring Ditch The Store Plan): baby spinach at $49 a kilo - Episode 184 (Imagine If Half Your Groceries Came From Home) and Episode 185 (How Real Families Are Ditching the Store) - Pinterest tip: search "what can I grow on one acre" for layout ideas to adapt to your own block - Please leave a review. It helps more people find the show. FOLLOW ALONG Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ditchthestore/- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ditchthestore/- TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ditchthestore YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC71O_rvkChJ94ZKDvDsDxbA Website: https://www.mojohomestead.net Thanks for listening. See you next week.