Nearly a decade ago, hairstylist Erin Gillespie traded city life for a quiet farmhouse in the countryside — and discovered a passion for growing her own food along the way. Now, she's sharing how a homestead can change your life — and the planet.
In a story for the CBC, Gillespie documented her journey from the bustling capital of Canada's Prince Edward Island to a homestead in the countryside. Gillespie wrote that her move from Charlottetown back in 2016 was spurred by the opportunity to move into a family farmhouse. A Charlottetown business owner at the time, she said she was apprehensive about commuting into the city every day for an hour each way.
"I believed I couldn't live in and enjoy the country if I worked in the city," she wrote. "I had it in my head that those were two different worlds and I could only pick one."
Though partly concerned with the logistics, Gillespie said she "decided to go all in, embracing this opportunity with everything I had." And she ended up finding a new passion beyond hairstyling — growing her own food on her homestead.
Gillespie and her wife planted a massive garden on their new property — about 1,400 square feet of tomatoes, potatoes, and onions. Gillespie had previous experience working on an organic farm in Ontario in her late teens and early 20s. But that knowledge didn't cover everything, so she relied on YouTube and Google to fill in the gaps.
"I just dove in and started figuring out what I wanted to eat, what could grow in this climate, and what things you can plant together to help deal with pests naturally," Gillespie wrote for CBC.
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Growing your own food — whether on a homestead or a small urban garden — can help you minimize waste and reduce your pollution output. Experts highlight that an investment of $70 can yield $600 of produce a year, all of which will taste better because you grew it yourself.
And gardening has health benefits beyond getting in those leafy greens. The Mayo Clinic says gardening is a great way to exercise, can help reduce stress, and can encourage a healthier diet.
With trial and error, Gillespie's first attempt at gardening was a success — and her homestead has only grown over the past decade. Gillespie even started preserving and storing her own food, creating a "small sense of security during hard times," like the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Freeing up shelf space ✨ Though Gillespie made commuting to the city work for a while, she eventually moved her business closer to home, inspired to spend more time gardening and exploring nature.
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"I've gained so much more than just practical knowledge," she wrote for CBC. "I've learned that there really is nothing like growing your food, saving your seeds as well as trading secrets and produce with friends. There's a feeling I can only describe as magical when I walk out to my yard in the morning and pick fresh foods for breakfast."
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