Acres to Square Meters Conversion An acre is defined as the area of one chain by one furlong (20.1168 by 201.168 meters), if you multiply 20.1168 by 201.168, that makes 4046.8564224 square meters in an acre. Common conversions from acres to sq meters: 1/4 acre = 1011.71411 sq m. 1/2 acre = 2023.42821 sq m.

104.36 feet

An acre can be of any shape-a rectangle, a triangle, a circle, or even a star-so long as its area is exactly 43,560 square feet. The most standard shape for an acre is one furlong by one chain, or 660 feet by 66 feet.

There are 43560 square feet in an acre so one quarter of an acre is square feet. If each side of the square is F feet long then the area is F^2 square feet. Thus F^2 = 10890 and F = /sqrt{10890} = 104.35 feet.

This number assumes absolutely no land degradation, crop failures, or waste. An infographic by 1BOG.org breaks it down to about 2 acres of land for a family of four. This includes approximately 12,000 sq. feet for wheat, 65 for eggs, 2640 for corn, 100 for dairy, 207 for meat, and 77,000 square feet for vegetables.

One acre isn’t likely large enough to accomplish all of those things and be completely self-sustaining, but it is certainly large enough to be sustainable and practical.

Here are the 5 best crops for self-sufficient gardeners:

• Potatoes. Of all the crops you can grow in your garden potatoes will bring you closer to self-sufficiency than any other crop.
• Tomatoes. Everyone loves homegrown tomatoes, they are a garden favorite.
• Popcorn.
• Squash.
• Kale.

Pasta. Pasta is not only one of the most consumed foods in the world, but it’s also one of the most accessible. Numerous cultures from around the globe have their own variations of pasta. If talking about the Italian variant of pasta, it is made using durum wheat, water, and sometimes eggs.

Depending on who you ask, what you eat, and your growing methods, it takes between ¼ to 2 acres of well-managed, fertile land to feed a family of four. You can start small and expand annually. However, if food self-sufficiency is your goal, then be realistic in your space planning.

Research in the 1970s by John Jeavons and the Ecology Action Organisation found that 4000 square feet (about 370 square metres) of growing space was enough land to sustain one person on a vegetarian diet for a year, with about another 4000 square feet (370 square metres) for access paths and storage – so that’s a plot …

Self sufficient living means learning to grow your own, make your own, sell your own and bake your own, for homesteading, urban homesteading or mini farms. Don’t think you need a farm or homestead to be able to grow a couple of rows of vegetables and have a few nut and fruit trees.

There is no hard-and-fast land requirement. However, the farmers I spoke with said that someone would need at least 500 owned acres and 1,000 leased acres to make a living. The quality of the land certainly affects those numbers.

As any of the millions of subsistence farmers and smallholders around the world will tell you, depending on the quality of your land and the size of your family, you can grow all the food you need in a very small space.