Planning a homestead layout sounds simple until you actually sit down to do it.
I kept running into the same problem: I’d sketch something on paper, erase half of it, redraw it, realize the scale was off, then start over. Or I’d try using a drawing tool or 3D modelling software and end up fighting with account creations, pricing, complex controls instead of actually thinking through the layout.
And the more things you add, garden beds, fencing, coops, orchards, water lines, compost areas, paths, sheds, etc., the messier it gets.
So I built a small Chrome extension to make homestead planning easier.
Link: https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/homestead-overlay-planner/jnoakbhcpibhghllhdkkglkjgnfchmdo
The idea is simple: you can use an overhead view of your land and place planning overlays on top of it, so you can rough out where things might go before committing time, money, or labor.
It’s just a simpler way to think through “where should this go?” without needing graph paper, expensive software, or a bunch of messy files.
A few important things:
- Free to use
- No account required
- No ads
- Collects no data
- Built specifically with homestead/property planning in mind
Biggest limitation: since it uses Google Maps's satellite view, it does not account for topography, slope, drainage, soil, or anything else you’d need to verify on the ground.
Would love feedback from anyone planning gardens, fields, fencing, animals, orchards, outbuildings, or just trying to make better use of their land.
Some examples of the problems this is trying to solve, rough sketching plans with no measurements.
https://www.reddit.com/r/homestead/comments/1k78zi3/homesteadacreage_planning/
https://www.reddit.com/r/homestead/comments/1ruojws/homestead_layout/
https://www.reddit.com/r/homestead/comments/1ms602y/layout_planning/
