Homesteading With Large Septic Foot Print

Question about septic tanks and drainfields. Looking to buy a 4 acre property with the intention of homesteading. There is a nearly 2 acre, cleared, flat, rectangular backyard. Having some issues understanding how the septic and drainfield could interfere with that vision.

Seeing mixed info about septic systems and homesteading. Obviously would not do anything on top of the actual tank, but what about the drainfield or the space between the drainfield and the tank when it comes to animals grazing, structures and vegetable gardens?

The image attached shows the relationship between the septic tank, the house, and the distribution box. If I'm understanding this correctly, maybe I could get away with just avoiding the main distribution area and septic? Or do I have to avoid everything in-between as well? They are pretty far apart.

Hi Keith,
Welcome to Permies!

For some reason the picture is not showing for me, so I can't comment specifically. But I will give some generalizations.

The septic tank is generally made of concrete and houses the gray and black water coming from the house. Bacteria eat stuff, things sink, and some people only have this piece. The concerns are generally that plants would send roots down into the tank and come in contact with nasty stuff and/or damage the tank if it was strong enough roots. Other people also have the drain field. After going through the septic tank, the water that gets to the drain field will be cleaner but still have some of the bacteria and things like that. The drain field is also more fragile from a disturbance side. Most of the time the drain pipes are fairly near the surface. Driving over it with heavy vehicles can compress the pipes and make them not work properly. Also, planting things with a decent root system on the drain field can clog them up and cause problems.

It's probably not as big a deal as far as contaminates are concerned, but I tend to ere on the side of caution for things like this and I grow away from them. Growing anything too big could be a problem because it could cause damage to the system.

I have a small property that has a septic ( and field) on it so I pay special attention to the zones I create gardens in.

I would recommend keeping a "buffer" zone from any tanks/pipes if you are planting long rooted things such as trees. I have heard people state 50 feet is a common distance.

I would not recommend gardening in the soil directly over the leach field as you want to prevent compaction/roots from causing issues to the system. Avoid heavy equipment in these areas. I however would encourage the usage of raised beds, perhaps near the line that connects the tank to the eventual drain field? If you know where the pipe is exactly, leave room in case you eventually have to do future work on the system. I'd rather grow food than leaving the whole thing lawn.