Self Sufficiency - Small Steps

[BoFuller]

We're headed in that same direction. We bought 40 acres and plan to build a cabin over the next 3 years. Then when we move in fulltime, I will build some green houses. It's been years since I did any canning, but we will get back into it. Nice job. You're an inspiration!

 

[Damifino]

BP, thanks for the information and foresight, we have 10 acres of which 8.5 would be useable less scattered 60-100 year old oak trees.

There not going anywhere unless mother nature dictates otherwise.

I beleive like you have stated, start out on a small scale first, if that works then increase each season, chickens,rabbits would be first on our list.

I am not retired yet, so to keep manageable without it becoming a burden would make it sustainable for future growth.

Thanks again for planting the seed (pun intended) to at least start something going.

BP, I do have a question for you, in your post #20,

"I do not want to "import" manure from odd sources. I want to use my own"
Are you sure that is safe for consumed foods. :laughing:

 

[bp fick]

BP, I do have a question for you, in your post #20,

"I do not want to "import" manure from odd sources. I want to use my own"
Are you sure that is safe for consumed foods. :laughing:

Funny one! I can mangle syntax after 10 pm with the best of them.


Chicken litter: One should follow the guidelines of proper manure management on a foodstuffs garden. Every State Ag University and Extension office has published guidelines for use/handling of manure. This one, for example, is easy to understand.

The University of Maine - Cooperative Extension Publications - Bulletin #2510, Guidelines for Using Manure on Vegetable Gardens

 

[electrarc]

BP,

Your thoughts on power generation within the farm. Solar, Small scale wind? This is 1 of our largest costs..

Cheers Zac & Judy

 

[bp fick]

BP,

Your thoughts on power generation within the farm. Solar, Small scale wind? This is 1 of our largest costs..

Cheers Zac & Judy

It is awfully early in the development of these alternatives, in my view. I don't know if we will see improvements in my lifetime to attract me to the initial investment. My neighbor has a cabin back in the woods that is off the grid. What he has spent in solar, appliances, generators, etc to enable him use that place would have paid for the electricity for almost the rest of his life.

He has no choice. So, ... it is what it is.

One choice we made upon getting the property was to install an electric free propane space heater (vented) in the basement. It works simply by convection, is dead silent and very efficient. I had to have the assurance that if the power went down for some reason, in the winter, we would not be without heat. The 25 year old forced air furnace that it replaced went bye bye. It was about junk anyhow. You can count on one hand the days we have any need for air conditioning. I am researching alternatives to propane now, because I don't believe there is any future in it, economically speaking.

I drove a new well on which I put an old fashioned pitcher pump, mostly for the nostalgia for the grandkids, but also as a realistic way to get water by hand in the loss of power scenario. I also have a woodstove in the shop.

Living up here as we do, for six months of the year, we don't need refrigeration, so that helps. :laughing::laughing:

 

[bp fick]

I have a good friend, down in Casey County, KY who is ahead of me on the application of self sufficient and simple living lifestyle. His home is huge and gorgeous, he built it. Heats with wood, cooks on expensive wood cooking stoves, also gorgeous. His water is a developed spring, gravity fed to his house. They don't use A/C. His barn, he built, is fantastic. Has a milk cow, chickens, gardens, and has 4 acres of pasture. He works among the Mennonites and shares life with them. He is also an arborist on the side.

His electric bill is $25 a month, year 'round.

 

[jinman]

BP, congratulations on your success!:thumbsup: I envy you your perfect growing temperatures, but not your short season. I noticed in your list that most of your plantings are cool season crops with maybe the exception of corn, cucumbers, and watermelons. Is there a market there for cantaloupes? I'd expect them to sell well and produce much quicker than watermelons. Of course, okra is probably virtually unknown there and southern peas like crowders and cowpeas (blackeye peas) are also not in high demand.

 

[bp fick]

BP, congratulations on your success!:thumbsup: I envy you your perfect growing temperatures, but not your short season. I noticed in your list that most of your plantings are cool season crops with maybe the exception of corn, cucumbers, and watermelons. Is there a market there for cantaloupes? I'd expect them to sell well and produce much quicker than watermelons. Of course, okra is probably virtually unknown there and southern peas like crowders and cowpeas (blackeye peas) are also not in high demand.

Hey Jim, our season is indeed too short for many of the items you mentioned. Part of being a successful gardner, as you well know, is that one grows toward what nature allows. It is foolish to do otherwise.

Yes, we can grow a very short season, hybrid muskmellon. No problem. I just didn't. :laughing: The watermellons are for my wife and grandkids. I take requests.

Southern peas are my favorites, but no way. The days to market on those is well beyond our capabilities. But, I have brothers in KY and TX who plant equally large gardens, and so not a problem. I stock up when I'm through, which is twice a year, usually.

But your point is SOOOOOOOO stinkin' valid. Don't fight mother nature, work with her and she'll mostly reward you.

 

[bp fick]

Thanks to all who've shown an interest in the kind of rural living.

I'm outta here for a few days of visiting old friends. Check with ya in a couple days. Blessings to all.

 

[Duffster]

Bp, have you ever thought aboot grazing a couple of beef on the neighbors 4 acres?

I have beef and chickens now, shooting to get a piggy sow in the spring. The kids should love having baby pigs. Until butchering time. :laughing:

 

[BoFuller]

BP,

Your thoughts on power generation within the farm. Solar, Small scale wind? This is 1 of our largest costs..

Cheers Zac & Judy

Our 40 acres are way off the grid. I have been pricing solar systems and I believe a system that cost 10K will be plenty adequat for us. It will be about 2-3 yrs before we get the cabin built, so it may be lower than that by then.

 

[Taylortractornut]

THats a great start, Slowly but surely we are aiming that way. Dad grew up in a poor part of rural MS on a small farm but later they eneded up with a biggertractor and did custom work to. A few years ago somehow I just took up farming after a wild streak. I use almost no chemicals except on the squash bugs. Market gardening did great this year on the squash and I have picked up another restaurant on that deal.

Im workin on a smell permaculture et up on one acre of the 10 I have. I have also gathered alot of special equipment for the tractor. I got a free 300 gallon towed sprayer, My Mini round baler for baling hay, and mulchin straw, a Mechanical transplanter for planting tomatos and cucumbers and other items.

Im working on siting a new barn and a small pig parlor and a new chicken area and also a rabbit set up for fertilizer production. Plum Im builing it all from the landfill lol.

 

[bp fick]

Bp, have you ever thought aboot grazing a couple of beef on the neighbors 4 acres?:

Yes, neighbor JB and I have discussed what is best to range on that 4-5 acres for a year or two now. The issue is that the soil here is so poor that nothing much grows until it is amended heavily and irrigated constantly. This is 100% sand and gravel moraine, as the glacier took the good stuff down to parts farther south.

It a catch 22, because some cattle manure would improve the soil somewhat but there's nothing native feed on, really. Price of hay being so high, it kinda of defeats the self sustaining cycle a bit. We can pump out of the creek, get that acreage fenced properly and work toward that. It's gonna have to be JB's pockets, though, not mine!

 

[Gio]

We have 5 acres, a 120x120 garden (60 beds) and 25 hens.

We have owned the property for a year or so and it has been a ton of work. Our goal was working towards self sufficiency and a peaceful, cheap retirement someday.

We decided to operate it as a small business for now to help cover the costs. We don't make much but it covers our projects and gives us some tax relief.

This is our site if you want to see our work

The Farm at Long Lane, llc | Heirloom Vegetables & Herbs - Kitchen-Garden Workshops - Farmstand - Gluten-free Baked Goods - Serving Lincoln, Nebraska and Omaha, Nebraska

Like I said it is a ton of work but the way things are going it may be worth it.

 

[Lloyd_E]

We have 12 acres. 6 cleared, a couple of acres of alders being converted back to pasture and hopefully garden or growing land - interested in Hops and grapes as a possibility.

I have been doing an organic garden for the last 3 years. All from seed. This season we will be trying to save our own seed. The irony to all of this is that 2 generations ago (my grandparents) this would have been the norm - small scale farming. We are growing meat birds for sale - lost 50% to a weasel, and are growing two pigs - Heritage breed/Berkshires.
Both are pre-sold. Actually we will be keeping a half for ourselves. We have layers as well.

You guys should be looking up Helen and Scott Nearing. They were the first/early back to the landers - out of NY to New England in the early 30's.

Good Life Center :: Home

I have many of their books - very interesting. In fact there are many similar outfits up here
using their model.

All very good...

 

[OldMcDonald]

I was led to this thread through another one that TBN flagged up in this month's Newsletter. It is a pleasant change to read so many enthusiastic posts. As a family we have been living on a low income for several decades (admittedly when younger taking paid employment when things were really tight) and managed to farm in several countries, big acreages sometimes too.

The thread has been quiet for a long time though. Anybody who posted care to update us all on progress or lack of it? If it failed, perhaps you would be good enough to give other "newbies" the reason(s).

 

[BoFuller]

We are still plugging away. The county has been, and still is, a major pain in the rear about getting a permit for a cabin. Otherwise we are still building driveway and doing other projects to get ready.

 

[electrarc]

Hi Again,

Well the wind generator is up and running. What a great thing it is too. Along with 400 watts of solar it keeps the house running. We have mains power as well, but the cost is going through the roof.

The alternative power is feed to a battery bank so "Blackouts" are a thing of the past.

The hydroponics is also going great guns and tastes fantastic. The farm is coming to life now with Kangaroos, ducks, water hens and a lot of birds. We are also stocking the dams with fish.

But I am sick of the snakes. If only I could sell them!!!!

 

[Ed of all trades]

We own 2.25 ac and take care of three more. Our gardens add up to 160 x 21 and a 10 x 20 strawberry patch. My wife picked 16, 5gal buckets of peas this spring and her sister came and picked 5 more. The green beans were doing well but we only put up about 50 qt when her back went out and my health went down hill so we tilled in bushels of them, we plant them both in squares, peas 21 x 40 or so this year and more green beans. The rest of the garden did fair, do to heat, lack of h20 and lack of work on my part. Plan to start 2 chicken tractors this spring, one with 75 eating chickens and one with laying hens. We will see how and if that goes. Good to hear what everyone else is doing. helps me look to spring.

 

[Redneck in training]

Hi Again,

Well the wind generator is up and running. What a great thing it is too. Along with 400 watts of solar it keeps the house running. We have mains power as well, but the cost is going through the roof.

The alternative power is feed to a battery bank so "Blackouts" are a thing of the past.

The hydroponics is also going great guns and tastes fantastic. The farm is coming to life now with Kangaroos, ducks, water hens and a lot of birds. We are also stocking the dams with fish.

But I am sick of the snakes. If only I could sell them!!!!

Eat them. Poisonous or not they all taste good. I think. At least rattlesnakes do.