Yay - sold my house, quit my job...now where to from here!

Evltre

Hey eveyone! we're leaving the big city and moving to a smaller town - where we can both work but be within about 20kms of a small but thriving town (Area population about 77,000)

We can't afford to do the whole 'big lifestyle' thing of buying 100acres but can afford 3-4 acres with no house on it freehold and then will live with ma & pa in town to save money to build a house.

My question is how much land would you consider a 'minimum' to be able to exist to a reasonable level of self sufficiency?

Smile

YAY - no more mortgage!

Ludi · Posted: Mon Jan 17, 2005 6:49 pm Post subject:

Shannymara · Posted: Mon Jan 17, 2005 7:24 pm Post subject:

If it's just the two of you and the soil is decent and water is available, 3 or 4 acres should be okay. If you want eggs or meat, chickens are great on small properties, and they produce good fertilizer. I agree that the Biointensive method looks promising. I am planning to do that myself this spring (as soon as we move).

My own family just purchased 5 acres ourselves.

Tyler_JC · Posted: Mon Jan 17, 2005 7:36 pm Post subject:

I admire your bravery Cool

.
Depending on soil condition and the number of animals and people supported by the land, 4 acres sounds about right.

Question: is it a four-acre plot next to a bunch of other 4-acre plots? If not, neighbors living on postage stamps might try to use your land to grow food if the going gets tough.

Second Question: what are you doing about heat/electricity? Can you have solar panels? Producing your own power is a big advantage.

Lastly, are you anywhere near a forest or river/lake? Having a water source and a tree source is necessary for any homestead.

Evltre · Posted: Mon Jan 17, 2005 7:56 pm Post subject:

No - the land we are looking at has native bush reserve one side and farm land the other side - not to say it won't happen in the future but it's like that will all of the land we're able to afford!

Re power - there is the biggest wind power plant ever going in about 40km away - NZ is pretty sweet for power, but we would probably go a combo of solar, wind and maybe hydro? There is a small waterfall and stream on the land which apparently doesn't dry up in summer and goes flat out in winter.

Re water and wood - access to both (wood could be deadfall from native bush reserve next door in a pinch)

And I can handle not having my own supply of red meat - rather have a couple of goats to milk and leave the butchering of daisy the cow to the farmer down the road - maybe I could swap him feta cheese for steak?! Smile

My only concern is how many people we could support in this way - on an ongoing basis!

Ludi · Posted: Tue Jan 18, 2005 6:44 am Post subject:

That sounds like a lovely place! With its own water supply, you could support several people indefinitely. Just make sure that little stream doesn't flood you out in wet weather. We have a seasonal creek on our place which becomes a raging torrent during rains. We didn't know this when we bought the place. But now, even though it washes out our driveway regularly, I see the extra water as a bonus not a liability.

According to some work done by people using biointensive techniques, a person can grow all their own food for a year on as little as 1000 square feet. I wouldn't count on being able to do that right off the bat.

MikeB · Heavy Crude Joined: Dec 14, 2004 Posts: 211

77, 000 is not a small town.

You have a lifetime of learning to do. Asking questions on a forum is about the least useful way of gaining farming knowledge.

We know--we've gradually instituted a semi-self-sufficient life (there is NO such thing as being totally self-sufficient) here on the farm over the last 20 years, commencing before the luxury of venting one's anxieties on the internet.

There is nothing anyone can tell you that makes up for taking the initiative and getting experience.

Ludi · Posted: Tue Jan 18, 2005 6:52 am Post subject:

Pardon me for butting in Mike, but I'm not sure in what way your comments are meant to be helpful (although I agree with you about the size of the town - a small town is 50 - 1500 people). Looks to me like Evltre is taking the initiative.

Wednesday · Posted: Tue Jan 18, 2005 12:53 pm Post subject:

i find that even if the information is not always helpful at that particular moment that it is invaluable being able to bounce ideas of off like-minded people

im grateful for this little community, because they tolerate my musings and my daydreaming as i make my plans

and yes, ive actually learned a lot from some of these folks

its the internet, each person is responsible for their own discernment, but you can say that about anything on the www

Evltre · Posted: Tue Jan 18, 2005 1:13 pm Post subject:

The AREA population is 77,000, not the town. The area is made up of one city - population about 33K , and then several small towns / rural villages.

Mike - thank you for your supporting comments NOT

At least I'm trying to do something

oowolf · Posted: Tue Jan 18, 2005 2:11 pm Post subject:

After 20+ years of homesteading in NW Montana the best I can do is about 2,800 square feet per person- that is, 700,000+/- relatively nutritious calories from 1/15th of an acre. This is for food only, I live in the middle of 6 million acres of forest so firewood is no problem. The biointensive gardening books by Ecology Action are a good place to start but they are only a start. You will have to tailor particular crops to your specific climate, soil type, etc. Growing a diverse. nutritionally complete selection of crops is a challenge requiring considerable research and experimentation. The greatest gardening mistake beginners make is trying to impose their personal favorites on an unsuitable environment. Learn from the locals, get to know the edible native plants.

spear · Posted: Tue Jan 18, 2005 2:32 pm Post subject:

And watch out for those Tazmanian devils.lol.No seriously ,good to hear about your endeavor and good luck to you.I kind of started the same way.In my fatherinlaws house at first.But that didnt work for long .I then found a place to rent until mine is finished.
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ΜΟΛΩΝ-ΛΑΒΕ

Evltre · Posted: Tue Jan 18, 2005 5:02 pm Post subject:

Thanks everyone. We've (thankfully) always been confident and successful gardeners on a small scale â€“ growing seasonally and for our climate / soil - the thought of having to do it "for real" rather than as a time-out hobby is terrifying. And we will be moving to a new area so we will have to spend some time working out what is going to thrive â€“ luckily weâ€™re definitely not fussy eaters and we love our greens!

My husband has a PhD in biological sciences â€“ Botany based â€“ but his experience is more laboratory based than â€˜in the fieldâ€™. In fact the main reason we are moving to the area we are (apart from the family net work & cheapish land there) is that there are a large number of agricultural research facilities in the area where he can work to gain more experience (and pay for our new house!).

Personally â€“ I would like to take some short courses at the university â€“ they offer a great range of horticultural subjects â€“ organics etc have become very popular!

Iâ€™m under no illusions about how difficult the future might become, and how much our ineptness will hurt our chances â€“ but Iâ€™m a mother of the most beautiful 2year old in the world so Iâ€™m not going to do anything less than my utmost to figure it out somehow. And I know that nothing will replace experience â€“ but I canâ€™t see how there is any harm in asking for advice, support, ideas in the meantime.

buffy · Tar Sands Joined: Nov 24, 2004 Posts: 42

This is the site to read if you want to graow all your food in a small area.

http://pathtofreedom.com/

I would recomend chickens and rabbits for meat and eggs. They are prolific and its not the end of the world if one dies or gets stolen.

Good luck and best wishes!

Evltre · Posted: Thu Jan 20, 2005 2:30 am Post subject:

Great site - thank you!