Oh, the joys of self sufficiency

[ScottnLydia]

A friend of ours recently used the phrase "we're trying to do 90%" with regard to her and her husband's lifestyle. My wife and I were confused at first, but found out that our friend wants to get 90% of her food (and heat, possibly clothing, etc) from her own work.

We've been striving for that a short while now, but now we've latched onto that mantra and have ramped thing up. We have moved around quite a bit the last few years, which prevented us from having a garden, let alone chickens. We are finally "home" in Denver, at least for a while, so we've gone crazy in the backyard of our rental house. We've got 150 sq. ft. garden, 6 hens, compost, and tried to overseed the lawn with a clover mix so that we can generate some good soil with actual nitrogen in a former sandlot/industrial wasteland. Don't worry, we have a raised bed with 3 feet of soil and garden cloth underneath to provide separation between food and toxins. We're allowed two pygmy breed goats in city limits and I really want them next summer. I've heard that the city is "accidentally overlooking" restrictions against cows in city limits. We also make our own beer, and while the necessary grain crops could grow here, hops just refuse to take from what I've been told - it's just too dry (it's technically a desert here). Currently we use a great store called Stomp Them Grapes/Hop to It for our grains, hops, and yeast. I recent;y found out how to culture our own beer yeast, so after the next batch, we'll do it (especially with our last batch - a belgian farmhouse ale - where the yeast cost $30). If we do take the final plunge into this, we'd move outside of the city, or to the foothills 20 minutes away so that we can have more acreage and rural zoning laws that specifically allow what we're doing, but for now, we're happy doing our best in the city.

My mom is coming for a visit in the fall to teach us canning and freezing. Our crawlspace is apparently the perfect temperature for storing root crops, though I don't quite know how to do that. As I get older (I'll be a young 30 next year), I realize gardening and self-sufficiency isn't just a summer thing. I've been looking into cold frames, and asking a lot of questions of my buddy that has a hoop house in his backyard. My wife worked on a farm that did a tomato/tilapia aquaponics setup, and we were really inspired by that. She also wants alpacas so we can sell their fiber at market.

Denver has recently relaxed laws on not only livestock, but also kitchen specs for selling goods at farmer's markets. We hope to make some small side income from that in the future.

Long story short, I feel a strong connection to how the majority of the "western world" lived up until 70 years or so ago, and how the vast majority of the "third world" still lives today.. I mean, from the beginning of agriculture at roughly 8000 BC (scientists still argue the exact date and circumstances), we all lived like this. Most people in the world still do. It's not phony, it's real. I like life's little luxuries - gas or electric heat, a nice gas stove, bicycles, my little truck, the well-used internet, etc, but I don't belong behind a desk, or participating in wastefulness. One of our neighbors does her yard work and composts all of the waste, while the other has a lawn service and landscapers take care of her "problem". Such is life in America, land of the "free to do whatever you want".

Anybody else who has taken the plunge, please advise me on the pitfalls. My wife and I would be most appreciative.

My wife and I WERE plunged (we didn't take it willingly) into severly limited income some years back. Trying to make 'lemonade' , as it were. we were able to use what resources we did have to get an acre in southern Colorado where prices were low. All it had on it was an older single wide trailer, but at least it was a start.

Through donations, scrounging and recycling I've managed to fence and build several stock shelters, hen house, etc. We have chickens, turkeys, hair sheep and a guard llama. Together, they provide app. 90% of the meat and (obviously) all the eggs we eat. There is even some income from eggs and lambs.

We have active composting going on all the time, and gardening in raised beds. Unfortunately, this years drought and extreme heat wiped out our garden.

I love your idea of a hoop house with aquaponics! If I could ever build something like that I would like to grow fodder for the sheep and poultry as well as veg.
You are lucky to be young and able-bodied as you strike out on your venture! That makes it so much easier, but hey, if an old gimp like me can do it ...

~S

 

[sumi]

We've sold our farm recently and are moving abroad (Ireland) soon. We found we are able to buy an acre of land with some type (probably derelict

) house on it and I want to have a proper go at being more self sufficient. I'm planning on getting chickens for eggs, rabbits for meat (if I can bear to eat them), a pig or 2 for meat and goats (2) for milk. And veggies of course. What I was wondering is how to plan our acre to fit it all in practically. We may be able to afford more land, but it's unlikely, so I'm planning an acre holding.
Can you tell me more about your set-up?

 

[ScottnLydia]

Hey, that sounds great!!! If you're getting pigs, get a boar and a sow. That way you can breed your own meat and sell the excess piglets. They can have ten or more in a litter so it's no wonder in the old days they were called "mortgagelifters" Space and shelter requirements are not great, but the more space, the more spread out the smell.

Our setup includes several 80 x 25 runs for chickens and turkeys. We breed dual purpose chickens for eggs and hatch about 12 to 18 chicks for meat every 3 or 4 months. Our turkeys are heritage type which means they also breed naturally and supply us with a crop of turkey poults each spring, Although I love eating goose, my neighbors hate geese so I've been trying to find someone to trade a turkey for a goose to dresss out.

We have a paddock of app. 150 x 75 for the sheep. It has their shed, lambing jugs, gathering pen-working pen-chute combo, creep feeder and feeder. It adjoins the pasture which is about 1/2 of the 1 acre property. We have had as many as 32 head of hair sheep of various ages housed here, which is a little more intense than I like it. I like running about 6 or 7 good ewes and a ram, which will yeild 1 or 2 lambs each 3 times in 2 years. This rate keeps our freezer, as well as our daughter and son-in-laws full, with a few to sell. Hair sheep are a little smaller and thus easier for me to handle alone.

Our gardening is done in raised beds, intensive style. This year was a bust though, with temps topping100 beginning in May and running all through June!

We compost bedding for the gardens and to augment the pasture. Weeds are treats for poultry and sheeps (don't forget the llama!) All table and cooking waste are categorized as chicken, turkey, sheep, dog, compost or trash. We hate to throw anything out.

I really envy you! What an adventure. P.M. me to let me know how everything goes! I love how they call it a "smallholding" there, and here they call it a "hobby farm". Hey, we're serious!!!

~S

 

[sumi]

I will keep you updated on or adventures. Since it's a new country with a new climate and the seasons are opposite from us (we just had Winter and now we're going into Autumn!) I have lots to learn. So I'm doing research and I'm planning and looking at what other people have done. I'm impressed with what can be done with an acre! Any chance of some pics of your set-up?

 

[Spifflove]

Did you ever move to Ireland? Tell me if you run into any Tinkers!

This looks like a loney part of the forums. Took me a while just to find it. Really thats a shame because we will have such a need to be independent so soon. Of course the downside of Self-sufficiency is the money that could have been spent elswhere.

For example do you buy a solar array now or when the technology improves? If you wait will you be too late?

Of course those in Nemo perhaps wish they prepared some. But a happy medium has be sought.

 

[sumi]

We moved to Ireland end of October 2012 finally. The property sale dragged on and on

But once that was done everything went really quick. We drove across the country looking for a property to buy, but didn't find anything we liked and could afford. But it was fun exploring Ireland. We saw very few tinkers, or travellers, actually. They seem to be a thing of the past. The old Ireland... The country surprised me in more way than one. It's much more "modern" than I expected. New houses everywhere (and abandoned houses everywhere). You can see the effects of the economic boom and the effect of the crash... The Irish are also not like I expected. They are certainly not like they are portrayed by Hollywood! I do now and then bump into an Irishman that fits my mental image of what they are like though. Cheerful, friendly, curious, with an accent I struggle to understand.

We are renting a property at the moment and we're lucky that it's on a working farm, so our landlord is pro animals and whatever we want to do here, which isn't much at the moment. I got a small flock of chickens going so far and DH got a mealworm farm in the beginning stages. He's going to supply mealworms to the local petshop when he's ready.

We bought some mushroom spores and got that going in the spare bedroom in bowls for now, as it's still a bit cold and I'm slowly, slowly stocking up on seeds for Spring planting and wondering where I'm going to put what, as space is limited. And we're thinking about getting a pig to raise for meat for us as well. So far from self-sufficient at the moment, unless you count firewood for our stove! We discovered an endless supply on the beaches near us, so we collect that. Well, it's E90.00 per month saved!

Have you seen the sites site? www.SufficientSelf.com There are lots of nice ideas and discussions there as well. I lurk there occasionally for inspiration

When I get our own piece of land again I'll put my plans into action.

 

[Spifflove]

Ya the globalist megabanks are ruining all countries unfortunately, except Iceland which decided to arrest them rather than sign on to their debt. Still sounds like you are having an adventure there.

Irish not like on TV? So no one has come up to you asking for a nose bleed?
http://www.google.com/#hl=en&tbo=d&...38,d.b2U&fp=eb62ff420890b724&biw=1017&bih=467

 

[sumi]

LOL, no! They're great people, very down to earth, but no more eccentric than anyone else. People told us the Irish are like this and that, but I've seen something completely different. They are lovely, really lovely.

Weather aside it's great here. But the daily rain is getting just a little bit tiring. I got soaked a few times already! You'd go out and it's lovely and sunny, next moment it's pouring with rain. 5 Minutes later it's sunny again.

 

[mychooks]

Just found your thread. I moved from Wicklow to North Florida because I was tired of the cold and love the sun. They lied to me when they (who are they ?) said that it was subtropical here. Ranges from bloody freezing, a few Feb nights of several degrees below to bloody hot. It's worth it for the sunshine though. We are trying to live as much off the land as possible and I have a very productive veggie garden fed with compost and llama poo. We have 2 growing seasons so are harvesting greens, carrots and lettuce at the moment and will soon have onions, garlic, beans. peas and radishes before the summer crops of tomatoes, squashes, cucumbers, melons and corn. I grow tropical tea, cocoa, coffee etc. in a greenhouse and love to germinate the difficult seeds.
We grow a lot of pecan nuts and have goat milk and cheese.
Tell me are you trying the beer from hops or from a kit. We need to be making wine and beer. My last year's wine was better for stripping paint !
My being a vegetarian doesn't help as we should be eating our quail and chickens but I have to compromise my beliefs to feed my meat loving partner.
I wonder if eating is possible totally from just a few acres ??

 

[StelleKitten]

My dh and I are aiming and a somewhat more self sufficient lifestyle. We are raising chickens now and are working with our landlord to be able to raise goats and some cattle this summer. We will also be putting in a garden for the first time in a few years. We are so much happier here than we have been in the past.

DH has a couple of degrees in computers. One for building and one for programming them. So he has decided to use his skills to make us a generator that he thinks will be very good. I can't go into too many details but our early tests have come out good.
..
This year has been a lot a first agains (something we did once but quit for a while and then started again). I have all my plants ready to go out but I have a sneaky suspicion that our Tx weather is going to bite us with cold one more hard time.

Sorry so scattered my brain is going a million miles an hour but my fingers don't.