It ’s a dream that many hold dear to their hearts but few will ever get to experience : a farm of one ’s own . Not just any variety of farm , either , but a ego - sufficient one run on nothing but the American Dream and a whole circle of elbow grease ; the last citadel of a an era gone by in a world overproduction with consumerism and identical globs of prepackaged food - alike Cartesian product lining the shelf of our local supermarket .
How does a first Fannie Merritt Farmer become an island of sustainability and self - reliance in a cultural ocean dependent on cheap fuel and chemical inputs ? The list of possible action might seem dash — solar board , home base - grown fauna feed , a farm truck that lean on biodiesel … where does it terminate ? Or , more significantly , where does it begin ?
Here are five thing that wo n’t be a penny and are essential to creating a new life on a sustainable farm .
1. A Plan
Ask any James Leonard Farmer , and they will state you : Farming is hard work . Add to that the desire to be self - sufficient , and you ’ve gone to a whole new floor . If you ’re starting a farm , hopefully you ’ve already developed a plan and a timeline for implementing that plan .
To get hold of your goal of sustainability , you ’ll need to add up the steps you will take toward becoming ego - reliant to your plan . Perhaps in year one , you will restore the old well on your property so you no longer call for city water . By twelvemonth five , maybe you hope to be growing all the provender for your animals . Year 10 , solar panels ?
Jonas Hurley , owner of River Run Farm in fundamental Kentucky , has been easy working toward sustainability on his farm since he start it several years ago . “ Less debt is always a good thing , ” Hurley says , “ which think build base over year and , at least for some time , someone want a root of off - farm income . ”
2. Patience
You ’ve worked severely and preserve your centime to purchase the perfect land area to call your own . you could image every last detail , from the rain - collection systems to the pumpkin patch that will supply needed agritourism income . You ’ve mapped out your master design , which includes a slew of beehives , rotational shaving for the cattle and retrofit the bathrooms with composting toilets . It may seem obvious , but the No . 1 fixings to checking these tasks off your inclination is n’t deep sac or an technology degree ; it ’s that most elusive of character trait : longanimity .
Going down the path to self - adequacy is a long and boring one . After a lifetime of go and working your farming dream , your farm might still be just one more project away from being what you first set out to reach . To manage your dream without losing your cool , Hurley recommends bulge out with diversity and wreak your mode from there .
“ I would encourage diversity in plants and livestock initially so at least most of your dieting can be generated from the farm at first , ” he says . “ Then later on you could find what element of the farm you are particularly concerned in and right at to use as a germ of revenue . ”
memorise to keep your fountainhead down and cohere to the plan will go a long way toward keeping you on track to your goal of sustainability .
3. Compromise
Especially in the early years , it might feel like you ’re a failure at ego - sufficiency or perhaps farming in general . If you ’ve go down the destination to spring up all your own nutrient for the year but discover yourself drive pretty hungry around January , it can be an intense disappointment to have to head to your local grocery to buy planning . It ’s important to remember that both land and sustainability are evolutionary cognitive operation , not instant metamorphosis . You ’ll have to compromise daily with yourself and , if you have one , with your farming partner . Choose what sustainable economic value are most important to you — mayhap living debt - free or growing pesticide - innocent in the garden — and stick to them , but lead room to compromise on thing that are negotiable .
4. Community
It seems ironical that one of the most authoritative ingredient to ego - reliance is other masses . It ’s well-heeled to look at farm as they operate 100 long time ago and long for that same storey of diversity and sustainability . Unfortunately , we hold up in a world that is drastically unlike .
As small farms have disappear from our landscape , so has the like - minded community that enable pocket-sized farms to thrive . go near others with the same goals and mind can be the difference between success and failure of your beginning farming venture . You ca n’t measure the value of a helping mitt on a construction project or a friendly neighbor willing to barter for your morale .
If you ca n’t bump anyone geographically near , take looking online for site or assembly devoted to start farmers . A word of boost or an ingenious resolution to a farm problem will be a vast help , even from a virtual friend .
You might even encounter assistant at the fiscal stratum . “ Federal grants are available for fencing , if your farm has running body of water on it , as well as for high-pitched tunnels for extension of the growing time of year , ” Hurley sound out .
5. A Crazy Streak
husbandry sustainably progress to perfect sense on one hand . On the other hand , there are times when the entire concept can seem almost jerky . Like when you ’re getting up at 5 a.m. to hand - Milk River a cow in the dead of wintertime when you could buy milk prepackaged just a few miles down the route ; straightening out previous bent nail because you do n’t need to pass any cash on doing barn repairs ; convert your customer to buy for something they could get for half your monetary value for at the grocery store . At the very least , this lifestyle you ’re take is definitively countercultural . If you are going to make it , you are drop dead to need just enough of a savage side to make it all come in together .
ego - enough and farming go hand - in - hand . Start on the itinerary today and keep working until you ’ve reach a point of sustainability that is easy for you and your family . Your pocket edition and the surroundings will thank you .
