Want to spend less on food. This might appear like it's. . . Only applicable to those who live in the countryside. But do you need to actually live there? It's relatively easy to lease land for farming. There are people who actually do it, grow their food, harvest and transport the food to whatever town they live in. So you not only get to save money on food but depending on the yield you can make some cash from the sales. Log In US Farm Lease is a unique Farmland Lease company that specializes in providing land services to absentee and non-operating landowners.
The trend is to grow your own wherever you can and allotments are becoming popular. It does take time to look after a garden/farm and needs dedication. You may not live there, but you need to check on weeds and maintain all the vegetables and maybe trees. My parents have their own garden, but because of the weather they can only grow certain things, but are always tending to it.
My country offers very good grants for people to start their own farms, in a bid to encourage nationals to provide the country with fresh, home grown fruit, veg, meat and dairy products. I wish I were passionate about this so as to take advantage of this fantastic offer, but it really doesn't interest me AT ALL. I have a friend who is as girlie as they come. She reckons she's going into farming through this government program, but she's not willing to get her hands dirty. Apparently she'll just be "remote controlling" her farm hands hehe I can't wait to see how it all pans out
This is funny. My husband grew up on a large farm. He is the 4th generation to be born on it. And he and his brother want NOTHING TO DO WITH it now. I guess it is all a matter of perspective. I'm not sure what will happen when his parents pass away. I would LOVE to own a farm, except that theirs is in Michigan, which isn't a place I actually want to live. I'd rather have farmland in VA. Someplace no so far from mountains and with a warmer climate. I have found, however, that even in my suburban home, growing food in our garden isn't as difficult as I thought it might be. We expand our plots a little every season, so I've never felt overwhelmed. I'm also still on the learning curve of preservation to get things that last us through winter. Thankfully, my mother in law still keeps a HUGE garden and supplies us with many frozen and canned home-grown goods.
I would absolutely love to have my own farm, but I can imagine it's a lot more work than I'm imagining. Not that I wouldn't love to put the work into it and it would be a great experience for the kids as well.. but I can imagine a lot of dead plants and a loooong learning process lol.
Last summer I actually read a book about a couple who started an urban farm and were able to live mostly off their own land. They lived in a rundown area of Oakland California and had a house with a small yard attached. They filled most of their yard with edible plant gardens and borrowed some of the vacant lot next to them later on in the book. They also used part of their yard to raise a few chickens and 2 pigs. I believe they also made cheese in one of their closets. To feed the pigs they would go dumpster diving behind restaurants and would also find foods suitable for their own consumption. The book was really inspiring and proved that you could have a farm just about anywhere.
I think leasing is a very good idea, but I think farming can be very advisable for anyone these days specially since you could now farm indoors a lot easier. I've seen some videos of people growing plants at home where the sunlight never enters just with the use of some pots and some lights. Of course it is a bit more complex than that but I think a little trial and error will eventually prove to be very fulfilling.
I would not want to have a farm, a sustainable garden yes. It is possible to have a garden that will help you to reduce the cost of suppling food for the family. You may not be able to supply everything but some items that will be useful. Farming is hard work and not always succesful having to deal with weather conditions.
I know what you mean, Pat! I really crave that healthy, organic way of living but without the hassle LOL I imagine the initial outlay is also very high. Without the money or very little money, you may ultimately end up not reaping any rewards at all. -and after all that back breaking work! I think for farming you really need a lot of money, a lot of passion for it as well as a wealth of knowledge in that area.
I can see how it is if you've always had farming as a part of your life you may grow to resent it. I've rarely had farming as a part of my life & I've been obsessed with it. I want chickens more than you could ever know. I live in a climate that doesn't afford me that opportunity more than 6 months out of the year & that's being immensely generous. So, I do the little things I can.
My dad and his siblings have a farm that they inherited from their parents. His siblings in the province manage it, and they get a sack of rice and mangoes when they manage to have a large supply. It is economical to own a farm, but sometimes you have to deal with problems that arise, like extreme heat, floods, and insects eating the crops.
I would dearly love to start my own farm, I love animals ad countryside and my other half is really good at growing stuff! But it takes years of training and a great deal of knowledge to become a farmer and I bet real farmers must get so fed up of people trying their hand and realising how hard it really is!
I've done it for many years before I decided to move to a different country. And I am going to do it again when I have everything that I need to go and live in the country again. In the past I never bought fruit or vegetables as I had a constant supply of homegrown organic produce. I also grew medicinal herbs, flowers, peanuts and much more. I had chickens and ducks who produced lovely eggs that I sold or bartered with. I had solar power and fresh fish from the creek that ran through my property. I'm looking forward to do it all again, only in a different corner of the world.
