I am a relatively new member and have a bit of an outrageous topic but thought I would toss it out there to see what you folks thought. I must start from the beginning so bare with me. I grew up on a diary farm outside of Langley, yes and had the privilege of being raised on raw milk, something that I never appreciated until recently. Through out the years the farm has slowly been decaying and it breaks my heart to see it in this manner. My family is slowly expanding their horizons to the possibility of bringing this farm back to life and I am so enthusiastic but understand the work behind and it is unrealistic to think we can do it alone. I have a vision of creating a sustainable, self- sufficient hub but not to keep to myself but to share and teach others. With the nature of the business we are in it seems like such a perfect fit but I need a team of like minded individuals who are willing to put in some sweat equity for the greater good. There is a tremendous opportunity hear that has started with only an idea. I am not looking to sign ya'll up for slave labor but asking that you open your minds to this opportunity and consider my vision. Of course we have to due diligence but I thought I would share my vision and get the opinion of the network. Think coop, that pretty much sums it up.
Cherise aka Chylan Gear
Hi Cherise, I have my own heritage farm in Langley I put in sweat equity into each day so I am not your intended audience but I will say that slowly I am gaining some ground in making my own bit of soil more sustainable and I think it is an idea worth undertaking . Good luck with it .
Highly recommend the permaculture forum for some new ways of tackling old problems.
http://www.permies.com/
Whew. I hear you.
My in-laws bought a farm (23 acres) about 11 years ago. They put up a new pole barn, and fenced about a third of the property for sheep. Then they sort of quit. Half the farm was neglected grape rows before they bought the place and have sat unpruned or anything since, so the vines left standing don't produce at all. It's amazing how fast weed and scrub moves in and how thickly.
I've taken it upon myself to 'do something' with the place, as the in-laws are getting elderly now and getting health troubles. I'll tell you, it's satisfying to start clawing back the land, but it'll go much more slowly then you plan for. That's lesson number one. It's work sure, but you'll plan to get so much done and not actually get as much done as you want.
If your reclaiming land, don't be scared to rent equipment. I struggled with that last year, as I thought myself strong enough to clear land myself by hand. And I was. But the rate of clearing was SO SLOW. The amount that I cleared by hand all summer and fall last, I could have done in about a full day or a day and a half with rented equipment. It cost money to rent, but it saves tons of time.
Good luck to you! The best advice I can offer is try your best not to take on too much at once, because as soon as you have you'll bog down. Better to start small and succeed, then it is to go big and let it control you. Let us know how your getting on with it 🙂
Runs With Scissors