Homestead/Smallholding Questionnaire

I am posting this on all of the forums that I read so I apologize to those of you who read the same ones of me. I am doing this to get the most responses I can, not to annoy everyone.

I have a small farm with 6 holiday Bed and Breakfast rooms, offering a farmhouse holiday experience. This is limited to the summer time and I am thinking about offering some homestead/smallholding courses to people who may be interested. We have noticed there are a lot of people who want to get beyond the city limit but do not know haw to. Our idea is to point people in the general direction and give them a taster of what farm life can be like. A weekend visit or two may be enough to put them off all together of it may fire them up to take the plunge without hopefully making too many mistakes. Lots of families would like to get out of the fast lane, but do not know how big a pig is, let alone what they smell like, but love to eat bacon.

Please could you answer the following, based on the location being in the area you wanted to live (location not being the prohibitive factor, rather the type of information and experience received)

1. If you are a wannabe, or when you were first looking for your place in the country do you think a weekend activity holiday would be useful to you? 2. This could include help with the best estate agents/realtors in the area, things to look out for in a property, septic tanks, solar, living off the mains/grid etc. What other practical things would need to be covered? 3. Animals play a huge role in the self-sufficient lifestyle. Basic animal handling with a diverse selection of animals. Nothing in great detail. Taylor make the weekend to the peoples needs and wants that are attending. Would this be of use? 4. Preserving the harvest. A demonstration of some preservation techniques. I guess not too many families do this. Which forms of preservation should be covered? 5. Basic vegetable gardening techniques. SFG, raised beds, lasagne gardening, how to utilize a greenhouse, rotating the vegetable crop. Would a taster of these be of use? 6. Some practical experience of dairying; making cheese, butter yoghurt, milking; other self sufficient crafts; soap making, candles etc Would these be better as a hands on experience or just as a demonstration? 7. Are there any other things people can think of?

Obviously I am at the beginning phase of this project but I felt that if we have to have people staying here they might as well be people who we may have something in common with.

Thanks for your time and responses.

Alison

-- Alison Homa (alisonhoma@hotmail.com), January 07, 2002

Answers

I have thought of doing similar things in the past .Have you looked into the insurance issue ? Everyone is sue happy these days .

-- Patty {NY State} (fodfarms@hotmail.com), January 07, 2002.

I have always wanted to go to Butterfly Hollow in Tn. It is the same kind of thing you are talking about doing. I think you will like her web page. the url is http://butterflyhollowfarm.com/farmshare.html click on sharing the farm and it will give you guest rates and meals Might help you with ideas for your place. I think this place is a bit fancy for the rustic venture I think of as being on a farm but it sure looks inviting :)

-- Teresa (c3ranch@socket.net), January 07, 2002.

My thoughts would be that you could structure weekend offerings to match homestead activities related to the season and let guests get their hands dirty by learning through doing. It has been my experience that people like to learn by doing and will pay for the opportunity. Here in Central Virginia, my wife and I attend various summer programs offered by Monticello. We've learned much about vineyard development, apple grafting of heirloom varieties, various propagation techniques -- and all were hands-on short classes (2-3 hours) taught by masters on the subjects.

I suggest you focus weekend, or several-day, events by limiting your offerings to just a few activities, but cover those subjects in- depth, including take-away brochures, books or completed items (e.g baskets, graftings, canned jam, etc). Provide the materials that people will use to make things; for example, basket-making materials. If a class is offered in how to use herbs, then provide the herbs, butter, vinegar, bottles; discuss each herb, how it is grown, harvested and preserved.

For example, Winter programs might include topics such as crop planning and rotation; equipment repair; fence building; wood lot management and cutting; simple furniture making; wood carving; hand tool maintenance; chain saw sharpening and repair; wool spinning; rug weaving; basket making; and syrup making. Spring programs could focus on composting; worm raising; Tractor Driving 101; ground work; seed bed preparation, vineyard design and development; horse breeding, training, and riding; horse/mule working teams, harnessing, working, care and feeding; grafting techniques; vegetable and grain planting; sheep shearing; calving; poultry development; egg gathering, candling and storage; dairy, goat, and sheep herd breeding and management; butter making; wood splitting and building repairs. Summer programs might include subjects such as flower growing and drying; beekeeping; pruning techniques; hay cutting; compost piles; water management; pest control; vegetable canning; fruit and vegetable dehydration and cheese making. Fall topics could include harvesting techniques; apple gathering and storage; a tour of old barns with focus on timber-frame construction techniques; candle making; soap making; cider making; wine making; honey extraction; cool weather crops; cold frames; greenhouses; firewood stacking; butchering; root cellars; house repairs and winterizing. I think you get the idea, which is to just show people how to do what you already know how to do.

Your programs probably need to include activities for children. Every kid wants to learn how to milk a cow or watch bees make honey or play with the lambs or feed the pigs. You may want to modify the program to milking a goat for the kids, but let dad and mom try the cow. Just make sure mom doesn't sink her nice long finger nails into ole bossy; lest she learn that cows do kick sideways.

If you prepare and distribute a program that outlines your events for the entire year and offer something every couple of weeks, you'll probably have repeat customers once or twice a year. If you offer the same topics every year for a few years, then families can plan annual visits and learn a little bit more each year. If you cannot offer everything on your own place, then you might arrange with friends or neighbors to conduct various workshops and demonstations and pay them for their time and effort. If you don't make soap, but have a neighbor who does, then you can include soap making in your program, but not conduct the workshop yourself. It might even be more opportune for you to arrange numerous workshops with other locals, thereby allowing you to offer a "Weekend On The Farm," but not have to do everything yourself. If the friend or neighbor lives close by, a slow hay wagon ride behind a tractor to and from their house can be fun.

It has been my observation that the key to workshops and demonstrations is the level of actual working knowledge and experience of the people conducting the classes and their ability to answer questions accurately plus the ability to demonstrate techniques in a fluid and natural manner.

Just some thoughts which I hope are helpful to you. Good Luck.

Ed

-- Ed (ecpubs@lynchburg.net), January 07, 2002.

I guess this might be interesting for wannabe country folk from the city or burbs. How much experience do you have at these activities? Take canning, butchering, spinning or soap making. How many years have you been doing this or are you going to hire craftsmen and women to do the demonstrations? IMHO I guess I don't want to pay to watch somebody do something that I have already been doing for years. I don't mean to make you mad or anything, It is just my opinion that I, as a homesteader, would not pay for this service. I wish you luck!

-- cowgirlone (cowgirlone47@hotmail.com), January 07, 2002.

As I said before this would be for people who have had no experience of this type of lifestyle -wannabes, looking for their first place in the country. We have good self sufficiency skills, and would be calling on those of friends and neighbours, who are willing, especially if they are paid!!

I think having children activities are definately needed, as a move like this could make or break a family.

I also like the seasonal ideas, especially if people came more than once, for different ideas

Thanks again

Alison

-- Alison Homa (alisonhoma@hotmail.com), January 07, 2002.

Alison, This probably would be of interest to wannabes. There aren't too many people that have elderly relatives to pass this knowledge on to them. I like the seasonal idea too, and people could pick which weekend activity they are most interested in. Good luck!

-- cowgirlone (cowgirlone47@hotmail.com), January 07, 2002.

Ed beat me to the perfect answer. I'd come. k

-- karen (karengrandmaison@hotmail.com), January 07, 2002.

You might want to organize that portion of your business as a non- profit demonstration type "working" farm.

-- GT (nospam@nospam.com), January 07, 2002.

In addition to what I posted before, something else came to mind this afternoon as I was repairing the roof on our house. And that is the need for a basic set of trade skills when moving to a homestead type environment. I'm talking here about fundamental skills like carpentry, masonary, plumbing, electrical work, refrigeration, working with tin (tinsmithing), welding, blacksmithing, small engine repair, and so on.

Clearly, there may not be a need for one to be an expert in any or all of these skills, but having the basics under one's belt can save a tremendous amount of time and expense. Also, understanding the fundamentals allows one to know the correct way in which a job should be done and is an asset when contracting someone to do work. For example, yesterday during a storm, a leak developed in an expansion joint of the tin roof on our three-storey house. Suddenly, there was rainwater running into an upstairs bedroom. Just another one of life's little pleasures. Well, I caught the water in a bucket up in the attic during the storm, and today made an emergency repair from inside the house that will hold until Spring, when I can safely get up on the roof and do a complete repair. Carpentry and tin working skills made this emergency repair possible and did not require any assistance from anyone else and there was no damage inside the house.

If you don't wish to offer these fundamental skill classes to homestead wannabes, you might outline these skills for them, provide an overview of such skills and suggest they learn them in their spare time before making the move to their homestead. Not only will the evening and weekend classes at their current location give them new skills, but will also help build their confidence once they're in remote or isolated situations where the plumber may not be just a phone call away when the well pump quits or the sewer line backs up. I never ceased to be amazed at the number of people who can't even change a light bulb.

Over the years, I've developed a lot of skills, but I'm the first to admit that life in a homesteading environment is a continuous learning experience. I grew up on a farm, spent lots of years in high technology, and have returned to the farm.

To illustrate a point about learning new skills, I'll share a short story. On one of my corporate re-assignments, my wife and I were apart for about one year. I was working in Raleigh, NC and she remained in Hudson, OH to sell our home. I'd fly home once a month, but had three other weekends each month that didn't need to be wasted. I don't smoke, drink, gamble, chase other women and hated the boredom of an apartment. So, to fill the available time, I took a year's worth of courses on the weekends and learned furniture making. Not only did I learn the capabilities and limitations of every woodworking machine available, but also mastered sanding and finishing techniques. I ended up with some nice pieces. So, now when we need a piece of furniture, I frequently just go make it. I enjoy making Colonial and country style pieces and in a couple of years intend to improve my skills in making Windsor furniture. I guess what I suggesting to homestead wannabes is not to waste your time before moving to the countryside. Use the pre-move time to get yourself some basic skills. Not only will such skills influence your decision to move to the country, but will be invaluable once you are there. Start now.

Just another .02 worth.

Ed

-- Ed (ecpubs@lynchburg.net), January 07, 2002.