Hi, our family is trying to make an income from our land in northeat Washington and we are not sure what is the best choice. Our land is about 3-4 ac. of sub-irrigated fairly good soil (a little heavy on the clay) and we have about 3-4 acres of dry clay ground (it will pasture until about the end of June then it is as hard as a rock) We also have a 1/4 acre pond, large 60x60 barn and a 70x80 deer fenced garden (on the sub-irrigated ground-not good for potatoes let me tell you). Our growing season is about mid-may through most of september. i would like to raise blueberries, but we plan to move in a year or two to a larger place so I need to do something that will move with us. Does anyone know of any thing that we could raise for a bit here and then transfer with us? Do you think it is reasonable to do that? Also my mother-in-law is thinking of building a greenhouse on her land and raising herbs or cut flowers. Does anyone know much about that? Which plants are the best choices, etc? I really appricate any ideas anyone has. Thank you

-- Kate (yngve@theofficenet.com), March 05, 2002

Answers

Kate, hope you get some good responses. We want to do the same thing. We were thinking of a feed store where you can sell plants, etc. We are planning on being 20 miles from a smallish town. We will be on 160 acres on a main road. Maybe a nursery setup would be good.

-- Hank (hsnrs@att.net), March 05, 2002.

Hello Kate,

Truck farming is good if you grow the things that others do not grow. Hot peppers, gourds, carrots, and stuff like that. Growing tomatoes or cucumbers might work but, a lot of people already grow that during the summer and usually will not need to buy much, unless they are tourist from one of the cities.

Growing herbs and converting them into herbal vinegars is a possibility.

Bees are good if you think you can sell honey in your locality.

With a small amount of acreage you will be limited with the amount of land needed for some items. Blueberries for instance take time and need acid soil to do well. Unless you plant a whole lot of them they would not bring in too much income.

Crafts from your natural materials are a possiblility too. Grape vine wreaths, rustic furniture, and stuff like that are things that tourist buy to take back to their condos.

Since you are only going to be where you are a short while, I would suggest truck farming this season, just to see if there is a chance you can do it on a larger scale after you move.

Sincerely,

Ernest

-- http://communities.msn.com/livingoffthelandintheozarks (espresso42@hotmail.com), March 05, 2002.

A greenhouse would be nice, but if cost is an issue.... I raise my herbs and perennials in a garden outside my front door and sell the many multiplied plants in the Spring. Fresh eggs for you to sell is a good idea, we do that too! Good Luck!

-- Carla (herbs@computer-concepts.com), March 05, 2002.

Kate, We started out as flower growers and then added vegetables and herbs. Flowers can be pretty good but it takes time to develope your markets not to mention learn what your doing. The veggies may be the simplest option for you. Herbs grow pretty easy too. If a farm stand is impractical you may want to do a farmers market. As a matter of fact, do them anyways even if you have a stand because that's where to people are. Everyone does grow tomatoes and cukes,so do we. The reason is they sell. It's great to grow what other people don't but you better make sure there is a demand for it. Otherwise you'll have a whole lot of something that nobody buys because they don't know what it is. They might look or even ask but then they'll walk off and buy some tomatoes. If you want to try flowers keep it simple and small. Stick to the basics, snaps, Zinnias, asters, statice,sun flowers. They're easy and pretty productive. Make sure you use cutting varieties. Like I said before, flowers takes time to learn but a few hundred sq. ft. will give you a taste of it. Check out Frank Aronsky's book "We're Going To Be Rich" . It's all about growing cut flowers for market. I think the title is an in industry joke but it's a good book. Another is "Metrofarm" by Michael Olson, or you could check out the stuff by Elliot Coleman.If you got the knack for growing stuff there is a lot of opportunity out there to make a few bucks. This year we are going to try and get a subscription bouquet service off the ground on top of the wholesale and retail end. Like I said, lots of opportunities. Do your homework and take a chance, good luck.

-- JJ Grandits (JJGBDF@aol.com), March 05, 2002.

This link on Farmer Markets & Marketing, http://smallfarms.orst.edu/marketing.htm may be of interest, it has a number of informative web sites/publications that seem to deal with your question(s).

-- BC (desertdweller44@yahoo.com), March 05, 2002.

Plant some columnar apple or other fruit trees in pots. These can later be transferred to land or other pots.

Contact your local extension agent for info on greenhouses and farmers market info in your area. Contact SARE for free info as well. Start a breeding program for livestock-they could all move with you and it takes years to create a good breedstock.

-- Anne (HealthyTouch101@wildmail.com), March 05, 2002.

Hi Kate, Check out the book "The Flower Farmer" by Lynn Byzynski. It's a great resource for raising and selling cut flowers.

-- vicki in NW OH (thga76@aol.com), March 05, 2002.

Dear Kate: Where were you thinking of marketing your produce, etc.? There are several Farmer's Markets in the area and I have a couple of friends that have sold at them and also there are those that go over to the Seattle area with their produce and wares on the week-ends. What is the closest town/city that you could find customers? I would think that Spokane probably has Farmer Markets too.

-- Marie in Central WA (Mamafila@aol.com), March 05, 2002.

If you really want to get into plants/flowers, check out Freeplants.com . It is a plant propogation hot spot, with a good message board. Mike's advertised book on the site is good if you are considering a nursery/landscaping business, but otherwise the rest of the site is worth absorbing in it's entirety to anyone wanting to grow a lot of plants for very little money. Perhaps your mother-in- law could use this site too.

-- roberto pokachinni (pokachinni@yahoo.com), March 09, 2002.

Thanks for the great ideas. I think I will plant some fruit trees and blue berries in pots. It looks like we will be selling our home, so I'm not sure how much more I will do with our land this year. I plan to do some crafting and e-bay sell however. My mother in law is checking out information on growing flowers. Thank you all again.

-- Kate (yngve@theofficenet.com), March 15, 2002.