Building a Hobby Farm- from woods to eggs

mboulais · Dec 2, 2007

Tony,

Great posts and great progress. Keep posting. While looking for some info on implements I bought a book titled " Hobby Farm" by Carol Ekarius. While it did not have in it what I was looking for, you may find it a good read. Also I enjoy my subscription to "Hobby Farms" magazine. Not only do they have some interesting articles, you really get to see what's out there for attachments and equipment in the ads. They had a great article a few months back on implements and their uses.

Again, Keep posting! Great project.

JamesH · Dec 4, 2007

Great thread.
I am also working along similar lines with 20 acres here in KS. Most of my property is all wooded brush on a fairly gentle slope.
I have a few comments/suggestions.
1. The pecan tree is very slow to grow and bear any nuts. You may be planting them for your boys to enjoy and not you. Which is fine also.
2. For the chickens you may want to start out with a chicken tractor. A small pen on wheels that you can move the chickens around in. You can park it on any part of the garden and they will eat up any weeds and bugs as well as cultivate their dodo into the soil for fertilizer. Many good examples on the net.
3. Consider getting some guineas. They are great for bug control. We had ticks so bad last year but with the guineas this year we found hardly a one. You can also eat their eggs.
Good luck.

riptides · Dec 6, 2007

JamesH said:
3. Consider getting some guineas. They are great for bug control. We had ticks so bad last year but with the guineas this year we found hardly a one. You can also eat their eggs.
Good luck.

You can also eat them. Noisy critters when they spook.

-Mike Z.

tony123 · Dec 6, 2007

Marcel, thanks. I bought a "Hobby Farms" issue at the TSC back a few months ago. Found it to not have much of interest. Probably was just that particular issue. I'll probably subscribe to it and give it a year.

James, the chicken tractor is probably a good suggestion. I don't see any way I'll have all this fencing done in time. The tractor could be an easy way to get started and buy myself a few months if nothing else. It will be useful down the road anyhow to let the chickens go on little "field trips".

I'm not familiar with guinieas. I'll do some research. Heck, if you can eat them then I suppose its worth trying.

Not much going on at the farm right now. We're forecasted for some rain early next week. That will be my chance to get the last of my brush burned down. At that point I'll have a completely clean slate.

I have been cutting firewood in the last week. A neat little trick for bucking logs that I figured out all on my own....use an appliance dolly to lift the big logs and keep them raised off the ground for cutting! Works just like a log jack.

jonbravado · Dec 6, 2007

they make excellent 'watchdogs' - and pretty to look at as far as yard birds go.

enjoying the post.

J

Don Melcher · Dec 6, 2007

Tony - Like others said - you will discover it is smaller then you think. we have 6.75 acres and I am going to fence in a 1 acre area for fruits, vegetables and grapes. When I started looking at fruit tress I said OH NO!!! There is no was that I have enough room. Then we went on a local Ag-tour where some folks in our area opened their "hobby farms" for the weekend to visitors.

At one of those places, I was told about this nursery's website and how they plant fruit trees 4 to a raised box and "force dwarf" them. The idea is a tree planted and grown to orchard specs will give you WAY more fruit then you possibly can consume and it will all be at one time. This method gives you enough fruit for a family and it is spread out over the season - PLUS - it doesn't take all your property for a few trees!

Hope you find it as enlightening as I did.

Don Melcher · Dec 6, 2007

...and get a ROPS on that tractor, will ya' Tony. You need it with some of the slopes you got. I've almost rolled mine 3 or 4 times - very high pucker factor when you feel a wheel lift off the ground! I was looking at the "Tiltmeters" in the TBN store and I am going to buy Kermit (that's my JD 4310's name) one of those and a Pat's Easy Change for Christmas.

3RRL · Dec 6, 2007

Tony,
Must be a good feeling to have a "clean slate". Mine is full and I have all of then to do at the same time. shees ... which one next.
Let us know what you decide on the guineas. We will want to get some as soon as we can. I'd like to learn more about it too.

weldingisfun · Dec 7, 2007

tony123 said:
Marcel, thanks. I bought a "Hobby Farms" issue at the TSC back a few months ago. Found it to not have much of interest. Probably was just that particular issue. I'll probably subscribe to it and give it a year.

James, the chicken tractor is probably a good suggestion. I don't see any way I'll have all this fencing done in time. The tractor could be an easy way to get started and buy myself a few months if nothing else. It will be useful down the road anyhow to let the chickens go on little "field trips". I'm not familiar with guinieas. I'll do some research. Heck, if you can eat them then I suppose its worth trying.

Not much going on at the farm right now. We're forecasted for some rain early next week. That will be my chance to get the last of my brush burned down. At that point I'll have a completely clean slate.

I have been cutting firewood in the last week. A neat little trick for bucking logs that I figured out all on my own....use an appliance dolly to lift the big logs and keep them raised off the ground for cutting! Works just like a log jack.

Save your money Tony123, I have had a subscription to that mag for nearly a year and decided not to renew it. None of the issues had much of interest in them. That is, not of interest to me.