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A Farm of My Own:  Looking for ideas for ways to find young farmers  |
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Elli
Farmgirl at Heart
1 Posts
Elinor
Keysville
Virginia
USA
1 Posts |
 Posted - Jan 28 2015 : 07:03:43 AM
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Hello!
My husband and I are relatively new to farming and we are looking for young farmers interested in collaborating with us on our land.
We started Abundance Farm, which consists of 111 acres in south-central Virginia owned by my aunt, in 2012. Currently, British White cattle graze 40 acres of pasture; a flock of Khaki Campbell ducks follows the cattle to cleanse pastures; a growing herd of American Guinea Hogs eat mast in the 70 acres of woodlands; and a pair of Maremma livestock guard dogs guards the animals. We are in the early stages of building our farm. Our flocks and herds are small but will grow over time. We see plenty of room for additional enterprises and would like to invite a couple or small group of individuals to live in the second farmhouse and create, manage, and profit from enterprises that complement ours.
We have a 3-bedroom farmhouse we'd like to rent either as a whole or by the bedroom. With the farmhouse comes free use of the land as long as one follows regenerative agricultural practices and coordinates with us which particular piece of the land is being used and in what fashion.
In regards to enterprises, we value synergy, co-existence, and independence. As such, enterprises can dovetail with ours (like someone's laying hens following our cattle or our cattle grazing down cover-crops in someone's garden,) exist independent of ours (like someone's laying hens fertilizing their garden beds, with no cover-crop grazing from our cattle,), but not compete with ours (for example, a gaggle of geese grazing on the land is out of the picture because the pasture-eating geese compete with our cattle.)
We are open to marketing together or separately and can decide that on a case by case basis.
We will happily barter time, tools, talent, and product. We have tools, equipment, and vehicles available for use. We can barter animal sitting from time to time and will help with big projects or busy times if it works in our schedule. We hope to benefit from the same in return.
I am looking for ideas on how to get the word out about this opportunity.
Thanks!
Love,
Elli
www.abundance-farm.com
Elli
Abundance Farm
www.abundance-farm.com |
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Jan 28 2015 : 09:12:15 AM
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P.S. Can I come? Sounds fabulous.
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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cajungal
True Blue Farmgirl
2349 Posts
Catherine Farmgirl Sister #76
Houston Area
Texas
2349 Posts |
Posted - Jan 28 2015 : 6:29:18 PM
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Elli, I see this is your first post....WELCOME!!! You will love the friendships that grow here.
I'm familiar with the organization MaryJane suggested at www.wwoofusa.org. A friend of mine has had 3 different people come and stay and work at her small farm. Her experience was very positive.
I hope it all works out for you.
Catherine
Sister #76 (2005)
One of the best compliments from one of my daughters: "Moma, you smell good...like dirt.
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Red Tractor Girl
True Blue Farmgirl
6663 Posts
Winnie
Gainesville
Fl
USA
6663 Posts |
Posted - Jan 29 2015 : 05:32:19 AM
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Elli, farm project sounds like a wonderful opportunity for someone. I hope you find the right person to share with you and your new farming endeavors. Keep us posted on how it all goes!
Winnie #3109
Red Tractor Girl
Farm Sister of the Year 2014 |
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brianna.e
True Blue Farmgirl
54 Posts
Brianna
Gladstone
Michigan
USA
54 Posts |
Posted - Sep 19 2015 : 1:34:20 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by Elli
Hello!
My husband and I are relatively new to farming and we are looking for young farmers interested in collaborating with us on our land.
We started Abundance Farm, which consists of 111 acres in south-central Virginia owned by my aunt, in 2012. Currently, British White cattle graze 40 acres of pasture; a flock of Khaki Campbell ducks follows the cattle to cleanse pastures; a growing herd of American Guinea Hogs eat mast in the 70 acres of woodlands; and a pair of Maremma livestock guard dogs guards the animals. We are in the early stages of building our farm. Our flocks and herds are small but will grow over time. We see plenty of room for additional enterprises and would like to invite a couple or small group of individuals to live in the second farmhouse and create, manage, and profit from enterprises that complement ours.
We have a 3-bedroom farmhouse we'd like to rent either as a whole or by the bedroom. With the farmhouse comes free use of the land as long as one follows regenerative agricultural practices and coordinates with us which particular piece of the land is being used and in what fashion.
In regards to enterprises, we value synergy, co-existence, and independence. As such, enterprises can dovetail with ours (like someone's laying hens following our cattle or our cattle grazing down cover-crops in someone's garden,) exist independent of ours (like someone's laying hens fertilizing their garden beds, with no cover-crop grazing from our cattle,), but not compete with ours (for example, a gaggle of geese grazing on the land is out of the picture because the pasture-eating geese compete with our cattle.)
We are open to marketing together or separately and can decide that on a case by case basis.
We will happily barter time, tools, talent, and product. We have tools, equipment, and vehicles available for use. We can barter animal sitting from time to time and will help with big projects or busy times if it works in our schedule. We hope to benefit from the same in return.
I am looking for ideas on how to get the word out about this opportunity.
Thanks!
Love,
Elli
www.abundance-farm.com
Elli
Abundance Farm
www.abundance-farm.com
Okay this sounds AMAZING. This is that this is something I would love to do. Seriously, I would adore it. I have been looking for place like this for a long time. I tried WWOOF and did not enjoy it. While many people LOVED it (and I understand why) it was just not for me. I wanted a place that I could stay on with my daughter and grow with, not stay for a few weeks and split. I wanted to become a part of the community-know my neighbors and better my town and it betters me too. The hardest thing for a young farmer is finding someone who will allow them to try. It is SO expensive to start this line of work!
Anyway, I am babbling. :) I would honestly love to learn more, Elli. I would love it if you could email me and tell me more about this idea! |
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A Farm of My Own: Looking for ideas for ways to find young farmers |
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Looking for ideas for ways to find young farmers
