Below is a conceptual plan for a hypothetical sustainable farm that could be created on between 2-10 acres. Our own home is on 2 acres and as such we do not have any animals other than pets. We would like to have chickens, but our covenants do not allow it. Obviously this plan is just an idea and would have to be modified to suit your site. We started out with a ranch home that is not a stellar example of passive solar architecture or earth contact, but like so many things in life, you make do with what you have. Very few of us can start building our own Eden from scratch with the budget we desire.
Some things we have found particularly beneficial is siting the garden below our home so that we can collect the rain water off our roof and store it in a 500 gallon barrel to irrigate the garden. This may or may not be possible at your homesite and of course you want to also consider where you have the best sunlight and the richest soil. We have built our garden fence with our dog run area around the garden. This has proven to be very valuable in keeping the deer and rabbits out of the garden.
What sustainability means to me!
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Thank you for sharing this. This is excellent to get the ideas flowing. I am definitely going to implement some of the suggestions on my 20 acres.
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