The 9 acre tract of land that our house is on was once used
for farming. It has a spring fed pond but no trees, except along the fence line
& a wooded branch at the very tip of one end. It is slightly slanted &
lightly terraced down toward the water & the branch. It hasn’t been planted
since 1999 when my uncle died just after plowing it, but before the crop went
in. So, it was harrowed up & never leveled or smoothed out.
We put our
house on the property 6 years ago. It is a small modular home, on foundation,
with front & back porches added. Along with a carport & laundry/storage
room. Plus, the well house (pictured in earlier post).
We have been mowing ‘the yard’ for the last 5 or 6 years &
it has smoothed out somewhat but you can sure ‘feel’ those terraces more than
see them when you are mowing.
Our house pretty much sits in the middle of the property
kind up on one of the terraces. So, we have plenty of room to put in garden
beds & an orchard on one side and eventually a barn on the other. With
chickens and goats scattered here and there (eventually!). Going to keep the area
between the house & the water clear for now because we think the view is
nice.
However, we are kicking our buts for not planting fruit
& nut trees earlier. They are definitely on ‘the list’ now. We did get in
an orange, a lemon and a lime tree planted in February this year, up near the
house. Plus we put in some willows down by the pond (to offer a bit of shade
when fishing). And, we have wild grapes (Scuppernong & Muscadine) that we
are trying to coax away from the tangled fence line onto an arbor.
Plans are to eventually put in:
- Peach, Pear, Plum trees (maybe even try a southern variety of apple?
- Blackberry & Blueberry bushes
- Red & White Seedless Grapevines
- Pecan Trees
Plus, a fairly large vegetable garden.
We are in as high a gear as we can be to get started on all
of this. Even though we’ve done plenty of ‘projects’ on the house and other
things, none have really been toward getting ready for planting stuff.
We have three years before I will be spending a large
portion of the spring and summer there. So, we are in the planning &
‘getting started’ phases.
And, trying to make up for lost time.
12 comments:
Oh I so wish we had the land you have. You have done a wonderful job so far. Maybe more trees for shade. Thanks for the update.
Thank you Rob. We are blessed, as this land is part of the 'family farm' from years past. Part of which my Dad inheireted(sp?) & part which he bought and gave me 9 acres. It's a lot of work but going to be worth it in the long run.
A couple of Elderberries would be nice too.
Stephen,
I have Loganberries on my list to research but know nothing about Elderberries. Any insight? I'll add them to my research list.
DFW
Your house and property are beautiful. Looks like you have drawn out a plan of action and have started working it. A suggestion, maybe make a homemade material canopy and use para chord and poles to tie it up for the dock for shade (something removable). It's just a thought until your trees grow larger.
DFW,
It's an awesome property! All things take time, start your list, and just check them off as you go. You'll turn around in 3 years when you are ready to retire, and see all of your hard work flourishing.
Thanks Sandy. Great idea about the shade!
Thanks Izzy. One problem I have with lists is, I get excited to see stuff checked off and makes me want 'the day' to come even faster. Plus I keep adding to it so it seems to be never ending. But, I think that is a good thing.
You have a blank pallet! Oh so many things you can do and plant! I would have a list 2 miles long!
Thanks for the comments Melodie. Your blog was one of the first I followed, love it! And yes, my list just keeps growing and growing and ...
Hi. I wanted to return the blog visit and thank you for the comment on mine. I love that you have 9 acres. And I love your plans. I admit I'm glad we put our fruit trees in first year. Your house looks great. Even your yard, though I know you'll be glad to get it put to a more edible use. :)
Thank you Leigh. We didn't get fruit trees planted (except for the citrus) this spring but will be adding the others this fall. We'll keep some yard just because the view is so nice but I want sustainability with fruit and nuts that last from year to year. I have almost got my Dad in to trying an acre or so of wheat too. As MDR suggested, put in things that don't need tending day to day (corn, wheat, etc.) and can be harvested at a set time. Until I can be there more.
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