OFG-HowToFreeYourself.svg

permaculture

Couple wanted for remote land rental

A unique opportunity to rent a large open space with amazing views and good quality land for growing food has opened up in the Welsh countryside.

An ecological group from Brighton is planning to create residential smallholdings in Gower, Swansea, and is seeking long term tenant farmers.

If you are yearning to escape the daily grind in the city, this once in a lifetime chance could be your way out.

The Ecological Land Cooperative – Furzehill site is looking for two tenant farmers who will live in a mobile home before eventually being able – with planning consent -to build a modestly-sized, environmentally-friendly home each, Wales Online reports.

The grassland site has mains water connection but it is expected that the smallholders would live off-grid, using coppiced wood for winter heating.

They’d grow fruit and veg -including in greenhouses and polytunnels -look after hedgerows and newly-created ponds, and could rear animals.

Temporary accommodation would also be provided near the barn for two volunteers.

Normally, development in the open countryside is very restricted, but the ELC has applied to Swansea Council for permission under the Welsh Government’s one planet development planning guidance.

This guidance describes such schemes as low-impact development which “either enhances or does not significantly diminish environmental quality”, and said they must have a management plan.

In a planning statement, the ELC said the chosen smallholders would lease the land but could not sub-let it.

It added that the site would be tied to ecological farming in perpetuity.

The report said: “In addition to their many ecological benefits, the ELC’s small farm developments increase access to local fresh food, benefit the local economy and help to address a lack of affordable rural housing and an ageing rural population.”

The Furzehill site in the Gower Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty AONB is just under 18 acres, with five of those already leased to a local food and veg cooperative called Cae Tan CSA.

The ELC said careful consideration had been given to meet AONB requirements, such as low buildings and additional planting to screen them.

Courses and annual open days would be held, it said, with the community benefiting from an extra locally-grown produce option.

In a separate planning document, the ELC said a lot of food consumed in the UK was grown under plastic sheeting in arid areas of Morocco and Spain.

In Wales, most one planet development applications to date have been in west Wales.

Last year, Pembrokeshire councillor Huw George said he was concerned these developments were not being monitored strictly enough, while farmers weren’t allowed to build cottages for their children on their land.

Cllr George told BBC Wales: “Something has to be done to tighten this policy, to make sure there’s a level playing field for those who live and work in this area.”

Sonia Sinahan, ELC operations manager, said: “We monitor our small farms …

Read More »
Woman growing strawberries in a covered net box
Food

5 tips on growing strawberries

Are strawberries your favorite fruit?

Want to grow them yourself at home?

Here’s 5 tips on how to grow more strawberries than expected! Practice makes perfect so don’t worry if its your first time gardening.

  1. Make a bed of strawberries. Plant them evenly.
  2. Protect your plants from birds and other critters. Make sure to cover your strawberry bed!
  3. Choose a strawberry cultivar that is known to produce a large berry crop. As most would say, short-day varieties will give you the most strawberries.
  4. Most varieties of strawberries produce runners. These runners will eventually develop their own roots, resulting in a clone plant. Once these adventitious roots establish in the soil, the

    runners begin to dry up and shrivel away. After removing the runners, the plant can absorb more nutrients, which leads to producing more than expected. It’s quite simple to plant strawberry runners. All you have to do is dig around the plant and gently pull it up!

  5. To keep your fruits fresh and healthy, use mulch that decomposes and fertilizes the soil. It will feed your plants and prevent grass and weeds from growing with your strawberry plants.

And there you have it. A bunch of berries! All you have to do now is pick them and enjoy the fresh juicy taste of the red luscious berry. Permaculture experts say that growing asparagus next to your strawberries gives better results.

 

Read More »
Community

Permaculture in Moretown, Vermont

pc

Ben Falk is a permaculture designer based in Moretown, Vermont. In this video, he speaks about different aspects of homesteading and cold weather, notably his wood cook-stove which also heats water, and his compost-powered greenhouse heating system. He also talks about the importance of being engaged with the land around us, and how gardening is just basically awesome!

Read More »
People

Happy Mondays’ Bez to stand for election

HAPPY Mondays star Bez is living off-grid in Wales and planning a move into politics.

Bez, the boggle-eyed freaky dancer from Happy Mondays, the band that defined the hedonistic ecstasy-fuelled 1990s, says he now lives an “organic life” and grows his own food, following his recent decision to launch an anti-fracking campaign.

The dance star plans to stand as a candidate in the UK for Salford and Eccles in their General Election next year.

Read More »
Food

Growing vegetables in a tiny space

Growing vegetables in a small space, like a roof-terrace or a backyard has different rules and skills (and work-rate) compared to a larger piece of land. Firstly – expect a lower amount of produce. That said, it still amazes folks how much you can get out of a tiny space.
Some people mix edibles with ornamentals, that might seem the permaculture way, but there are advantages to keeping them separate — like its easier, and you can be more focused while looking good too.

Depending on how much space you have, build between one and three raised beds. These measure approximately 90cm by 120cm. Pretty much any receptacle that will drain freely and hold compost will work. There are plenty of books to help you along – here is one example.

Read More »
Energy

Daryl Hannah slams Steven Chu

Says Mexico Climate Change conference center is over-air-conditioned and condemns Chu for proposing “nothing concrete” in his keynote speech.

Read More »
Food

Permaculture Truffle Growing

Hazel trees inoculated with summer truffle yield 64-288kg of truffles per tree at an average wholesale price of $420 (£280) per kilo.

Read More »
Land

Landmark off-grid housing victory

An off-grid community in Devon – has won temporary planning (zoning) permission after a long battle against wealthy local residents.

The group of 16 people, featured in Nick Rosen’s book, How to Live Off-grid, paid just

Read More »
Land

They practice what we preach

Jules Dervaes and his family who live an almost completely self-sufficient life are about to be featured by the New York Times, with their own video on the newspaper’s web site.

Read More »

Natural living

Certificate for Earth-based Vocations  28th Aug lasts 20 weeks, in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Comprehensive,
hands-on course programme including renewable energy, permaculture, natural architecture. 10 weeks classes and 10 weeks internship.
Fee $4250
www.ecoversity.com

Read More »

off-grid.net

Join the global off-grid community

Register for a better experiencE on this site!