[Kalifornia Guy]

The land, though not fenced by property line, is by default marked with his fence for his horses at the edge of the property. I just need to find a tactful way to talk to him. Best to be tactful and have a good neighbor or if he's a good gardner you might want to suggest working with him and sharing the harvest.

Is this amount of land really big enough for some fish?

We have a local family that is raising tilapia in three Walmart above ground pools, guessing they grow quickly and don't mind being in a crowded environment.

Downside is that some tilapia species are illegal to raise in some states.

 

[богдан]

3 acres is decent you can do alot with three acres.

I recomend getting a earthy seeder or some brand of mechamichal seeder to make seeding a large garden easier.
also look into a planet jr wheel hoe with cultivators sweeps and plows makes weeding and the like real easy as well. You can also get the seeder and have one stop shop for seeder and wheel hoe.
mine are over 100 years old and going strong.

Also do a soil test first see if any amendments meed be made and call your agricultural extension office as to what grows well in your area
plant your fruit trees and shrubs now because it takes a few years to get fruit.

You can also make a living fence on the side with your neighbor plant a hedge row of something prickly like bitter oranges or if you don't mind them taking some blueberries one mature blueberry bush wil produce around 90 dollars in fruit anuallyso not bad for a 1 to 4 dollar per bush investment.

Also I recomend laying things out very well as it increases the visual appeal of your property should you ever sell it.

 

[Mogli]

The land, though not fenced by property line, is by default marked with his fence for his horses at the edge of the property. I just need to find a tactful way to talk to him.

Is this amount of land really big enough for some fish?

I agree that you can do a lot with 3 acres. You might want to look into aqua ponics for the fish. Although I'm still in the middle of this project and there is a learning curve. At least for me. If you're in a drought prone area, this can be a very big water saver too using 80% less water than conventional techniques, IIRC.

Vertical growing techniques too can save a lot of space. I especially like it for tomatoes. Either staking them or tying them up onto a trellis.

Right now I'm totally getting into bio-intensive gardening which uses double digging beds and then planting very close together. I'm working on this now with a bed.

Good luck and how exciting. Lot's of work too.

Oh yeah, I vote keeping the trees too.

 

[OldBlackWater]

With using many new small farming techniques you can produce much more food than I previously thought.

Another thing to consider about a basement is that it stays relatively the same temperature year round. The earth makes for a very efficient and affordable insulator as well as provides very affordable ballistic protection. Think Hesco bastions.

I used to have a basement and loved it!
In the summers I would spend most time in the basement as it never got hot down there.
Wish I still had one and plan to put basements under any new construction we do.

They are multiple use, very inexpensive for square footage and when you prep you never seem to have enough storage room.

And a basement is a perfect place to build a gun vault/safe room, with a tunnel exit so you can't get trapped in there.
.

 

[Clawhammer]

Just on a side note... this property sounds AWESOME!!!
You're really gunna enjoy building a home there.

 

[barnetmill]

Acquiring mineral rights might be VERY expensive if there is mineral activity in the area.

Intensive management and you can grow a lot of stuff on 3 acres, including small animals. Having a neighbor that is impossible to communicate with, I would be very careful how you approach the neighbor. It isn't much fun to have someone perpetually PO'd at you. Good luck.

Best time to fence is right after you buy. They surveyors stakes and boundary markers should still be in place and visible. Leaves not doubt as to where the line is. You should maintain the boundary marker stakes in some way. I wish I had done that originally.

 

[barnetmill]

With using many new small farming techniques you can produce much more food than I previously thought.

Another thing to consider about a basement is that it stays relatively the same temperature year round. The earth makes for a very efficient and affordable insulator as well as provides very affordable ballistic protection. Think Hesco bastions.

I used to have a basement and loved it!
In the summers I would spend most time in the basement as it never got hot down there.
Wish I still had one and plan to put basements under any new construction we do.

They are multiple use, very inexpensive for square footage and when you prep you never seem to have enough storage room.

And a basement is a perfect place to build a gun vault/safe room, with a tunnel exit so you can't get trapped in there.
.

One downside is that many basements flood and need to provide for that. They are worth while investments.

 

[wilderness bushman]

i grow almost a acre of garden ,,it will feed about 7 to 9 people all the veggies/potatoes they need,,,i have between 3 and 4 acres with rabbits and chickens/ducks and other smaller livestock to free range the rest it probable would support a average family[4 or 5 ],,not sure if that size could be self sustaining ,,,but it should provide the majority of your food

be aware that building a homestead isnt easy or cheap ,,fencing is costly ,,,,building good soil takes time and lots of work ,,buildings ,pens /barns/coops ect

i would put in the basement
had some friends that built a home in stages ,,,,put in the basement and floor joist ,,,,,,decked the floor ,,,then covered it with roofing ,and lived in the basement till they could build the main home above it,,,a few years later they added the main floor,,,cut the edges of roofing off to stand the walls ,,, and until it was roofed in and walls done they left the rest covered

 

[SirJoel]

"...goats are very social animals and it might be cruel to only get one."

Not near as cruel as when you chop him up and throw him in the oven

 

[RobinSuburbia]

Congrats on buying your land! Since you know that your neighbor has been using the land prior to your purchase, I would mount some trail cameras in some trees. A good camouflaged trail cam can yield some nice results. Do you know how long the prior owner of your land had it? Did he or she ever use it? How long has your neighbor that planted gardens on the land that you bought, lived on his land? Are most of the lots 3 acres or larger? If his acreage is the same as yours, I wonder why he decided to use other peoples land?

 

[Ceshack]

Once you start using your land the neighbor may get the idea, if you use up all of it and he's still there on that little piece then he's not a reasonable person and you wouldn't want anything to so with him anyhow. Also in some states if a person uses land without a contract for at least 7 years then that land becomes his. It's called squatters rights

 

[Ceshack]

Also be aware of squatters rights. You don't want that guy there to long. 7 years in some locals and that land is his if there isn't a contract drawn up

 

[2wheelslave]

I talked with this neighbor yesterday and it was made very clear (and in a polite manner) that he can harvest what he has planted this year but that's the end of it. That's as good as it's going to get for the time being.

 

[ppine]

You need a fence. An underground place of refuge seems obvious in Kansas.
Three acres is not enough to live off of, but it is a good start.

 

[Pitbull_Dallas]

Absolutely, you can become selfsufficient on three acres of land, especially if it's good soil. It would be a good investment it get a small green house too. Just be sure you lay everything out from a functional perspective.

 

[ForestBeekeeper]

Absolutely, you can become selfsufficient on three acres of land, especially if it's good soil. It would be a good investment it get a small green house too. Just be sure you lay everything out from a functional perspective.

What is possible in one area, might not be possible in another area.

Here it is possible. But there are a lot of other folks who claim it is not possible in their areas.


How deep is the water table? Would there be any issues with underground facilities flooding?

 

[Conman2U]

Look what all this guy did with 4 acres.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tl01au5pXm0

 

[DWwolf]

How about a basement that is halfway into the ground and earthberm the top bit ~3 feet wide ?

add a culvert as an 2nd exit 20 feet away from the house clear from potential trees falling over add a manual hydraulic jack with attachement points provided to be able to get the doors open.

 

[Watchingtheweasels]

The wife and I have recently acquired 3 acres of land in an unincoorperated town. About 6 or 7 people live in this little area otherwise there is nothing in the area for several miles. There is an old trailer which is being demolished and moved and it is setup for rural water, propane hookups and a tank, and elec.

Congratulations!

I plan on getting a well, acquiring mineral ri setting up our future house for solar.

A well is important. I started with a similar property - 4.5 acres - which had an older farmhouse on it. That has come with its own challenges but it does have a basement and has a bore well in the basement which is plumbed to the home's plumbing. Given the challenges with this house I was thinking of moving but I am afraid that we have run out of time and intend to make the best of what we have here. Mineral rights may be difficult, impossible, or not worth acquiring depending on what part of the country you are in. Solar is good, but again depending on what part of the country you are in it may not produce consistent power.

e haven't decided if our house would be better off with a basement or if we should just have some sort of shallow underground shelter/storage area. At $30k for a basement I just don't know if it's worth it. Is a wood stove necessary if I have solar backup?

Basements are very useful for storage and as tornado shelters. If you live in an area that has tornadoes I would recommend one. A wood stove is critical. Electric heat requires a lot of power, probably beyond the capability of most solar systems particularly given that they would be required for heat precisely during cold winter months when sunlight is limited. Wood stoves represent the only electricity free heating solution I have come up with. I would recommend one strongly.

Kansas doesn't have much in the way of trees and I enjoy having some on this land, but have been told I should just cut them down to make room for other things. Not really sure if the trees are all that beneficial or in the way if I'm honest.Is there something I'm forgetting?

Don't cut them down. Trees are invaluable as windbreaks during Midwestern winters.

We were hoping to have a few chickens, maybe a goat, and about 1.5 acres of garden which will include a green house. We are also going to plant fruit trees. This should leave about an acre of 'yard' for the kids and general use. Until we move out there, I plan on growing cover crops and letting the neighbor know he can no longer use this land as his own personal garden which apparently he doesn't think is a problem:xeye:

We have about 2 acres of yard, 1 acre of fruit trees, and 1 acre of garden. Good fencing will be critical if you plan on having animals, this may solve the neighbor issue. If you are moving to rural America good relationships with your neighbors are important. So much so that if any given piece of property has neighbor issues I would probably pass on it.

Is this enough land to live off of and does anybody have any suggestions on how to make the most of this little piece of land? We feel a bit overwhelmed because we didn't expect to have to make these decisions for a couple of more years nor did we anticipate having to buy a house on top of it.

It should be. Good luck.

 

[surfcast]

Providing you don't have a high water table put in the basement .The storage capacity alone is such an advantage.