Smallholdings

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Jan 21st 2007 | 5:05 am

#16

Arris

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Posts: 1,212

From: NS

Re: Smallholdings

Quote:

Originally Posted by Yoong

There is a magazine , called The Mother Earth News Magazine , it has articles
on homesteading,raising livestock ,building environmentally friendly houses etc.
The website is www.motherearthnews.com The magazine comes out
every 2 months. Our libraries do have them and perhaps you could find
them in your local libraries.
Yoong

Thanks Yoong, i'll take a look

Jan 21st 2007 | 5:05 am

#17

pennyhp

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From: Tillsonburg ON

Re: Smallholdings

Quote:

Originally Posted by oceanMDX

At Fort McLeod, those predators won't be a problem. The major predators would be coyotes and perhaps owls (after chickens).

If coyotes are the main predator than a guardian Llama might be good or guardian dogs (great pyrenian or Maremar). They live out with the livestock.

Try a look on www.alpacanation.com/forum

There are several threads which discuss predator prevention.

Penny

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Jan 21st 2007 | 5:08 am

#18

Arris

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From: NS

Re: Smallholdings

Quote:

Originally Posted by pennyhp

Thanks Penny, i'll have a look - another forum to get hooked on

Jan 21st 2007 | 5:10 am

#19

oceanMDX

maÃ±ana is my busiest day

Joined: Mar 2004

Posts: 2,636

From: Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

Re: Smallholdings

Quote:

Originally Posted by pennyhp

I have to admit.... I don't know anything about alpacas .... donkeys have also been used in a similar way... but for defense against coyotes, dogs are a millions times more popular in Canada than alpacas or donkeys..... rifles are pretty popular too.

Last edited by oceanMDX; Jan 21st 2007 at 5:24 am.

Jan 21st 2007 | 5:48 am

#20

oceanMDX

maÃ±ana is my busiest day

Joined: Mar 2004

Posts: 2,636

From: Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

Re: Smallholdings

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arris

Thanks Penny, i'll have a look - another forum to get hooked on

One thing to consider.... Alberta isn't the cheapest place in Canada to buy land.... Saskatchewan, Manitoba, parts of Ontario and the Maritimes would be cheaper.

Jan 21st 2007 | 6:14 am

#21

Arris

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From: NS

Re: Smallholdings

Quote:

Originally Posted by oceanMDX

One thing to consider.... Alberta isn't the cheapest place in Canada to buy land.... Saskatchewan, Manitoba, parts of Ontario and the Maritimes would be cheaper.

Hi Ocean,

We're ok on that front thanks, when we were in Fort Macleod last October we bought a 4 acre plot - it wasn't on the agenda

My hubby is in the building trade so the plan is to build as much as he can himself & a friend of ours in Fort Macleod who is also in the building trade will be able to work for us. We are going again this August to start the ball rolling.

Jan 21st 2007 | 6:27 am

#22

oceanMDX

maÃ±ana is my busiest day

Joined: Mar 2004

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From: Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

Re: Smallholdings

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arris

Hi Ocean,

We're ok on that front thanks, when we were in Fort Macleod last October we bought a 4 acre plot - it wasn't on the agenda

In those parts, a 4 acre plot is tiny.... there are farms/ranchs in southern Alberta that take up several townships - a township is 36 square miles!

I had 160 acres.... and that was small. It was 145 km from home.... and I thought that wasn't very far.

Last edited by oceanMDX; Jan 21st 2007 at 6:31 am.

Jan 21st 2007 | 6:41 am

#23

Arris

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From: NS

Re: Smallholdings

Quote:

Originally Posted by oceanMDX

In those parts, a 4 acre plot is tiny.... there are farms/ranchs in southern Alberta that take up several townships - a township is 36 square miles!

I had 160 acres.... and that was small. It was 145 km from home.... and I thought that wasn't very far.

I understand what you mean about 4 acres being small in Southern Alberta.

My Cousins friend just on the edge of Fort Macleod has 250 acres - it's never ending to us coming from England.

When we told our friends here in England that we had bought 4 acres, they were all saying what do you want ALL that land for

Here in England, 4 acres is alot.

That's one of the many attractions of Canada for us, the open spaces.

Jan 21st 2007 | 6:54 am

#24

oceanMDX

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Joined: Mar 2004

Posts: 2,636

From: Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

Re: Smallholdings

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arris

I understand what you mean about 4 acres being small in Southern Alberta.

Here in England, 4 acres is alot.

That's one of the many attractions of Canada for us, the open spaces.

My land was hilly and mostly forested.... I could be on a knoll, turn in a 360 and everything I could see in all directions was mine.... all mine.

You could misplace England in Canada ...

Jan 21st 2007 | 7:10 am

#25

Arris

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From: NS

Re: Smallholdings

Quote:

Originally Posted by oceanMDX

My land was hilly and mostly forested.... I could be on a knoll, turn in a 360 and everything I could see in all directions was mine.... all mine.

You could misplace England in Canada ...

The vastness of Canada is amazing. Somebody told me more people live in London, England than in the whole of Canada

(don't know how correct that is

)

Jan 21st 2007 | 7:16 am

#26

oceanMDX

maÃ±ana is my busiest day

Joined: Mar 2004

Posts: 2,636

From: Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

Re: Smallholdings

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arris

Somebody told me more people live in London, England than in the whole of Canada

(don't know how correct that is

)

Not true. Greater London is around 18 million, Canada is about 33 million.... and Canada is about 41 times larger in area than the entire UK.

... I should add I'll bet that there are parts of Canada where you could purchase a quarter section of land (160 acres) for less than $50,000 (Canadian).

Last edited by oceanMDX; Jan 21st 2007 at 7:24 am.

Jan 21st 2007 | 7:32 am

#27

Thydney

Not dead yet

Joined: Apr 2004

Posts: 15,042

From: In a world of my own where I know everyone

Re: Smallholdings

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arris

Hi there everyone,

I'm keen to have a smallholding on our lot in Southern Alberta. It has always been a dream of mine to have some chickens, ducks a goat or two & a couple of alpacas (small relation of the llamah) & maybe some more if Hubby will let me

I would be really interested to hear from anyone about experiences of running a smallholding & any advice they can offer ie. wildlife etc.

This wont be for a few years yet, we've got to get out there yet & then build a house, but with the wait ahead i've no excuse for not being able to research the idea

Thanks in advance, Arris

Just a quick line you shouldn't raise chickens and turkeys together. I raised chickens first they were easy, geese and ducks easyish, my second adventure has been pigs and they too like to dig I've caught mine down a hole up to their snout. Third was turkeys very good at pest control

.
Being in Florida though temperature doesn't get much of a problem predators do. As has been said theres no substitute for good fencing and a *** off big shot gun of course.

Jan 22nd 2007 | 2:02 pm

#28

Yoong

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Joined: Oct 2006

Posts: 1,361

From: BC

Re: Smallholdings

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arris

Thanks Yoong, i'll take a look

You welcome Arris, I just went to the library and borrowed 5 copies
of Mother. The regular readers fondly call the mag. Mother.
Nice to read by the fireside on a rainy day in BC .
I am phobic

about roosters and turkeys lol . Geese and ducks are
ok for pests control for me (if I decided to keep some livestock) and
Mother has recipes for cake baking using duck eggs.

Yoong

Last edited by Yoong; Jan 22nd 2007 at 3:05 pm.