Lot Planning

Hey Friends,

I'm brand new here and love all of the information contained in these forums. But I thought it might be fun to get some outside perspective from people that have been doing these things for a while.

Background: My wife and I recently bought 2 and a half acres on a county lot in North Central Indiana. We're building a home on the front middle section and have a lot of land still to play with. Currently there are a ton of Bradford Pear trees on the lot, but we are having them removed/giving them to neighbors since they are so prolific. So we will end up with a handful of mature evergreen type trees on the lot and a blank canvas to develop/plant whatever we want. The house won't be finished until this winter, but we own the land outright and can start to make changes basically whenever we want. I will note that the property butts up to a mature wood line that is approximately 60 yards wide and separates us from neighbors on the other side.

Plans:

1. Vegetable Garden - My initial plan is to till out a 20'x20' vegetable garden to the back and left of the house. This will by my first large(ish) garden so I'm open to tips on planting.

2. Chickens - We've decided that we would like to start raising chickens as well. Partially because we love animals, partially for the eggs, and mostly for the help with bug control.  Our plan is to start with 4-5 to get our feet wet, and possibly expand from there. We will let the chickens free range the property as much as possible. Also, right now we have a two year old little boy, so I think we are going to hold off on a rooster until he's older. He's very inquisitive and roosters are roosters so I don't want to introduce the potential for incident between them.

3. Small orchard - I would like to use the front right side of the property for fruit trees. Apples, Cherries, Persimmons and Plums for sure. I'm also considering Paw Paws because they are native to this region, and I will put in a few mulberry trees on the back of the property. Probably close to the chicken coop so that the chickens can forage the fallen berries.

4. I've also considered potentially adding a small chicken garden to grow fresh feed for the chickens, and also adding one or two crab apple trees at the back of the property for local wildlife and the chickens.  

Feedback:

1. Vegetable Garden -  I have space to go bigger if I want to, but I'd like to hear from some others that live in the region. What crops are the most reliable, versatile, etc. Also, how can I make the best use of the space?

2. Chickens - Is 4-5 a good number to start with? Should I build a coop or order something "secure"? What breeds should I consider as a first time chicken owner?

3. Orchard - Am I missing anything I should consider, and what number of each tree should I plant for the best yields since I know they need to cross pollinate?

4. Other - What else should I be considering?

These are the plans we've made so far. I've attached a couple of pictures to help with visualization. I'd appreciate any suggestions, tips or feedback you all have to offer.  

Thanks!

Aaron, welcome to the forum!

Your plan sounds good to me.

My suggestion would be to start off slowly with the vegetable garden as it can always be increased next year,

Plant what you know your family will eat.  Just a few plants of each to get started.  Save seeds for next year.

Learn to can your harvest,

The 4 or 5 chickens will give you and your family plenty of eggs once they start laying.  Roosters are not necessary unless you want to raise baby chicks.

Please let us know how things go with your plans.

You might think about grafting yummy pears onto a few of your bradford pears. Here is one Permie's success. If all of your bradford pears are already gone, never fear, you'll have some volunteers in a year or two.

Anne Miller wrote:Aaron, welcome to the forum!

Your plan sounds good to me.

My suggestion would be to start off slowly with the vegetable garden as it can always be increased next year,

Plant what you know your family will eat.  Just a few plants of each to get started.  Save seeds for next year.

Learn to can your harvest,

The 4 or 5 chickens will give you and your family plenty of eggs once they start laying.  Roosters are not necessary unless you want to raise baby chicks.

Please let us know how things go with your plans.

Thanks Anne!

We've done smaller vegetable gardens (and some years just potted vegetables) pretty much every year for the last decade. We have staples like Tomato, Onion, Garlic, Cucumber, Bell Peppers a variety of herbs. But now that we have this much room I want to get into more. I know the three sisters are popular in permaculture and Indiana history in general, I'm not sure if there are other symbiotic garden plants as well that would benefit the land and my family.

Joylynn Hardesty wrote:You might think about grafting yummy pears onto a few of your bradford pears. Here is one Permie's success. If all of your bradford pears are already gone, never fear, you'll have some volunteers in a year or two.

Thank you, Joylynn!

I honestly didn't even know that was possible with Bradford Pears, I think I have a lot of reading to do