Nora Oaks

M Waisman wrote:I got permission to share this after Linda posted to a conservation list serve that we are both on. I don't know her or the property first hand- but I LOVE WISCONSIN!

Here is her message:
After 45 years of partnering with the land, growing most of our own food and fuel, developing an on-site market business, making our own lumber, we need to move on and sell. 112 acres in Juneau County, WI: 1/3 woodlands, 1/3 tillable/grazing and buildings, 1/3 wetlands.   1 acre fenced in garden with raised beds, fruit trees and bushes. Operating aquaponics system with bluegills and catfish. Sawmill, sugar shack, tractor and equipment are all a part of the deal as well as a flock of chickens and bees. Looking for someone wanting not just the land, but lifestyle. Contact Linda at mosquitoranch58@gmail.com

hey there, any chance this is still open?

hey y’all -

recently moved to a little house in a little town that has a 10ft long archway FULL of concord grapes. they’re all ripening right now. yesterday i only got the easy ones and came in with two gallons.

WHAT DO YOU DO WITH THEM??? (my kids had a grape seed spitting battle. admirable, but sticky.)

last year i made jelly, and unless there’s an easier process, i don’t want to do that again. i don’t have a lot of equipment and can’t attain fancy strainers and presses.

i was wondering about wine or vinegar. or something else i know now.

double points for retention of medicinal qualities.

and if i can’t figure it out right away, is it ok to freeze them til i can?

thanks

John Pollard wrote:Handy Table for general info like plant spacing for isolation - 5 pages
https://www.seedsavers.org/site/pdf/Seed%20Saving%20Guide_2017.pdf

Small Scale Organic Seed Production - 40 pages
https://certifiedorganic.bc.ca/programs/osdp/I-066%20Seed%20Handbook%20v5.pdf

How to grow a seed collective - 40 pages
http://www.farmfolkcityfolk.ca/PDFs_&_Docs/Est_a_Seed_Collective_v9comp.pdf

A Guide to SeedSaving, SeedStewardship & Seed Sovereignty - 22 pages
https://seedambassadors.org/docs/seedzine4handout.pdf

The Woody Plant Seed Manual - 1241 pages
https://www.fs.fed.us/rm/pubs_series/wo/wo_ah727.pdf

hey, the Woody Plant Seed Manual and the Seed collective links are broken :( Just so you know

Burra Maluca wrote:Sounds like you need to learn about the Skills to Inherit Property (SKIP) program offered here on permies.

I think there are around 22 people looking for people to inherit their land and are using the program to find suitable candidates.

Check out the link  - All about SKIP

I had no idea about this. THANK YOU

edit: it looks like a lot a lot, and rather overwhelming … I’ve already done so much of this stuff without photographic proof. I’m living in the city right now with two kids. Not sure if this is feasible but I’ll keep looking and learning, as per usual. thank you :)

Leaf Bailey wrote:Hi Nora,
If you’re interested, tell me about yourself, including your skills and interest.

peep my most recent post?

I wanted that title to be even more specific, but it was impossible to do so and not be annoying at the same time.

Hi permies, my name is Nora.
How to begin this intro!? Autobiography is a strange realm.

I’m 29, my husband/partner/bestie/bandmate is B, he’s 37, I think.
We lose track once in a while, when our kids have birthdays (3, 6 year old boys).

I met him while I was WWOOFing around the midwestern United States. He was a farmhand, I a young intern. We connected over music, started a little band together; kept working on other folks’ farms for upwards of 7 years, even after having one child, then two. Our kids have grown up mostly on farms (occasionally when we run low on funds, we stop into a city and work for a bit, then go back at it.) and they are so robust and smart for it.

Our work has mostly entailed being a part of huge vegetable CSAs (100+ member, 50+ member) plus harvesting for markets; that includes spring set up, summer maintenance and harvest, fall tear down, and winter upkeep. Animal husbandry experience is limited to chickens, ducks, and goats, although we got real intimate with those; many, many seasons growing, harvesting, drying and preparing medicinal and culinary herbs (me), including long hours in the apothecary; moderate experience in carpentry and natural building; and two seasons maintaining apple orchards.

B is a teacher, spent many years at Waldorf, but loves Montessori perhaps a bit more. I’ve run a small daycare out of my home (wherever home is for the moment). I’m a birth and postpartum doula, and I sell herbal folk remedies to my friends and acquaintances. B is an amazing artist and for the past year has cultivated an art business that we are proud of.

We are most interested in learning .. everything we don’t know. Seriously, very very open. We’d love more experience in permaculture concepts of water saving, natural building, tree identification and maintenance, soil regeneration/regenerative agriculture, wildcrafting. I’m sure I don’t have the correct terminology for plenty that I’d like to say so I’ll leave it there.

I’ve posted on here previously asking for advice for a southern climate. B was supposed to inherit land that’s been in a family trust, but unfortunately, a greedy relative did some shady shit, and the property that should be ours (and our children’s childrens’) is no longer available for us to be or build on. We’re trying to not be hellishly depressed about it, but of course, we are.

So while we continue to work and save up a bit more, in the city, I want to extend our tendrils into the outer community.

We know there are many old, lovely hippies who did a lot of this work previously, many of whom may not have loving, willing, excited family members to pass it on to. We’re wondering if maybe we can be that for someone, if someone can be what we have lost. We’re looking, very plainly, for land that we can buy, rent, rent to own, or work to own, and we are more than willing to learn from and work alongside said owner for as long as it takes to fully grok the land, the way, and the mission.

We are passionate about the land we live on. (America.) My partner is Anishinaabe and Black (among many other things), indigenous land reclamation is important to us. My ancestors were Norwegian, Scottish and Cherokee.
We aren’t especially drawn toward the northeastern/colonial US, in our experience there’s a lot of racist folks there.
Pacific Northwest, dope. Midwest, dope. Southern US, dope. Southwest? Meh. Not enough water. Montana, Idaho? Dope.

We are passionate about children, about dismantling the existing educational systems from the inside (yes, including Waldorf ), about creating and re-creating and RESTORING slow, meaningful, intent-full ways of being and living on the earth. We treat our children with love, respect, patience (most of the time lol), and remain conscious of our inherited traumas so we don’t pass them on. Life’s work.

We also love music, and we especially love when music and farming meet. We’ve enjoyed being a part of small to mid sized midwestern festivals that highlight farming and permaculture in their communities.

Lots more to say but that feels like a full intro to begin with.

So, if you’re a person, people, a family, looking to connect to perhaps purchase land together — comment below! pm me!

If you’re a person, people, a family, looking to pass your well-loved land along to someone who will uphold the vision with integrity and creativity — you’ve found willing, able, and excited folks. Please comment below and/or pm me.

If you read this far, wooohoo! Appreciate you! <3 I’ve learned so much on these forums, and I continue to scour it daily for more


EDIT TO ADD: TOTALLY OPEN TO OTHER COUNTRIES! POLITICS IN AMERICA IS TERRIFYING

Hey! Is this still a thing?

Hey Ivy, and Tako,

Y’all already bought land in Montana? Have you been able to observe the land at all, and for how long? Can you tell us anything about the naturalized plants n trees there?

Would love to hear more. Had a dream the day you posted this about moving to Montana (random for me, I have very loose familial connections to a ranch there but nothing more) so I thought I should poke my head in.

My partner and I have 2 kids. WWoof’ed for 10 years, worked on many many many farms and homesteads in that time. Experience with veggies, herbs, apothecary experience, light carpentry, natural building, animal husbandry (goats, ducks and chickens), and I am a doula/birth worker. My husband is a Waldorf teacher. Lots to be said but that all seems applicable!

I’d love to talk on the phone sometime if you’re interested!

Hey Leaf, is this still a viable opportunity? Can you tell me more details of the work/trade aspect?

O Moore wrote:

Cimarron Layne wrote:Hi, are you still looking for land.  I have 30 acres in southwest Virginia sandwiched between TN and KY.  I tried to start a permaculture community, but picked the wrong family to start with, and it took me over a year to get them out, so I'm a little reluctant to do it again.  I'm getting up there in age, though, so I definitely need help to bring this permaculture dream to fruition.

It has about 10 acres cleared, mostly in pasture on a south to southwest slope, surrounded by hardwood trees and a few cedars that create a good buffer from neighbors, large livestock barn with currently 7 box stalls, 1 double box stall that I am using for a wood shop, and a tack room.  Also 3BR, 2B mobile home (MH) that I am still renovating, a double shed with half open for small equipment and the other half closed in for storage.  Potable spring water is pumped uphill from where it emerges down by the creek at the bottom of the holler up to a cistern in the lower pasture with hose spigot and on up to the MH and I have plans to put a 4-way mandrel in the pump house to run water to garden area, back yard, and upper pastures.  Previous owner raised and trained horses (as many as 27 at one time), but he died and his daughter inherited the place.  She gutted the MH and started to renovate but decided she'd rather travel, so sold it to me at a bargain price.

I was doing great with the renovation until the aforementioned family moved in with me, and then neither helped with the rehab nor started building their planned tiny home.  Once they finally moved out last month (Oct 5), I went back to work on it.   Meanwhile I'd built several raised beds and started a garden, bought a tractor and several implements, brush hogged the overgrown, weedy pastures, dug out a culvert at the top of the driveway and lowered it 3 ft, so I could shave that high spot down and taper it more, and graded the drive down to the road and up to the barn, built animal shelters, including a Justin Rhodes Chickshaw, bought several electric chicken fences and a solar energizer for movable paddocks, replaced part of the barn roof and trimmed the overhanging black walnut trees, excavated my first swale and started a food forest in the berm below the swale, and other projects with little to no help from my cohorts.

If the location appeals to you, we might be able to work out some way for you to lease or purchase some or all of this property to build your own homes and share the labor.  I could stay on and help you all or if we don't mesh, I can look for a smaller place for myself.  If you will PM me with your email address, I'll send you more info and pictures.

I’m going to PM you! Definitely interested if this is still an option.