The Birth of Dreams

Some philosopher , somewhere, sometime, once said that all people , even when they make "bad" decisions , are seeking the same thing: happiness.
Tomorrow , I'll be looking at a cottage and 5 acres of land in Ireland , with the view to purchase, and create an oasis of peace, a perma-paradise.  I  think I'll record my musings and projects here for awhile, until the mods boot me !

I grew up in a place called Connemara, in the West of Ireland, where the natural beauty of the earth, makes the transcendent, immanent. Where the ocean kisses ancient lands, and where god doesn't need to descend on mountains to reveal himself, because the mountains themselves, become the revelation, and just by looking at them, you get an a sense of how you should live. The country is suffering a major housing crisis, lots of demand, little supply, which results in homelessness, extortionate houses prices, and the immigration of souls from their spiritual home, from the memories of where they sat by the hearth and played at their mother's knees, in the rivers, at the moments, in sea, in the fields...

In other words, I can't afford to buy land and property where I grew up and where my family live! So I wander. Looking for somewhere to be planted, where I can be free from government, banks, debt, concrete, consumerism and constant marketing and superficiality.

The boy in me is so excited for tomorrow, because hopefully the  gods have smiled on me and I've finally found a place that has an adequate amount of land, and a house that is reasonably close to where I grew up and where my family is, that I can buy without debt, and start to plant and become rooted.

I'm 35, a father of a 4 year old boy.  I studied philosophy , and later more other undergrad studies in economics and finance, and again post graduate studies in the same . For so long I've felt like a caged animal, who looks out past the metal fence that holds them in, and looks over the horizon yearning for the wild that he came from. I've been able to grow vegetables, and keep bees , and be close to nature on and off since I was born but now will be the time for settling in , and creating an oasis of peace that I can call home.

The dream of plants, and trees, and bird song at my door, of rewilding.... it's not only practical and economical, but also spiritual. The oasis of peace isn't place outside of me, or a place that's inside of me, but it's cusp where both meet. Nature meets nature, to contemplate nature, and to realise , you're simply contemplating yourself.

Fingers crossed, this viewing goes well tomorrow , and hopefully I'll be reporting back I've submitted an offer .

Peace.

Dominic, good to see things are changing, I hope it works out well.
There is nothing wrong with good debt,if a small debt can improve things dramatically and is affordable so be it.
Your studies may indicate this also.
I have been down you hometown way, on a motorcycle, just riding around Ireland.
I stood on a picket line against Shell Oil , in 2006 when they were digging up farms illegally for a pipeline.
What are your plans on 5acres?

Hi John,

Great weather at the moment for a road trip on the motorcycle! Fair play on the shell protests, I remember them well. I agree with you about the debt.

So many plans John for the land, fingers crossed the the viewing goes according to my idea tomorrow. It's up in Roscommon. What I've seen so far of it , it's its basically good land.
So far my ideas are just at the basic starting points: tunnel, beds, bees, and from that a permaculture design incorporating fruit, veg, ornamental, wildflower, native tree, and general rewilding. It's a bit broad I know. Increasing biodiversity, and making landscape that's also producing and pleasing to be in.

It'll be the first time working on a project of this size, so I'm excited but will have lots of learning and advice seeking to do. I've always had the gardening, and veg growing , all that stuff that comes with being raised in the country. A few years back I was renting an old farm house with a few acres, so I was able to get started on planting fruit trees,  herb beds, reg veg beds etc but was always limited by the knowledge that the land wasn't mine and I'd have to go.

So I'd appreciate any advice, I'll be getting more active on here as the weeks and months pass. The house will need to be renovated but it's largely cosmetic and shouldn't take long, and I'll literally start planting as soon as the deeds are signed over. Hopefully it'll be done in 8-9 weeks longest.

From what I can tell from the pics from the ad and from google images it's good, but I have a query about whether part of the land has been planted with a monocrop tree, one of the pictures seems like some of it might have been,  but its just really hard to tell. I could have texted or called the seller and asked,  but I said to myself,  I'm going to view tomorrow anyways so I'll just see then. Besides that, I think this could be the one, if it really has 5 acres to work with I'll be ecstatic.

Today I went to view the property I had my eye on.

It was amazing! I knew I wanted it, but when I spoke to the estate agent, he said someone had put an extra 30k on the asking price as an offer, just this morning. Hmmmm I could still buy it, but by my rough estimations I think it'll need another 50k to bring it up to scratch. I really don't think it's good value for money if the starting price is 30k above the original price, as much as I loved it.

So I'll wait a few weeks, see if it's still on the market and approach again. My feeling say, buy, buy , buy but my head is saying, steady up.  Very dissapointed.

So, there's another property with 7.5 acres, 2.5 more than the other. The house really needs no more extra money put into it besides to bring the energy rating up insulation, solar panels etc. But besides that it's completely ready to move into and is in very good shape.

The asking price is actually 60k more than the original asking price of the property I viewed today, but the price doesn't seem bad value, as I basically don't have to do any work to the main property, and that  certainty is worth a lot. With the other property my 50k estimation for improvements could be way out, and that's a risk.

So I've messaged the agent to for the second property for a viewing and to see if any offers have gone in. if it stays at least at the current asking price, I may make a bid after viewing. The land is fine, the house is good. It would come close to draining my budget, but a lot of the other things I would like can wait, I have a whole life ahead of me, and I could get started right away with the tunnel, planting etc .

So, mixed emotions today, and the need for patience.

As long as the agents know what your offer would be, I'm sure they'll get back to you if the other offer falls through. Sales fail for lots of reasons even at the last minute (don't ask how I know this!). I wish you luck on finding somewhere to put down roots.

Nancy Reading wrote:As long as the agents know what your offer would be, I'm sure they'll get back to you if the other offer falls through. Sales fail for lots of reasons even at the last minute (don't ask how I know this!). I wish you luck on finding somewhere to put down roots.

Thanks for the advice Nancy. It's so funny you should say that. There was a house I had my eye about a month ago, and I made an offer 35k under the asking price, and the estate agent said to me "sorry, but under no circumstances will it ever sell for that price".

Got a phone call today from the estate agents office saying someone had pulled out and the current offer is 5k more than my would I still be interested ! So like you said, you never know.

It's a nice cottage but only on one acre, I'll post a pic.

Cottage that I loved but on just an acre, I had to say no.....

The house itself is so lovely, and sp tempting.... I suppose it makes me ask the question of how much land I actually need....

The house does look sweet with the thatch, which looks like it's been recently done. I'm not familiar with that way of finishing the gables - they look like our skews, but ours are on top of tiles, so is there tiles under the thatch? Also not keen on flat roofs...However there looks like a nice diversity of planting and hedgerows etc.
As to how much land you need....that just depends! the more you have, the more different things you can do. But doing stuff does take time (and can also take a surprising amount of money), so you can create a rod for your own back if you're not careful. We grow trees on much of our 6 1/2 acres, but pasture and livestock are another option if you want that responsibility.

Went to view another property today, ugh.

So i've decided I'm going to put another offer in for the house above. It's only one acre, but there is lots of adjoining land so maybe the possibility of buying some down the road, and 1 acre is plenty for food, bees etc . There's a river at the doorstep too that has good trout and salmon fishing, and it has right's to an acre of bog so I have a lifetimes supply of fuel. The only thing that would make it perfect is more acres, but.... I'm going to be pragmatic and it ticks most of the other boxes.

The fact the house is a 100 years old, for culture, tradition, history, connection to the past, and zero impact on the environment as it's not a new build and built from stone and clay basically, it's a good property to try.

Fingers crossed.

Hey everyone,

So an offer has gone in on the house above, but this new property has come to market. Its on about 12 acres, has access to a river (hydroelectric potential) and is os 40k cheaper than the property above which is only on 1 acre. The only downside is it would be an extra 30 mins driving to work, which would be 1 hr 15mins in total. Not the most ideal, but because This property seems to have a lot to offer, I'm organising a viewing  to get a feel for the land etc. If my guy says hell ya when I go to view, I'll put in an offer for the asking.

Totally hyped about the river on the property and the amount of land. I can do a lot with it, from all the zones, to hyrdro electric (possibly, need to learn more) to having 40k left over to play around with.

Yippppppppppppeeeeeeeeeeeee

Bid accepted on the 100 year old thatched cottage!!!

And so it begins...

Congratulations, Dominic! Have fun!

Finally, the dream is real!

Bought a 3 bedroom house with 2.5 acres, with sheds and a solid fuel fire with back boiler!  It has oil heating too, so between wood, turf and oil I'm laughing! Solar panels are getting installed this week. Then it's animals, and plants, trees, veg and more of the same! I'll be getting the glass house and polytunnel in the next few weeks. Happy days!

I hope you and you boy have a beautiful life in your new home, Dominic.

Glad to hear you found your home!  Keep us updated on your plans for the spring.

Hey guys,

Just wanted to post some updates and pics on the new house (before and after), and some recent renovations :

- An old unused chimney was knocked.
- 11 solar panels and a 10kwh battery was installed.
- Fireplace remodelled and stone faced.  The stove has a back boiler so I can heat all the rooms and water from the stove, I also used oil central heating.

Most of the major works on the house have been done, just some cosmetic decorating and painting inside and out left.

Next projects will be to erect a hay/wood/turf shed, 40 ft poly tunnel and a glass house and vegetable beds over the next few weeks/months.

Very nicely renovated! Just letting others know - the "Before" is at the end, "After" at the top!

Jane Mulberry wrote:Very nicely renovated! Just letting others know - the "Before" is at the end, "After" at the top!

Thanks Jane! Bit of a Benjamin button moment for me there! :)

So a few updates on the house:

I don't live alone anymore! I got a cocker spaniel puppy who's keeping me company and helping out around the place now.

I've had solar panels installed and I'm currently getting about 83% of my electricity from them. I'll add more panels/batteries in the future to bring it to 100.

There was steel uprights that were part of the structre of an old hay shed that was here but was burnt down in a fire. I've cut the uprights down, and made concrete pads for them elsewhere so I can rebuild the shed for turf/logs/hay.

I've put footpaths around the house to finish it off and keep dampness away from it.

I knocked the dry stone wall that was along the drive, it didn't really have any life in it, and replaced with concrete post and wooden rail fence. I've reused the stone from that wall and started building another dry wall , which is much stronger.  

I put new doors on the sheds, they were basically non existent when I arrived.

Besides that, I have a 40ft by 18 ft polytunnel on the way in the week or two, and I have a duck house and duck run ready for some ducks, but I'm trying to source some indian runners.
I'm also going to start building a cold storage room in one of my sheds.

That's all for now!

Wall and panels...

Wow, remarkable. I have a book on Ancient Ireland I've been reading. I have some Irish ancestry, it's probably the first place I'd backpack if I ever get the chance to travel.

Congratulations, enjoy the moss.

Jeff Steez wrote:Wow, remarkable. I have a book on Ancient Ireland I've been reading. I have some Irish ancestry, it's probably the first place I'd backpack if I ever get the chance to travel.

Congratulations, enjoy the moss.

Thanks Jeff, if you ever fancy a visit over, give me a shout! I live on my own, and I have woofers etc over!

All the best

Dominic Allen wrote:
I don't live alone anymore! I got a cocker spaniel puppy who's keeping me company and helping out around the place now.

Well she thinks she's helping anyhow!

I've had solar panels installed and I'm currently getting about 83% of my electricity from them. I'll add more panels/batteries in the future to bring it to 100.

Impressive how few you've needed. Do you consider you are a particularly low user of electricity?

I've reused the stone from that wall and started building another dry wall , which is much stronger.  

Looking much neater than any of my efforts!

Looks like you've got plenty going on still, but nice to see it starting to come together. Polytunnel in time for the summer perhaps?

Nancy Reading wrote:

Dominic Allen wrote:
I don't live alone anymore! I got a cocker spaniel puppy who's keeping me company and helping out around the place now.

Well she thinks she's helping anyhow!

I've had solar panels installed and I'm currently getting about 83% of my electricity from them. I'll add more panels/batteries in the future to bring it to 100.

Impressive how few you've needed. Do you consider you are a particularly low user of electricity?

I've reused the stone from that wall and started building another dry wall , which is much stronger.  

Looking much neater than any of my efforts!

Looks like you've got plenty going on still, but nice to see it starting to come together. Polytunnel in time for the summer perhaps?

Hi Nancy,

Yeah I would consider myself a low user of electricity. I basically live on my own, and usually it's just things like my laptop and phone being charged along with a tv and fridge. Then the washing machine and dyer(in the winter) every two weeks probably.

I had the panels installed on Jan 20th this year and in the 12 weeks they've been in I've used 680 kwh , so about 57 kwh per week which would equate to about 2950 kwh over the year if i keep up that rate. I've fed back to the grid about 190 kwh. Considering it's only April , i expect my electricity usage should drop a fair bit during the summer to maybe September or October.

Not sure if that makes any sense!  All i know is i'm not expecting to have any electricity bills for the year.  

40ft polytunnel is supposed to be coming tuesday! So fingers crossed! I'd love to get some growing done before the summer is out! SO expect me to be on here loads asking lots of questions!

All the best

Finally ! 18ftx40ft

Looking good!

I have polytunnel envy - mine is still waiting a replacement cover.

What are you hoping to grow in there this year?

Tips: think about watering. I have a leaky hose system that I can turn on and forget for a few hours. Also ventilation - it can get very hot in there on a sunny day.

You have a wonderful place and the hard work you have put into it certainly shows.  We can't wait to see all you do with it.  Tell us about the community around you.  Have you met the people, what sort of industry is there, do you plan to sell any of your food commercially, etc.  I'll never visit Ireland but I can see it through your eyes.  

Nancy Reading wrote:Looking good!

I have polytunnel envy - mine is still waiting a replacement cover.

What are you hoping to grow in there this year?

Tips: think about watering. I have a leaky hose system that I can turn on and forget for a few hours. Also ventilation - it can get very hot in there on a sunny day.

Thanks nancy, hope you get your cover sorted soon!

This year I'm not sure, I'm a little late to the party this season, but hopefully should have enough time to get a few things in like onions, potato's, beetroot etc outsoide, for the tunnel the usual suspects chard, courgettes, peppers, bell peppers, cucumbers, some herbs like basil, tomatos, i think i'd like to have a try at some pumpkins, I seen some funky blue heirloom ones that I might give a try for some fun with my son.

But for now, I need to fill the beds with manure/compost which i'm sourcing bit by bit as soon as they are filled and in the comings weeks i'll plan out what i'll have time in the season to germinate, and plant out for this year ! can't wait!

Nancy Reading wrote:Looking good!

I have polytunnel envy - mine is still waiting a replacement cover.

What are you hoping to grow in there this year?

Tips: think about watering. I have a leaky hose system that I can turn on and forget for a few hours. Also ventilation - it can get very hot in there on a sunny day.

O yeah forgot to say, thanks for the pointers on the ventilation and drip feed system.

For ventilation, I think I'll put a 6 inch opening at the top of the doors on both sides to allow for constant air flow and pollinators. At 40 ft , especially at the middle , I don't want dead pockets of air. My last tunnel I dropped the doors a few inches from the frame for this reason but this tunnel installation was included in the price so I have to improvise with what they have now.

I've been thinking about the drip feed hose, nancy how do you find it ? does it work well?

kay fox wrote:You have a wonderful place and the hard work you have put into it certainly shows.  We can't wait to see all you do with it.  Tell us about the community around you.  Have you met the people, what sort of industry is there, do you plan to sell any of your food commercially, etc.  I'll never visit Ireland but I can see it through your eyes.  

Hi Kay, thanks so much for your kind words and encouragement!

The community is nice Kay, I've only been here a few months really, but there are a lot of farmers around who are really helpful with the use of machinery, pointing me in the right direction for a trades man and a source for manure for the garden etc. I am still trying to find some permies around here but I know it's just a matter of time!

No I don't plan on selling commerically kay, I just focusing on becoming as self sustaining as possible. Not 100% , as a) it's very close to impossible and b) besides physical sustancne etc I'd like to trade and interact and support the community as much as possible, so if there's things I can afford to buy in or hire,, locally , I will to support the community and build relationships and friendships etc.

That being said, I am planning on growing mushrooms too, so If i have a surplus of veg and food and mushrooms , I will definitely consider selling locally. But I also will always try to balance out with peace of mind, I don't want stress!! lol

The local town has about 5000 to 6000 people, so relatively small but it has everything you need , in terms of hardware stores, socialisation, supermarkets etc . But it's also small enough to feel homely. Its by the sea so fishing , tourism, farming etc  would be big industries here. But the farming generally speaking would be a lot of small scal farms with people maybe having 30 head of cattle kind of thing .

I live 10 mins drive from the local town, so I have plenty of seclusion ! yaay!

You never know, maybe one day you'll end up over in Ireland for a visit and I can show you the local traditional music and food!

Wall finished and horse manure ready to be put in polytunnel beds, going to need a lot more but it's a start!

Beautiful wall Dominic - you should be happy with that (and happy it's finished I should think!)

Leaky hose

I didn't buy proper leaky hose. I just used old garden hose that was leaky and used a punch to make holes about every inch along it. My polytunnel is laid out with terraced beds on either side of a central path  - a bed to each polytunnel section with a keyhole access path into the beds. I cut the hose to loop around two beds with a standard hose fitting at one end and just doubled over and tied with string to close the other end. The water comes from our burn - syphon fed by gravity at fairly low pressure. I just move the feed hose from bed to bed, leaving the leaky hose in place. The leaky hose has gradually got buried, and it does restrict a little bit where I can plant things. It's easy enough to pull the hose back to the surface again though.


this post was where I discussed it before. The image shows one double bed section.

Problems: It takes a bit of balancing to get a reasonably even ditribution of water along the length. I made some extra holes at the top end of the leaky bits, but it does depend on the water pressure too - I found when the hose from the burn was a standard hose too that it tended to collapse internally and the flow was restricted. I've now installed a blue water pipe and that is much more consistent. I still have to spot water when I plant things, but once the plants are established, the water soaks down and the plants' roots will find it OK. My site is sloped, so it doesn't really matter if I leave the hose on too long - the water just runs out the bottom of the polytunnel.
I suspect that having the hose slightly buried extends the life of the hose. I've been running this system for at least ten years and the hose is as functional now as it was at the start. The holes do tend to get blocked up a bit, but are easily cleaned out if it matters.

I hope this helps.
Indoor gardening is great - you'll love your tunnel!

What a lush landscape! I love the stone walls and your vision for the place.

Although my garden was in a radically different climate (Northern California where it is very warm and doesn't rain for 5 months of the year), I wanted to second Nancy's recommendation for the drip hose system. We had a keyhole shaped raised bed design with a water source at one corner. The perforated hose was run through the center of each bed and then around the center island. The larger plants were closer to the hose, and out to the edges were smaller plants so it was quite densely planted. The whole bed was heavily mulched and the hose was also covered with mulch so even before the plants filled out, there was very little evaporation. We would run it while we were in the garden (it was a community garden plot) for an hour or two as needed. It worked very well! I felt like it was helpful for weed control (we had a nutsedge invasion) and while there was very occasional spot watering when it was really hot and dry, it was generally minimal effort.

The hose was permeable throughout, it looked like some kind of neoprene material and drops of water would seep out all over when the spigot was turned on.