I have read thru most of them....some have some really good ideas....but unless you are "Gert", you will never make
an income just from starting up in
permaculture.
Nowadays, people usually need to get a
mortgage to buy their "dream" property. This of course results in an outside
off-homestead job.
Because of this, forming a business plan seems like putting the cart before the horse while paddling up a creek without
a paddle.
Developing residual streams of income, and maybe more importantly, finding out if they can live the homesteading life
style, seems to be a more important goal to begin with.
After all, it can take several years for a food forest and to guilds mature....and they are under constant attack until then.
Just look at the threads on how dealing with
deer pressure., for example.....
There is a lot of ideas on residual streams of income that can be accomplished while being a wage slave and waiting for a
permaculture project to mature. Just by raising your own vegetables, protein, and berries....then learning how to
preserve and can could save a family of four close to a $1000.00 dollars per month. Protein as in quail eggs,
rabbits,
and maybe a couple pigs to start....you don't really need the larger livestock or heavy investment for goats,
cattle,or sheep
to start since they can be added later.
Developing one or more residual streams of income....and learning how to
market the product [s]. First off, it will
show possible future investors/grant givers that you have some business and marketing abilities, along with a business plan.
The other thing is that you need to eliminate a mortgage. If you are owing 100 grand, and between living frugally and
getting
residual income you can save....say...1000 dollars a month....you can easily pay off that mortgage in 9 years instead
of 25-30. Just arrange the terms of renewal so that you avoid penalties.....
Yeah...well...9 to 10 years to be mortgage-free....maybe another five years for the food forest to mature and produce
fruit and nuts that can be sold. Maybe that seems a long time in this world of instant everything and being able to get
information from Google in less than a 10th of a second,but in that 8 to 15 year period you have a fertile garden area--
depending on the climate--able to relay and succession-crop 2 or maybe 3 times a season. One person has a hard time
taking care of more than one acre. Relays, succession growing, silage tarps for weed control....makes a half-acre garden
produce as much as an acre-and-a-half to two acres. There are people {SPIN farmers} making 20 thousand to
40 thousand a year just learning how to efficiently grow vegetables..and flowers...and finding marketing outlets.
Taking advantage of the income tax law regarding farmers. Being from Canada, I can't say too much about that. A lot
of Americans use LLC's or something called....I think...section C......anyway....whatever it takes to keep the income tax down.
Bad
enough you have to spend a dollar first before you get to expense 40 cents of it....not taking advantage of what you
legally can deduct just because you don't like "paperwork"....well...accountants aren't that expensive...and you will probably
need one to be in the background when you present your business plan. Helps with credibility....
Will you ever get to throw away the lunch pail--or be able to finally ignore the years spent getting educated---and live off
the homestead as your sole source of income. It is possible, but it takes time. You can plan for
profit, or make a business
plan for either people. Take your time to try to become independent.....or just get the grant or outside investors for a faster
result....just to have your every move scrutinized....process of trading one lunch pail for another.......choices......
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