Raynor Mallory

Kelly Smith wrote:
i think the picture in that ad is EXTREMELY deceiving. the land i know of in that area is pretty much a desert. i would say that the recovery period for grazing that area would be close to 180 days (depending on when its grazed). i suspect it could only be grazed twice in 1 year, as the moisture would likely limit the grass growth (especially in summer)

That's a bummer. It seems like there are a lot of ads in the area with deceivingly green pictures:

http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/Antelope-Rd-Pueblo-CO-81008/2101793785_zpid/
http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/Pronghorn-Rd-Pueblo-CO-81008/2110169871_zpid/
http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/Par-35-Salt-Creek-Rd-Pueblo-CO-81004/2102050963_zpid/

I thought they looked a little too good to be true. Is there a certain time of year that the area greens up or something? Southern CO is a wildcard for me anyway. I'm leaning more towards Kentucky, Tennessee, and North Carolina. I'm from TN, and I'd like to be closer to family / friends.

I apprecaite your help and input. I'll keep poking around online.

Hi Kelly,

I'm glad you posted. I've been researching places to buy homesteading land and Southern CO is on my list. I'd love to hear your input on something. I see a lot of promising looking plots around Pueblo.

Here's an example:
http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/5744-Pronghorn-Rd-Pueblo-CO-81008/2101793786_zpid/

That land looks surprisingly green and productive (maybe not for intensive farming, but probably suitable for cattle). But I see the area only gets around 13 inches of rain and 19 inches of snow annually. Do you think the pictures were taken during a particularly green time of year or is this how the landscape typically looks?

What are the challenges and benefits of living and farming in the area? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Oh and by the way, this is more or less what I'm looking to do:
-Buy land for under $50k
-Raise dairy cows (3 or less and all or mostly grass fed)
-Do limited amount of gardening/farming for my personal consumption.
-Build a strawbale house
-Meet nice, fun, stimulating people

Doable in Southern CO? I hope to hear from you.

Cheers,
Raynor