Quick Q&A

I've been flooded with questions lately, so I'll give some short n sweet answers to catch up the growing list of inquiries. Eventually I'll use some of these questions for blog topics. 

What's your favorite food plant to grow? Banana. Easy. Love to eat them also the truck and leaves can be used for livestock. .

What's the easiest veggie you grow? Pipinola. No disease or pests. Don' t have to do a thing. Let them run on the ground if I don't feel like trellis training them.

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What's your favorite breed of chicken?.....For strictly eggs, the red star or red production (basically the same "breed" but from different hatcheries.) For meat, the rock Cornish cross. For a brooder hen, a feral. 

What has been your favorite house building project? None. They have all been difficult because I had to learn as I went along. But it will be that last nail, tye last piece of wood, the last stroke of the paint brush that will surely be my favorite task. 

What kind of truck do you use for the farm? 4x4 full sized pick up with a towing capabilities. Brand doesn't matter. 

What kind of tractor do you use? What kind of implements would you recommend? I don't use a tractor of any kind. Nor a bulldozer. 

How much does your farm make a year? ( variations: what's the farm income? Does the farm support your family?) Up until now, zip. It's been paying most of its expenses and providing us with resources, but losing money. This year I'm focusing on making a small income. 

Where does a person living in Hawaii go for vacation? In our case.....Hawaii, of course! Who wouldn't love a Hawaiian vacation? We combine business trips to the other islands with a bit of relaxation once the business is taken care of. 

How can you afford to live in Hawaii? By drastically changing our lifestyle, downsizing, learning to DIY, and accruing no debts. 

What's your favorite garden tool? I have several. A hand sickle. A lightweight maddock/pick combo. A lightweight tiller/cultivator. But I use lots of other types of small tools. 

Which is your favorite seed company? I can't name just one. Johnny's. Native Seed Search. Baker Creek. Wood Prairie. Purcell Mountain. Nichols. Rancho Gordo. And I regularly order from many, many more. 

What's the best livestock for your farm? It's not just one.....rabbits, chickens, pigs, sheep & donkey. All work very well for my situation. 

What's the name of your farm? I haven't really got one, other than the business name for my taxes. I'm open to suggestions. 

Do you give farm tours? No. 

Do your make a living from your farm? No, not yet. It supplies most of our food, firewood, and plenty of other resources. But it hasn't made a livable income yet. This year I will be working on that. 

Are you an ______ farm? fill in the blank: permaculture, Korean natural farming, biodynamic, bio intensive, better than organic? No. But I use many of the ideas from many types of farming methods. I use what works. Plus I believe in being a good land steward. 

Why doesn't your blog have ads? Because I don't believe in it. The blog is to tell my story and answer questions. It's not for income. 

Do you have farm employees? Do you use wwoofers? No and no. I'm a one man show. Perhaps some day I'll offer a long term wwoofer style position, but not yet. 

Do you have milking animals? No. I'm not interested in being tied to milkers, so I trade for fresh milk. 

Do you use swales? No. My land is not conducive to swales. 

Do you use hugelkultur? Yes, but as hugel pits, not mounds. 

Does your farm have hydroponics and aquaponics? Sort of. I grow lettuce in hydroponic non-circulating containers. I have ponds in place for using with aquaponics but the system isn't built yet. 

Do you use a LGD? (Livestock guardian dog) No. While I have several dogs, none us a LGD. But I do have a donkey that does a pretty good job at killing dogs that get into the sheep pasture. 

What brand of rototiller do you use? Right now I have a Mantis cultivator, a mid sized Troybilt, and a small Honda.

Is your house wired for AC or DC? AC. We use an AC to DC inverter to run the Sundanzer frig and the Steca freezer. 

Do you make your own soap? No. I support the local soap makers in my area and buy from them. I sometimes trade food for soap. 

Do you make any of your own clothes? Not yet. Thrift store/rummage sale clothes are so cheap here that it doesn't make sense to make my own.