Anyone else watching agricultural land prices?

fc123

http://www.earthship.net/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=5

These people have planning permission to build an earthship settlement at the bottom of my rented garden.
The houses are built of tyres and sand,
More details here http://www.clevel.co.uk/downloads/SPIRITDESTINY12.07.pdf

With the downturn, it may not happen. The local residents are Very Unhappy.....as they live in very non eco homes with an uninterrupted sea view.
The earthships are pricey though £500k for a 1 bedder. there will be 4 HA houses for £50 pwk...there is a huge waiting list and they aren't built yet.

The handy thing about renting is I can then move if the earth digging noise gets too much.

OH doesn't want to do smlall holding BUT he could be tempted if he got to build us a house one day...and he's promised me he'll build me a dream house one day in the future...wherever I want.

Geenie

lostinrates wrote: »

That's absolutely correct, overtime it would revert to woodland. Much british woodland though is managed - I have no idea of the amounts of managed versus unmanaged woodland in the UK...but most in my locality is managed, even if its 'soft touch' management. Unfortunaetly woodland is not a great environment for growing food - vegetable or animal. I totallyagree our landscape is created by man...and I would even suggest man is in parts doing a great job of destroying it a it it most of the 'natural' landscape in UK. Its a case of people versus the planet. I'd quite like the planet to win, but quite frankly, with the number of us, I don't like its chances. I think I am yet to see a view of British landscape not influenced by man. Sadly.

Most woodland is managed, as is hedgerows and fields. Everything has a grant thrown at it to manage and keep as we think it ought to be, ie pretty!!!

Trouble is, it is all bullocks really. I live near Dartmoor. Wonderful place, that everyone moans about if over grazed, over soldiered and over developed!!

Dartmoor was covered in trees once like most moors, but is a result of Amazonian style tree felling centuries ago, which resulted in erosion and the barren, scrubby land we now see. Plant it all upwith forests I say and help the environment.

dopester

Davesnave wrote: »

http://www.lammas.org.uk/

Edit: For anyone who's interested, there's a series of videos about sustainable living on this site, which also has a link from the Lammas site:

http://www.undercurrents.org/livinginthefutre/

fc123 wrote: »

http://www.earthship.net/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=5

The houses are built of tyres and sand,
More details here http://www.clevel.co.uk/downloads/SPIRITDESTINY12.07.pdf

With the downturn, it may not happen. The local residents are Very Unhappy.....as they live in very non eco homes with an uninterrupted sea view.
The earthships are pricey though £500k for a 1 bedder. there will be 4 HA houses for £50 pwk...there is a huge waiting list and they aren't built yet.

Great links - thanks.

I don't understand some of these costs bandied about, when many sources I've read from suggest they can be formed together at very low cost. Even lower when you scavenge and incorporate lots of materials thrown away by others... like glass frames and so on.

Seems to me someone, whether it is to do with planning permission or not, is finding a way to ramp up the costs - so you are paying extra to some business or authority for the privilege of eco-living.

Generali

dopester wrote: »

Great links - thanks.

I don't understand some of these costs bandied about, when many sources I've read from suggest they can be formed together at very low cost. Even lower when you scavenge and incorporate lots of materials thrown away by others... like glass frames and so on.

Seems to me someone, whether it is to do with planning permission or not, is finding a way to ramp up the costs - so you are paying extra to some business or authority for the privilege of eco-living.

That's the joy of the crazy English (UK?) PP system. It's so hard to build a house that builders can put up a piece of rubbish and charge a fortune.

fc123

Generali wrote: »

That's the joy of the crazy English (UK?) PP system. It's so hard to build a house that builders can put up a piece of rubbish and charge a fortune.

Oh.. ha diddy ha gen just what OH said when I showed him the video....what, sell a 'proper' house made from bricks and glass to buy one made from old tyres and stuff? He didn't like the blackwater / reeds system wotsit either.

PasturesNew

dopester wrote: »

I love it!
I want to live like a hobbit.

fc123

Me too PN...The advantage of living solo is you can do what you want.
This could be a good LifePlan.....you'd need to check out the neighhbours tho'...some could be more commune living then you'd have to help out with other peoples kids.

PasturesNew

fc123 wrote: »

...some could be more commune living then you'd have to help out with other peoples kids.

Bugg4h that. I don't mix with kids .... nor hippies.
I just want a quiet life in a hobbit home, with a veg patch.... within 1/4 of a mile of a good chippy, pub and 24 hour garage/shop. Say 5-6 miles from a motorway

Davesnave

PasturesNew wrote: »

Bugg4h that. I don't mix with kids .... nor hippies.
I just want a quiet life in a hobbit home, with a veg patch.... within 1/4 of a mile of a good chippy, pub and 24 hour garage/shop. Say 5-6 miles from a motorway

OK tough order, and the motorway is a bit more than 6 miles, but I can recommend the Ferryside chippy, which used to have its own web site, and there's a good pub, shops and a 'beach!'

House: OK it's not a hobbit home, but it's cheap and there's potential for solar heating and a wind turbine here:

http://thesmallholdingcentre.co.uk/3%20The%20Woodlands/3%20The%20Woodlands.html

Chippy: No web site out of season, by the looks of it:

http://www.carmarthenshire-pages.co.uk/business/ferry_cabin_000828.html

In season, they do a lot more than cod.

rozeepozee

Are we all watching the same websites? I'm addicted to the smallholding centre's