the daydream fund challenge thread

Rummer

A glorious day here today! Been out to fully take in the state of the garden and it really is not looking good! I'm thinking of getting a gardener in to do all the hard work ( I know not exactly MS). We were going to ask him to just do the front bit but I may see how much it would be to just get the whole plot in order. Never got round to planting seeds last week so I am hoping to do it this weekend.

JayneC

Hey everyone,

Just popping on to say Hi. I've not been around much lately as computer was v v poorly and took about an hour to load a page!! have now splashed out on shiny new computer with HUGE memory so should be fine from now on. Still not got anything done in the garden. It snowed AGAIN yesterday! Every weekend it's snowing or raining or frozen solid!! Next weekend I'm off to Whitby for a permaculture course. Hoping will get some tips on making the most of my tiny garden and for when i (eventually) get an allotment.

Been watching My Dream Farm and I'm now off again daydreaming of getting a small holding - even looked on internet to see what is for sale around here, but currently out of my price bracket. Truoble is I don't know what makes a good profit and whether I could sustain myself financially (IE pay the mortgage) if I gave up work to run it. I liked the couple who did a bit of everything and were hoping to open a tea rooms and art gallery. They had pigs and were growing veg too. They had school trips visiting which I think could be a good idea. Anybody know where I can find real info on calculating costs and expected profits? For example on keeping piggies?

It's all very well having a dream fund but if I don't know how much it's going to cost (over and above price of the actual smallholding) when will I know when I've got enough?!!

Hope everyone is doing well x

mambury

Davesnave wrote: »

Oh, and leather corsets.....niche market....I've been there. Ask Stitchy!

blimey theres an image I didn't really want

Shame about Bideford Farmers market..... there aren't really any nurseries around bideford now since the Co-op closed..... Might be worth a bash though?

Not been posting much (but I have been watching so be nice!!) as there's not a lot to tell really.... greenhouses are still in bits, bottom of the garden is still a mess.... I need to get OH to borrow a digger to level it (again!) but he's so busy with work and the extension (which is coming along nicely!!) I can't really moan too much....

I think I shall have to get some toms and chillies sown soon. Trays of seedlings dotted around the house might just force him to get on with the garden!!

I can report that I have found a local gardener who will cut my hedge for £40, which I think is a fab price as it is about 150m long!! For the time it would take me and OH to do it I;d rather pay to get someone else to!!!

Davesnave.... I was think about selling my extra plants at a car boot or two this summer..... any tips?? There's no point in putting them outside the house as there's not enough traffic.....

Oh, and welcome to all the newbies!!

Keep Well

Mambury

Davesnave

mambury wrote: »

Davesnave.... I was think about selling my extra plants at a car boot or two this summer..... any tips?? There's no point in putting them outside the house as there's not enough traffic....
Mambury

Plants at car boots will go better if you display them well with clear pricing. We never use anything except black on our stall, from pots to cloths and stands. You'll find most professionals do similarly, as it sets off the plants really well.

When pots can be picked up second-hand pretty easily, it beggars belief that some people have a mish-mash of odd sizes and colours, filled with compost that looks like, ( and probably is) the contents of last season's grow bags. All it takes is a bit of planning to get everything looking tidy, and people will pay more and trust you if it looks like your stuff has been well-grown & cared for.

In your case, I'd probably go to your biggest car boot the week before you plan to sell to make a note of prices, and to see what you are up against.

£40 is good for a hedge that long. Mine's about the same and it cost £20, but that was with a tractor & he only did one side.

Bideford Market? I think it's too far, but I have been checking-out the opposition in places like South Molton. They are all safe for the time being, though!:rotfl:

mambury

Davesnave wrote: »

Plants at car boots will go better if you display them well with clear pricing. We never use anything except black on our stall, from pots to cloths and stands. You'll find most professionals do similarly, as it sets off the plants really well.

When pots can be picked up second-hand pretty easily, it beggars belief that some people have a mish-mash of odd sizes and colours, filled with compost that looks like, ( and probably is) the contents of last season's grow bags. All it takes is a bit of planning to get everything looking tidy, and people will pay more and trust you if it looks like your stuff has been well-grown & cared for.

In your case, I'd probably go to your biggest car boot the week before you plan to sell to make a note of prices, and to see what you are up against.

£40 is good for a hedge that long. Mine's about the same and it cost £20, but that was with a tractor & he only did one side.

Bideford Market? I think it's too far, but I have been checking-out the opposition in places like South Molton. They are all safe for the time being, though!:rotfl:

ta for that!! I will probably go to Bude as the car boot there is fairly busy.....

Any joy with Hatherleigh?? Thats not too far from you....

Rummer

Finally made it out into the garden to get a bit of work done today and we spent it doing a general tidy up so the garden is looking much better than it did before. We moved our wood pile (for DIY) into the now empty shed and picked up and binned all the little pots that did not make it through the winter. I have brought trays in to plant the peppers and chillies but they will need a good scrub and then I can get things sewed later in the week.
There just seems to be an overwhelming amount of stuff to do and there are leaves
everywhere, do you think I should gather them up and dig them into the beds or is that a bad idea?

hermum

Hi, can I join in with you guys please. I'm up to June 09 so far & CTC has just had her egg hatched. I'm loving reading everyones entries & am having to be stern with myself to not scan down to see what everyones been doing, I take it that Dave's moved, (no don't tell me, I want to enjoy the excitement as it unfolds)
I am a total novice & would love to learn how to do it.
At the moment I need to pay off my debts before I can start saving, oh & get back to work. Been off sick now for quite a while.
I'd love to have a grooming parlour preferably with a work-live space & enough land to be self-sufficent. Only chickens though as I know that I wouldn't be able to eat what I'd reared.
I've actually found the ideal place, but as with everyone it all comes down to money or rather the lack of it.
My first babystep is to get the garden sorted out & get some raised beds in. Hope I'm not too late for this year to be starting. I'd love to be able to grow enough to sell some plants on at car boots but think that may be a little ambitious for year 1.
Then pay off what I owe.
Then pay for my grooming course, if I was 30 it wouldn't sound so daunting but at 48 I may just get to that bit by the time I'm due to retire.
I've got quite a few bits on ebay but listed shed loads on free listing & have yet to go back in & do the descriptions & pics. Worse sort of ebayer seller around.
Anyway maybe that should be my first priority.
I shall carry on reading about everyone's lives & catch up with you all soon.

Rummer

Hermum, welcome to the thread! I am in the same position as you, clearing CC before starting to save but each penny is one step closer to the dream! The grooming course sounds very exciting! There is still plenty of time to organised for this year as we put in raised beds at the start of last summer, do you have a greenhouse or cold frame? How many beds do you think you could fit in?

choille

Hi hermum,

48 is no age - same as me!

We have ground but no house as yet. Thing is to do what you can where you can I think.

You've plenty of time to get garden organised.
We are all frozen again so not much getting done here garden wise.
But the weather looks beautiful - it's so bright the glare hurts.

hermum

Yeah, I've finished this thread. Rummer, no greenhouse or cold frame, but I do have a lot of sheets of is it polycarb? Double walled stuff, I'm not sure if I can rig something up with that, there's a wide part of my path that at the moment is full of carp, to take to recycle so I'm thinking of utilising that. Unfortunately several panels of fencing have given up the ghost between me & next door, I'm going to have to do something about that, as the neighbours just died & even though that side would have been his responsibilty not much negotiating can be done with a corpse. Did that sound heartless? I'm thinking of putting up some sort of chain link fencing rather that wooden panels, so that I can grow stuff up it & it won't block out the light. The space I can use isn't huge, about 18 x 15ft. ish, although if the shed is as dead as it appears I would get a smaller shed & relocate it & that would give me almost half as much again. There's also lots of space to put up baskets & troughs etc. Behind the fence there's another what big chunk of garden that's been used for years as a dump & is very steep, at one time there was apparently steps down through it but I don't know if they are still there as it's too overgrown to see anything & has several huge trees but may be worth looking at once the rest is sorted out.
Choille you have certainly been battling against the elements this year.
I need to sit down & work out exactly what to grow, will go for obviously what I like but expensive stuff.
Are there any fruits I can grow & get a crop from this year?
Sowed chilli peppers a couple of days ago but not sure if anything will happen with them as I think it's too cold in the house for them.