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Post by templeton on Aug 8, 2012 19:44:13 GMT -5
My garden just isn't big enough. A colleague has available land, and an irrigation water allocation that is under utilized. This is for a hobby, not a business, so I'm not sure how to go about costing it. I would probably need to supply a small pump and piping, some fencing to keep the roos off. I'm probably only looking to rent 20 yards X 20 yards maximum, for some corn, squash and tomato growouts. He might be willing to offer it for nothing in return for produce, but I feel like I should offer something. I've tried to search the local market, but I can't find much to guide me. I live in a big rural town, his property is a 'room for a pony' outskirts property about 4 miles away. next to an ephemeral creek, don't think it has been cropped before. Any suggestions? T
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Post by littleminnie on Aug 8, 2012 19:57:11 GMT -5
My first year of renting I paid $20 for 50x100 feet. That included use of the irrigation pump but my own hoses and stuff. The next year I paid $40 for double that. Then $100 and now in the fifth year I have 150x120 feet and paid $200. They have never told me what to pay after the first year. Around here farm land goes for $200 per acre.
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Post by steev on Aug 8, 2012 20:11:01 GMT -5
Having no idea of you or your friend's finances, what use he has for that patch otherwise, or the value of fresh produce there, it's hard to evaluate. When you walk away, what will you have enhanced the value of his property, at what cost of cash and labor on your part? How awful will the initial work be? What will he do with it when you're gone? What's his beer budget? What if the admission fee were some cold Foster's whenever you come to share-crop? Is he a gardener? If not, maybe he'd like tutorials and initiation into the Alliance of the Open (Though Dirty) Hand.
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Post by templeton on Aug 8, 2012 20:40:41 GMT -5
His wife is a keen gardener, last year I gave her lots of my orphan seedlings. Tonight its a meal at their place, bottle of old Cabernet in hand T
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Post by khoomeizhi on Aug 8, 2012 20:57:16 GMT -5
tough one. i'm using a maybe 30x80 foot field of a friend of mine's for young fruit tree nursery plus a lot of yacon - so, much smaller...we were going to have it so i traded him a few hours of work weekly for it, but that was before he looked at it closely...after he checked out how weedy it was, and that i was willing to use it as is, without him coming through and discing it again, he decided i should just use it for nothing. he wasn't going to use that spot anyway, we decided that when i have time to do some work, we'd just do that for some of his produce.
would your colleague be using the space if you don't? seems simple to keep it to trading for goods instead of money, if he's cool with it. or produce plus a one-time bit of money. monthly rent is probably more than either of you wants to deal with.
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Post by templeton on Aug 8, 2012 21:06:28 GMT -5
Yeah, I'll try and keep it to produce, I think. Thanks for the costings Lil'Min. I was initially thinking of say $20 a week - cheap hobby, until I realised that was $1000 a year - hmmm. They don't use the space for anything else - I think they agist some horses on another paddock. T
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Post by rowan on Aug 8, 2012 21:55:26 GMT -5
I'll tell you my secret. I get my land for free for my market garden. I live in a town and asked people around town that have empty 1/4 acre houseblocks if I could use them for growing my vegetables, just for the cost of the extra water. Every one said yes so they don't have to bother with slashing and keeping the weeds down.
Now I have been able to start my market garden for very little cost and what I save will go towards leasing a single block on the edge of town next year.
It is a bit of a bother going around to six different block around town to do my stuff but that is balanced out with not having to worry about cross pollination when I save seed - some of my blocks are a kilometer from each other.
I have a written agreement so the land owners and myself are secure in our rights - putting up temporary shadehouses, guaranteed 6 month notice to vacate, and they get security knowing that I will keep the blocks clean, me paying for the extra water, and get a bag of fresh vegies every couple of weeks.
It is working very well so far.
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Post by templeton on Aug 8, 2012 22:09:37 GMT -5
Nice idea, Rowan. Will give it some thought. And thanks for the package, arrived in today's post. T
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Post by mountaindweller on Aug 8, 2012 22:19:40 GMT -5
Produce is enough. Look at the prices of organic veggies. You can offer him to mow his lawn in return too or do other garden work. Or you give him the one or the other interesting plant. On the top of it you are fertilizing and improving the land.
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Post by Joseph Lofthouse on Aug 8, 2012 22:48:45 GMT -5
Around here the standard rate for leasing acres of farmland is 15% of gross. (At US$240 per acre for growing wheat that works out to about US$36 per acre.) That's too much to pay for small lots. Many small lot holders are happy with a weekly basket of vegetables, and being relieved of the burden of taking care of the land.
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Post by 12540dumont on Aug 9, 2012 0:54:06 GMT -5
I pay $400 an acre. To my own mother.... And she still wants free veges.
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Post by templeton on Aug 9, 2012 1:24:31 GMT -5
Thanks all for your comments and advice. It might not come off, but I'll let you know. Maybe I need slightly less grandiose plans. T T
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Post by oxbowfarm on Aug 9, 2012 5:29:11 GMT -5
Just keep in mind that when you are giving someone agricultural produce you are giving them something of real value. When you hand them fiat currency you are handing them a fantasy. I never feel bad to trade with other vendors at market for things I don't grow or have. It's a much purer transaction.
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Post by templeton on Aug 9, 2012 7:21:26 GMT -5
Well Meg isn't really interested in produce - she already grows as much as her family needs. But she's happy for me to grow at her place, and I've promised her lots of seedlings. Will have to get chicken and horse protection. And some very timely bed prep in the next few weeks. Probably mostly grow melons and squash there I think, stuff that's a bit 'set and forget'. might be a busy summer. T
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Post by Deleted on Aug 11, 2012 23:14:14 GMT -5
Many small lot holders are happy with a weekly basket of vegetables, and being relieved of the burden of taking care of the land. I thought this was a fine idea but kept having water cut off and was being co-opted for labor until a couple of small patches became a full time job. All of the hard work I did for the guy was wasted. Most of his fruit and vegetables were allowed to rot as I was asked to put only a small amount of fruit on his stand at a time. He did not make meetings I arranged with local stores, would not sell it at the farmer's market. After so much grief, I would rather pay a nominal fee for set expectations -- preferably in writing.
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