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I am thinking about relocating to Alabama for the sake of having a better climate in hopes that it will improve my health. I am city born and raised, but I hate the city environment. I want to establish an organic farm, and I am investigating some property outside of Greensboro, Alabama. It's 40 acres with a house and a mobile home. I can afford the purchase price and cover some farm infrastructure, but my age and health are such that I will need a partner to help with the physical labor. Is anyone interested?
Good for you!... but maybe you need to face reality. I'm a homesteader myself and raise at least 75% of my own food. I have hardly noticed the recent runaway inflation, BUT-
You can raise more than enough veggies & fruits for yourself on 1/4 ac or less (100ft x 100ft)-- small enough to do it by hand by yourself...
I'm also located in the Organic Farm capital of the US-- Many ex-hippy-types trying to make a go of it in The Driftless Area-- the terrain shaped by the run-off of the melting glaciers 10,000 y/a does not lend itslef well to row cropping with large tractors....Most of them don't pay their own way, and owners come and go after only a few yrs....My point is that don't think you'll get rich with an orgainic operation, and running one large enough to make a profit probably isn't worth the work & risk.
I like to point out the Noah didn't try to save everybody. Provide for yourself first.
You may want to check out other homesteading forums for an audience more likely to be responsive to your question, as well as more ideas and advice.
Where would you be coming from? Alabama's climate isn't perfect. Although Greensboro is in the southern half of the state, you would still get a lot of weather patterns. There are also terrible bugs. I literally had to give up gardening because of chiggers. Have had to stay indoors during most if not all of summer. Very disheartening. Spent almost $200 over 2 years of spring and summer (4 seasons total) trying to find a repellent that would actually work. Did not find one. I've read that sulphur works on lawns and other outdoor areas. Not sure how that would affect crops but it's been touted as something that works for chiggers and other pests.
What I have noticed is that Alabama is chock full of forested land. Many parcels need to be cleared. I've seen lots of raw land for $50K and it would still cost many thousands of dollars to then have the land cleared for development and/or farming. Of course, I am considered Huntsville metro, where prices have risen significantly. (I do understand that Greensboro is far less populated in a more rural area.) If the land is already cleared that is a big plus.
I'm not trying to be a Debbie Downer, only clue you in to some of the challenges that you would face. Others will no doubt chime in as well.
P.S. Check with the folks at the Greensboro Farmer's Coop for some good information.
Alabama's climate isn't perfect. Although Greensboro is in the southern half of the state, you would still get a lot of weather patterns.
I am a native and lifelong resident of Florida. Any place that doesn’t have 90+ degree temperatures from April to October would be an improvement. And from September to January we count ourselves lucky if it doesn’t rain 30 days out of every 40. The rain particularly is bothersome to my arthritis.
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There are also terrible bugs.
I doubt that anywhere in Alabama north of the Gulf Coast has as many bugs as Florida does. We have mosquitoes here that you’d swear were Fidel Castro’s air force.
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I've read that sulphur works on lawns and other outdoor areas.
I’ve never heard of sulfur as a plant pesticide, although I do remember my grandfather using it as a flea powder on his dogs.
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What I have noticed is that Alabama is chock full of forested land. Many parcels need to be cleared.
I can’t get the seller to give me much in the way of details by email; he wants me to meet him in person. I’ve found another 40 acre plot outside of Marion. There’s no house of any kind, but the overall price is a lot less, and part of it has a 12 year old stand of planted pine.
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P.S. Check with the folks at the Greensboro Farmer's Coop for some good information.
I wouldn't buy any land, especially not in forested Alabama, without seeing it first. I would be wary of any stand of planted anything, without seeing it first.
Perhaps southern Alabama would be an improvement over Florida, but how much? What is on your side is that you are accustomed to dealing with it, and perhaps would not mind as much as someone else would.
Another thing is that I moved to Alabama at the end of October 2020. During the entire year 2021 it rained incessantly here. I mean, it was bad. As bad as you say Florida is during winter. This year was a lot better. People were even calling it a "drought." Yeah, I guess for this area. I'm from the West Coast where actual droughts take place! The dry year brought out an amazing amount of ticks, to where even Simparica Trio did not effectively work on my dogs. We had branches falling and breaking the wooden fence. Thankfully they didn't hit car windows.
I have arthritis too, and the humid wet climate really affects it. Perhaps it will be a bit better for you in Alabama, though.
Again, I'm not trying to be a Debbie Downer. Just sharing my experiences. I think it's great what you're doing and hope that you will get the help you need. I think you will.
I'm told my great grandparents used to burn off their land every year to kill off ticks. I'm not sure how effective it was, but it must work to some degree. It would probably reduce the chigger population too.
That should be a huge red flag. I would move on …
That's rather what I am thinking. He won't even give me a street address for the property. It took a month and 4 tries to get him to respond to an email. He had the ad on Craigslist with a price of $80 K saying that the price would go to $160K if he renovated the house. Then when he finally replied to my email he said he was working on the house (new siding and new floors), and by the time I got a 2nd email from him the price had gone to $85 K. I'd rather have property with a natural water source for livestock, and other properties are available from land brokers, but I also need to be able to move without having to build a house to live in first thing.
Work with a realtor in the area you'd like to live and /or visit and spend some time in the local pubs conversing with the locals. They may know people looking to sell but not listing...You gotta visit any property in person to make sure it isn't a swamp, located next to a military artillery range or vacation resort for liberals from Massachusetts
It's cheaper to buy developed property-- well & septic will cost you $20k+ to install new, and it can cost $1000s to put in even a gravel driveway.....Old houses may need significant repairs, and if the area is zoned, you may not be allowed to make repairs without bringing everything up to code-- $$$
Consider ease of access to medical care and basic shopping. You don't need to be within walking distance, but driving 35 miles for cigarettes and beer can get old fast.
BTW- anybody who thinks bugs, rodents, snakes, coyotes etc are a problem probably shouldn't be considering a rustic lifestyle.
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I'm from the West Coast where actual droughts take place! The dry year brought out an amazing amount of ticks, to where even Simparica Trio did not effectively work on my dogs. We had branches falling and breaking the wooden fence. Thankfully they didn't hit car windows.
