Episode-1636- The Evolving Nine Mile Farm Plan
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When Dorothy and I moved here in January 2013 the plan was simple. There was never going to be a Nine Mile Farm. Put in a few hundred trees, get a small flock of chickens, put in a pool and just enjoy being close to family and having room to practice full scale permaculture.
So we hit it hard, swales, huguls, small gardens, etc. The Texas heat and harsh alkaline and limestone soils quickly put us in touch with reality. Half of what we planted died, we added irrigation and now do more like 25% on losses. Hail defoliated things one year, rain drowned the land the next, soon followed by drought.
During this time our friends the chickens became the biggest enemy we had. On ever escape tearing apart earth works, ripping up beds, etc. In the summer we added ducks, 22, because that was the number Dorothy gave me on a dare were added to the 4 Tractor Supply survivors we had bought already. Late that fall, I tasted my first duck egg in over 10 years, I was in love with eggs again.
We started to sell eggs to pay the growing feed bill. With chickens we were competing with everyone, with ducks we had an incredible niche market. I learned you could sell a chicken worth about 3 dollars as meat for 20 dollars if it was a laying bird, all the chickens were sold off, a few special ones adopted to listeners.
The duck flock grew from 28 to well over 130 now, 60 more females are shipping next week from Metzer farms and Nine Mile Farm has eggs on the dinner, ya dinner table at one of the hottest new restaurants in Dallas. The egg count is growing as young birds reach maturity but still we can’t keep up with demand.
A site redesign for our brand was just redone, new ideas are flowing and Nine Mile Farm has become an honest to God productive and profitable small farm, almost by accident. So what’s next? Tune in today to learn.
Join Me Today to Discuss…
- How we became accidental duck farmers
- The units we are considering adding
- Herbal Teas
- Quail Eggs
- MicroGreens
- Extensive herbal plantings
- Pre Mixed Fertilizer (Compost Tea – Comfrey Tea)
- What else could be done
- A true market garden
- A full on nursery and live plants
- Land expansion and tiny houses
- What isn’t going to ever work here
- A profitable orchard
- Large sale ponds
- More than about 200-250 ducks
- Non enterprise additions
- A Greenhouse
- Self Watering Container Gardens
- Quail for Meat
- Heavily Treeing as Much as Possible
- A Pond Hopefully – Looking Good Right Now
- The Lessons
- Get in the game, remain adaptable
- What you think is best may not be
- There is always a way
- Don’t let fear hold you back
- Mistakes happen, roll with it
Resources for today’s show…
- Join the Members Brigade
- The Year 1636
- Join Our Forum
- Walking To Freedom
- GenForward.com
- TSP Gear
- PermaEthos.com
- AgriTrue.com
- Sawtooth Tactical – (sponsor of the day)
- Ready Made Resources – (sponsor of the day)
- NineMile.farm
- Looking for the Next Best Thing – By Warren Zevon (music from the end of today’s show)
Bob Wells Plant of the Week – CHANDLER STRAWBERRY PLANT – Highly adaptable from zone 5 to zone 9.
The Chandler Strawberry has a very large, red, glossy finish, with a large conical to long wedge shaped. The fruit quality is excellent, and the Chandler Strawberry produces a high yield, which are excellent for coastal areas down to zone 9, yet are cold hardy enough to grow in zone 5.
If you live above zone 5 they have other varieties available. FYI, September is the time to plant strawberry plants. You plant them in the fall, so that they can establish their roots all winter long.
You can put pine straw or mulch around the plants to protect the roots during winter. After winter, they will leaf out and you can start harvesting the berries in late May.
Bob Wells specializes in edible landscape, including: Fruit Trees, Berry Plants, Nut Trees, as well as the hard to find Specialty Fruit Trees. Find this plant and more at BobWellsNursery.com
Remember to comment, chime in and tell us your thoughts, this podcast is one man’s opinion, not a lecture or sermon. Also please enter our listener appreciation contest and help spread the word about our show. Also remember you can call in your questions and comments to 866-65-THINK (866-658-4465) and you might hear yourself on the air.
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LOVE the new 9 mile farm logo Jack….well done !!! and well done to your graphic artist.
Steve
Steven took the words out of my mouth. The new logo is quality!
I find the chickens are a bit more graceful exiting the coop than the ducks. My seasonal cottager friend and I split duty looking after our ducks, geese and our egg laying chickens.
One thing I will say, is when I let the chickens out in the morning, it looks like the opening scene to top gun. When I let the ducks out, it’s more like Black Friday
The talk was very inspiring. Just when inwas feeling down about our 17 acres in Maine. You have given us a hopeful way forward.
Jack I don’t know if you thought of this but this would be a good opportunity to show what you talk about all the time in an anarchist style community regarding how we as a people could take care of the issues without government entities. Referring to the gentleman that ripped you off in dealing with the pond, word of mouth and your business as a podcaster could literally put this gentleman out of business because like you said if he’s done it in the past and he’s done it to you he will do it again to others in the community. People like him should not be allowed to rip people off. Just a thought but I think that you have the potential to teach this gentleman a valuable lesson about being dishonest. Thank you for all that you do and keep up the good work.
The “No room for perfection in the creation of a business” quote came from one of your early episodes of Five Minutes With Jack. I recognized it because I recently listened to those and it was fresh in my mind. 😀 Your point was to just get the business launched and then worry about perfecting it. Too many people try to make sure everything is just right and perfect before they start and then it never happens.
Congrats to you and Dorothy on Nine Mile Farm’s progress. That is so cool that your ducks’ eggs are being served in the high end restaurant!
WOW!
Man I love it. After being at the work shops and the growth that you have done, well Dorothy you have far out done your self.
The Quail will be the best add on to your farm. the sale of pickeled quail eggs to the local bars and clubs will make that a great sale.
I only get to dream!! with a corner block in the city, I fight to do what I can. from inner city fowl to my bees. This only makes me want to move.
I started out with the goal to make one to the top meads in the world, now I teach beekeeping. my goals of having a meadery never stops. LOVED THE SHOW JACK!
Jack, what are those small home structures you mentioned in the show that would make good rentals?
Just small cabins based on shed shells, almost every city and town has companies that make them. Here is one made by a company near me, you can get them done finished out for about 20-25K http://www.bigdsbuildings.com/images/marcel_samples_%2841%29.jpg
Thank you Jack for the constant source of inspiration. I am hoping to start my own micro-ag operation in Austin later this year 🙂
Also, we need to have you and Dorothy over for dinner now that I live so close 🙂
Gee, thanks Jack.. here we were, happily enjoying our pasture-raised chicken eggs.. then you had to go all blah, blah, blah on duck eggs so I had to buy a half-dozen from the co-op ($4.29 for 6) to try them, and now we might not go back to chicken..
Love these updates. Having been to your place a couple of times it’s nice to hear about how it’s evolving. I’ve gone through some of the same issues with our place. Yes, watching trees die sucks but as you said, now you know what will thrive.
PS- Unless I missed it, you left out the plant of the week again!
Hi Jack. I was so inspired and encouraged by your podcast yesterday I listened to it twice and then told my elderly mother all about it. I have felt so discouraged with my efforts here on my tiny homestead. I really needed to hear that even the great Jack Spirko doesn’t do everything right! Like you, I find that ducks are more to my liking than chickens though I can’t quite part with my small flock of hens. Gardening has proven to be my struggle but I am finding a few things that do well here — especially elderberries so they will become a major cash crop focus. Again, thanks so much for being real, and sharing your wisdom with others. Tell your wife that I continue to pray for her and her father. I have my elderly mother living with me and she is in the early stages so I know I’m facing the same path.
We had the same issue with our Goji plants. Looked great in the spring, thought they were dead around the 4th of July.. and now they look great and are flowering… We are in SW MO (near Branson)….
Yea I am starting to think this is just normal and it is how they can produce twice a year not to mention take a snooze in mid summer when it is damn near desert like.
Hi Jack, I agree with your thoughts on telling us more about the contractor that ripped you off. Your intentions are honorable in that you want to protect others from him, rather than seeking revenge. This is the market which punishes crooks and supports those who take care of their clients. Perhaps he will change after. Thanks for asking our opinions.
Yeah great show! I needed a good inspirational show this week!
Jack, really looking forward to hearing about your experience with quail. I’ve gotten a chance to meet Brad up here in MI at a perma event, and we’ve had quail all summer so far. We’re in the middle of incubating 70 eggs for our first major run. We live in a suburb and picked quail b/c we’re not “supposed” to have chickens. Not sure if you’ve checked it out, but we got a quail egg cutter for like $5 on amazon that has made it easier to use those little eggs.
I find this show motivating. I’m working to emulate some of these businesses on our homestead as well. Keep up the awesome work!
Quail Egg Cutter on Amazon…. 2 different ones
http://amzn.to/1UpLMau or
http://amzn.to/1fXzAe4
…and they are not $5, but $9 to $11
Steve
http://www.amazon.com/Quail-Shell-Cutter-Scissors-Eggstatic/dp/B011K59W52/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1441332827&sr=8-5&keywords=quail+egg+cutter
4 for $20
Jack,
Love hearing inspiring business podcasts like this episode. Lots of ideas. We sold the house moved closer to my work and are now saving up for a down payment. Looking for a little piece to start my own ideas. I am going to have to listen to your 5 minutes with jack business podcasts to get more info on marketing.
610Alpha
Thanks for sharing the 9-mile farm story. I’m sure the bees will love all the mints as they get growing. We’ve had mint growing on the edges of our garden for years, competing with lemon balm. Rabbits seem to love both. Yet they seem to leave our garden veggies alone. During the hot Texas summers my mints fade out along with several other plants.
As you talk of various businesses I’m like I know someone who has done that.
http://sagehillgardens.com/ One of my friends has been growing/selling various herbs and herbal tea blends for several years. It really doesn’t take a lot of space, they are light easy to ship. Often she runs out of product. Ships to an Italian chef in CA. Ships to a company which creates natural pet care products.
She is scaling down as she gets older and branching out more into education, teaching workshops, etc. I’ve been following her story through social media the past 10 years or so. I finally got to meet her and visit her place last month.
Another friend of mine built and manages her website. We all met online shared ideas and advice a long time ago and many of us ended up doing business with each other.
Thanks Jack. This episode kicked my ass and I needed it. As far as your contractor is concerned, can you give him a chance to make it right? Could he do anything to make it right? I know what it’s like to have an unhappy customer. I will go to great lengths to repair their impression of me. But if he blows you off, and was *specifically* warned… give him hell.
Yes! My philisophy in life! Clearly the problem with Millenials is they haven’t seen enough early Tom Cruise movies…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=geDCtBQeN8c
“Every now and then, say ‘What the fuck.’ ‘What the fuck’ gives you freedom. Freedom brings opportunity. Opportunity MAKES your future.”
Great podcast! A quick comment on the contractor situation. I like the idea of keeping “The Man” out of it, they’re in our lives enough as it is. And it’s just another way of showing that more often than not, we can solve this type of problem on our own.
Jack, you have some shows that are just real gems of knowledge and perspective. This is one of them. I would love to hear what you have to say about the tax implications of improving your land and how to limit them and still get the property up to what you want. When you buy a piece of rundown land and improve it, the tax man wants a piece. And now he can see and compare before and after from satellite images.