Hi all
I've only just joined this site, and can't believe I haven't found it before.
I'm in the process of looking for my first bit of land. We can't afford to buy a full scale smallholding, so I'm going to start off by buying a few acres near me to learn on, and make my mistakes. However, I would really like some recommendations for books to read to teach me the basics of farming.
I'm a keen gardener and we're almost self sufficient for veg, and certainly eggs already.
I've also been a fan of John Seymore's books for ages, as well as Hugh Furnley Whittingstall's. I have all of those.
What I really want now is an in depth guide on how to run a small farm. I want to:
(a) plant woodland for coppicing;
(b) learn how to rear some livestock (pigs, goats perhaps, certainly poultry)
(c) improve land that is scrappy and rubbish (probably using livestock then re-seeding);
(d) get an idea of the sort of farm machinery I won't be able to do without and what training I should get before I begin (e.g. chainsaw).
I have a basic ten year plan but it's just based on what I know from chatting to farmer friends, reading Seymour books and what I know from years of allotmenting. I'm a big believer in researching an issue properly before diving in, so this isn't good enough for me.
I think low tech, high labour, would be the way I'd want to go. This is an experiment and opportunity to learn - I'm not wanting to buy lots of expensive agricultural kit.
All recommendations gratefully received!
Many thanks
Sam