Survey: Would you live in a ranching/farming solar powered commuinity ie "commune'?

Question

Survey: Would you live in a ranching/farming solar powered commuinity ie "commune'?

Answer 1

yes i would love to,

Answer 2

Don't mind the solar powered ranching and farming lifestyle but the communes went out of style with me during the Glory days of Abby Hoffman!! LOL

  Peace out Dudette!!   God Bless!!

Answer 3

I would love the commune atmosphere. I am a hippy at heart

Answer 4

I would.

Answer 5

I live within stones throw of one of the largest collections of communes in Australia (Nimbin). Unfortunatley the  word commune has a very negitave conatation around this area. There are too many of them that rely on sales of dope to make a living (No I'm not being biggoted against hippees), rather than living to the true ideals of sustainable living. There have been several high profile busts over the last couple of years.

I would however be happy to live in a modern estate that is equiped with the latest in self sufficient power generation, water treatment, sewer treatment, community garden and hydroponics set up and community craft/cottage industries to provide for any addition monetary needs.

Answer 6

No way. Well at least not at this time. My Grandparents are farmers and it is hard work. You are also secluded from people. I think if you lived in a commune you would have more exposure to people but what people? How many people? What are their beliefs? The solar powered idea sounds great but I fail to see how it would work at our level of technology today. Would the combines only work on sunny days? Only so many days to get your crops in.

Answer 7

Community, yes, commune, no.

Oh yes, one other thing....my husband and I need to be in charge.  

I'm sure a lot of people rolled their eyes at that statement and immediatly hit the thumbs down button!  ~lol~

We already live on a permaculture farm.  We already have strong interest, opinions, hands on knowledge, and goals of what dirrection to take the farm, and what will be important in our future.

Communes often fail, because people are drawn together by a nice idea, but have too many different goals, or ideas of what is personally important to them.  

Perhaps someone joins who loves the goats we raise, but has a very strong interest in making goat milk soap, and wants to drive the farm and community only in that dirrection.  Goat milk soap is great, and a nice idea....however it is a dead end.  

Perhaps someone joins who wouldn't dream of eating an animal, but is thrilled to work in the garden, and produce copious amounts of vegtables.  That is wonderful, and they would be very helpful, but we too view that as a dead end.  

Ours is a permaculutre farm.  Permaculture basically means Perminant Agriculture.  It mimics nature and therefor the farm can "feed" itself.

We raise goats, and rabbits (also have horses).  The manure from the animals is used in the garden, and on the crop land, and pastures.

The crop land grows alfalfa and rapeseed.  The alfalfa feeds the animals.  The rapeseed (canola) is turned into biofuel, which run our trucks and tractors here on the farm.  The squeezings from the rapeseed are fed to the goats (very healthy).  The goats and rabbits provide meat for us to eat and to sell to customers.  They are the "crop" we sell to people outside the farm.  I also have a couple of dairy does to provide me with the milk we need, for milk, butter, and cheese.

The rabbits have worm bins under their hutches.  The worms and manure are put on our garden, and some of the flower beds.  

In the summer it is too hot, so I do not breed the rabbits as it is too stressful for them.  However they "work" by producing the manure for the worms.  In the winter it is too cold for worm bins, and the worms would freeze solid.  So the worms are all safely in the garden (the earth) for the winter, but the rabbits are producing young for food.

We keep everything balanced on our farm.  We do not add something, unless we can close the circle.  One thing has to feed the next thing.

I would love to add domestic honeybees.  Yet I do not feel I can complete the circle for the honeybees.  Our farm is too small and we are too surrounded by HUGE farms (thousands of acres), which used far too many pesticides.  My neighbor just about an 1/8th of a mile from me keeps a couple of hives on their 10 acres.  They reguarly loose their entire hives to overspray, by the crop dusting plane.

Until I have more planted to keep the bees at "home" and a larger piece of land so the honeybees are less likely to stray to other farms I'll not get them.  I own the responsibility of care to all of my animals, even my honeybees.

Until then, I provide the best habitiat I possibly can for the wild bees.

I've rather strayed from the topic.  Yet for me the "big picture" must be looked at.  Without someone in charge and guiding an off grid ranching/farming community in a bennificial direction, it could be doomed to failure.  It does not mean the individual does not have merrit, bennifit and time for their passions.  It just means their needs to be someone to guide the community as a whole.

Example:  I use to live in a teeny tiny water district.  There were only 9 houses in the whole water district.  When the houses were first built (1920's-1950's) the original homeowners set up and paid a bit extra every month on their water bill for any future repairs.  Well all of those original people were getting old and selling their houses, they voted, and distributed the money they had collected over the years back to each other.  It was completely illegal.  I purchased one of those houses in the mid 1990's.  Guess what...the pipes for the entire water district were completely falling appart...and there was no more money to make the repairs.  All the years of wear and use made by the former owners had to be paid for at great expense by people who had lived there only 2 years, to 2 months.

In a solar, wind, hydro, or Central Boiler community the need for someone to be in charge of all of that would be great, or meltdown is going to occur when a major repair comes along.  

My husband and I have always said, if we won the lottery big, we'd start our community in a heartbeat (just haven't figured out how to win the lottery if you don't buy tickets yet).  

~Garnet

Homesteading/Farming over 20 years

Answer 8

YES!!!

I would love it ! I have worked farms in my lifetime and the work is hard but well worth the rewards .To raise my kids and grandkids in this enviroment would be awesome !

The energy saving solar power would be a great big step toward saving the world. Yes I would do it in a heartbeat.

Answer 9

Yes. I already do diversified farming for a living and plan on taking my farm off the grid in the next 1 to 4 years. Having many extra hands to distribute the work would be okay with me. It is also nice having more people around as farms tend to be isolated and can get lonely.

Answer 10

I would, but I don't think I could get my husband to agree.

Answer 11

I wouldn't want to live in a hippie commune, but if my community chose to support solar power, I would be all for it.

Answer 12

I'm not sure I'm comfortable how you use the word 'commune'.  If you're asking about living in a community that is supported by solar power, then I would say absolutely.  When you bring in the factor of ranching/farming, you're talking rural.  That's a lifestyle that isn't for the faint of heart.  Those that live in that community will not be pleasant if you're a pansy.

The ranching/farming communities are comprised of people that embrace the lifestyle this country was founded upon.  They are the very life-blood of this country.  If you don't like to do chores and can't handle doing without the conveniences of big city living, then don't go there.  

Every one in this country needs the rancher/farmer and we should aggresively persue solar power.  If anyone want's to look at it as 'commune' living, you have your perogative.