Farm Manager 2012

Gabrielle Leblanc - Farm Manager from June 2012 to Dec 2012.

Farm Director Subsistence Model

Costs of living:

• gas money
• capital investments for agricultural projects
• agricultural resources (materials, tools for repairs, infrastructure, etc)
• store-bought food and drink

Cost reduction strategies:

• Foraging (wild and domestic foods, food banks)
• Driving less, biking more
• Open source vehicle run on biogas
• Limiting consumption of store-bought food and drink
• Emphasizing non-capitalistic exchanges (trade/loan) for things that I need/use

Self-Funding Strategies:

Marketable products: (emphasizing products that are easy to produce, use resources already on-site, and are without codes regulating production)

• Biochar - cost: deadwood, biomass. benefit: $4/lb
• Worm Casting (dry or tea) - cost: biomass, compost. benefit: $25/gallon of tea
• Perennial Cuttings - cost: labor in production and storage. benefit: $7/plant?
  • Gooseberries
  • Blackberries
  • Rasberries
  • Elderberries
  • Mulberries
  • Nuts
  • Grape rootstock
• Kombucha starts - cost: nothing, byproduct of Gabi's brewing. benefit: $5/start with instructions
• Fiber - cost: labor of production and processing time. benefit: $25/lb processed fiber
  • Flax + wool
• Local consulting/troubleshooting for gardeners