# How Much Land Do You Have?



## mikiz

I think I'm becoming quite ambitious with my land hunting. 

I always thought I'd need about 5 acres, then it was 10, then 20, then I figured at least 30-40 to be safe, and now I find myself looking at anything over 40 acres up to 100!
A couple of my friends have 20 and 25 acres blocks, one runs mostly sheep, chickens and 3 cows, and the other has about 30 horses respectively.
I want a farm that is low maintenance and not *too* many critters, but the essentials are room for:
A good sized family home
A few horses, maybe up to 4 or 5
A flock of about max 20-30 sheep
A few goats, between 3-10
Chickens in a 7x9m shed
Ducks in 4x4m pens, up to 3 groups
An 8x11m rabbit shed
A 12x12m stable
A large orchard and veggie garden
Machinery/hay shed

I'm almost certain that's too many animals, but you can never have too many 
Now how much room do you think I'd actually need? How much land do you have and how many of whatever animals you have are on it? 
Obviously more land is always better, but 100 acres would be a *lot, *I feel like that might be overkill. 
I'd like to keep my animals as naturally parasite free through pasture management, so rotating paddocks, which means I'd need a fair bit, but how much?


----------



## norseofcourse

I'm in NE Ohio and I have 2 mini horses, 2 ponies and 5 to 10 sheep (5 is the core group right now, 5 are lambs that will go in November to be processed). I have 6 acres with maybe 4 fenced, and I'm probably at my limit for animals with the pasture I have now.  It's quite overgrown.  As I clear and improve more of it, and make a few more paddocks for rotating, I may be able to add another sheep or two, but I don't want to overstock my land.  I feed hay in the winter, and supplement hay in the summer when the pasture isn't as good.

Depending on your climate and land, I'd say you'd need quite a bit for your 'wish list' of animals.  And keep in mind that the more property you have, the more you'll need to fence.  Fencing is expensive - you can cut the costs by doing some or all the work yourself, but then it's a LOT of work.  3 strands of electric should keep in horses, but if you ever want your sheep or goats to have access to that field, you'll need better fencing.

There's also fence maintenance - keeping the fencelines mowed (or sprayed with herbicides), checking them for broken posts, wires, trees or brush down on the fence, etc...

Think long and hard where you want to put gates.  Put in more than you think you'll want.  And make sure the largest piece of equipment you'll ever want to get into that field can get in through the gate (one advantage for something like electric braided wire, you can put the fenceposts 25' or more apart, and drop wires down if needed).


----------



## goat-heaven

I have 36 acres in which I'm looking at 26 more acres that's next to my 36 acres I have 36 goats 2 are bucks in 1 new buckling in the rest are does in their doelings I have 4 miniature mares in their babies which are 3 fillies in 1 colt which two of them have new homes once they are weaned i have 2 miniature studs have 50 chickens, 20 ducks,17 turkeys,now I'm up to 30 rabbits which 10 are going to be butcher 4 LGD in 1 quarter horse gelding I agree you need a lot of space for that amount of animals I started at with 2
Acers with 5 goats in with 15 rabbits ,2 miniature mares, in one stud ,one LGD


----------



## goat-heaven

I have 36 acres in which I'm looking at 26 more acres that's next to my 36 acres I have 36 goats 2 are bucks in 1 new buckling in the rest are does in their doelings I have 4 miniature mares in their babies which are 3 fillies in 1 colt which two of them have new homes once they are weaned i have 2 miniature studs have 50 chickens, 20 ducks,17 turkeys,now I'm up to 30 rabbits which 10 are going to be butcher 4 LGD in 1 quarter horse gelding I agree you need a lot of space for that amount of animals I started at with 2
Acers with 5 goats in with 15 rabbits ,2 miniature mares, in one stud ,one LGD


----------



## goat-heaven

I have 36 acres in which I'm looking at 26 more acres that's next to my 36 acres I have 36 goats 2 are bucks in 1 new buckling in the rest are does in their doelings I have 4 miniature mares in their babies which are 3 fillies in 1 colt which two of them have new homes once they are weaned i have 2 miniature studs have 50 chickens, 20 ducks,17 turkeys,now I'm up to 30 rabbits which 10 are going to be butcher 4 LGD in 1 quarter horse gelding I agree you need a lot of space for that amount of animals I started at with 2
Acers with 5 goats in with 15 rabbits ,2 miniature mares, in one stud ,one LGD


----------



## goat-heaven

I have 36 acres in which I'm looking at 26 more acres that's next to my 36 acres I have 36 goats 2 are bucks in 1 new buckling in the rest are does in their doelings I have 4 miniature mares in their babies which are 3 fillies in 1 colt which two of them ahave new homes once they are weaned i have 2 miniature studs have 50 chickens, 20 ducks,17 turkeys,now I'm up to 30 rabbits which 10 are going to be butcher 4 LGD in 1 quarter horse gelding I agree you need a lot of space for that amount of animals I started at with 2
Acers with 5 goats in with 15 rabbits ,2 miniature mares, in one stud ,one LGD


----------



## goat-heaven

I have 36 acres in which I'm looking at 26 more acres that's next to my 36 acres I have 36 goats 2 are bucks in 1 new buckling in the rest are does in their doelings I have 4 miniature mares in their babies which are 3 fillies in 1 colt which two of them ahave new homes once they are weaned i have 2 miniature studs have 50 chickens, 20 ducks,17 turkeys,now I'm up to 30 rabbits which 10 are going to be butcher 4 LGD in 1 quarter horse gelding I agree you need a lot of space for that amount of animals I started at with 2
Acers with 5 goats in with 15 rabbits ,2 miniature mares, in one stud ,one LGD


----------



## Latestarter

I'm small fry in the group with a mere acre and a half. I have about 30 chickens in 2 - 10 x 12 coops. My sweetie is a 12 yr old Golden Retriever. Just got a LGD pup that is 5.5 months old. I have two bee hives on the back fence line, and hope to get 4-6 goats this coming spring to keep the LGD entertained/occupied.  Ideally within the next several years I expect to move from where I'm at and pick up a parcel between 20-50 acres in an area where land is affordable.


----------



## Baymule

I have 8 acres. 4 horses, 18 chickens, 2 LGDs, 2 other dogs. Fencing all of it in 2"x4" non climb horse wire 4' tall, 200' rolls. Cost is $220 per roll, 7' T-post, cost $4.80 each, barbed wire $60 per roll, 2 strands on top of the horse wire to make a 5' tall fence. Gates, 12' wire filled is $115, 16' wire filled gate is $170. 

Just went to Tractor Supply, bought 6 rolls horse wire, 100 T-posts, 2 gates, 4 rolls barbed wire, cost about $2200. This will do 1,000 feet.  And still won't be finished!

We have about 2 1/2 acres fenced behind house and one side from back to the front. The front of property by the road is fenced. Doing a stretch from other front corner to horse pasture. Then there will be another stretch from front corner to back corner 1186 feet. Then about 170' across back to join back horse pasture fence. Plus cross fences and more gates. $$$$$

We are doing work ourselves along with help from a neighbor. We did hire help for horse pasture as we were moving and needed it done ASAP. Labor costs were about $800.

Is there cheaper wire? Yes. I chose horse wire because it is well made, the holes are small enough to keep chickens in and most things out.


----------



## Baymule

Forgot to add, will be buying Dorper sheep, probably around 15 when done fencing


----------



## mikiz

Wow you guys, sounds like you've all got it sorted. I know its SO expensive fencing large areas, and I'm of a very aesthetic mind so I know I'm going to HAVE to get it all done at once and it has to match. Still can't decide exactly what "look" I want, but it'll have to be pretty.


----------



## greybeard

60 acres and 64 more leased adjoining me. Pond, pastures, working facility, sheds, barn, shop, house and yard. All fenced and crossfenced. All taken from a forest. Taking it is easy, keeping the forest from taking it back is the hard part.















The forest you see in the background below--all gone now. Place where my house and yard sits was forest a year before this picture was taken.















It didn't always look this way--it all looked like this when I began in 2006:





then this:




To this:





You want to take land from Ma Nature, better bring your A game. BTDT


----------



## mikiz

Holy wow @greybeard that's incredible.
I can get land cheaper because it's ex-logging property, how long/expensive is the procedure to create pasture from forest?


----------



## samssimonsays

We have 5.76 acres of land. My rabbit barn is 20ftx12ft. We have a split level house that is not huge but nice sized, Garage that is probably 30ftx 40ft and two large garden beds (never used by us we are still cleaning the land of trash from previous owners) then I have the goat pen just off of the rabbit barn for now about a 15x30ft pen has been working as at night when we are home the two goat kids come out and they get to graze all they want. Eventually I want to fence in part of the property that has grown up for them and rotate them between the two pens for grazing as well as expand the pen into the woods and back where it has overgrown to give them close to an acre of room. But we only have two and probably will only have two until babies come in 2017. Next year we will be adding in chickens, ducks and geese. About 7 hens, 2 ducks and 2 geese. And I am hoping once our puppies are all growed up and I have a new barn built I will add a full time LGD for the goats. 

This is our "starter" home and we do hope to have a minimum of 20 acres eventually but everyone starts somewhere! I would love to have a beef cow or two, maybe a pig or two and do some meat rabbit, goat and chickens for our family along with recreational horses for our own enjoyment and riding. That is a ways off for now LOL. Little by little is how we have been adding to it all.


----------



## Hens and Roos

We have 2.75 acres- so we have to keep our numbers in check


----------



## SheepGirl

We have around 4 acres, with 1.5 acres fenced in for the sheep. We have a 20x32 barn and a 64x24 pen around the barn. The chickens have an 8x10 shed.


----------



## The Curly girl

I have 360 acres.


----------



## Baymule

The Curly girl said:


> I have 360 acres.


What? You say you have 360 acres and that's all you say??  Pictures! We want Pictures! And tell us what you are doing on your 360 acres. Do you have horses, cattle, llamas, forest, pastures, hay fields??? We are nosy (in a good way) and we like pictures!!


----------



## The Curly girl

@Baymule I don't want to look like a show off... Or anything like it. This ranch is my husband's ... We have been married for a year and 8 months and it is just starting to feel like home. He was born and raised here. It is without a doubt the most magical place I've ever seen. My in-laws raise cows and that is it, they are pretty much retired. We have donkeys, cows, a rescued horse, a mule, 3 dogs, and now a lil lamb. Hahaha 

This is a pic of the lil road from the main entrance gate towards the house.



If you are on this road and you turn to the left...you will see the pasture (next pics- obviously taken on different times of the year) that is where Cinderella (the rescued horse), her daughter Chantilly (the mule) and the donkeys usually like to hang out...they are free range... They don't have a specific location.



 



If you keep going down the road  you will eventually get to a pond to your right.. It's filled with cat fish which we feed so we are sure they are as clean as possible.




Once you pass the pond you will go up 2 hills the first one if you make a right will lead you to a very special place my hubby and I call our Hill Top Village. We love making bonfires and hang out... He also placed 2 bathtubs that over see some area.



If you don't make a right and keep going straight you will eventually get to the second top-- which is the highest point  of all the area (not just of the ranch, but of a lot of area for miiiiiles). There is the house which I have no pictures of here, but I have a pic of our pool which oversees the treetops of the areas. It is fascinating!


 


Then passing the house you will find more land then a  pasture where the cows are... They are rotated around pastures (I think it's a common practice?) ...in this pic we are feeding some calfs


 


There is  then a lake that my hubs made with my in-laws years ago...(I only have this pic on my phone...you can see it from far away?) It too is filled with catfish which are fed as it is man made and they need us to feed them (or so my husband told me). We don't sell the fish or anything...and honestly we hardly eat any hahaha.




Most of the ranch which is not in pics are woods/forest. It is all nature and a true miracle from God. We don't kill our cows, we sell them ... My hubs said these kind of cows aren't really used for meat, but for investment, or something like that...so I think they will not end up in anyone's plate... Not that there is anything wrong with that. 

I maxed out my images to upload here hahahahah  that was a tour of part of the ranch.


----------



## Mini Horses

Curly Girl, that is truly a beautiful life!


----------



## Latestarter

What a beautiful piece of property! Very nice to see you out there combing/brushing one of the calves   When I move this coming summer, I'll be looking for land very similar to that, but I can't afford anything that large... Wish I could, but I didn't win the recent lottery...  Something in the 10-40 acre range.


----------



## The Curly girl

It is @Mini Horses  it was hard to get use to it at first, believe it or not. I was used to having a store close by, many family reunions and lots of friends... But it is all a process and I have learned to focus on the positives and embrace it all.


----------



## norseofcourse

Wow, it is beautiful there!  It's a treat seeing all that green, too, reminds me that this winter won't last forever.  Thanks for the 'tour'!


----------



## Baymule

That is beautiful @The Curly girl !!! It is so typical of east Texas, lush pastures, forest and lakes. I am glad that you are happy and have found that peaceful place that is from the glory of God. You have a special piece of paradise.


----------



## The Curly girl

Thank You guys so much. And yes...it is truly paradise. I have always loved animals and nature... I feel very fortunate to live in such a safe place too. I see animals every day that I had never seen outside a zoo before.... Like deer, gorgeous birds, eagles, etc... It has made me realize even more how wonderful God is and how much he loves me. 
(Sorry, didn't mean to get spiritual an y'all)


----------



## greybeard

The Curly girl said:


> We don't kill our cows, we sell them ... My hubs said these kind of cows aren't really used for meat, but for investment, or something like that...so I think they will not end up in anyone's plate... Not that there is anything wrong with that.


The cattle have a  Braford look to them. Do you ever get any tigerstripes?


----------



## kccjer

We have around 20 acres.  About 3 is Farmstead the rest is pasture.  We have 32 goats, 2 burros, 2 llamas and 9 horses. We have poultry and mini pigs also but the pigs aren't suppose to free range and the poultry pretty much stays in the homestead area. Luckily the west side of my pasture gets the irrigation run off from my Dad's irrigated corn so that third of the pasture stays green almost year round.  The picture shows the farmstead area.  Unfortunately, the corral and bins still belong to my dad.  The pasture stretches out behind the house and has a pond on the far north end.


----------



## Baymule

Really, really nice farm you have there, @kccjer !!! Really nice. And a pond too!


----------



## Latestarter

Wow, quite a nice farm! Is the pond stocked? can you fish in it?


----------



## kccjer

The pond use to be stocked with bullheads.  Yummy...not.  LOL  It dried up for a couple years so there isn't anything in it.  It is actually a tailwater pit from ditch irrigation.  Not very deep and does still dry up when we don't get any rain.


----------



## Latestarter

Hmmmm  might be time to dig that bad boy out...


----------



## Ponker

Our place is 16 acres. We have a barn, antique stable, carport duck house, greenhouse, shed, house, and garage. There are 2 ponds, one on the pastured 8 acres and one spring fed in the wooded 8 acres. We just moved in from our one and a half acre 'forever house'. We have 3 Finnsheep, 2 Katahdin ewes, 6 rabbits (and 11 kits), 6 Muscovy Ducks, 4 Dorking Chickens along with some Favorelle and Iowa Blue, and 6 Guineas. I have two Cane Corsos that are like my children and live in the house. My 12 week old LGD (Anatolian Shepherd) is learning new things every day. Yesterday, he learned about electricity.

We have a perimeter fence that is old barbed wire strung through trees and on wobbly old T posts. We're in the middle of renewing the fence. Hence the magic https://www.premier1supplies.com/detail.php?prod_id=102778&criteria=ElectroFence+PLUS+11/48/12 fence. We have 400ft and the cost for the fence and the charger was only about $1000 (with grounding rods and lightning arrestor ect) We're rotating this fence through the pastures with ease until we can get the permanent fencing done. Its easy and allows multiple configurations even though our pasture is only gently sloped toward the forest, it gives peace of mind that the coyotes and other hungry wildlife stay where they belong. Fencing for us, is a huge expense and we're going over our plans and making changes every time we sit down to get serious about getting started. We have a 330' roll of 4x4 woven wire 48" tall still waiting for us to decide where to get started. (It was less expensive to buy the bigger roll.)

Another project on the drawing board is extending power and water out to the carport duck house and to my barn. I have a hydrant at the greenhouse and an outdoor supply at the house so I have hoses strung and carry water when its below freezing. BLECH Our neighbor will dig the channels to bury the wire and pipes so all I need to do is buy the supplies. There is just so much to do all the time. I absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE this life. I feel so blessed with my farm, neighbors, and animals.


----------



## kccjer

Latestarter said:


> Hmmmm  might be time to dig that bad boy out...


LOL  You coming to help????  We have been talking about digging it out.  Might get around to doing that sometime in the next....oh....say 10 years!  when we are too old to enjoy it!  LOL


----------



## kccjer

@Ponker We have some of the same projects going.  We bought a trencher that hooks onto the tractor and is run by PTO so we can trench some lines in.  I want a hydrant at the chicken house, at the corral, at the garden, etc.  The fun part is going to be figuring out exactly where all the existing lines actually are!  We dug out and replaced a hydrant that _should _have had a T going to the barn....and it did not.  NO clue where the line that runs to the barn is....likely in the middle of a very hard driveway.  Sigh...  We are needing to run some electric lines too.  The baalan could use electricity.  The chicken house got electricity run the same time we dug out hydrants.  We need some yard lights where we can actually SEE what we are doing in the dark.  Etc.  It's a never ending project to get things like you want them


----------



## tressa27884

I have five acres.


----------



## greybeard

kccjer said:


> @Ponker We have some of the same projects going.  We bought a trencher that hooks onto the tractor and is run by PTO so we can trench some lines in.  I want a hydrant at the chicken house, at the corral, at the garden, etc.  The fun part is going to be figuring out exactly where all the existing lines actually are!  We dug out and replaced a hydrant that _should _have had a T going to the barn....and it did not.  NO clue where the line that runs to the barn is....likely in the middle of a very hard driveway.  Sigh...  We are needing to run some electric lines too.  The baalan could use electricity.  The chicken house got electricity run the same time we dug out hydrants.  We need some yard lights where we can actually SEE what we are doing in the dark.  Etc.  It's a never ending project to get things like you want them


For lights in remote areas or areas you have to wait to get 110 to, you might consider stand alone led solar lighting. I have several, including a set down at my pond--another double set at my working pens. They are not cheap, but provide adequate lighting for 2-3 hours continuous.

A bad picture..Solar panel is on right top of the post and light on the left side. May not look like much, but it will illuminate the whole pond.






Not exactly like the  ones I have, but close to it. (spec sheet on that page says it is 120v--it is not--it's 12 voltDC) The ones I have also have a switch to change from motion detect to 'on' as long as the battery allows it to stay on.
http://www.lowes.com/pd_111185-337-MSLED1801UT_1z10fip__?productId=3743705&pl=1


----------

