Vashiya Rice

I am a person who doesn't have much farming experience but is eager to learn and research extensively to ensure my future farm prospers. The general plan for the farm is to start off with the intent of growing vegetables such as lettuce and carrots, micro greens, and raising 8-10 poultry for egg-laying. The waste collected from hay, leftover eggshells, and vegetable scraps can be in turn reused for rich compost which helps to nourish and return nutrients back to the soil, allowing for it to heal in order to reduce chances of exhaustion and diminish nutrition to grown vegetables and eggs. As a total beginner, I believe starting off with crops and livestock that are more forgiving for beginners will help to ease me into farm life.  

Later on, I intend to build a fencing system to separate large acres into more manageable pastures while introducing sheep to live full-time outside, with the intent of utilizing a regenerative grazing system. Depending on the size of the pasture, the flock will be expected to remain in a pasture for 3-4 days before being moved to the next. This system will help to maintain the health of the pasture by helping to promote vegetative growth when grazed down, increasing the forage and nutrient quality. The waste produced by the sheep also helps the nutrients to be passed back into the earth while the pasture is moved on to prevent overgrazing. 

Acres left unoccupied for regenerative grazing will be given other uses, like being used for a fruit tree orchard, ideally starting off with 5-6 young trees from a nursery, to be able to shorten the time for the tree to start producing fruit. Orchards, even on a small scale, can have environmentally-friendly benefits as well. The presence of trees alone can help to purify the air by absorbing the CO2 from its environment and attract natural pollinators which can hopefully help to increase the number of endangered native pollinators in the state. The orchard will also be able to benefit from the compost used to help grow healthy and nutritious trees as well as fruit. I also hope to be able to sell young fruit trees in the future as well to help out others who are interested in having their own fruit trees,

Another practice I intend to utilize to help reduce resources wasted is to invest in rainwater collection. Being concerned with the climate consequences in agriculture, I intend to try not to rely as much on state-provided water systems and collect rainwater for various needs to water my crops and livestock, and luckily New York seems to be quite a rainy state. Rainwater collection helps to protect my local watershed, reduce my carbon footprint, and help to keep the water cycle going after being used.