Here we are, embarking on this new and exciting journey. Our dream is to create a magical homestead. There is so much we want to do that we don't really know where to start. The veggie garden or orchard, kitchen or bathroom renovation, chickens or goats, compost bays or green house and the list goes on. What we do know however, is that we share a vision to one day have a farmhouse surrounded by lush organic veggie gardens, fairy lights and sunflowers. Oh-how-dreamy-of-us.
So let us start from the beginning. Don't be fooled into thinking we actually know what we are doing. We don't! We created this blog to share our (in-real-time) journey with you. It will most definitely be a learn as we go experience.
Our 1.5 acres is set in the beautiful hinterland of the Sunshine Coast, Australia, just 10 minutes from the iconic Noosa beach. Being ocean lovers we wanted to be able to enjoy the best of both worlds: the land and the sea.
Our property currently has three huge mango trees, a bush lemon, a mulberry bush and a grapefruit tree. It already has a cubby house ready to go (we would love to raise a little family here one day) and two beautiful big old poinciana trees. Apart from this Brightside Farm is basically a blank canvas ready to be transformed into our sustainable off grid living project. Woohoo!
Over the past couple of months we have been experimenting with the no dig approach to creating our veggie gardens. The two dirt patches below is evidence of our attempt. If you want to learn more about the no dig approach I highly recommend you check out Charles Dowling and his youtube channel. His gardens are incredibly inspiring.
We however, have decided to go down the raised veggie bed route which we believe is more suited to the contour of our land. We struggled with the no dig approach due to our land being on a slight slope. We placed sleepers along the sloping side of the gardens however we found we just couldn't get the soil depth we needed. Due to the garden beds not being fully contained they were prone to erosion and left them vulnerable to our pooch to trample and ferret amongst.
We did manage to grow a few heirloom zucchinis and pumpkins though. We got such a thrill to be able to watch these beauties grow and mature over time. There is something incredibly special about home grown produce. We can't wait to get going!
We also have lots of plans for the interior of the house. We plan on converting it into a rustic farm house. Think reclaimed and unfinished woods, natural fibers, rusted and distressed finished and re-purposed goods. The house already lends itself to this theme and we can't wait to show you inside.
What's up and coming at Brightside Farm?
+ Our main priority at the moment is to build a fence around the entire property. The main reason for this is to keep Sunshine our Golden Retriever contained. At the moment when pooch can't be supervised she is attached to a zip-line. This is essentially just a rope or steal cable tied between two trees. Her harness is then attached to the zip which gives her the freedom to roam back and forth. This gives us peace of mind knowing that she can't stray from the property but can still be outside.
Some zip-line tips:
Always make sure your pooch has access to shade at all times of the day
Don't forget the water bowl!
You can make your zip as long or short as needed
Never attach the zip line to your pooches collar, this is a choking hazard. To avoid injury use a harness.
Zip-lines are also known as cable runs or a dog trolley system
Make sure your pooch has a clean run with no obstacles they could get tangled around
Make sure you use a stopper at either end of your cable to prevent your pooch from wrapping themselves around the trees at either end
+ Build our first raised vegetable garden bed. Over the Christmas period we enrolled in The Healthy Patch Formula online video training program. The program takes you through 6 core pillars built around growing your own nutrient dense food. The knowledge we learnt was invaluable and we would hands down recommend the investment to anyone seeking to grow their own veggie garden. It was here we learnt all about healthy pest control, how to create nutritious soil, planting guides and the recommended materials and templates for building your very own raised garden beds from scratch.
+ Bring the outdoors in. We are totally loving the indoor plant vibe at the moment. We currently have whole pinterest board dedicated to the idea. Apart from looking beautiful, indoor plants have so many wonderful therapeutic benefits. They have the ability to clean the air we breathe by eliminating harmful toxins and can help improve your mental health. Plants can boost ones mood, productivity and creatively and can reduce stress and fatigue. We say bring in the plants!
Well, that's all for now guys. If there is anything you want to here from us please let us know in the comments or contact us here with your questions. We are both so excited for the year ahead and can't wait to bring you our next update. Stay tuned :)
