So, as I have explained before: I stumbled through my first year. It was not a good thing, I murdered multiple plants this year and I feel very guilty about it.

I am not talking about one or two- it was the entire thing, the whole garden from corn to peas. Mid season I had to do raised beds and study. No matter what I did that first round was not good enough. I didn’t come prepared and I had a vague idea of what I wanted as well as some idea that it would all just magically happen for me.

During this time I came up with quite a few questions. These might or might not be useful. Feel free to add your own or comment a suggestion to add. I haven’t thought of everything I am sure.

1. What are my goals? How will our current decisions impact our long term goal? Do we have a clear end in mind? Can we break our goals into smaller missions and goals that can help us get to our end game? What are our manageable goals? What is most important? How will we manage our property organized v wilder methods?

2. How will my goals impact the property? How can the property interact with our ideas of our homestead? How can we plan adaptability into our system and how will it respond to change? What does the property want to be and what do you want it to be? What is appropriate and inappropriate for the property? Where is the natural flow of the property? What are the primary characteristics of our property? (Climate, terrain, biome etc.)

3. What do we need in order to make that happen? How will we work with nature? How can we retain resilience and durability? What materials and methodology do we want to use? What is our starting point? Can we do it alone or do we need assistance?

4. What is the natural layout of the property? What are our renewable resources and how can we make them work for us? What are our climate and geographic risks? Do we want to add to the property geographically in order to benefit our systems?

5. How will we handle our waste? What compost system will be best for us? Do we want worms or flies? Do we want a living system? Do we want do those weird German or Dutch mounds? How can we make it low impact and low waste?

6. How will we integrate as opposed to separate? How will our plans for diversity effect our long term goals and long game; how can we use these things to our advantage? Should there be straight rows or do we want a wilder and more layered food forestry method?

7. Do we want to plan our outside perimeter that is a wild area barrier? If not, how do we utilize that space? How will we use our edges and values? What kind of agroforesty, permaculture or other scientific name do we want to use and why? How do we plan to balance our system?

8. Where do we want to place our infrastructure? What type of structures will we need and how much space do they need to occupy? What type of nursery/greenhouse do we want to utilize? How will we heat our greenhouse? Do we want to have an aquaponics system and if we do what kind of fish? Would we want to expand to a fish farm? What about hydroponics?

9. What is our natural soil fertility and how do we plan to improve it? What living fertility methods will we be using? What is our soil texture, soil structure and biological activity? How can we get our soil tested?

10. How do we plan on using our natural landscape to capture maximum rain water? How will we store the water? Do we have a natural water source? Do we have a natural slope? Where is our natural occurring positive drainage and how do we direct our water and not it direct us?

11. What natural ecosystem do we want? Do we want a pocket wetland? How much work do we want to put into that system daily?

12. Where is the Suns orientation? Where is our solar sweet spot? Where does your property get the best sun and how do you plant your property according to what would be the best to support that natural sun direction?

13. Where do our wind directions? Summer v. Winter winds? Do we need a wind break? Do we want to use a windmill?

14. Do you want animals? How much will it cost? Is it worth it? How much area will it use and what are the benefits and the risks? What kinds of animals do we want to raise?

15. What skills can we contribute? Are those skills useful towards your goal? What can you YouTube and what will you need help with? Do you have help (who, what, when, where, why, how)? What insects and animals are in the area? What can we do to repel them naturally?

16. What will our zones look like? How will our zones effect our property and the water supply? Hiw many zones will you have and how will we section those zones out? What overlaying sector plan do we want to use? Are there natural things that we cannot change or edit? Where do we want our fire break and how will that effect our zones and property? What plants will we need to do this?

18. What do we want from our land (self reliant, hobby, income, education, healthy food etc.)?

17. Where are our frost pockets? How will we protect our plants during the winter? What kind of winter preparations do you need? How does winter effect your property? These questions also apply to summer.

19. How will manage our roads and paths? How will we prevent erosion? Living v. Nonliving walkways? Do we want to build pathways? What kind of paths?

20. What inspires you to continue? How can you put a plan in place to avoid getting burned out? Are you in a group to help where you have other people to help you? Do you want to do it alone or do you want people to help you and if so, who?

Lots of questions. As I get them answered I will post them here because I am a boring person and this is exciting for me. So that is that. Lots if work to do but my husband would prefer I not do anymore on my vacation.