I am a retired teacher in my 60’s taking an untouched ex forestry 5 acre block, embracing nature, converting the land to a self contained, off grid Croft growing my own food naturally using resourcs from the land. For health reasons I am now trying to eat food as natural as possible, no food that is processed or food that has a list of numbers in the ingredients. This page is about my latest proje
ct to live the rest of my life healthier by the transformation of a rugged 5-acre ex-forestry block near Stanthorpe, Australia, into a functional hub for off-grid food security and sustainable systems development. After the last few years living in a van with van with my two girls( we will still be travelling around Australia in the van), I wanted to buy my own piece of Australia where I can grow my own fruit and vegetables so I know exactly what I am eating, no additives, no toxins, I working together with my son and a friend of his and together we share our produce, each of us having growing what the others are not. In my croft at this stage, I will be growing the colder climate fruit and vegetables and later I will introduce ducks. My son, will growing the subtropical fruit, veg and maybe chickens later, and his friend will focus on the protein side of things. We will all be embracing the next evolution of self-sufficiency: I will anchoring myself to a piece of land ( My son and his friend already has their land) to build a resilient, productive base for a healthier, wholesome life. My project focuses on land stewardship and resource utilization on this unique Granite Belt property. I will be developing the Pine Croft into a highly efficient model for sustainable practices, utilizing every asset the land provides. Water Security: Designing and implementing essential water harvesting systems, including the critical dam project to capture the overland waterway and spring influence, ensuring long-term resilience for irrigation. Earthworks & Soil: Utilizing permaculture techniques like Hugelkultur—turning the property's large pine timber into revolutionary water-retaining garden beds—to build and enrich the deep arable soils. Off-Grid Systems: Installing scalable, stand-alone solar power and efficient gravity-fed watering systems that demonstrate how to maximize energy efficiency and minimize reliance on external infrastructure. Food Production: Developing intensive, climate-resilient growing spaces (like our greenhouse) to maximize our food output and achieve food sovereignty in the Stanthorpe climate. Join me as I tackle the practical challenges of breaking ground, setting up sustainable infrastructure, and achieving a complete "Healthy Life Change" by partnering with the land.
