Welcome to our FAQ page. If you've got questions hopefully we have answers...
Q. So why are you doing this? (probably the question asked of us the most)
A. Because we want to be part of the solution not the problem. Being in the city, obsessed with consumerism is our humble opinion is not the way to go and we have found by experience that the more you have the more you need so we decided to declutter and start giving back to the world.
Q. What made you want to go with Permaculture as a way of growing?
A. Well it was because of something Hubby saw when he was much younger on SBS TV (the only channel his parents would watch other than ABC). It was a short movie all about the exploits of Bill Mollison (universally thought of as the Father of Permaculture). It struck him that this was such a responsible and natural way of living without destroying the world god had provided for us to live on. Our feeling is that Permaculture gives as much back to the world as a whole as it takes out if not more as apposed to the type of growing and living that the Industrialised world has embraced.
Q. Do you run Permaculture courses at Dragonfly Farm?
A. No, we are very much newbies to the field not to mention that we are far from qualified in any way to provide instruction to others when we have only just started this life changing event ourselves. That doesn't mean however that we wouldn't invite other qualified people to come and use our garden and property to demonstrate or show do's and dont's.
Q. Why is your daughter referred to as The Bear?
A. Well that's a simple one. From day one when she came out of Wifey she would growl like a bear when she was hungry or wanted to get your attention and we thought this was soooooo cute that from then on she was referred to as The Bear.
Q. Can I come and work on Dragonfly Farm?
A. Yes, of course... many hands make light work. Your especially welcome if you have knowledge of Permaculture and or you can assist us with things that would usually have to pay for like basic earthmoving (using a Shovel or Pick for everything is very slow going so if you have a backhoe or digger that you want to drop by with you will be rewarded with hugs, kisses and food a plenty).
Q. How old are you?
A. Well it varies =). As of 2013 Hubby is 37, Wifey is 33, The Bear is 1 and counting.
Q. Are you Hippies or Tree Hugging Greenies?
A. No, we are just a normal family (not that Hippies and Greenies aren't) who got sick of living in the city and wanted to live simply and closely in a small community where we knew and liked our neighbours.
Q. Do you offer accomodation at Dragonfly Farm?
A. Not currently due to the fact that you would have a better stay in a tent than our half rebuilt home and we like to make sure that we are the very best of hosts to anyone that stays with us. That said we never say no to travellers (unless we are already fully booked) that feel that anything is better than nothing. We are both very experienced members of the www.couchsurfing.org movement and have hosted well over 50 people in our old apartment back in Sydney. Bare in mind however that Dragonfly Farm is a Nudist only farm so unless you are comfy with yourself it may not be the place for you.
Q. What are nudists?
A. Put simply, people who don't like wearing clothes unless they have to. As our many many couchsurfers (none of whom were nudists when they came to stay with us but who all were when they left) will attest... there is nothing weird about it and only serves to bring down the silly barriers that people usually put up like social status, body type, liniage etc... When your naked your all equal...Nuff said.
Q. Do you accept donations of money?
A. No, absolutely not! We hate that the modern world puts value on pieces of paper above the value of the world itself, human life and common decency. We at Dragonfly Farm only have the desire to be loving, friendly and kind. Money stands for none of those things and whilst it is somewhat of a requirement in the modern world we would much prefer you offer to lend a hand or a kind word.
Q. What is the climate like at Dragonfly Farm?
A. Summer.... very very hot. From November to the end of March/April you will routinely see days where the temp is around 45°C or more. Autumn, getting cooler but a much more bearable temp around 20 - 24°C... good time for sitting on the large veranda with a book and a cuppa, bad for mozzies though. Winter, by Aussie standards... very cold. It often get's down to 4°C during the night and not much warmer than 12°C during the day, lots and lots of wind and heaps of torrential rain that can last weeks. Spring, we don't know yet. This is our first year and we are still currently in Winter so we will let you know =)
Q. Do you all work on the farm 24/7?
A. Unfortunately no, we have to work to pay for things until we can afford to sell from what we produce for the simple things like Medical Costs and Land Rates. Until then it's a normal 9-5 job for hubby. That said it makes it all the more rewarding to get to come home to such a Paradise in Planning at the end of each day and the weekend.
Q. Are you active in the local community?
A. Yes as much as we can be with the requirements of buidling and active Permaculture Farm. We always make sure to allow time for play as well as hard yakka. This means we attend all local events such as "Pot Luck Dinners", Seed Savers Network (yet to attend our first meeting), Helping Neighbours if they need it the same as they do for us if we need it (thanks heaps to our newest friends Rob and Tobi for so many things already).
Q. What do you grow on the Farm?
A. Well as we have yet to develop our Food Forest/Kitchen Garden we can't honestly tell you. What we can tell you is that our wonderful neighbours Peter and Megan have opened our eyes as to the amazingly varied Fruits and Veggies you can grow in the Sub Tropical Climate of New South Wales (NSW). We plan at the very least to grow heaps of Kale, Beets, Beans, Grapes, Passionfruit, Guava, Parsnip, Corjets, Gords, Pumpkin to name just a few. Our first fruit tree was a Mandarin tree that was already here when we purchased the property and we are soooo very proud to be the recipients of the best and most abundant crop of tasty, sweet mandarines we've ever had... The Bear loves em...lol.
Q. Swales or Garden Beds?
A. In an ideal world, Swales most definitely, however given that the slop of the land is pretty consistant across the whole property we will be planing to build mounded Double Reach beds with trenches for walking in between. They will be East/ West running (which is not ideal for sun but will assist with water usage and trapping). We will get around the to much sun during summer issue with plans for a couple of nice big vertical gardens which will shade our garden from the harsh afternoon sun.
Q. What do you do for fun when your not gardening?
A. Well there are some amazing beaches nearby and The Bear loves sand (mostly eating it) as do Wifey and Hubby. There is also an abundance of Rainforest nearby which allows for some amazing Bush Walks although if you don't like leeches, ticks, spiders and snakes then it may not be something you will appreciate. As born and bred Aussies we understand that it is part of loving this country and honestly we have only had contact with one venemous snake since we bought here... We also love a good laugh (although sneezing whilst naked is a bit weird...lol). We love books, bike riding, having lunch, dinner with friends nearby and visiting our family (not so nearby).
A. Because we want to be part of the solution not the problem. Being in the city, obsessed with consumerism is our humble opinion is not the way to go and we have found by experience that the more you have the more you need so we decided to declutter and start giving back to the world.
Q. What made you want to go with Permaculture as a way of growing?
A. Well it was because of something Hubby saw when he was much younger on SBS TV (the only channel his parents would watch other than ABC). It was a short movie all about the exploits of Bill Mollison (universally thought of as the Father of Permaculture). It struck him that this was such a responsible and natural way of living without destroying the world god had provided for us to live on. Our feeling is that Permaculture gives as much back to the world as a whole as it takes out if not more as apposed to the type of growing and living that the Industrialised world has embraced.
Q. Do you run Permaculture courses at Dragonfly Farm?
A. No, we are very much newbies to the field not to mention that we are far from qualified in any way to provide instruction to others when we have only just started this life changing event ourselves. That doesn't mean however that we wouldn't invite other qualified people to come and use our garden and property to demonstrate or show do's and dont's.
Q. Why is your daughter referred to as The Bear?
A. Well that's a simple one. From day one when she came out of Wifey she would growl like a bear when she was hungry or wanted to get your attention and we thought this was soooooo cute that from then on she was referred to as The Bear.
Q. Can I come and work on Dragonfly Farm?
A. Yes, of course... many hands make light work. Your especially welcome if you have knowledge of Permaculture and or you can assist us with things that would usually have to pay for like basic earthmoving (using a Shovel or Pick for everything is very slow going so if you have a backhoe or digger that you want to drop by with you will be rewarded with hugs, kisses and food a plenty).
Q. How old are you?
A. Well it varies =). As of 2013 Hubby is 37, Wifey is 33, The Bear is 1 and counting.
Q. Are you Hippies or Tree Hugging Greenies?
A. No, we are just a normal family (not that Hippies and Greenies aren't) who got sick of living in the city and wanted to live simply and closely in a small community where we knew and liked our neighbours.
Q. Do you offer accomodation at Dragonfly Farm?
A. Not currently due to the fact that you would have a better stay in a tent than our half rebuilt home and we like to make sure that we are the very best of hosts to anyone that stays with us. That said we never say no to travellers (unless we are already fully booked) that feel that anything is better than nothing. We are both very experienced members of the www.couchsurfing.org movement and have hosted well over 50 people in our old apartment back in Sydney. Bare in mind however that Dragonfly Farm is a Nudist only farm so unless you are comfy with yourself it may not be the place for you.
Q. What are nudists?
A. Put simply, people who don't like wearing clothes unless they have to. As our many many couchsurfers (none of whom were nudists when they came to stay with us but who all were when they left) will attest... there is nothing weird about it and only serves to bring down the silly barriers that people usually put up like social status, body type, liniage etc... When your naked your all equal...Nuff said.
Q. Do you accept donations of money?
A. No, absolutely not! We hate that the modern world puts value on pieces of paper above the value of the world itself, human life and common decency. We at Dragonfly Farm only have the desire to be loving, friendly and kind. Money stands for none of those things and whilst it is somewhat of a requirement in the modern world we would much prefer you offer to lend a hand or a kind word.
Q. What is the climate like at Dragonfly Farm?
A. Summer.... very very hot. From November to the end of March/April you will routinely see days where the temp is around 45°C or more. Autumn, getting cooler but a much more bearable temp around 20 - 24°C... good time for sitting on the large veranda with a book and a cuppa, bad for mozzies though. Winter, by Aussie standards... very cold. It often get's down to 4°C during the night and not much warmer than 12°C during the day, lots and lots of wind and heaps of torrential rain that can last weeks. Spring, we don't know yet. This is our first year and we are still currently in Winter so we will let you know =)
Q. Do you all work on the farm 24/7?
A. Unfortunately no, we have to work to pay for things until we can afford to sell from what we produce for the simple things like Medical Costs and Land Rates. Until then it's a normal 9-5 job for hubby. That said it makes it all the more rewarding to get to come home to such a Paradise in Planning at the end of each day and the weekend.
Q. Are you active in the local community?
A. Yes as much as we can be with the requirements of buidling and active Permaculture Farm. We always make sure to allow time for play as well as hard yakka. This means we attend all local events such as "Pot Luck Dinners", Seed Savers Network (yet to attend our first meeting), Helping Neighbours if they need it the same as they do for us if we need it (thanks heaps to our newest friends Rob and Tobi for so many things already).
Q. What do you grow on the Farm?
A. Well as we have yet to develop our Food Forest/Kitchen Garden we can't honestly tell you. What we can tell you is that our wonderful neighbours Peter and Megan have opened our eyes as to the amazingly varied Fruits and Veggies you can grow in the Sub Tropical Climate of New South Wales (NSW). We plan at the very least to grow heaps of Kale, Beets, Beans, Grapes, Passionfruit, Guava, Parsnip, Corjets, Gords, Pumpkin to name just a few. Our first fruit tree was a Mandarin tree that was already here when we purchased the property and we are soooo very proud to be the recipients of the best and most abundant crop of tasty, sweet mandarines we've ever had... The Bear loves em...lol.
Q. Swales or Garden Beds?
A. In an ideal world, Swales most definitely, however given that the slop of the land is pretty consistant across the whole property we will be planing to build mounded Double Reach beds with trenches for walking in between. They will be East/ West running (which is not ideal for sun but will assist with water usage and trapping). We will get around the to much sun during summer issue with plans for a couple of nice big vertical gardens which will shade our garden from the harsh afternoon sun.
Q. What do you do for fun when your not gardening?
A. Well there are some amazing beaches nearby and The Bear loves sand (mostly eating it) as do Wifey and Hubby. There is also an abundance of Rainforest nearby which allows for some amazing Bush Walks although if you don't like leeches, ticks, spiders and snakes then it may not be something you will appreciate. As born and bred Aussies we understand that it is part of loving this country and honestly we have only had contact with one venemous snake since we bought here... We also love a good laugh (although sneezing whilst naked is a bit weird...lol). We love books, bike riding, having lunch, dinner with friends nearby and visiting our family (not so nearby).