The long path to SS

[Dace]

Many of you know that I am a huge fan of the Dervaes family of Pasadena CA. I found this on their journal today while researching something and thought it was worth sharing.

The Pasadena urban homestead universe wasnt transformed overnight. The journey started long before I was even born and even before Farmer D decided to share our urban homesteading project with the world in 2001. With readers seeing what/where we are today its hard to imagine what we started with. Its been a 20 year long organic process at our current location- turning a ordinary city home into an homestead. Patience, purpose, perseverance and passion is what got us here in the first place. With those four Ps in your pocket you can change your world for the better.
Heres a overview draft timeline.

1969 Began searching for a meaningful and more natural, self-sufficient lifestyle; lived simply without air conditioning, clothes dryer; dishwasher; wanted to return to eating whole, non processed foods and natural medicines.

1973-75 Homesteaded in New Zealand: Beekeeper, sold honey/successful honey business/hand-cranked honey extractor/drug-free bees; self-installed rainwater system for homestead water supply; planted fruit trees/vegetable garden; kept chickens, ducks and goats for eggs and milk/sold chicken eggs; hand chopped firewood for heat/hot water and cooking in woodstove; built honey shop solely by hand/no power tools; outdoor toilet; outdoor laundry room with copper basin and fireplace for heating water; wringer washer/outdoor clothesline; primarily vegetarian diet but occasionally butchered chickens/sheep for food; no phone or TV; cooked from scratch; home entertainment and developed some additional homesteading craft skills; purchased an old Morris hand cranked car; experimented with humanure composing.

1975-84 Lived on 10 acres in Florida: hand cleared palmettos for mobile home/out buildings, garden and play area; dug trenches for water pipes for well and septic tank opening/ self-installed electricity; beekeeper/bee supply and honey business/drug-free bees; planted huge vegetable garden; milked goat; various building and DIY projects; no air conditioning, no dishwasher, no clothes dryer/used outdoor clothesline; used alternative medicine; began home schooling children; in later years disconnected hot water heater; had a large worm composting bin; small nursery business.

1985 First year in Pasadena house: furnished home with items brought from Florida and donated second hand items/stove and fridge from the church; kept 10 drug-free beehives and sold honey/hand-cranked extractor; composted; planted vegetable garden; heavily mulched backyard to improve soil; no air conditioning, no clothes dryer/used outdoor clothesline.

1989 Became totally vegetarian.

1990 Edible landscaping and farming in the front yard; smothered front lawn under newspaper & mulch to kill the grass: planted wildflowers, vegetables and herbs.

1991-92 First DIY cardboard solar oven made for cooking baked potatoes and cookies/experimental; recycled grey water from sinks and tub to water the garden to conserve water during water restrictions.

1993 Started crafting business; lived without use of refrigerator on and off for several years; experiences in extreme simplicity; roof began leakingtarp put on. Exploring local mountains - several hiking and camping expeditions.

1994-95 DerVaes Gardens started home business of selling edible flowers and herbs grown in front and backyard to restaurants and caterers; alternative homegrown medicines use increases/herbal medicines preparation.

1996 Increased use of food preservation and began eating with the seasons from the garden; worm composting; learned how to repair and fix bicycles for ourselves and the community.

1999 DerVaes Gardens edible flowers sales scaled back and more heirloom gourmet vegetables planted instead. Learned, self taught survival skills and wild edible forging.

2000 DIY Constructed a large plywood solar oven on wheels and began using the sun for cooking more of the meals and for hot water for dish washing.

2001 Decided to take a proactive approach do what we can, where we are with what we had. Living our protest 24/7 by urban homesteading fulltime; recorded amount of harvest; used term urban homestead to document journey to self-sufficiency online at PathtoFreedom.com; made raised beds and self-watering containers; first media article written about PTFs urban homestead; used city rebates for energy efficient computers, vcr, and tv; installed energy efficient light bulbs; bought gas lamps and various hand-cranked/unplugged kitchen appliances; first urban homestead blog entry.

2002 Started raising chickens (5 hens) from day old chicks; rabbits (2) opened up urban homestead to the public - first tour of urban homestead; used city rebate to purchase energy efficient refrigerator; built solar food dryer.

2003 Self-installed solar panels using city rebates; constructed solar-heated outdoor shower; installed solar tube light in garage; raised day old baby ducks (2); started replacing old appliances like refrigerator, etc; city rebate for energy efficient/water saver washing machine; James Washer hand operated washing machine; LA Permaculture Guild first Permaculture Class visits the urban homestead on field trip.

2004 Constructed biodiesel processor to make fuel for diesel car; purchased a used 88′ Chevy diesel; hosted various Self Sufficiency Series workshops at the urban homesteadsoap-making, spinning, biodiesel making, hosted guest speakers; started using EM. Exhibited our urban homestead and farm project at Fritz Haegs Garden LAb at Art Center College of Design.

2005 Constructed earthen (cob) outdoor, wood-fired oven; broke up and removed 30x30 concrete slab in backyard and reused it for hardscaping; wind blows off more shingles on roof; first installed clay pot irrigation; pedal powered grain mill.

2006 Purchased two goats (miniature and dwarf); revamped solar shower; expanded animal enclosure; added more raised beds; more small improvements made to the overall urban homestead; installed Jotul wood stove for heat/free wood from local tree trimmer for burning; bike trailer; toilet lid sink for water conservation in bathroom; DIY arbors installed to take advantage of upscale growing space; pedal powered blender.

2007 Installed eco friendly metal roof for future rainwater collection; raised and sold chickens and ducks for fellow LA backyard poultry enthusiasts; increased our backyard flockery with more chickens and ducks; installed solar attic fans (rebated by the City of Pasadena), replaced driveway with more permeable Hollywood strip driveway; captured wild bees as a swarm; purchased space saving rain barrels for rainwater harvesting project.

2008 - the urban homestead project continues growing both in our backyard and globally with improved websites and interactive challenges stay tuned for more!

 

[Blackbird]

I didn't know anyone on here knew about the Dervaes! I love their site and they have a great set-up for that amount of land. Proof you can be SS in the city like that,

 

[noobiechickenlady]

I think I read about them shortly after getting the Backyard Homestead. Very nice setup. It really gives me hope for my small bit of land.

I hope my list looks something like that 20 years from now

 

[DrakeMaiden]

What I think is interesting is that they experimented with humanure composting but never tried it again. (Built a septic system in FL). I'm curious what they would have to say about it . . . actually, I think they should write a book!

 

[Dace]

If you go to their site and search humanure something might pop up.

 

[DrakeMaiden]

That doesn't sound so good on paper.

 

[big brown horse]

No it doesn't.

 

[Dace]

You are right...her is what I found:
Dated Dec 2005

WATER-LESS LOO
The typical American uses 13,000 gallons of water each year to remove a mere 165 gallons of body waste.
There are two kinds of people in the world, people who sh in drinking water, and people who dont.
Today we are somewhat thrilled to finally order a composting toilet (saved $500 too!!!). Another small step towards our water and waste reclamation project to eliminate or reduce our water consumption.
Weve been hankering to get one of these toilets for many years. Of course, it would have been cheaper and more satisfying to do what many other across the country are doing building a simple (not to mention inexpensive) diy sawdust toilet. This purchase was a hard decision to make and, believe me, we dont like to part with such a hefty amount of money.
We decided against the sawdust toilet since we are in a unique situation. Others may be less constrained by space, code or recognition. Since our four compost drums and pile are in close proximity to a school, our produce business and clients to consider, and the City of Pasadena aware of our accomplishments, we felt it best to spend money for a whole system set up with composting chamber to break down the waste. However, we still feel the sawdust one toilet is the best and most efficient model. A model that we really should be striving for. Instead, well save this diy project for another situation with more land (see Peace & Carrots Homesteads sawdust toilet with humanure drums) improving on the typical out house that was used by my mother and father on their first homestead in New Zealand. (btw, in Florida we had our own well and septic system)
We chose the Envirolet model over its competitors because it has a highly efficient aeration chamber, which means you dont have to add peat moss to the toilet every time you use the loo.
The Envirolet waterless toilet also comes with a small wind turbine which affixes to the top of the vent pipe on the roof and helps draw air constantly through the aeration chamber. This deftly prevents the unit from down-drafting and expelling odors.
Our first choice was Envirolets waterless, non-electrical model since we like to limit any unnecessary watts. With this non electrical toilet the liquid waste isnt composted. It exits the unit through a small tube that runs outside and into a drain pit (basically a gravel-filled hole in the ground). Since we are installing the chamber in the cellar, we couldnt just build this type of pit/drain system. Instead, we opted to buy the 120V AC power model, where a five gallon bucket can be used to drain the excessive liquid into and then the bucket will be emptied into our compost pile. It was a hard choice. We really didnt want another electrical appliance but figured our solar panels will supply adequate power.
Back to the subject of using urine in the compost pile: Every day, we urinate nutrients that can fertilize plants. Instead, these nutrients are flushed away. Urine is the fastest acting, highest nitrogen portion of human waste. Adding this liquid to compost urine acts as an accelerator.

 

[valmom]

Sometimes I am jealous of climates that actually have a growing season and no heating worries or snow. Vermont is a hard place to really be self-sufficient. I don't know how our ancestors did it. They must have been hardier than I am.

 

[jessejames]

has anyone out there read the helen and scott nearings books the good life etc. they were the first generation of back to the landers i have always been a big fan of their way of doing things except for the fact that they were vegetarians and didnt believe in animal husbandry. where as i feel if you are giving the animals a good happy well fed free ranging life style that they are just a healthy part of the food chain.
if you havent it is well worth checking them out. an internet search will get you to their still existing farm etc. in maine it is very cool. i have always wanted to o one of therir internships but alas never have the time, ever.