The Back 1
Behind our new (since May 2006) house is a little wood, which I have long coveted. My original plan was to claim it through adverse possession by openly, notoriously, and continuously occupying it in a hostile and adverse manner (we have had our tomahawk target on it for a couple of years, and we built a gate in our back fence so we can trespass on it), but since I joined the North East Tennessee Association of REALTORS and gained access to courthouse records, I have actually found out who the owners of the area are and how the land is divided up.
Most of the woods are part of a one-acre parcel that is part of my subdivision but not part of the city (the city line is along my back fence). That parcel, in turn, belongs to the man who owns the big field beyond it, but it is considered separate from the rest of his 11-acre property. Furthermore, he is trying to sell his land, and I am considering asking if he will sell that parcel separately.
I am not sure what I would do with the land if I could buy it (and I have estimated its value to within a $6,000 range, within which I could afford the lower end of the spectrum, but would be reluctant to spend enough to buy it at a higher-end price). In some ways it would be nice just to leave it as it is, or perhaps improve the fencing around it so the dogs could run freely in it. I have also considered building a little cabin there for storage and for a retreat. It might also be nice to keep bees back there. On the other hand, I have also considered clearing part of the land, either for an orchard or a little garden plot.
Obviously I could do more than one of these--fencing it would work with all other possible uses, and keeping bees along with an orchard or a garden plot would make good sense--but I do not think I could do all of them. Clearing and plowing the flat parts for a garden would counteract my desire to have a little bit of forest of my own (no matter how little that bit).
It is a hard choice, not least because it does seem an unnecessary expense at a time when watching our little treasury is more important than ever. Still, if it could become a garden, it could be a step towards self-sufficiency and Mr Jefferson's agrarian ideal.
Most of the woods are part of a one-acre parcel that is part of my subdivision but not part of the city (the city line is along my back fence). That parcel, in turn, belongs to the man who owns the big field beyond it, but it is considered separate from the rest of his 11-acre property. Furthermore, he is trying to sell his land, and I am considering asking if he will sell that parcel separately.
I am not sure what I would do with the land if I could buy it (and I have estimated its value to within a $6,000 range, within which I could afford the lower end of the spectrum, but would be reluctant to spend enough to buy it at a higher-end price). In some ways it would be nice just to leave it as it is, or perhaps improve the fencing around it so the dogs could run freely in it. I have also considered building a little cabin there for storage and for a retreat. It might also be nice to keep bees back there. On the other hand, I have also considered clearing part of the land, either for an orchard or a little garden plot.
Obviously I could do more than one of these--fencing it would work with all other possible uses, and keeping bees along with an orchard or a garden plot would make good sense--but I do not think I could do all of them. Clearing and plowing the flat parts for a garden would counteract my desire to have a little bit of forest of my own (no matter how little that bit).
It is a hard choice, not least because it does seem an unnecessary expense at a time when watching our little treasury is more important than ever. Still, if it could become a garden, it could be a step towards self-sufficiency and Mr Jefferson's agrarian ideal.