In reply to A newbie all over again! by Annec
In reply to A newbie all over again! by Annec
[QUOTE=Mog51]I have thought about letting the next door farmer use it (rent it out), but I'm not sure of the implications?[/QUOTE]
Be very careful with this. Unless the contract is drawn up properly, you could find yourself with a tenant farmer who has the right to carry on working the land for 15 years.
GeorgeS, a member of this forum who had unfortunate experiences with a tenant farmer strongly advised people to have the contract done via the "Coldiretti" (Confederazione nazionale coltivatori diretti - Italian association of farmers) as this is the only certain way to avoid a long-term commitment.
According to my Italian solicitors, it is irrelevant if a landowner and a farmer come to an agreement and sign a contract saying the farmer can work a piece of land for less than 15 years. Under the law, a tenant farmer has the right to farm for 15 years and he cannot waive that right. The only way a farmer can have those rights reduced is with the approval of the Coldiretti. Coming to a friendly agreement with a farmer could therefore become the cause of serious problems and tensions in the long-term.
Al
land
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 05/30/2006 - 13:08In reply to A newbie all over again! by Annec
We are also in Le Marche and rented our land to a local farmer.Took a long time to get it done but no regrets.Did it through local farmers union in Arcevia (CIA) and it was for 5 years with stepped increases.But dont expect to retire on the income!
coppice
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 05/30/2006 - 14:04In reply to A newbie all over again! by Annec
[FONT="Book Antiqua"][SIZE="3"]What about planting it with woodland coppice.You then have free fuel! Maintaining it shouldnt be too hard but it will be a big job to plant.You may need to fench it from deer!
If you wanted you could run the grey water from your house into this area to provide irrigation.
Becky[/SIZE][/FONT]
In reply to A newbie all over again! by Annec
You might be interested in this site about coppicing. It's quite informative and you'll get an idea of the amount of initial work involved.
[url]http://www.defra.gov.uk/farm/acu/energy/src-guide.pdf[/url]
In reply to A newbie all over again! by Annec
We're in a similar position. The land (in a strip up a slope) is west facing, and gets a good amount of sun. The land just below ours (also in a strip) has been planted with olive trees, and they give a healthy crop. At least they did, but as we didn't prune them this year, I don't know if they will still fruit. It's really difficult to find someone round here who will come and prune olive trees, and I have no idea how to do it...
Surely what you do with the land will depend on what sort of soil you have. Ours is stony, but with relatively good drainage.
trees
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 06/06/2006 - 14:57In reply to A newbie all over again! by Annec
I hope to buy lots of trees from the Forestale in amandola - they are about 1-2Euros each and the nursery is very well set out. they have a list of local trees and you order for delivery over the autumn and winter. About 1 to 2 m high too. visit them and talk.
In reply to A newbie all over again! by Annec
That is a good piece of advice from Janetta - the Communita Montana, or Forestale, are dedicated to helping people plant woodlands, and they sell good small plants at very sensible prices.
I promise you that planting a 1 - 2 euro tree which is less than a foot high will result in a bigger and better tree after as little as five years than being impatient and paying 100 euros for something six foot high.
Sheep are very pretty to look at, and mow the grass!! I think if you have a formal written contract with a neighbouring farmer, renewable annually, you can avoid any potential problems with asking him to leave when you want to do something with the land yourself. But take advice on this.