Just as a warning, this post will be lots of words with few pictures!!
We think we're finally ready to announce some big changes to Wild Rose Pastures. We purchased our current 40 acre farm about five years ago, and at that time (as many of you know), our family politics situation for moving to Ryan's family's farm was difficult. However, in the five intervening years that has changed and we are planning to move to the family farm over the winter. We are not intending to leave any of you high and dry, and especially our Ames and Des Moines customers will be even closer to us! We intend to either continue our business with Pella customers unless the future buyers of our farm have similar philosophy and products to our own and our customers would rather move to working with them.
That being said, we have a small amount of beef that will be available shortly, and we are having an open house for both that beef and to show our farm to anyone who might be interested in purchasing it. Our open house will be Sunday, July 28th from 10AM-2PM. If you would like to put "dibs" on any cuts of beef, we will hold it for you until 1 PM unless you specifically tell us you are coming after 1. We are only selling by the cut, and pricing can be found here: http://www.
First come/reserve, first served! While we can also bring beef to the normal pickup points, we will prioritize people who are willing to come get it on Sunday. If you can't do so, perhaps we can help you find a friend who can! Unfortunately, we are currently sold out of chicken and our lamb isn't ready yet, but we should have a few dozen eggs for sale. Or if you just want to bring the kids, see the farm, and come hang out, we'd love to see you!
PDF directions to our place can be found here:
Or the website version here:
http://www.wildrosepastures.
We don't recommend you follow your smartphone or GPS directions! There is a dirt road east of us that the smartphones LOVE to take you down and get you stuck!
If you are interested in buying our farm or know someone who might be, this open house is for you too. It is a 2 bedroom, 1 bathroom house originally built in 1868 but remodeled all the way from studs in 1999. It has a three season sunroom built in 2005 that is roughly 300 square feet. The main house is 1.5 stories and about 900 total square feet. It has a very nice kitchen (the previous owner's wife insisted on it!) and modern wiring and plumbing. It is on rural water, the septic was new in 2005 and was just cleaned out a couple months ago, has a one car garage, and has a root cellar poured in at least 1910. We get DSL internet from the local phone provider for a fairly reasonable price (no dial-up or satellite!). We just put down new carpet in the living room, and the house is in good shape. We put a new roof on in 2012.
The house sits on a 2 acre plot (handy for financing reasons because you can finance the house itself with anyone without worrying about an Ag loan) with two other major outbuildings on it other than the garage. These include a divided shop with concrete floor and a closed-in lean-to with a dirt floor. Just off the 2 acre plot line there is also a brand-new large chicken building with a concrete floor and a carport for a tractor. All three buildings have power. There is also a well that we put in in 2010 that has 3 hydrants and a frost-free Cobett waterer (that thing is AWESOME!). There is also a small orchard with peaches, cherries, serviceberries (Juneberries), and apples already producing. Pears and hazelnuts should start producing soon as the trees are young.
The thirty-eight remaining acres are mostly pasture. There is a wooded draw down the center of the property, which is decent but not amazing for hunting ground. The south pasture has been improved over the five years from having chickens on it and also has some clover. On the west there are about 13 acres of tillable land, although it is very sandy and is currently in pasture because it is not very productive when cropped. There are native prairie remnants on our hills because they have always been too steep to till. Native plants include big and little bluestem, indiangrass, compass plant, bush clover, and lead plant.
Here is a Google maps picture of the place with an outline where the property lines are. For locating it, you are best off going to https://maps.google.com/ and typing in "Wild Rose Pastures" and we should pop up in Reasnor, IA. We are a 20 minute drive from Pella, a 25-30 minute drive from Newton, and a 45-55 minute drive from Des Moines. We are on gravel, and it is either two or three miles of gravel to get to us depending on which way you go.
We also have plans for an addition to turn the house into a 4 bedroom, 2 bathroom house that we would be happy to share with you if you would be interested.
We are asking $245,000 for the house and land together. We are not looking to sell them separately at this point. We would like to stay here until November to finish out our growing season, but could possibly work something out if there was a reason or a need to do so.
Please help us spread the word, and I'll try to post more pics mid-week as we get this place cleaned up enough to sell! I will also keep you posted on our journey to move a FARM and two young children (are we crazy or what?!?).
