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You know that feeling when, at the end of the month, you add up your expenses and have no idea where or when you spent so much money. It’s probably all about proper budgeting and regularly monitoring expenses so you can correct them.
Modest family
The American Dervis family strives to minimize expenses and they are succeeding. They own a plot of 400 ares, where they have created an ecological farm that provides food and even some extra income.
This little family moved to Pasadena in the mid-80s. They had 800 ares of clear land available, on which stood an old house with a farm building. Therefore they decided to use part of the land for a real home farm and vegetable cultivation.
“Many people think we live in a magical place. But at the time of our arrival the soil was in terrible condition. Only about 20 years later were we able to achieve the current harvest,” said Jules Dervis
Farm
Today this urban farm in California, covering 400 m2, is one of the largest home farms in the country, producing more than 3 tons of crops. They therefore earn approximately €15,000 a year. The harvested crops cover 90% of their needs. This reduces the daily cost per person in the family to €2.
On the farm they grow approximately 400 varieties of vegetables, fruits and rare edible flowers. In addition to crops, they also have animals such as chickens, ducks, goats and bees. Among other things, Mr. Dervis, out of concern for environmental changes, installed solar panels on the roof of the house. As for transportation, the family uses a car powered by biofuels.
The only downside and problem for this family is drought. They therefore irrigate in the traditional way, using clay pots.
