It is always the same thing when a 'band waggon' starts to roll, hoards of people dash to get on.
Some of those people don't have a reason why they want to get on but if the herd is doing it, there must be a good reason.
Bubbles in stock markets are created because of the band wagon effect, lemmings seem to jump off cliffs because of it and pop stars or actors can become super famous because of it.
I think we are experiencing a certain amount of hype around sustainable living as well. Marketeers are over egging, seed companies are going great guns because of it and land to grow your own has become much sought after again.
At the centre of this surge towards a 'good life' lifestyle will be a core of serious people - possibly even a considerable percentage.
Alas, there will also be many people who are caught up in the hype and, seduced by television programs that make it look all so easy, will buy all of the gear and after a short period of time, revert back to easy street.
Now that small pockets of land are being snapped up, we will inevitably see a mini bubble in prices as people, seduced by the opportunity to be at one with nature, invest in earth instead of patio heaters and gas BBQ's.
Sadly though, out of all of this, there will come some serious problems with the way that land is managed.
Read a post - Self Sufficiency and Sustainable Gardens - It is not as easy as the TV makes out - from Shane Kneebone of Cornwall Landscapes on the Landscape Juice Network.
Taking my marketing glasses off and putting my conscientious environmental ones on, I can can fully understand how those who strive to become sustainable in a serious way, and those who make their living being self sufficient are worried that their might be problems ahead unless there is effective controls on how the countryside is divided up.
I can speak from a certain angle of experience here. I moved to France in 2004 after twenty five years in horticulture and landscaping and a whole life in the country.
It was my ambition and yearning to be self sufficient and I opted to buy a twenty acre farm with which to fulfil my dream.
The reality is very much a punch in the stomach and far away from those red wine fuelled romantic evenings when on holiday.
The work that needs to be put in in order to get something back is immense. This year we have decided to rent out the bulk of our land to a local farmer after suffering a about a €1200 loss on the wheat harvest.
If you are thinking of a certain degree of self sufficiency then I would seriously urge you to scale it to your time available and do not over burden yourself otherwise, if you buy or rent a large plot of land and you cannot keep up with the maintenance, your expenses will spiral and defeat the object.
Have you any stories of being self sufficient and was anyone inspired by the Good Life all those years back?
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