conuly

Well I'm not an expert on things like growing seasons here YET. I guess yeah it would be longer, but you know what? That square foot gardening book, even on a large scale would probably be a good read for you (or even the site) because it is like smaller scale crop rotation and augmenting soil and all that stuff. (I also compost like MAD.)

You can have one out of concrete, precast or poured molds. They really have been quite innovative both in the structural integrity and beauty of concrete, I used to read Concrete Construction every month, and still discuss things with Dan.

Concrete castle from early 1900s:
http://www.concretedecor.net/Abstracts/CD203_Mercer.cfm

Precast homes:
http://www.cement.org/homes/ch_lc_us_illinois.asp

Really I would bet concrete/precast would be the way to go for durability and economy and safety. You'd have your castle but more energy efficent and pretty strong too. And cheaper.

You ever hear about CSAs?
http://www.nal.usda.gov/afsic/pubs/csa/csa.shtml

Community supported agriculture. It's sort of like a farm co-op, personal farmers market almost. A bit pricey to get into, you pay the farmer for a years worth of stuff, but the real fun part is some of them let you work on the farm, which can be very educational. I know you don't drive now but I would imagine at some point in all this you'll have to find some form of long distance transportation. Until you move inland, the CSA could be a good learning experience and a good way to support local farms.

Me, I hope within a few years I can turn this house over to a farmette just outside of town (not too far out to avoid the tornados, being by the river and in the bluffs has kept this area tornado free), and want to start with chickens. I think that's the most economical to start off with. I'm still struggling with figuring out what grows well here, the soil has a lot more clay than in NYC, where I actually did ok growing stuff.

This year I am here before growing season so I'm planning better. I should have more success now that I know better what its like.

Have you seen Lehmans catalog?

http://www.lehmans.com/

Best to look at the goods there, and then find them elsewhere. Thats where I got the idea for the Wonderwash hand washer, which works fantastic.