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ABOUT THE LAND
This approximately 5.45 acre land opportunity consists of a one acre market garden and three acres of field space recently hayed and currently in rye cover crop. An approximately 30×50 barn with power and water would also be part of the leased area, as well as a roughly 0.45 acre old paddock space.
The market garden area is deer fenced with 7-8 ft heavy net fencing. The field is being fenced with 6 ft no-climb fencing and will have 3 strands of barbed wire to a total height of 7 feet. Two 12 ft x 50 ft poly tunnels could be made available for the farmer’s use. There is an existing irrigation infrastructure in place, fed by a well with abundant water, however better irrigation infrastructure should be considered for more intense agricultural needs. The landowner has some perennial fruit bushes inside the garden, and would keep these plants for their own use and sale.
The field slopes slightly to the northeast and is in a slightly cooler microclimate than surrounding areas. The land is easily accessible from the driveway, with the market garden located at the adjacent to the field with easy access to the barn. The 4 acre field space runs up to the road, and has a berm/hedgerow constructed along the roadside, keeping the field quiet and private.
ABOUT THE OPPORTUNITY
The landowners are open to various agricultural uses, including: market gardening; garlic (they have a lot of seed garlic which could be made available); livestock (they have 30 chickens currently but someone could bring more, or other animals); cannabis production, perhaps as part of a larger crop rotation (they have a late stage application), and are open to other proposals.
The intention in leasing land is for the long term, with a 3-5 year lease term to start. Any interested farmer needs to have a solid business plan and experience to back their intended use of the space. Regenerative farming practices are to be used, as organic as possible, but do not need to be certified organic.
The 20 acre property includes 10 acres of forest, 7 of which has a protective covenant on it to protect a salmon bearing creek at the back of the property. There are existing walking trails through the forest. The owners have a business licence for a B+B, so low impact agri-tourism, farm to table dinners etc could also be an element of the leasing farmer’s operation. The owners are open to discussing other agri-tourism options as well as the potential for additional infrastructure.
The leasing farmer could bring their own housing, such as a tiny home or trailer, to the land, with power and water hookups to be discussed. For septic, a composting toilet, outhouse, etc would be constructed by the farmer.
All operations and land use will be legal and permitted, and the farmer must carry full insurance coverage for all operations conducted on the property. Any plans to incorporate new elements into the operation, or add new structures/infrastructure would be discussed with the landowners, who live on site.
The landowners have a 20 hp Kabota tractor with roto-tiller, hiller, bush hog and ball hitch attachments as well as a walk behind roto-tiller, all of which could be available for use as needed. A leasing farmer can easily acquire wood chips from the pole yard across the street. The location on a relatively major street with a large community at the end of the road would make the existing farm stand very successful.
Lease rate for use of the 5.45 acres, barn and space to park housing will be around $1500 per month, to be negotiated based on the farmer’s business plan and intended use of the space.
GET IN TOUCH
This land opportunity is available through the B.C. Land Matching Program. Reach out to the Vancouver Island Land Matcher at azja@youngagrarians.org to start a conversation and learn about next steps.
Learn more about the land (and other Land Listings in your region) on the Young Agrarians UMAP. For more about the B.C. Land Matching Program, please visit youngagrarians.org/land
The B.C. Land Matching Program is funded on Vancouver Island by the Province of British Columbia, with support from Cowichan Valley Regional District and Patagonia.
