The Farm

Our aim in the long term is for sustainability. A small farm has been established close to the compound at Hope House on previously barren rocky ground.  We are very grateful to Love a Child organisation who held an agricultural training course and sponsored Yvrose, Pierre Richard and Ludmie (Hope House Haiti) to attend. They learnt agricultural techniques to help them grow their own food and provided skills to transfer the information to the schools, the community, and the mountains community beyond.    The training covered all aspects of farming and horticulture, land management, animal welfare and breeding, insecticides, economics and business. As a result, skills have been learnt that will enable the farm to become a reality and to make much better use of the land around the house. The knowledge gained on the course has transformed the work being done
Maintaining a supply of water to the farm is key to its success, and in 2018 donations allowed a well to be dug and pump installed to provide a source of water.   Then to overcome the lack of a stable power supply, further donations in 2020 enabled solar panels to be installed on the church roof, and a bank of batteries to be installed in the spring of 2021. 
​Aquaponics has been trialled on a small scale close to the house; a food production system that combines fish farming with crop production in a symbiotic environment.  This will hopefully be rolled out across the farm to enhance food production, once there is confidence in a sustainable water and electricity supply.


​Crops

​The land is being prepared properly with compost, grit and chicken manure being mixed in, and a site for the beds has been chosen carefully to take advantage of shade available.   A bed has also been created on the school site next to the new classrooms which will be used to teach the children how to grow vegetables. 
To date, papaya, figs, mangoes, sugar cane, corn, chillies, and tomatoes have been grown to help provide food.   101 lime trees and 30 cherry trees were planted in spring of 2021, and a further 100 lime trees are planned to be planted with the aim of selling limes in 3-4 years time to generate funds. 

Animals

An area of the farm has been set aside for live-stock, and Pierre Richard has trained as a chicken farmer.   To date he has reared up to 1000 chickens at a time to provide eggs and to sell chickens to market.   Their chickens have earned a good reputation at Market due to being corn fed, the feed being mixed by the older boys on the farm.  Blue Ridge Community College in USA visited in February 2017 and taught 10 women the principles of good business management for selling eggs. Pierre Richard also trains other farmers on good chicken management.   A new hen house has recently been built that can house up to 5000 chickens, but maintaining stock on the chicken farm has at times not been possible due to civil unrest in Haiti impacting travel.   In addition other animals have been successfully trialled on the farm,  and most recently 5 bee hives have been installed, which will produce 2 different types of honey.    As water supply and boundary security is improved, it is hoped to move into full production, and extend the range of animals on the farm to include:
  • A small rabbit farm, which has been built but has still to be populated, as a source of meat.
  • Cows, to provide milk for our children.
  • Goats, that are bred to supply to other communities for income.
  • Pigs, again for meat, and to be sold to other communities for income.