Living off the land, thanks to diversification

Producing a variety of crops and livestock has enabled Tabby Robertshaw and her partner to realise their dream of homesteading. She spoke to Glenneis Kriel about the hard work they have put into the venture.

Tabby Robertshaw and her partner, Alex Chouler, are experienced homesteaders who have long sought complete self-sufficiency. Today, they

live and work on rented land near Stanford in the Western Cape, where they produce a variety of organic vegetables, fruit, salad greens and meat, and sell it under their Goodluck Homestead brand at local markets and restaurants and via WhatsApp groups. They also produce all the food they require for themselves, except for breakfast cereals.

The couple moved to the current farm, Vaalvlei, a year and a half ago after spending 10 years on their previous property, where they used to make enough money to live on. The move, however, has required major investments in infrastructure and soil improvement.

To boost their income, they built guest accommodation in December last year, and Robertshaw believes this will make the farm financially viable. She also presents self-sufficiency workshops such as food gardening and food processing. Her most recent workshop focused on the production of fermented butter and kimchi.

“We’re setting up the farm to have more space for workshops,” she says.

FARMING PHILOSOPHY

Vaalvlei covers 50ha, with 0,5ha under vegetables and salad greens, and 3ha under Shiraz and Sauvignon Blanc vineyards. The rest of the land is used as pasture, or is destined for that purpose.

Their wine grapes are delivered to a local winemaker who repays the value in bottles of wine. “The wine is great, but we have to rethink the agreement, because we’re still in the process of applying for a liquor licence and can’t sell the wine just yet,” says Robertshaw.

She adds that the vineyard is the most expensive of their enterprises to maintain, with costs driven up by the need for special farming equipment such as a tractor and spray tank.