February Homestead Visit - It's the hottest month of the year in the Klein Karoo!

Visiting the homestead in the hottest month of the year was incredibly important to me! Why, you might ask...?
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One of the most important things to do when you get new land is to observe, observe and observe. Before you do anything you need to understand how the land reacts to the seasons and what each season brings. This includes a visit during the hottest month of the year to experience the temperatures and see how the environment handles the heat! For us here in South Africa the hottest month of the year is February where the temperatures are consistently above 40 degrees Celcius, or 115+ degrees Fahrenheit. Experiencing this really helps to plan ahead and ensure you set your homestead up for success from the very beginning.
What are some of the things I learnt from my February visit to my Klein Karoo Homestead?
HEAT: First and foremost is the heat and what this heat brings with it. It is VERY hot here in summer, but the benefit is that it is a dry heat, which means shade is very effective. This heat means careful planning is needed for the layout of the homestead, animals, water, vegetables and fruit tree orchards. HEAT:
SHADE: To be able to protect ourselves from the heat we need shade! At the moment there is only one tree on the land, which means there is not much shelter from the harsh African sun. We also need to create shade solutions that will allow us to grow lots of vegetables without getting burn or dehydrated. This will double up as winter protection from the cold, frost and snow.
WATER: When there is heat there is a crucial need for water! Luckily our homestead has ample water that is supplied year-round in the 12 waterfalls in the mountains right above our property, BUT we need to find ways to get the water from the waterfalls to our property. This is going to be our No.1 priority!
NEIGHBOURS: Meeting your neighbours is so important when you are living remotely! We have a dream of creating a close-knit homesteading community around us where we all share the same sentiments and ambitions. We aim to use this sense of community to build and maintain infrastructure, build wildfire plans, create roads, share water, barter and so much more. Community is going to become everything in the years to come on this homestead.
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