Founded by Jules Dervaes (Dur-VAYS) in 2001, Path to Freedom is a grassroots, family operated, viable urban homesteading project established to promote a simpler and more fulfilling lifestyle and reduce one family’s “footprint” on the earth’s dwindling resources.

Since the mid 1980s, all five members of the Dervaes family have steadily worked at transforming their ordinary city lot in Pasadena, California, into an organic permaculture garden supplying them with food all year round. They also run a successful business, Dervaes Gardens, providing salad greens to local restaurants. This helps them fund their purchases of solar panels, energy efficient appliances, and biodiesel processor to further decrease their homestead’s reliance on the earth’s non-renewable resources.

LOCATION
Pasadena, CA
(Northwest Pasadena, one mile from downtown Pasadena)

PROPERTY SIZE
1/5 acre (66′ x 132′ / 8,712 sq.ft.)

GARDEN SIZE
~ 1/10 acre (3,900 sq.ft. / ~ 66′ x 66′)

GARDEN DIVERSITY
Over 350 different vegetables, herbs, fruits, berries

FOOD PRODUCED
6,000 lbs annually
challenging for 10,000 lbs in 2008 (read more)

URBAN HOMESTEAD SUPPORTS
4 full-time adults, volunteers, and many clients

ENERGY USAGE
6.5 kwh day (and going down!)

SOLAR POWER PRODUCED
8000 kwh ( as of 5/31/08)

GALLONS OF BIODIESEL MADE (since 2003)
1,000 gallons (as of 2/12/08)

“EARTH IMPACT FOOTPRINT”
5.2 acres per person

MORE DERVAES URBAN SUSTAINABLE HOMESTEADING ON SUSTY »

You can follow their step-by-step eco-adventure on their urban homestead journal »

ONLINE» PathToFreedom.com

Urban Homesteading Family: Susty Farming, Energy & Business on One-Fifth Acre

ONLINE» PeddlersWagon.com

Susty Basics » Zero Waste

SustyHack >> ONLINE» Carbonfund.org

.: PathToFreedom.com :.