Agriculture

When he took over the property, the Havnen farm consisted of only a barn, a summer cow barn, and a bathhouse. Liljedahl had to build a farmhouse, cow barn, and a stall. He cultivated more land in Havnen and planted a large number of fruit trees (about 250) of which, about half were pear and the rest were apple and cherry. These trees became an important source of income for him in Havnen.

In addition to Røytehola which had been cleared and planted with fruit trees, he also had another farm in Østrem which he sold, and an additional farm farther out in Sogn. In Sogn he planted many plants and also tended the parish garden in Eivindvik.

In 1904 after his postmaster days were over, he went back to Kyrkjebø to live at the Røytehola property, and immediately purchased more land which he cultivated. After his employment as postmaster in Ålesund, he purchased the Vågenes farm in Borgund, but quickly sold it to his brother-in-law Magnus Ramslie, who was from Vangsnes. He then purchased the Spjelkavik farm, which was a large farm with several cottages, many forests, and mountain bodies of water. It ended up being too large and expensive to operate, so he sold it after a few years, and moved from Ålesund to Bergen.

In addition to farming, he was interested in freshwater fishing and hunting. At that time there were no fish in the large lake of Uldalsvatn in Kyrkjebø. His brother-in-law, merchant Andreas Ramslie, introduced fish there. This later became a source of income for Liljedahl. He started fisheries in many lakes in Sogn and in Uldalsvatn. He also founded the Spjelkavik yarn and fishnet factory, which grew to be a large business that contributed to the construction of many buildings and homes in the area.

Education and church

In 1868, the Kyrkjebø district opened its first school, which still stands. At the dedication of the school, some songs were sung that Liljedahl had written. He wrote many songs, one of which is printed in Nordahl Rolfsen's school books. He also wrote a newspaper column in the local press about people. In Kyrkjebø he helped many people to write legal papers and took care of their legal matters while he worked for the justice of the peace. A colleague who attended school with Liljedahl in 1876 wrote, "He was a pleasant man, full of life and desire. I was amazed at how the children clung to him with such high affection and respect." Those who had him as a teacher say that he was unusually serious in school. He carried out his parish clerk duties in an honourable way which left a valuable impression. Many who remember his conversations with the youth on the church floor can still repeat portions of them.

When the weather was bad and the pastor could not come from Lavik, Liljedahl spoke from his front porch to the congregation.^[4]

He was a Commander of the Order of St. Olav, a Grand Cross of Legion of Honour, and a Knight of the Swedish Order of the Polar Star.^[1]