Thinking about getting into farming.?

Question

I'm sick of the city, I'm sick of working for other people. I feel there is a big future in food. So, I've been looking at (cheap)land to buy (between 10 and 20 acres either in ND, WI, MN, MI, IN, or MO) I want to "sit" on that for a couple of years. Then I want to live on that farm after I pay off the land. I haven't decided what I would like to farm yet. I know I want a couple of horses.

So, where would I 1)get an abridged education about all this and 2) where do I start - location-land-or deciding what to farm?

Answer 1

With only 15 or 20 acres minus 2 or 3 acres pr horse for

pasture, there's not a lot you can do to make money. You

might find a market for herbs and spices. Some people do

well raising rabbits for food as well as pets. Apple trees

also might make you a few  bucks. You'll have to keep the

rabbits away from them. A meat type pigeon can also make

you a few bucks. Your cheapest land with the longest

growing season would be found in MO or IN. Again fresh

herbs is the way to go.  Good luck.

Answer 2

The best thing to do, IMHO, go talk to people who live on farms...get to know them.  Go visit an Agricultural Extension Office...they have LOADS of info..visit "feed" stores in rural areas and talk to the "locals"...they can tell you how to get started, what grows well for their particular region...

Farming is tough...long hours...at the mercy of "mother nature"...expensive...but the toughest job you'll ever enjoy!

If you've never spent any time on a farm...I would suggest you do (on a working farm) for a first-hand lesson.  You may not be cut out for it.

Answer 3

Morrisville College near Syracuse in NY has farming (agriculture). It also has equine science. It also depends on what type of farming you want to do? Organic, native, traditional, etc. You could try to work/volunteer on a farm and read some books on farming.

Answer 4

You certainly have a worthy goal.  Cheap land in small acreage is hard to come by, but it's not impossible.  If you are not in a hurry look long and hard and you will find a place.  I hope that you'll be fixed with some sort of income outside the small farm.  If not you will have a tough time making it.  Keeping a couple of horses is going to be pretty expensive plus require the use of part of your land.  It may prove to be a luxury that you can't afford if all of your income is from your land. You are going to have to specialize in something that will bring in a big income.  A few things that I can think of right off are strawberries, mushrooms, and Christmas trees.  Christmas trees might work out for you since you can plant them and let them be growing while you are "sitting' on your land.  As for the abridged education the best place is to contact the State Extension Service.  They work with your Land Grant University and can help you out a lot.  Try to find someone who is already doing about what you plan on doing and spend as much time with them as you can.  They will gladly help you out while you help them with your labor.  Best of luck to you, I hope you make it.

Answer 5

are u sure u want to do that.. its not the easiest lifestyle.  Why not just start your own business and move to a less populated area .. like a suburb or something... I run a landscape business and all the labor and getting dirty all the time gets old.  I moved more into doing the office work now.. and its better then working in the hot sun and doing labor work..

Answer 6

all I can say is good luck and get your checkbook ready, learn how to get the best loans and get ready for long hours and learn how to do most everything yourself...grease will be your friend.   look for all the free help and advise you can get, utilize your local extension agent and land grant university programs     frustration will be first, with satisfaction hopefully coming after.  you will have to supplement your income for the first years, so get a second job.  Please think about it.  Why dont you just move to a rural area and keep your current job, and have a big garden.  Farming is not for 95% of people.  Remember what you want is not neccessarily what you need.  To be truthful, I would not recomend it if you have no background or education in agriculture. I live in Illinois and the area you want to buy land in is expensive and not too available.  20 acres will cost you around $90000   Sorry,but that's the truth of it.  you should think about working in the agricultural field, the people you will be dealing with are good people.    Good luck

Answer 7

I'm afraid that the old adage. " the farm land's price value shouldn't be more than 4 years of profit" doesn't hold anymore. I don't if there really is a such thing as cheap land anymore. The quickest way to quickly be educated in agriculture is to attend a community college and take a few courses in what you might be interested in. The next best choice is to see the local County Agriculture Extension Agent. They have lot's of valuable information. The soil and weather will be your major factors as to what you can raise, and an income to support you untill you can become independent. For ideas on what other small farmers are doing in cases like yours would be to check out old "Organic Gardening" magazines and other agriculture and gardening magazines.

Answer 8

as a full time thing  you might need more then 20 ac,  reality companys  have web pages , some states you need to checkask about miniral right and water rights

Answer 9

It seems you are in the United States, 20 acres is too small but if you do it correctly you can earn your living. Go to California and grow almonds, organically, horse manure from 2 animals is good enough for 20 acres (never use it directly), no need to buy any fertilizer from outside. Process Almonds yourself, salted packed in your brand name will earn enough money for you to maintain your family and animals and birds (some chicken, ducks, geese etc to have some extra income and home consumption.). Contact [e-mail] for your irrigation needs and advice on organic ways.

Answer 10

Well I'm from MN and we have beautiful farmland and it's far enough away from the city and nieghbors. You'd love it here.

Answer 11

I think you should just go and get a job working on a farm.  You will learn so much more so much quicker than any other way.

Answer 12

well,thats a nice business.because its my father's business, too.first, u have to plan first before anything.just make a feasibility study about your plan in farming.then, after that you have to choose where you can buy a land for that.remember you have to choose a good soil in order to be productive.then compute all the needs for the budget.be aware in the budget because its not just like a simply business.

Answer 13

10 to 20 acres would probably not even support two horses much less you. On 10 to 20 acres it would have to be very rich soil with abundant water. Your crop would need to be some specialized, labor intensive endeavor. Maybe a plant nursery, a Christmas tree farm, flowers, or berries of some type. Maybe a dairy specializing in goats milk and make cheese on site for sale to city folks. Or a vineyard/winery. I have heard of a small plot farmer in New Mexico who grows herbs, and vegetables that are marketed straight to high end chefs and resturants.

I am not trying to burst your bubble but to open your eyes to the realities of farmng. In Texas where I live you would be hard pressed to make a living on 2000 acres.

A more plausible approach might be to move to rural America and figure on telecommuting, commuting to work in a smaller city nearby or some such. Develope your agricultural ideas on a part time basis until you hit upon a viable agricultural idea.

Horse are just pets. Not money animals for most. They are fine but think of them in that way and know that you either feed them every bite or provide forge equivalent to that needed for two cows.  Here taht can be 30 acres/ plenty of water and grass then perhaps 7 acres.

Contract various county extension agents for help and information.

Answer 14

you have a great dream and i do not want to burst your bubble but for some one like you -- look into trying to get some rough land that has the timber allready remove -- any good farm land in the small  acres you looking for is going to be very expense  -- not if you can find some rough brush with a water source you might want to think about going into the meat goat business -- they required very little care and can produce more meat in the shortest period of time -- require the worst kind of pasture == you will not need nothing more than a small tractor with bush hog  -- the USDA can furnish a  lot of free info --- i live in illinois among a group of friends who raise beef cows and i have a flock of goats and per pound my profit is higher utilizing pasture and hay that there cows would die on!!!

Answer 15

http://www.capitalpress.com/

Check out the classifieds here to find a job out west.  There are about as many ways to farm and ranch as there are answers on Yahoo! Answers.  

I always learned how to start or do something new by working with someone who is successful.  You will need to look at getting at least 50 to 100 acres of land to actually make a living on the land.  Anything to do with farming is a lot of work...daylight...past dark and sometimes all night.  If you get 10 or 20 acres your neighbors will complain bitterely about dust and or the smell of what you are doing. Greenhouses and nurseries that grow plants and trees for markets are big and do make money.  

You can read and take all the classes you want and then when you get out into the real world you realize that most of the government or scholastic rhetoric doesn't actually work.  The models look real good on paper....but....mother nature and your hard work is what is going to make or break you.

Keep in mind that the models are based on "money is not an issue" and "we are bigger than mother nature because we put the model on paper" and therefore it should work.  

Most of the Government agencies I have had to deal with are college educated and government educated idiots who couldn't tell their a$$e$ from a hole in the ground.  

I was out riding one of my horses in the desert last week and came across such a government biologist looking for Sage Grouse....and she was about to determine that the Sage Grouse must be an endangered species because she couldn't find any.....well I took her to where the Sage Grouse are and she was amazed that there were so many of them....there were 100's...where did they all come from....I told her that the Sage Grouse have "areas" of preference to reside in.  Where she had been looking was in the wrong place for their living preference and if she would have just ask a local she would have found out where and how things work around here are a lot different than what her training had told her.

I am not saying that education isn't needed because it is.  But apprenticeships type training is what will teach you what you need to know about how to be successful at whatever it is that you want to do in life.

Good luck...I wouldn't trade living in the country for all the love or money in the world.  I pity the city people who have never seen litters of piglets running to get their milk that I have just poured into pans for them to drink.  Animals, farming, and the ranching life will teach you how to life should be lived.

I was looking for something on the internet and came across this and thought that this article would be of interest to everyone owning farms, wanting to farm, or had 30 to 40 acres doing nothing....

Pharmaceutical farmer goes big and it pays big dividends

http://news.guelphmercury.com/Opinions/a...

I think I will look into this for this area....as there are quite a few 40 acre wanna be farms (including mine) amongst the 200 plus acre farms

Answer 16

Farming is very expensive. You have to buy seeds, fertilizer, irrigation systems. You also need a tractor and several different kinds of attachments such as discs, plows, etc. Tractors use up a lot of gas because you have to cultivate every few days. With just 20 acres of land you may not make any money at all when the growing season is over, especially if it was a bad season. Even if you were to just be a subsistence farmer you would probably spend more money farming than you would spend on groceries.

Answer 17

I don't even know where to start.

Cheap land is a thing long past.  If you find a cheap place, ask yourself why is it so cheap?  Does it flood in the spring?  Sewage treatment northwest of it?  Country bar a half mile away?  Railroad tracks?

Your question makes me roll my eyes.  If you can figgure out how to make a decent living out of 10 to 20 acres then please forward it to me because my horses have a pasture about the size of your "farm"  and I'm sure you would be the first to complain about hunters in the fall driving/walking around or how about being snowed in in the winter?  If that hasn't crossed your mind yet, I suggest going south somewhere.  I don't want you moving next to me and I have to dig your dumb a$$ out next winter.

Rural, you nailed it!  We had a storm go through but not as bad as yours was.  We are re-shingling the old house (oh, does the asker know about how much upkeep there is on old farmplaces) they should find data in the Fencing Pliars Almanac.

Answer 18

Unlike most answers here I will say that your goal is VERY achievable VERY admirable and I will tell you how.  With the right setup and knowledge 2-3K per acre income is very realistic.  Not initially of course but in 5 or so years it is.

First, stop thinking of buying a farm or land just yet.  Instead you need to learn what kind of land/farm you are looking for.  So the only way to do that is to learn about farming.  You have 3 basic approaches here.

  Buy a farm and learn on the job.  Not very smart, not likely to succeed.  Think about it.  Would you go start a restaurant and just learn on the job?  I didn't think so.  Farming isn't just about taking care of animals and growing stuff, its a business.  Its one of the toughest businesses to make money at because of the enormous amount of knowledge needed to address everyday problems.  

  You could also rent a house in a small rural community, find a job there and work for some elderly farmers in your spare time or as your primary job.  This would be better than the first way but it will take finding the right farmer and several years to get where you need to be.

  The best way is to apprentice at a farm.  You can find some excellent opportunities in this area.  In sustainable agriculture circles there are some very very good farmers to work for.  These types of farmers (sustainable agriculture) are true agrarians.  They will show you how to make a living off the land while improving it, they will show you how to find markets for your products, they will show you how to manage your business.  Here is a link to locate one http://www.attrainternships.ncat.org/

I would focus on the ones that deal more with "sustainable agriculture" and avoid ones hung up on the term "organic".   I say that because usually the "organic" farms its more of a anti pollution religion than a true understanding of nature.

This is a list of a few very excellent books that I recommend you read to give you an idea of exactly how encompassing the term "sustainable agriculture" really is.

You Can Farm - Joel Salatin

The Contrary Farmer - Gene Logsden

Introduction to Permaculture - Bill Mollison

Making Your Small Farm Profitable - Ron Macher

Really any book by Joel Salatin is worth the read,

Here are a few magazines

http://www.acresusa.com/magazines/magazi...

http://stockmangrassfarmer.net/

http://www.americanagriculturist.com/

http://www.motherearthnews.com/

Here are a few more websites

http://www.polyfacefarms.com/index.html  -this is Joel Salatins farm site

http://www.sustainableagriculture.net/

http://www.attra.org/

http://www.sustainabletable.org/intro/wh...  - good description of sustainable agriculture.

With the knowledge you gain by reading those books and doing an apprenticeship you will be able to confidently go out and purchase a small farm, provide all of your necessities, make a profit from your work and be able to pay double what most people pay for land to expand your farm.  I say this because I am doing it NOW.

One last thing I forgot to mention.  I would avoid any and all advice given by the USDA.  Think about it, they have been advising small farmers for decades now and look how many of them are left.  The one thing you might consider hitting them up for is a USDA beginning farmer loan.  I dunno much about it but I have a friend that used it to buy 120 acres and so far he says it was a snap with them.  http://www.fsa.usda.gov/FSA/webapp?area=...

Answer 19

I feel your pain , I've pretty much had it with all the complications of city living. I work for a Natural , organic and specialty international food distributor in New York and will tell you organic crops are what you want to grow , demand is high and not going away. Good luck in your quest :)).

Answer 20

I hear your plea but I can grant you are better off where you are at. I've farmed all my life and its no bed of roses. Long dirty hours and for what? Just enf money to get you by. Sometimes not paying the bills. No job is the ideal job but you at least know how much money you have coming in. Farming you never know. Old mother nature is always playing with you. Just like last nite crops all looked good and a fair price then we got the much need rain we had been praying for. And lo and behold it hailed the size of golf balls, lost most crops and em wondering how in the H we are going to make it. Another year down the tubes and all you can say is well guess I'll have to give it H next year if ther is one. Sure your job might stink but at least you have an income.

Answer 21

A good source of information would be the USDA-the department of Agriculture. They will be able to give you financial advice as well as the actual farming info you need. I have lived around farming all my life, and have many in the family that are farmers. They are doing well growing corn, but my nephews are making a mint growing tomatoes in hot houses, as well as growing cantalopes in the field. We live in SE United States, so I am not susre how these would grow in your area. The agriculture dept in the state you which to move can help with this type info! Good Luck!