Posted by T-Rev on August 09, 2012 at 05:16:15 from (63.134.169.181):
In Reply to: start in farming posted by nick girgen on August 08, 2012 at 23:56:02:
1. If you"re working for a farmer part-time now then thats good. If not then search the county now trying to find an older guy that needs some help. Trust me they"re out there. I know of a lot of older 200 acre guys around here that you don"t realize they need help until they "retire" from farming part-time because their boys/son-in-laws/nephews/grandsons have moved away and can"t help. But you"ll need someone to help you get started making a budget, making a crop/spray/fertilizer plan, and someone you can rely on for advice. I put myself into farming row crop part-time, but I had the luxury of a close family friend who farms full-time and my family has 55 acres that was being rented out. It could be done without that, but you"ll need someone to turn to for advice and help.
2. Don"t even think about buying ground starting out. If you"re a doctor or lawyer then you might be able to. Or you could work until you"re 45 and maybe buy an 80 acre farm for $500,000 and make mortgage payments until you"re 75. The guys who own ground are the only ones who can buy more ground, and its going for $6000+ per acre in the Midwest. So stay close with neighbors, teachers, extended family, fellow church members or others you know that have ground. It will be hard to find 80 acres to rent down the road, but you can do it. You just have to find one person to believe in you and give you a shot. Thats another place that helping an older guy can help out 5 or 6 years down the road. A lot of older small farmers don"t want to rent out to some big 2000+ acre young hot-shot. If you can get started and develop a niche as the local "small" farmer who does it because he loves it and who farms with 4 row equipment the way the older guys did it then you could make some friends and pick up some gound.
3. Buy your equipment with cash, older 4 row sized stuff that isn"t too complicated. NO COMBINE UNTIL YOU GET EXPERIENCED! Hire that and your spraying out at the beginning. Haul your own grain with gravity wagons if you want to participate in the first few harvests. Slowly wade into the pool and you"ll do fine!
4. Also remember cows. If you are set on grain then by all means go for it. If you are interested in cattle/baling then you can get into that a whole lot cheaper than corn.
5. The better education and higher paying job you have then the easier it will be to get in. I"m an engineer and that helped me get an operating line of credit and convince some guys I could do it. Also the more money you make the more you can put towards older equipment to start with. Getting into farming for your self is a long term goal and requires patience and a good off farm job.
6. Something to think about later on is marrying the right girl. She has to want farming and be happy with the simple things in life. If shes even remotely high maintenance then you"re done. If she believes in you, will help, and will trust that you know what you"re doing financially then you"re set.
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Today's Featured Article - Listening to Your Tractor - by Curtis Von Fange. Years ago there was a TV show about a talking car. Unless you are from another planet, physically or otherwise, I don’t think our internal combustion buddies will talk and tell us their problems. But, on the other hand, there is a secret language that our mechanical companions readily do speak. It is an interesting form of communication that involves all the senses of the listener. In this series we are going to investigate and learn the basic rudimentary skills of understanding this lingo.
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