I want to start a farm. What do I need?

I want to leave the city life and start a farm. I'm thinking of growing wheat. What will I need to do and have? I have no experience or knowledge of farming. But I have saved up around 2 milion dollars.

 

Since you have 0 knowledge, you would most likely lose all your money in the learning experience. Farming is very hard work. You need employees, insurance, crop insurance, etc.

I would suggest you buy into an established farm thats fallen on hard times. A partnership. There's plenty of them out there these days. You'll get a good education and a taste of honest hard work.

If you decide this is not your cup of tea after all, you can move on to something else later.



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2 million?? what you need is to hire on a couple experienced folks to guide you through the process..

um,,, we (dilligaf and i) are a couple experienced folks,,what kinda salary are we talkin about?

 

They've set aside a quarter million acres in the San Joaquin valley on the west side.Contaminated with selenium.Some smart guy will figure out what will grow in selenium -rich soil or figure out the right amendment(if one exists)and will have some major acreage to prove it.Cheap.--Idea??

 

I suggest either apprentice on a farm for at least a season to get an idea of what your future will be like or join a rural intentional community aka commune. First figure where you want to live and what kind of farming you want to do. Nearly all the communities grow vegetables but you can find an apprenticeship in any type of farm you desire. I apprenticed for 3 months and learned a lot about farm life. I didn't find the work to be so hard but the days were long and we worked to some capacity everyday. Either of these options will get you out of the city. Check out ic.org for a list of communities and what they're doing. WOOF (workers on organic farms) is an organization that can help you find an apprenticeship and there are others too.

 

People I know what you might think, that I'm not up for it.

I have learned a lot of life. The most important is that you can do anything just if you put your mind up to it. I'm not being corny, this is real.

 

You may have learned alot in life, but up to this point, you still don't know how to be a farmer.

Danger of failure is pretty high for a newbie. This too, is real.

The weather can wipe out a whole year's work in a single day. You've got to think about stuff like this. It isn't possible to control it all. Farming is a risky business.

Maybe something like small scale organic produce or herbs might be a good way to get your hands dirty without risking too much of your nest egg?



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Maybe farming the government like the farmers do would pay better.Crop failure--get taxpayers money to continue.I would suggest you research specialty crops and start small and see how it goes.

 

first and foremost you would have to do alot of research and learning before ever stepping outside your door. Farming is wide and varied there are a zillion options.You would have to figure out where wheat (why wheat???) grows best, what sorta growing condition, what sort of weather , how its marketed , build a strategy for yourself, make a business plan,,,
then you would have to search for land in an area you want and so on n so fourth ,,, then buy the land and all the epqipment you will need in order to grow your wheat.. this will still not be near enough learning... then you are broke ..... what a waste of time and money...

i would recommend starting small.. ,, invest some $$ into a homestead or a small farm while learning and researching and seeing what options there are available... Then i would suggest finding to come in and have you apprentice under there wing in whatever it is you decide to do.. like a backwards internship of sorts... growing wheat is a kewl idea however it truly isnt something ya just go n do out of the blue with no background, no education no anything.... Have them tutor you in a sense... if you want to grow a small crop of wheat , grow it,,, try things n see what is right for you n what isnt,,, your ideas are likely to change while you learn and increase your knowledge, you may decide to homestead and attempt self supporting , you might like growing herbs, ,, you may like growing wheat you may find it all horrific and horrible and decide to sell your land... atleast you are not going head over heels n then losing it all , the land is an investment itself and quite frankly in big boy farm world 2 million is jack shit... i could take you on a shopping spree and in a mere couple hours have your money completely gone.... i have had the joys of seeing a head strong person buying into a farm business with not much expereince albeit it was a hella lot more than you have and in a years time seen it completely gone and to the auction block... farm life is not for everybody,,, all too often people speak of wanting to get out of the city n have a farm... Its a great notion, but it is a marriage of sorts... requires commitment , dedication and a whole lotta work ... your life revolves around the farm,, the farm has to become the most important thing in your life... and it is a 365 day a year job... this is not to deter you in anyway,,, its a great way of life,,, is all i have done pretty much since childhood but its also not something one wants to go n piss away 2 million bux for to not like it ..

 

Why wheat?

 

Alright amsterdam--if you're for real,I have a friend that has 300 acres with a good well in prime wheat growing country and he told me this morning he would like to sell.He's my age and doesn't farm anymore.The land has been rented for the past ten years,but he would sell.I've known him since we were 6 years old and he is an honest and nice guy and if nothing came of it,you could still get some ideas of what you're looking at to get something going.PM me if you want to talk to him and I'll put you in touch.-------scratcho(Joel)

 

Why isn't he growing wheat?

 

what dilligaf said about 2 million being nothing when it comes to a wheat farm is true. when you look at the cost of a couple 100 plus horsepower tractors ,a combine,trailers etc what you would have to have to get started, that shopping bill alone gos instantly to well over a half a million and that is for fairly new but still used equipment.

now im sure its possible to purchase a farm all equipment included,but as i said that equipment is extremely expensive and that will drive the cost of the farm way up. and there is upkeep and maintenance costs to think of.

its not something to enter into lightly. maintenance and fuel costs your first year will likely be upwards of 50 thousand. i just dont see where you will make it through without being disenfranchised..

 

Equipment can be rented.

 

Gardner--I don't know what is being grown on it now.He has farmed all his life and doesn't want to farm any more.He worked for a few years for an equipment rental place after he quit farming--tractors and such.There are custom harvesters for wheat,cotton or any other crop you need harvesting.

 

sure scratcho,, it can be leased, for a few thousand a month,.
when dilligaf was managing the dairy farm they leased a large john deere,,like a 2040 or 2060,,what he would need for a large farm,,it was 6500 a month, and that was 8 years ago...

you can also hire someone to do everything for you with there equipment,, however both still take a very large amount of funds, and why on earth would you buy a farm if you were going to do nothing but pay others to work it?

 

and as far as paying the custom combine companys to do it for you,your gonna need knowledge of what they are doin or they will take you to the cleaners...

as with any business someone is going to have to run the show and they better know what they are doing.

 

Start a vineyard. Pay professionals to do all the work. Sell the all booz that you can’t drink in the black market.

 

so lets look at this logically, so Amsterdam buys a 300 acre wheat farm lock stock and barrel all equipment included and hits it whole hog.

he is going to have to hire at least 2 workers,1 will have to have management experience. he will have to provide housing and a salary for both. the general laborer will be making around 8 bucks a hour,at a minimum of 60,but more likely 80 hours a week thats 700 bucks or so a week plus housing for your mexican,then for your head guy(manager) he will take a salary of 80 to 100 grand plus his housing.

then maintenance and fuel costs,seed etc. will run lets say 50 grand your first crop.even if you lease you are responsible for your own maintenance. ya know how much a 5 gallon bucket of hydraulic oil costs? how bout oil? then theres them tires at 500 bucks a pop for smaller tractors,. an yes shit happens,on 300 acres expect to be goin thru a couple a year..

oh the 50 grand number is provided he or his employees have the knowledge and tools to do all this maintenance on his equipment,if not you can jack that figure up by 20 grand easy.

thats about 200 grand of liquidity he will need his first year just to see a harvest on a small wheat farm.. this is provided he doesnt hire someone to do it all,,but thats not farming,thats leasing your land...

and i dont care what anyone says,he will need a experienced farm manager and at least 1 farm hand even for such a tiny wheat farm as 300 acres...

he could do away with the manager if he knew what he was doing,but without one he may as well just burn his money.

 

The future for the small farmer in major crops like corn and wheat is shrinking. The costs are too much for 1 farmer anymore. Let the corporate farms do the major crops.

Small farmers can make a good living by growing specialty crops that the big timers just don't want to fool with.

Years ago, I considered buying an old hot springs resort in eastern Oregon. I figured I could use the hot water to keep greenhouses warm enough to grow tomatoes in. I would have sold exclusively to the restaurant market.

You got to think like that. Be creative. Innovative. Grow crops for export. The Japanese pay very well for some items.


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