Small farm operation

[teethdoc]

Ive asked this before, but thought I would send it around again.

I have 30ac that I do not live on, but live very close to. We will eventually build out there. About 20ac of it is what I would consider useable. I have a nice tractor and several implements and can purchase others as needed. For the time being, I have more money than time. I'm looking at ways to use the land to make enough money to pay someone to take care of it. I have about 8ac cleared and the rest is grown over in privet. I'm slowly clearing it a little at a time (I have a skid steer and a brush monster.). I'm not opposed to putting some Capitol costs into it in the way of fences etc.

What can I grow or raise to generate enough money to pay somebody to help me out?

[SilverFlame819]

Have you considered letting them use a piece of your property in exchange for helping you with your part, so you don't *have* to pay them?

[rambler]

Cash rent or crop share it for hay or corn growing.

Let them do the work, you get 30-50% of the raw income, they get the crop.

Paul

[motdaugrnds]

Have you done your research as to what your area is lacking? If you speak with the local merchants, farmers' markets, even the agricultural department, you may discover needs your acreage could fill. That will let you know what market to serve and give you an approximate monetary value.

[FarmboyBill]

Ram, Hes gonna have to get rid of the PH before he has a crop. I dont know IF, the longer you take in removing it yourself, as you say you have more money than time would be = to your paying to have it cleared and getting a crop onto it to make some money.
I would say, AFTER you get it cleared youll have to decide how much time and money you want to put in it. Alfalfa is always worth a preium price, and takes no more time than any other hay. Corn takes way more time, and likely, you wont make any more money. It also takes more and expensive equipment. Compare a mower, rake, bailer, rack wagon/trailer, hay elevator barn for hay storage in price to, plow, disc, planter,sprayer, cultivator, combine, grain wagon, grain elevator, grain bins

[coolrunnin]

Anything you choose to do now, you need to keep an eye toward what you ultimately want to do on the land.

If I didn't live on the land, I would look hard at the cash rent or crop share option especially if it's going to be a few years before you plan to build on it, giving the farmer time to recoup his investment clearing the land and building the soil.

[dkhern]

i would doubt there is enough land to rent as crop land. border line on hay production. might get enough hay to pay taxes. id look toward clear hedge and using chemicals on suckers then rent/leasing for horse pasture. let the renter fence. doubt you can make enough to pay someone to help but with right approach you and make improvements toward what you want to do down the road and get someone to maintain until you are ready without incuring additional expenses

[FarmboyBill]

The only way your gonna get a renter to fence a property, is to get them drunk first.

[coolrunnin]

Originally Posted by FarmboyBill

The only way your gonna get a renter to fence a property, is to get them drunk first.

I have had to fence rental property before (course it was electric and I took it with me when I left.)

[RonM]

Rent it to a local farmer or barter him clearing the rest of it for free rent...

[FarmboyBill]

hed likely want 5 yrs of working it after clearing it. 30 acres is alot of ground to clear and would take alot of gas

[wwubben]

I would talk with a neighbor farmer and see what kind of deal you could make with him on a cash or share rent.Pick a neighbor you know is a straight shooter.

[geo in mi]

How about pulpwood? Might be possible if you are close to other plantations for the right equipment, a buyer/agent, etc....

geo

[fantasymaker]

Do you want someone on it full time? You are looking at some very high value crops them with huge labor requirements.
Carrots? Ginseng? and Berries come to mind.

[dcross]

Stop burning fuel to clear it, fence it and use sheep and/or goats. Or find someone to fence it for their livestock, offer a lease for enough time to make it worth the labor.

Beekeepers might like all that privet, unless it's everywhere in your area. A migratory operation would probably like the fact that someone is nearby to keep an eye on it while they're gone.

[highlands]

Originally Posted by teethdoc

What can I grow or raise to generate enough money to pay somebody to help me out?

That's really difficult. A lot of the profits is in the labor when farming. If you hire other people to do the work you are paying them the profits and you'll be unlikely to see much if any return. If you do the work then that money stays in your pocket. The deeper you go into the value added processing of the product the more money you'll see.

We do all the labor on our farm including all the construction. We get 99% of our income from our farm - farming is what we do.

If I were to higher people to take care of our livestock, do the construction, do the maintenance, build and maintain fences, etc then I would see no profit at all.

We still pay about 64% of our gross income per pig to the butcher for processing. That means that if we did the processing ourselves on the same number of animals we would see a doubling of our income. We're moving towards that by building our own on-farm slaughterhouse and butcher shop.

I know of all too many people who hire on and do that for a few years before going broke. The money is in the doing. It's not a Farmville or otherwise remote control game. The margin's aren't large enough, especially not on the small scale where you are.

Cheers,

-Walter Jeffries
Sugar Mountain Farm
Pastured Pigs, Sheep & Kids
in the mountains of Vermont
http://SugarMtnFarm.com/

[agmantoo]

You do not have enough land to generate the income required. There are specialty crops such as grapes. strawberries and organic vegetables that would create income but finding the right person to do this work would be difficult. Lease income is too low in your area to generate any significant money. Are there any major features on the property such as a stream or major view that would create an attraction for a place to hold seminars or weddings? If it were me I would take some of that surplus money and buy more acreage. I would qualify the property for deferred property tax and plant trees on the marginal land and then find a bee keeper to set up an apiculture facility on the better part of the farm. Over time the return on the biomass from the timber will give a good return. The land should keep pace with inflation and should even appreciate over time. The return on the tree investment should range from 11 to 13% per year and can be managed passively by yourself. Being diversified usually has benefits!
PS.....if you get the total acreage count up you can lease the farm for hunting. The hunt lease payment will more than pay all the tax and the hunters usually are willing to do a lot of maintenance such as bush hogging and internal road upkeep. They will also police the property. It amazes me what improvements the hunters will do while thinking they are improving "their" hunting property. I have a waiting list of wannabe hunters.