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The Magic of Farm Life (and Growing Fruit)
SkyWatcher
Member Posts: 1,571 ✭✭✭✭✭
Growing up on a small farm, I had a chance to experience a lot of different types of agriculture. We raised commercial broiler-breeders for large-scale egg production, bottle calves, hogs, had some hay/grain, grew sweet corn, strawberries, blackberries, gooseberries, raspberries, pumpkins, and mums. A "signature" of the farms in that area is the diversity of their production - which they have to do to survive.
The reason I bring it up, is because I've been thinking a lot lately about it. I know the reality of farm life - it's a lot of dirty, hard, hard, hard, hard, work for sometimes little return. I don't idealize farm-life. Consequently, I have never had any desire to raise ANY type of livestock. In fact, when I left home for the military after high-school, I said I'd never farm.
HOWEVER, the best memories I have of growing-up are of my dad and me working in the fruit - picking berries, weeding, planting, spraying, etc. Growing fruit is a lot of hard sweaty work, but I keep thinking about how much I loved it. I do remember too the long nights wondering if my dad was going to be able to save the blooms from an early spring freeze - and I remember waiting to see if a thundrestorm was going to drop hail and waste a crop. But there is something primal and immensely satisfying about pouring all of your energy into a crop, and seeing it all the way from running the dead furrough to harvesting (and enjoying) that crop. For some reason, growing fruit (as opposed to any other truck crop production) embodies the best of these things to me.
Lately, I find myself thinking about trying to make a go of it with the fruit production thing. I've been thinking long and hard about a way to work in/around my home and still support my family. We have some farmland we inherited from my grandpa - but that would mean quite a move and lifestyle change for us. My wife and I talked in the past about the possibility of starting an apple orchard - but came to the conclusion that we weren't ready to chance supporting a family on the instability of a farm income.
I've been trying to think of a way to have another off-farm income that would keep us going in the lean times - but don't know what so far. Bottom line is - I really don't have that many concrete marketable skills. I know small farming to a point (well enough to make a good start), I can write (when I take the time to do it - my degree was a BA in English / Creative Writing), I work in the mortgage industry so I can process a loan with the best of the cubicle-dwellers - but being only a couple of years out of college (took me 7 years to complete), I'm limited in job experience.
Bottom line is, we are at a place that we could do this. We could move to the farm (or sell it and buy a different one), borrow to build a house (if it didn't already have one), and borrow to put in a crop. I'd have to work at something else at least until the fruit started into full production - 2to5 years depending on the type of fruit, 3to5 with apples. But we could do it. But I have a wife, and a daugher, and another little one on the way - so it's difficult to know how to proceed and still do right by them.
I guess I really just wanted to ramble - thanks for "listening". If any of you have had similar thoughts or have any ideas - I'd welcome any input.
To whom much is given, much is expected.
The reason I bring it up, is because I've been thinking a lot lately about it. I know the reality of farm life - it's a lot of dirty, hard, hard, hard, hard, work for sometimes little return. I don't idealize farm-life. Consequently, I have never had any desire to raise ANY type of livestock. In fact, when I left home for the military after high-school, I said I'd never farm.
HOWEVER, the best memories I have of growing-up are of my dad and me working in the fruit - picking berries, weeding, planting, spraying, etc. Growing fruit is a lot of hard sweaty work, but I keep thinking about how much I loved it. I do remember too the long nights wondering if my dad was going to be able to save the blooms from an early spring freeze - and I remember waiting to see if a thundrestorm was going to drop hail and waste a crop. But there is something primal and immensely satisfying about pouring all of your energy into a crop, and seeing it all the way from running the dead furrough to harvesting (and enjoying) that crop. For some reason, growing fruit (as opposed to any other truck crop production) embodies the best of these things to me.
Lately, I find myself thinking about trying to make a go of it with the fruit production thing. I've been thinking long and hard about a way to work in/around my home and still support my family. We have some farmland we inherited from my grandpa - but that would mean quite a move and lifestyle change for us. My wife and I talked in the past about the possibility of starting an apple orchard - but came to the conclusion that we weren't ready to chance supporting a family on the instability of a farm income.
I've been trying to think of a way to have another off-farm income that would keep us going in the lean times - but don't know what so far. Bottom line is - I really don't have that many concrete marketable skills. I know small farming to a point (well enough to make a good start), I can write (when I take the time to do it - my degree was a BA in English / Creative Writing), I work in the mortgage industry so I can process a loan with the best of the cubicle-dwellers - but being only a couple of years out of college (took me 7 years to complete), I'm limited in job experience.
Bottom line is, we are at a place that we could do this. We could move to the farm (or sell it and buy a different one), borrow to build a house (if it didn't already have one), and borrow to put in a crop. I'd have to work at something else at least until the fruit started into full production - 2to5 years depending on the type of fruit, 3to5 with apples. But we could do it. But I have a wife, and a daugher, and another little one on the way - so it's difficult to know how to proceed and still do right by them.
I guess I really just wanted to ramble - thanks for "listening". If any of you have had similar thoughts or have any ideas - I'd welcome any input.
To whom much is given, much is expected.
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"Right is Right, even is everyone is against it, and wrong is wrong, even if everyone is for it"
To whom much is given, much is expected.
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You seem to have a good grasp of reality. I would say that you definitely need a job with health insurance and then you could give it a go. After all you have "2" kids and a wife. Health field is real good and I can't imagine it drying up in the future. If there is a Jr college get an LPN etc.of course RN would be even better. It also depends where your land is. If it's near a large population center then you'll have a ready market of "suburban sports" who want the pick your own experience. On the other hand if it is near a population center you could probably do well selling the land and looking for an existing operation already running.
My experience was 250 apple trees that I eventually wound up selling out. It was too much work and I had a good job. It sure gave me an appreciation of the fruit business. Good luck and keep contact with reality.
Anyway, did have another question. "They" say a good rule of thumb is to expect at least partial frost damage and/or hail damage every 4-5 years. Did this seem to hold true for you - or was the reality worse? That is my major fear - losing an entire crop to frost. I know I can limit some of that by planting late-bearers, but man, those are the only times growing up when I really felt scared because I could feel the tension in my parents. But then, that's part of farming.
One more question - acreage wise - would ten acres in trees be too much for a beginner to handle? More? Less? I would have a lot of help from my dad - and he's very knowledgable - he just retired last year after 30+ years of teaching ag in addition to a lot of years as a fruit grower. Looks like from your profile you were a teacher too? What subject, if you don't mind my asking?
Hope there arent't too many questions here - and good to meet you by the way.
To whom much is given, much is expected.
"Right is Right, even is everyone is against it, and wrong is wrong, even if everyone is for it"
There are no bad guns, only bad people.