how be a good farmer

Take good care of your family, the land, and any critters you have. Be honest in your dealings with other folks. Work hard - nobody ever drowned in sweat.  Do you have a farm now? What is your location - what you grow best will vary by location.

smiling00 wrote: i am wondering how to be a good farmer after i gradute from college.

1. Have very wealthy parents or relatives 2. Marry someone very wealthy...good luck

So you are in college but you don't know how to capitalize?  Around here we learn that in first grade.  I'm thinking troll, but please correct me if I'm wrong.

All of the above, plus I would add to that, good record keeping. That is one of my short-comings, but I do give it my best shot. When ever my record keeping starts to falter, so does my operation. Darrel

Jarrod, I grew up in Ripley Co. Ind. and anything over 200 acres was considered a big time operation !

What kind of farming do you want to do?

As a non-farmer, I would say starting, creating and maintaining a good relationship with local customers.  Get input on what local people, restaurants and businesses need.  Think outside the box as to product to sell that no one else sells.  Also see what products you could export to other countries.  The location I am at,, before corn and wheat took over, was famous at one time for onions and peppermint oil.  As a small farmer, I think this is the only way you can compete; producing items that are too expensive to mass produce.

As you consider farming recognize that at a minimum you need skills as a mechanic, a plumber, an electrician, a herdsman, an agronomist, a labor relations expert, an accountant, and a market analyst. If you have to pay others to perform any of these tasks for you, it will be harder to be profitable.

Unless you're looking at some niche type farming, I think it is extremely difficult to get into general farming (corn, beans, wheat, etc) without help from a family member that is already farming.

Furthermore, get the most out of your education....I'm sorry if you feel like I'm bashing you, but I find it extremely hard to believe that your a college student with such atrocious English such as that.

Get the most out of your education. Knowledge is power. With education and knowledge comes respect on so many different levels...

I'm a college student too...2 years down with 2 years to go...I plan on finding or starting an operation of my own when I'm done WHEN I can do it...don't rush things. Only do it when your ready for it...physically, financially, and with a full time commitment to do so...

Land is the biggest hurdle. You can't farm without it and it's very competitive out there. You need to be able to rent land and that means you have to contact many different landowners and develope some type of relationship with them before they will consider renting to you. Your freinds and family should "talk you up" to any prospective landlord they meet as well. Your good name and your local reputation are your best asset when renting land. You don't say but hopefully you have some family or an existing farmer helping you get started.

You can try offering very high cash rent but you better have a good business plan and an understanding banker. 

 

One other piece of advice:  don't buy into the super-man farmer myth.

Yes, you will need to have and develop a wide-variety of skills but there are always people who will be there to help you as long as you are honest, sincere, and don't take advantage.  You CAN do it, even if you may not be a jack of all trades.  Folks from this awesome web-site are an example of the community out there that is ready and willing to help other farmers.

Gary Zimmer is a snake oil salesman, that I have personally proved to be a liar, and when proven wrong based on his own BS information he runs, and tells his sales staff to avoid people like me becasue we dont "believe". I have rented land that was so called biologically farmed and it is a mess. He trives on the livestock business becasue mostly there land is rich with fertilizer so his myth of bilogical balnce of land is hard to see.  He is a complete and succesful con artist, that thrives on the big farmer is evil, and if you follow me I can have your small farm making boat loads of money and you can sustain your small farm lifestyle, which for the older generation is key to the con. His books and lectures are loaded with "facts" that he produces and he is the consumate sales person attend one of his lectures and watch him in person, but trust me in person when called out he reverts to the rat caught in the trap, and his charm, and BS quickly leave. Send me a PM and I will give you the trials of trying to farm from scratch. I did it, it can be done, but let me warn you its a huge uphill battle.