Small acre farming

UTfball68

UTfball68

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jul 18, 2008
Location
Granite Quarry
My brother and I picked up a new Mahindra tractor 2 days ago for our Landscape/lawn care/pressure washing business. Primarily for grading, stump removal, big landscaping jobs, etc. We also have 60 acres of land. Originally we thought opening a mulch plot on 5 acres would be a good idea, but with the location of the property, it would have to be an 'appointment only' kind of place, and decided it probably wouldn't be worth the time. So next on our list was to set up a hobby farm. I mean, we have a tractor, read everything the innernets has to offer and have the land...so that makes us experts. We've been planning on planting soy beans eventually any way (too late this year, I know), for deer hunting purposes. In our digging, found several places locally that'll pay $6kish/acre for raw harvest, depending on yield of course. I understand barrier of entry is relatively costly (I think we have most the big pieces though) and farming is a full time gig (we have guys for that)...but does anyone else farm for profit on 10-20 acres? I was reading that depending on area, some specialized and organic crops can fetch $20k/acre depending on yield. Any tips, tricks, references??? Intended harvest time would be winter when lawn care and pressure washing is non-existent, so soy beans seemed like the natural choice. Thanks for any input.
 
Look into hops. A friend helps out on a family friend's farm and they sell it all to local brewers.
 
X2 for hops. There's a major shortage right now in NC due to all the Craft Breweries popping up being 95% is grown in western US if not imported from Germany. And I've heard NC is perfect conditions comparable to California. Just that it's new here and still kinda experimental like the grapes was a few years back.
 
Lets knock out some important questions.
Are you looking for this as an investment (e.g. trying to make some good money off of it) or just something fun/neat to do with the land and resources? E.g. do you care if you're turning profit....
 
trailhugger said:
Look into hops. A friend helps out on a family friend's farm and they sell it all to local brewers.
Click to expand...

6BangBronk said:
X2 for hops. There's a major shortage right now in NC due to all the Craft Breweries popping up being 95% is grown in western US if not imported from Germany. And I've heard NC is perfect conditions comparable to California. Just that it's new here and still kinda experimental like the grapes was a few years back.
Click to expand...

One of my favorite sayings...you don't have to be a genius...you just have know one. Great idea.

RatLabGuy said:
Lets knock out some important questions.
Are you looking for this as an investment (e.g. trying to make some good money off of it) or just something fun/neat to do with the land and resources? E.g. do you care if you're turning profit....
Click to expand...

Originally didn't care, were just going to plant soybeans for the deer, knock them over, till it up...and do it again for next year. But if there's a viable opportunity to make some money, I wouldn't be opposed. I was just reading that different hops breeds/strains are extremely temperamental, and not all grow well in NC. But the biggest success stories are coming out of German style farm plots (ie under 20 acres), they're using hand built trellises and picking by hand. I was getting concerned because everything was talking about a strict timeline on drying and usage, but apparently wet harvest usage is becoming exponentially more popular. All that said, I don't look to do anything to lose money...so some positive margin would be nice.
 
McCracken said:
Listen you sons a bitches you stay away from hops if you know what's good for you.
Click to expand...

So what I gather is you grow hops??? After all this reading, I can't seem to find a particular strain or breed of hops that does thrive in NC. I see the mountains have more success than the piedmont, but not what folks are actually using. I did read up on a 40 year hops expert from England that is growing a 'Columbus' breed from England up in Winston...and got a name from a horticultural professor at NCSU.
 
UTfball68 said:
So what I gather is you grow hops??? After all this reading, I can't seem to find a particular strain or breed of hops that does thrive in NC. I see the mountains have more success than the piedmont, but not what folks are actually using. I did read up on a 40 year hops expert from England that is growing a 'Columbus' breed from England up in Winston...and got a name from a horticultural professor at NCSU.
Click to expand...

Quite perceptive you are :flipoff2:

I have about 1/3 of an acre. Don't laugh. That's enough to keep one man jumping through his ass constantly while holding down a 50-60hr a week job too. That's roughly 300 plants. I chose Cascades because I know they do well. Columbus and Zeus are basically the same variety. Centennials work well from what I hear in high heat areas. From what I gather you want temps between 80-85° F. I think that's why they do well here (Mountains). There's a farm in Pittsboro that's growing some right now. I can't remember the name of their farm but he might be worth contacting. You can also laugh at my progress on my facey space page --> Mountain Hop Farm, LLC.
 
McCracken said:
Quite perceptive you are :flipoff2:

I have about 1/3 of an acre. Don't laugh. That's enough to keep one man jumping through his ass constantly while holding down a 50-60hr a week job too. That's roughly 300 plants. I chose Cascades because I know they do well. Columbus and Zeus are basically the same variety. Centennials work well from what I hear in high heat areas. From what I gather you want temps between 80-85° F. I think that's why they do well here (Mountains). There's a farm in Pittsboro that's growing some right now. I can't remember the name of their farm but he might be worth contacting. You can also laugh at my progress on my facey space page --> Mountain Hop Farm, LLC.
Click to expand...


What can I say...it's a gift. Time will be a slight issue...I'm all over the country analyzing companies and my brother is actually a nurse at Baptist 3 nights a week. But as I said, we have staff that can help. I hadn't read about that zeus...so thanks. The Pittsboro farm actually looks like it's Farm Boy Farms. And I'll take a look at your page, and in a few months when I'm way in over my head...you can laugh at me.
 
I see that now. I just met the owner this year at a gathering of the minds. I never caught his name but I liked his style. Anyway, hops aren't easy like people make them out to be. I've easily sank $10k in my plot and haven't made the first profit so give that some thought. The major expense lies in the trellis system. Also, something else I thought of, you might want to get your rhizomes from the guys at Farm Boy. That way you have acclimated hops but you also run the risk of disease spread. There's a lot to think about.
 
Give it a few years (knowing NC will be last to bite) but Hemp growing will finally make it's way back into all of US soils.
benmack1 said:
Mary Jane
Click to expand...

The most universal plant ever grown that's been bringing in BILLIONS annually for Canada and China due to US prohibition... Kentucky was once the biggest producer before prohibition.
 
6BangBronk said:
Give it a few years (knowing NC will be last to bite) but legal Hemp growing will finally make it's way back into all of US soils.

The most universal plant ever grown that's been bringing in BILLIONS annually for Canada and China due to US prohibition... Kentucky was once the biggest producer before prohibition.
Click to expand...

fixed it
 
Back
Top