Ludington/Manistee MI area | Post below about buying the 160 acre block and associated equipment and a young guy getting started. I’ll start by saying his equipment prices were borderline silly. I’m sitting here waiting to get topped off in a $3500 Freightliner pulling a trailer that I paid $13,000 for 11 years ago. Combine is a $12500 R62 pushing a $2300 hugger head. We farm 7x the acres in the OP’s scenario of just row crops excluding hay and cattle ground. Anyway below I’ll make point.
I know a guy his somewhere in his 50’s guessing later. Has 12 kids him and his wife home schooled them. Oldest is in his 20’s youngest is mid single digits. The base of his operation is scrub ground. He raises veggies, eggs, few cattle and pigs. He does the framer’s market circuit and does the CSA gig. I’m a vendor of his in exchange I got a bag of delicious veggies placed on my porch every Friday evening for 18 weeks during the summer. From what I gather he built his house himself with labor help from his dad. Drives a decent minivan and has older Dodge with a Cummins. He’s involved in some rough cut lumber on the side. You could easily say this guy is living the life of someone just prior to the Great Depression just with modern conveniences. Every time I talk to him happy and upbeat.
Is he not a farmer? Didn’t start out with a 1.5 million dollar parcel of land and inflated equipment what does that make him? Probably has more calluses than 90% of Agtalk.
Flame away. |
What is or isn’t farming??
