The Rural Voice, 2001-04, Page 6NEW & USED
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R.R. #6, Owen Sound
519-376-5880
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WINGHAM
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2 THE RURAL VOICE
Feedback
Small farms will
survive
My wife and I are small farmers,
who are hoping to make a success off
100 acres and be able to enjoy it. My
wife sometimes has her doubts and so
do I, but I know it can be done with
the right mix of crops and livestock. I
don't intend to live the rest of my life
in debt trying to do it either.
Living in a community of
backyard hobbyists, medium-sized
commercial farms and even a large
factory operation, I have been able to
do some comparison observations.
From what I have seen, no one can
claim, irregardless of the agribusiness
ads and what the experts say, that
bigger is necessarily better. That
applies to whatever aspect of farming
you are talking about, be it
stewardship care or bottom line
economics.
For example, on our place, we
have been able to control some long
established erosion problems, a
legacy from row cropping hilly
ground in a way suited to' largeness,
because we have made our fields
smaller and more manageable. This
size has also enabled us to better
adapt our rotations to the topography
and soil conditions. Besides, I like to
get out and walk our land
occasionally and trudging across
acres of nothingness doesn't appeal
to me in the least.
Another advantage with our small
five -to -ten -acre fields is that I don't
need any expensive technology to
keep track of my yields and soil
problems. It's easy to see, from one
field to the next what's good and
what isn't. Just in case I might forget,
I sketch out rough maps showing
weed pressures, drainage problems
and low producing areas. I keep these
maps in a $2 binder and supplement
them with the odd photo. Over time,
patterns begin to emerge and I can
take some appropriate action. This
system may not sound very
progressive, but it beats a $12,000
monitor I can't afford or even
interpret.
Our machinery inventory isn't too
big or fancy either, but it is paid for,
so we don't need any more land just
to spread out our costs. Take for
instance our harvesting equipment, a
MF 300, in good shape, but old. It
moves along at a speed I can scan
almost every leaf and stalk. It's also a
short climb to the ground, so I don't
mind stopping and picking up the odd
stone. I don't need one of those big
implement sheds to store it in either.
My cousin from California, who is
into antique farm machinery, tells me
'I should do a restoration job on this
combine and watch its value grow.
For now, I'm just as glad not to have
to bother with custom rates or having
to make payments on something
newer and bigger. Incidentally, I have
another machine for spare parts. Both
combines cost us less than $3,500.
Like everybody else in our area,
we started out 10 years ago trying to
make some quick cash off corn and
beans, but volume marketing,
increasing expenses and time
constraints have caused us to admit
this kind of farming is not for us. I
also find it uninteresting and
frustrating, not to mention
unsustainable in the long run. It
doesn't matter, our farm is better
suited to things like agroforestry,
rotational grazing, small fruits and
rural tourism. I can see by value -
adding some of these enterprises, our
situation could become much more
rewarding and satisfying. In fact,
we're hoping to make a change in
this direction, which will benefit not
only ourselves, but will help some
young people get a start in farming, if
we can work out a sharing
arrangement.
Of course, not everyone looks
down on the small farmer. I am
involved in several farmer groups
where my opinions and ideas are