comments other make.....

Dave from MN · Dec 4, 2011

as to how you farm..... most I hear from, those that dont farm any more, and those that dont
"your population is way too high, we never went over 18,000" (26,400)
"why you need so many tractors"
"that chicken manure isnt worth anything"
"that land isnt any good, your gonna lose your butt" ( then that person try's to rent it from under me)
"Dont plant anything over 85 day"(or it wont be off by deer huntin)
"I dont like your min tillage, ya gotta make it black" ( I farm lighter soils)
"ya gotta let them weeds get a good start so you can kill them all with one pass" and" Ahh, I dont belive in them preemergents, never used them before" LOL
" spread that chicken poop now and just plow it under when the ground thaws in the spring"
Just a few, there are many more. Some day it would be nice to jot them all down with an explanation as to how off base they can be. I am sure I have many I say to. Any one care to share things they've been told, that plain are way off base, or just plain made ya irritated or insulted.

Anonymous-0 · Dec 4, 2011

No, not anymore, just wait for the sale, mine or theirs, I figure both of us cain't be right. In 50+ years I have a few come and a few go, don't let it bother me one way or the other.

Tony in Mass. · Dec 4, 2011

Oh! I'm sorry! I thought I was reading the talers forum! You are correct on all counts. People who 'farm' do so with what they got where they are- kinda like Donald Rumsfelt's going to battle speach... I went from a large, losing cattle op, to small plots of Asian vegetables. I'm no worse off. I actually have more and better equipment! The guy I bought my new Fergie F40 from has a garden size patch of organic 'exotic heirloom?' garlic. He is probably doing as well with that as people with a milk check or grain sale. Personally, I like to diversify into... coconuts, pineapples, assorted tropical fruits and vegetables... I do that every night.....in my dreams....

Traditional Farmer · Dec 4, 2011

The less most people know about farming the bigger 'experts' they think they are.Like "I used to farm so....."(before they went bankrupt)
and the biggest 'expert' of all is "My Grandpa had a farm and ......"
I tell 'em to buy a farm and show me how its supposed to be done,most can't afford payments on a used pikup.

fixerupper · Dec 4, 2011

Dave, it looks like you're doing it right. The ones who are always giving farming advice usually don't know what they're talking about, and when one of those rare times comes along when they DO know what they're talking about we don't believe them. Jim

Anonymous-0 · Dec 4, 2011

Yes, and my favorite is how I started with nothing and made it big. Farming grandpa's 400 acres and using his equipment.

KYfarm · Dec 4, 2011

I sell yearling calfs, grow my own hay, round bales and about 8 acres of corn, planted with an old plate type planter and picked with a old picker/sheller. I have about 50 momma cows and sell the yearly calf crop.

So this is some of the advice I've gotten from my neighbors, none of which are trying to make any profit from their land but are full of ideas on how I should be trying to do it.

"you need to sell all those grown cows and just run feeders"
"you need to plow up all those hayfields and run grains"
"you need to turn this place into an orchard like the guy down the street"
"you need to get more cows"
"you need to sell all the cows and just sell hay"
"you need more pastures and just buy your hay"

If any of these people were actually doing what they say I should be doing then I might listen to them but none of them are, they are just full of breath and advice.

Jaden · Dec 4, 2011

I started with nothing, and still have half of it left.

Mike Aylward · Dec 4, 2011

Dave, this sounds like too much coffee shop talk. If you want to have your soul drained out of you just frequent a coffee shop. It reminds me of an old adage often heard: "Those that can, do. Those that can't, teach". When my dad died when I was 19 years old I had lots of folks that thought I would fail. I did not. I did not listen to them. Believe in yourself and do what you can and let God provide the increase. Mike

wijim · Dec 4, 2011

Ya A couple of years back I was told, you better contract your beans for 8$ dont see that very often. I contacted some reluctanly, wife said so. That fall I dumped my 8$ beans next to guys dumping 10.50$ beans. You should always go with your gut feeling.Jim

JerryS · Dec 4, 2011

I recommend that you have a grandfather or great-grandfather who buys a lot of farmland that sits above a bunch of natural gas (oil is good too), and all the suceeding generations scratch a living off the land until the minerals are discovered. Worked for me.

oldtanker · Dec 4, 2011

SIL was telling successful farmers how to farm till I told him not to. His knowledge was from high school AG classes and his step dads failures. One guy he was trying to tell how to farm started with one tractor and 10 acres that he and the banker owned with a barn and house. He also had an on site tire service that he worked at all day and did his farming a night. His wife did the milking. The dairy is gone but he's farming over 1000 acres with about 500 under irrigation. The other guy he was telling how to farm is my BIL who has a dairy/beef/grain operation.

WE had a local farmer who would also tell people how to farm when he was really having a hard time making it and the only thing keeping him going was his wifes job in town. One day in a cafe where he was drinking coffee and crying about how hard it was to farm my boss told him "if you spent as much time farming as you do setting here whining about your farm you would be a pretty good farmer".

Rick

NY 986 · Dec 4, 2011

I was going to sit this one out but I can no longer resist. I would be happy if it were just loud mouth know-nothings spouting off. Around here I have to worry about business people undermining certain farmers to help their preferred customers out. Then there are the people because they inherited property are somehow considered business experts because they own something of value. Then there are the useful idiots (term coined by Lenin to describe supporters of communism even though these supporters do not understand it) who serve the purpose of bolstering certain BTO's by shouting to anybody that will listen why they are impressed by the BTO when the new equipment rolls in left and right. Usually the BTO will buy these coffee or other tokens to get the PR campaign they probably could have had for free. Then there are the dumb luck guys who are making a name because their ancestors had the accidental good fortune of owning property that happens to have value to today's generation in terms of development potential or mineral rights.
Rant over. I guess it's time to gather my thoughts (numerous) for the idiot hunter thread.

Spook · Dec 4, 2011

I think it's true of any business or activity you pursue. I know I had people tell me that our biz would fail, and that we should buy a much bigger house. Everybody seems to have a idea on how I should spend my money, worship god or live my life. :roll: I guess it's human nature? I was going to post on the stupid deer hunter thread, but I don't have anything new to add. Deer hunters are basically idiots.

Anonymous-0 · Dec 4, 2011

the Farmers that don't give advice are the ones you should listen to.
their oral advice is worth the paper it is written on.lol

elmersooner · Dec 4, 2011

I try not to give advice, but I've learned a thousand ways not to farm-some of those, not all, were advice that made sense at the time.

Anonymous-0 · Dec 4, 2011

LOL .. Ya ever heard the fable of .....the old man,the boy ,and the donkey that traveled from town to town ,, and all the townspeople comments toward their mode of transportation in each town they came thru ???? ,The Farmer who says the least is the one you should write down every word !!!

Anonymous-0 · Dec 4, 2011

Asked 5 guys for advice and got 7 totally different answers. The answer is "there is no right answer" Gotta do what works for you.

I put a lot more stock in the advice from the guy who has been doing it for 40 years and is still paying his own way. May not be pretty, but it must generate enough cash to pay the bills.

Another thing I have noticed is that some people place no value on 20 year old equipment. Does the soil really care if the disc is obsolete by todays standards? Does the grass know that the mower is only a 7 ft cut? Gotta get done quicker so you can?... watch Oprah? ...go to the coffee shop?

JDseller · Dec 4, 2011

I have found that it does not matter what you do to make a living the main ingredient is "HARD WORK". I have many friends that are successful in many types of businesses. They started by working hard and long hours.

I used to get gripped at from my sister because I might not be able to stay for the whole family thing at the holidays. We where running a lot of cattle plus I always had at least one off farm job. Her husband always just worked 40 hours he would not even do over time. He always said that if you can't make a living in 40 hours then you need a different job. Well I guess he needs a different job. I am debt free with a little laid back in the bank. He is the same age,61, and still has a house mortgage and two car payments. I asked him if he was going to retire at 62. He said he would be lucky if he could retire at 72.

Traditional Farmer · Dec 5, 2011

He'll just say how 'lucky' you are to be able to retire.

comments other make.....

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