# Ideas please- need to make $10K on 10 acres per year



## Dirtslinger (Feb 10, 2007)

I work near 7 days a week 7 months of the year, and then homestead chores late into the evenings.
In winter I switch jobs, putting in a lot of hours also off of the farm. I just realized if I can make $15000.00 per year from the farm... I can quit my winter work and spend a lot more time at home, catching up on all I rally want to do! I am aware this is a long shot.

I can probably make $5000K from honey and bee products.
So that leaves $10k... And I don't have a tractor. But have very good bottom land pasture.
Winter is long, and I am unable to get hay without a tractor -hiring others has been unreliable. Livestock over-wintering can get expensive...but very worthwhile if it's worth keeping some form of breeding stock.

Eggs, small time turkey production, meat ducks, all seem to require more feed than they are worth (even free ranged) and not having a tractor (not even for hire) veggies are just not possible at this time.
Also worried about raising cattle- seems incredibly risky with this market. If I can't sell them in fall I also can't afford to feed them over a winter!

I'd love to hear any ideas of what you've done/tried!!! Basically what I'd love to try are two projects that will each generate about $5K per year (above and beyond the feed!!!) I'm happy to invest in more fencing and build sheds.

Thanks.


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## Terri (May 10, 2002)

Would you rather be at home in the summer? I am thinking that if you get a job at the the school district, which would give you your SUMMERS off.

I have not done the following on a LARGE scale, partly because I am disabled. But, if you garden with a tiller, you should be able to handle an acre of vegetables. I used to run the tillers between the rows to keep the weeds down. This was not enough for carrots and small vegetables, but it did well for the bush beans and such.

Selling hay, perhaps? There are sickle-bar mowers availabe that do not need a tractor.


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## Cabin Fever (May 10, 2002)

Several rows of chicken houses.


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## tyusclan (Jan 1, 2005)

Fruit trees.

A very good book to read is called Ten Acres Enough. It's available from Small Farmers Journal, www.smallfarmersjournal.com. 

The book was written in the late 1860's, so the prices he mentions will be greatly out of date, but he's an entertaining writer and really has some interesting points of view that are truly timeless. It's well worth reading.


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## Old Vet (Oct 15, 2006)

The only way to make 10,000 from ten acres is to raise dope and sell it. A lot of people have truid to make that much out of a lot more and have not had much luck. You can raise alpacas and sell the fur or something like that and you would make more than half of that. If it was easy to make 15,000 on ten acres most of us would make more than that.


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## Jim S. (Apr 22, 2004)

Get a car trailer, start pulling in junkers, and open a junkyard. Once the car parts are picked off them, sell off the carcasses for scrap. You'll make way more than $10K on 10 acres of junk cars.


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## coalroadcabin (Jun 16, 2004)

chinchilla farm? 

(Just and idea out of the air here. I've never farmed them but I do know as pets they are easy to raise.)


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## humbug (Oct 16, 2005)

Have you considered raising registered dogs?


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## sisterpine (May 9, 2004)

It sounds like the poster is wanting to raise 10K net which is a whole different thing than 10K gross for sure. I grossed 10K with my side business this year but when I deducted every thing that I could deduct I ended up -2500 so there was no net income. Hopeful expenses will be kept down and profits up in 08 and it will be a different story.

Can you not sell honey in the winter as well. Or do the bees just hibernate or some such. How about something you can make easily and sell to others like leather goods or play houses (great christmas gifts) wishing wells for the yard, porch swings etc. sounds like you have lots of room! sis


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## fin29 (Jun 4, 2003)

Pastured poultry--broilers--provided you have a market that'll pay $2.50 per pound or more and can get broiler-adequate food for $450 a ton or better. I do it.


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## Elizabeth (Jun 4, 2002)

humbug said:


> Have you considered raising registered dogs?


Please give a great deal of consideration before acting on this suggestion. No pun intended, but this is a pet peeve of mine. I know that there are people on this forum who breed and sell dogs, but IMO it is a very bad idea IF the sole purpose of the venture is to earn a profit.

You have to realize that dogs are companion animals, NOT livestock. They should never be raised as livestock are. Dogs need to be socialized, and it is very difficult to do that with more than a few puppies at a time. It is expensive to raise dogs if they are properly fed, housed, trained/socialized, and provided with proper veterinary care. I know a lot of people who do breed dogs and they are all pretty much in agreement that not only do they not make a profit, but most of them lose money.

Right now I have a 5 month old purebred, registered dog in my home who will be going BACK to the breeder as soon as the weather clears enough for me to make the 500+ drive to get her there. This dog came from an experienced breeder whose family also raises, trains, and sells German Shorthaired Pointers. The breeder intended to keep this puppy as a show puppy but did not have enough time for her and offered her to me. I HATE the dog- she was not properly socialized, has had almost no training, and is a very "in your face" kind of a dog who has no concept of boundaries. Also, because she spent a lot of time in a kennel, she is not housebroken. She is exactly the kind of dog that I would expect to see from a BYB or puppy miller, and is a prime example of what can happen when a breeder overextends themselves with to many dogs. The dog has been here for 10 days and I cannot wait to get rid of her. The sad thing is that had she been properly raised she might have turned out to be a really fantastic dog.

I know that plenty of people do breed dogs for profit, and some of those dogs turn out just fine. BUT, be aware, there is a lot more to it than just getting a pair of dogs and setting up shop as a breeder.


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## Goatguy (Aug 23, 2007)

1. Turn your house into a "bed and breakfast" if your near any kind of vacation area...
2. Start a "U-Pick" strawberry or blueberry patch, People come and pick what they want for really cheap /lb 
3. Put up several windmill generaters, roll your meter backwards, and have the electricity company pay you
4. Set up a day care? or similar afterschool activities.
5. Board horses (its amazing how much people will pay for that)
6. Buy or build a big roaster, then raise 20 pigs or so and do catering for weddings, anniversarys, group picnics, 4th of july parties... people LOVE roast pig and you could make REAL good money with it. Plus you'll be sitting in the sun, drinking beer, and bbq'ing, how could someone really consider that work anyhow?
7. Set up a petting zoo/farm that schools and familys can come to to see animals up close and give the city kids a chance to try "real" milk, collect thier own eggs, ect
8. Just raise some eggs, and chicks for eggs. They make good money with just a simple roadside stand
9. Sell fill dirt, get yourself a backhoe and make a pit in an unnoticeable spot on your property, fill up people's truck beds for $25 work off good fill dirt, half an acre is a LOT of truck beds full of dirt.
10. Let your bees Swarm in the spring and then post advertisements saying that you will collect swarms of bees from people yards for $50.

hhmm... I'm out of ideas, Use your imagination, you'll figure something out. Money really is pretty easy to come by. Good luck!


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## Elizabeth (Jun 4, 2002)

Goatguy's post just prompted me to post again- not sure what kind of area you live in, but if I needed to make 10k I would look into boarding dogs and providing doggie day care. I planned on doing this at my old place in Florida before I met and married a Minnesotan and moved North. Now we have a farm and don't want to be tied to a business as well, so I have never implemented my plans.

But, I did a lot of research and it seemed to be an ideal money making project for me. I figured that with a dozen indoor/outdoor runs and a series of fenced play areas I could make enough $$$ to live very comfortably- and that was all I wanted- I wasn't planning to knock myself out, just needed some $$ to supplement other income (partly from bees, coincidentally). My needs were pretty modest as I had no mortgage or other debt. Maybe something like this would work for you?


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## claytonpiano (Feb 3, 2005)

We raised broilers on 3 acres and made over $1000 profit just from 300 of them. We did move them around to help supplement feed and only raised 3 groups. The first group was for us and our family personally, but folks started asking if they could buy some from us. So, we raised some more. You could raise more than we did and should see a profit depending on what type of land you have and what you are willing to do. I was able to get $3 per pound.

What we did was leave them in a closed in area for 3 weeks, then move them out into a penned area that has a wire roof and a section where they can get out of the rain. It needs to be fairly large to make this work. I supplement their feed from the garden and stuff that I raise just for the broilers. 

This next year, if we get moved in time, we hope to plant more stuff for food and raise more. This way, it paid for our entire feed bill (including our layers) and we still made profit. We waited until later in the spring when we didn't have to keep a lamp on the birds 24 hours a day. We processed them ourselves and sold them. 

Turkeys will work also, but they need lots more area to forage and are stupid mothers. We let our silkies raise them. The problem with turkeys is that you need lots of feed to get them started, but eventually they are really good graisers. The important thing is to have your buyers BEFORE you buy and raise the birds. There is nothing like trying to find freezer space for 100 birds!! 

The thing is that you must diversify. You will lose birds to raccoons, fox and hawks. The bees do well for us, but then we live in Raleigh, NC where we have a great market for the birds and eggs. The drought was terrible on our bees and their honey production this year. Piano students going in and out 3 days a week helps us a lot. It really depends on how many folks you can market to. We never even needed to advertise. 

My piano teacher friends want herbs and specialty lettuce. The drought killed us with that this year, but it would work great if I had taken better care of the garden. The thing is, I was raising stuff they couldn't get at the farmer's market because I had a small green house. Once the market gets going in full swing, I don't do as well. So, again, you have to diversify.

You can do it, but you need a niche market. Another friend raises mushrooms. The extension agents here in NC have helped her market them. Several restaurants buy all she can raise as a result of the agents marketing campaign. They are asking for farm raised eggs also. 

You might call your extension agent and see what he recommends. They have been VERY helpful to us and encouraged us with the broilers. In NC after I process 1000 in a year, then I can't legally do anymore so we would have to locate a processing plant. I've been unable to find one that will do a small number of birds. There was one close to us but the USDA closed them down last spring while I needed them.....so we processed our own.


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## Terri (May 10, 2002)

Goatguy, here in the USA you can register your name with the fire department and such, so that you are called when swarms make a nuisance.


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

Old Vet said:


> The only way to make 10,000 from ten acres is to raise dope and sell it.



Sure, a cash crop of weed or opium poppies. That'll do it all right! LOL



Old Vet said:


> You can raise alpacas and sell the fur or something like that and you would make more than half of that. If it was easy to make 15,000 on ten acres most of us would make more than that.


Oh, you can make a lot more than that with alpacas! But forget the fur, the REAL money in alpacas is in breeding them (with each other, of course).

Alpacas typically go for between $10,000 and $20,000 each, depending on sex and age. Obviously it won't take you long to invest $50,000 on even a small family of alpacas, but the financial incentive is certainly there if you can get them breeding.

However, I don't know what effect the impending recession will have on the price of alpacas. It could be a risky investment.


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## veme (Dec 2, 2005)

Small fruit - strawberries raspberries blueberries are very profitable.

I grew them for market 15 years ago and it was labor intensive. 10 acres of small fruit and you would need help - lots of it.

Taking Easter pictures of kids with baby animals & sending them to grandparents faraway can be profitable.
Ditto hay rides, pumpkin patch stuff, canning & fiber workshops, farm "tourism" - let them spend the week-end & shovel manure  and feed the chickens.


I made a seasonal decorating business by growing gourds Indian corn & pumpkins and setting up Fall displays for local restaurants,Dr.'s offices, banks etc. 
I was a lot of work but very, very profitable.
Dry flower material & live florist like ivy stuff sells well too. 
Mini blue corn was always a big hit & so were daffodils & fall dug mums.


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## Quinton (Mar 27, 2006)

Backyard Market Gardening

http://www.amazon.com/Backyard-Market-Gardening-Entrepreneurs-Selling/dp/0962464805

Hey, if a guy in Maine can make $20,000 on 1 acre!! :dance: 

Just pay attention to what you sell, you cant sell corn and make that.


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## cchapman84 (Jan 29, 2003)

I would go for garlic. An acre of garlic can get you about $5,000 gross (more if it's certified organic), and there's not much overhead, so you could probably net around $3500-$4000/acre. Sell direct at the farmer's market, restaurants, etc.


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## woodsrunner (Nov 28, 2003)

Small fruits. You already have the bees in your plan. Raspberries can easily do what you want on much less than ten acres. Other crops with high returns on small parcels, ginseng, goldenseal, garlic, herbs. Be aware though, high monetary returns usually mean highly labor intensive too. If they didn't, everyone would be doing it and you wouldn't be able to give the crop away, let alone sell it.


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## rambler (Jan 20, 2004)

It is possible to gross $10,000 on 10 acres, and it might almost be possible to net $10,000 on 10 acres if you are in the right location & have the right talents & skills - mostly maketing to a near metro area.

However, such things take _heaps_ of labor, and probably several years of investing time & money before they pay off. Nut/ fruit trees, berries & vines, etc take 2-10 years before they are up to speed.....)

The person is working 7 days a week over the summer months, and will have 5 months off over winter - when nothing is actually growing.

I'm trying to figure out how that will work out? Seems the time available does not fit well with the resource available.

--->Paul


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## texican (Oct 4, 2003)

Are you real close to any major metropolitan areas? If so, lots of folks make good money selling "pie in the sky" stuff to wealthy yuppies... don't fool with honey, go with organic free range honey... Forget chickens or turkeys, free range organic chickens/turkeys... fresh vegetables (greenhouse?) make a lot less than organic free range vegetables... Getting the idea? Sell expensive items to rich folks, and if you're close to Vancouver, or one of the other large areas, you can make a good living.

look into organic CSA's also...


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## wogglebug (May 22, 2004)

Get plastic bags, an electric sealer, and bulk grains. Bag up what you think is a marketable amount - say 5 pounds or 2 or 2 1/2 kilograms of red beans, white beans (great Northern, navy, cannelini), Borlotti, Lima, broad beans, garbanzo, pinto, black-eyed, soy, lentils, wheat, pearl barley, rye, triticale, maize. Maybe millet and sorgum. Don't go with organic - just work on "natural whole grains". Start with the ones that are likely to be most popular, start with bushel quantities, and do some test marketing. You can probably start this at night, weighing and bagging. Label them with contents, weight, and your trade name, district and telephone number; and anything else the law requires. Find a couple of outlets - say fruit and vegetable stores, whatever you call them there. Maybe place them on consignment, but quote them a price which will double their profit if they buy outright from you rather than you and them having to administer consignment stock. There's an enormous difference between the per bushel cost and what people will pay in large packets, and a lot of people want bigger than the little packets they can buy at inflated prices in a grocery. Half the value to the stores though will be that it taps into a new distinct market segment for them - homesteader and self-reliance-minded people, and vegetarians. Pulling those people into the right stores could increase their business a LOT.

Your test-marketing from bushel quantities probably hasn't made a big profit. However, if it works in your area, expand from bushel to half-ton quantities, then on up. Wherever you can, buy direct from the farm and cut out all the other middlemen. If you can't make at least a dollar a bag, and move at least a few thousand bags a year (say two shops to start, ten bags a week each, sell a few direct to friends and workmates at a little more than wholesale, then more shops), I'd be surprised. Just use your test marketing to find out which grains people are willing to buy enough of to be worth your while.

Hey, the worst that can happen is that you increase your stock-up stores, and live free (on beans, admittedly) for the rest of your life.


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## DaleK (Sep 23, 2004)

There's not much legal you can do on 10 acres that will RELIABLY net you $10,000 without putting something in the area of $10,000 worth of labour into it. Doesn't sound like you have that much available when you need it.
Probably lots of non-farm things you can do in the winter instead of your job but that'll depend on your area.

We're on a 1350 acre diversified farm here.. some years we net 6 figures. Some years our net is negative.


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## Guest (Feb 6, 2008)

If your not a sex offender and have a good driving record you could drive a school bus for the school district you live in. 2 hours a day for almost 10 months will give you almost half of that $10,000. Then you would have the middle of the day and weekends to do stuff at home to raise the rest of the $10,000 or more. 

This is what I'm planning on doing next year. I just took a bus driving coarse and am waiting to take my written and driving test so I can start driving a school bus. Then during the fall months in between bus routes and on weekends I will be processing deer for hunters. When school is out for the summer I'm gonna do market gardening plus raising for my own pantry. Will also have time to raise my own pork, beef, chicken, etc. 

I think I will be much happier then what I'm doing now which is electrical work.


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## Cyngbaeld (May 20, 2004)

Asparagus?


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## Shadow (Jan 11, 2006)

Not much gets done in the winter around the farm. Summer is when you get things done and hope to make money.
On ten acres working half the year seven days a week off the farm forget it.


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## PyroDon (Jul 30, 2006)

put it in alfalfa and get yourself a mini baler 
supply bails to the pet food market 
by mini I mean 4x4x8 inch


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## sammyd (Mar 11, 2007)

The heck with planting it. Just buy a big round, spend the money to get an official test then rebale it. I couldn't believe the prices some of that stuff gets.


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## pickapeppa (Jan 1, 2005)

If winter is your season that's free, maybe pick up an Elliot Coleman book on off season gardening. There are a few places like this popping up that supply local restaurants and grocery stores with fresh winter greens and herbs. 

You could also keep a portable hoophouse for free ranging winter fowl on winter greens planted special for them. This would cut down on your winter feed bill. There are other ways I've been reading about, such as buying bulk grains and mixing feed yourself, using sprouted grains, kitchen scraps, local restaurant or school cafeteria scraps.

I'd love to have ten acres of fertile land to play with. The possibilities are endless.

You could try growing mushrooms, cut perennial flowers, artisan cheese-making with a dairy cow or goats.

Organic coops are looking for producers. Their prices aren't as high as what you'd make dealing direct with people, but if it gets product off your hands that would otherwise go to waste, there's no harm in saving some aside for them and your own customers.


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## DebM (Dec 6, 2005)

It would take time but the best route given the amount of land you have is something direct-to-consumer via internet. Are you close to Vancouver or Banff? If your land is partially wooded, can you stick a rental cabin on it somewhere?

Two things come to mind: heirloom garlic, for planting, culinary, and value added (some type of gourmet garlic powder) and

http://www.bcginsenggrowers.com/

Having followed Highway 1 from Vancouver to Winnepeg, I have fallen totally and incurably in love with BC. Good luck to you.

Deb in Ohio


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

We have 100 acres and haven't made $10,000 a year off of it yet. We've had it leased to farmers for corn and maize. We've raised cattle ourselves. We've leased it to other cattle owners. We've had seismic survey companies pay us to run a seismic line. We've baled hay.

Hubby now has 350 pecan trees that he put in about ten years ago. Haven't had a marketable crop yet.

Good thing we have day jobs. :baby04:


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## Dirtslinger (Feb 10, 2007)

Thank you all so much! So many ideas, I need to go through them all and takes notes. Had some good laughs as well.
I know it is a bit unlikely with my awful hours. Of course those same awful hours are doing a very good job with the mortgage and that wouldn't be possible 100% on the farm.
Yeah... the realities.

Any thoughts on what on could net raising keeping 2 sows and a boar, selling weaners? Seems to me weaners may actually be underpriced, even when they seem expensive at $40-80 each...


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## sammyd (Mar 11, 2007)

If you can raise your own feed for the sows...corn is getting astronomical with no end in sight. 
Bigger operations are selling off sows. Slaughterhouses are booked solid, some guys have to wait up to 2 weeks to get rid of em and I've heard rumors of feeders being euthanized for lack of sales in the big pig areas.
Course if you can find a market with smaller homesteader types anything is possible.


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## crafty2002 (Aug 23, 2006)

I am hooked on poultry. Free range Holiday turkeys is an idea for you as well as me. Buy a small flock and a good incubator. As someone else said, sell to the wealthy and get a down payment for a farm raised free range turkey. 
I am trying to design a flyer now to stick in paper boxes in the high end neighborhoods. 
Even if TSHTF the wealthy are going to buy them a thanksgiving turkey and they will pay $50-$75 for them too. And a mere 200 sales would get you there each year. That would be $10 - $15,000 gross, and after the initial cost you are home free. 
But make sure you buy a breed that will mate so you can hatch your own eggs. I was looking at them and they are about 9 bucks each so if you just get 100 of them started you are already about 900 bucks ahead. A part of the gross I want to stay in the net department. :shrug: Just another idea I came up for myself.

Dennis


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## OntarioMan (Feb 11, 2007)

Hey Jim,

Had I bought $$$ worth of scrap steel last year at this time, and cashed it in today - it would have been a far better investment than most anything I can think of. 



Jim S. said:


> Get a car trailer, start pulling in junkers, and open a junkyard. Once the car parts are picked off them, sell off the carcasses for scrap. You'll make way more than $10K on 10 acres of junk cars.


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## FarmerJeff (May 5, 2003)

cchapman84 said:


> I would go for garlic. An acre of garlic can get you about $5,000 gross (more if it's certified organic), and there's not much overhead, so you could probably net around $3500-$4000/acre. Sell direct at the farmer's market, restaurants, etc.


We have made upwards of $28,000 an acre for certified organic seed garlic. It's a good gig. It's very intense in early November and mid-July. Other than that, it takes care of itself.


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## joseph97297 (Nov 20, 2007)

Not exactly on post, but one way that we save money is to look around for the deals. Another poster mentioned the 10 Acres book, that you could buy from the website posted, or just get for free by downloading on any major school library as the copyright has expired on it.

I know, not exactly what was asked and a little off topic, but one way to reach a financial goal is to seek other opportunities not to spend.

Joseph


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## rambler (Jan 20, 2004)

Dirtslinger said:


> Any thoughts on what on could net raising keeping 2 sows and a boar, selling weaners? Seems to me weaners may actually be underpriced, even when they seem expensive at $40-80 each...


Hogs are in a terrible tailspin right now, feed going up, pork going down, many going to sell out & depress prices even more.

Weaners are 40 lbs or so, will you get 50 cents a lb, and you can get maybe 30 per year per sow.

So, 60 of them, times 40 lbs, times 50 cents, is $1200 a year gross.

Housing, water, feed, & vet stuff to be subtracted from that. As well as the cost of the boar. Heat, if you plan to go for 3 litters per year in your climate.

Now, if you are in a specialty market & could get 3x the normal price for your piglets. But, we don't really know how good your marketing skills are.

It comes down to this:

You need to find people willing to pay extra for 'something' you do. You need to find suckers, plain & simple. They can buy anything you can do on 10 acres much cheaper from the mainstream. What can you add to your product that makes it worth a couple times it's mainstream value to a few people?

Trouble is, as ecconomic times get worse, these types of market skrink, and you may lose your buyers.

Many of these things take a lot of labor, and many years to get going. So you have to work for free for some time, and plan ahead to have product at a time when people want to buy it.


I probably sound like a wet blanket here. Not really - follow your dreams. Just look at what your oppertunities are, don't follow the crowd, and work with your strengths. Be prepared for it to take time & effort before you ever see a dollar.

I live out in the rural. See people with big fast dreams, going to camp out on 7 acres, make a fortune off the land unlike those big farmers next door, and have it easy. They leave after 2 years; or worse yet stay & try to get laws passed to pave the roads (the cost for their frontage is $2000, the cost for the neighbor is $40,000 yea that's fair) or to stop any dust or smell.

We get kinda scared of pople like that.

Seems like you have a lot more reality than those type. 

But, $10,000 net off of 10 acres of land is a big reach. It won't come easy, and it will have to be designed for your location - what soil, climate, topograpy do you have? And your location - if the only town over 5000 population is 100 miles away, you will not be a novelty and you can't sell your old-fashioned style as well.

If you are next to a metro area, plant 2 acres of corn, 2 acres of pumpkins, set up the rest as a parking lot, and ruin a corn maze & sell fall decorations. Four weekends in fall, you can be grossing $15,000 in a few years, and insurance will likely be the biggest expense.

If you have the time when needed, and the population next to you, and the ground will grow corn.

--->Paul


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## Terri (May 10, 2002)

I have noticed something over the years: it is dead easy to make money off of a homestead.

And, it is HARD! to make a living off one! 

I see that a few pwople here ARE making a decent income off of their place. I would like to add a few bits: things that I have seen but not done.

1. Some people not too far away from us made a living off of their greenhouses. They advertized 15 cent tomatos and marigolds. People came for the 15 centers, and while they were there ANYWAYS they also bought the melon seedlings, the petunias, and so forth. They advertized in the local paper for some weeks before they opened in the spring, with a drawing of the map on the ad.

2. Some people were getting their kids college tuition by farmers marketing every summer. I suspect they were earing $15,000 a year, by the looks of the business they were doing.

3. The writer of The Flower Farmer lives near us. From what I can see, she has done everything she claims to have done in her book. I see her selling or at some booth here and there. Her name is Lynn Byzinski (sp). She has a THRIVING business, by the looks of it!


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## Elizabeth (Jun 4, 2002)

There is a really good book by Booker T. Whatley called "How To Make $100,000 Farming 25 Acres". It's a good read if you can get a hold of a copy (out of print). 

I don't agree with everything Whatley said in the book, but I think the best points he makes are-

1. Have your customers lined up BEFORE you plant crops or start producing livestock.

2. Diversify, diversify, diversify.

3. Sell something EVERY DAY.

As far as I know, no one has ever followed Whatley's plan and made $100k. But, I do think he had some good ideas and if you could make some of them work for you, there you go. 

I have made very little money from farming/homesteading EXCEPT for beekeeping, and I have done very well with that even on a small scale (less than 100 hives). We just do not live in an area where people are willing or able to pay good prices for farm/garden products. We have done okay with rabbits, selling all we could raise for $2.75/pound, dressed and frozen, but we have to deliver to the cities 160 miles away. Our biggest problem with that was scale- we can easily process 80-100 lbs, but once we try to handle 300 pounds/month, which is what we figured we needed to do to make it worthwhile, we found that we were doing a lot more processing than we really wanted to. In the end we gave it up. In our case, we are retired and did not really need the income, but if we were trying to earn a living we might have been more willing to continue the effort. It would have made a huge difference if our customers had been willing/able to drive here to pick up the product, but that was not feasible.


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## farmergirl (Aug 2, 2005)

Dirtslinger said:


> Thank you all so much! So many ideas, I need to go through them all and takes notes. Had some good laughs as well.
> I know it is a bit unlikely with my awful hours. Of course those same awful hours are doing a very good job with the mortgage and that wouldn't be possible 100% on the farm.
> Yeah... the realities.
> 
> Any thoughts on what on could net raising keeping 2 sows and a boar, selling weaners? Seems to me weaners may actually be underpriced, even when they seem expensive at $40-80 each...


I currently have two sows of breeding age, and a couple younger gilts that I'll add in to the breeding program in the next 6 mos-year, and one boar. I can tell you from experience that I about break even selling feeders, sometimes I end up in the hole. It sure as heck is not a good way to MAKE money! LOL But we enjoy the hogs and make a little money selling the cut meat. Hoping that the profits will increase as we get more adept at marketing it locally. To quote my husband when he saw that one of sows had farrowed again, "Well, our feed bill just went up!"


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## emulkahi1 (Apr 22, 2006)

Whatever it is you decide to do, be sure not to quit your job and then HAVE to make that amount from your new venture right away. Take it from someone that tried just that. DH and I bought a business and right away depended on it for our entire income (we were both working at it). What a mistake that was....an excellent way to accumulate a lot of debt :help:. Which is exactly what we did because we didn't know all of the in's and out's of our field yet, and since we had no other $$ coming in, each mistake put us deeper in the hole. 

Also, it is hard to help a business thrive when you are trying to squeeze every last penny you can get out of it. "It is hard to win a race when you're starving to death" was a saying we ended up repeating to each other often. 

Almost 6 years later, we are FINALLY paying off the last of that evil debt, and we're finally quite comfortable w/ our business. Now we have more customers than we have time for, so are having to really be intentional about what directions we choose, etc. Never had the luxury of the choice before....

So success was always a possibility for us, but not keeping cash coming in from someplace else made the process a MIGHTY painful learning experience!

Anyway, just keep that in mind. Keep a source of stable income while you start out your new venture, so that it has a chance to grow....you have a chance to learn.....and your credit cards don't get out of control in the meantime. 

Erin


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## RedneckPete (Aug 23, 2004)

Elizabeth said:


> I know that there are people on this forum who breed and sell dogs, but IMO it is a very bad idea IF the sole purpose of the venture is to earn a profit.


Hey, there is an open thread on exactly that topic. Make your point there.

Pete


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## wogglebug (May 22, 2004)

There's a few key concepts to making money from the land. A lot of them are general marketing concepts, applicable to other businesses as well.

*1.* Paraphrasing someone else, intangibles are cheap to buy and very profitable if you can sell them. If people are buying to satisfy their emotions, you can just about do the marketing and the selling will take care of itself.

*2.* Your best chance to sell big is to find an empty or under-supplied market niche. Empty is best, because it will take longer for competitors to notice your success and move in, chomping at the market you've grown.

*3.* Diversify. Diversity of products and supply is good, diversity of outlets is good. You don't want to be totally dependent on one or too-few things, and have something interrupt that income stream at either end. Ideally, you should be able to suffer a couple of those interruptions and still have enough coming in to carry on, even if you have to cut back on the champagne and caviar.

*4.* For a small farm, value-adding is the way to go. If you grow something and sell it, you make minimal profit if any from your investment (time as well as money). Grower, buyer, wholesaler, manufacturer, wholesaler again, distributor, retailer, customer - there are many possible levels in the distribution chain. Try to consolidate several of those levels and keep ALL the profit from those several levels all in your hands and the profit level goes up astronomically. In that particular chain I set up above there are six steps where someone would take a profit as they on-sold whatever it is that left the the farmer's gate.
If they each took 20% profit then what the producer sold for $1 the consumer would buy for about $3.
If they each took 40% profit then what the producer sold for $1 the consumer would buy for about $7.50.
If they each took 100% profit then what the producer sold for $1 the consumer would buy for about $64.
Different chains, different numbers. My first suggestion ("Natural Whole Grains") cut out some levels as not worth while (production) or too costly (retail), but kept several other levels for the man in the middle - you.
This value-adding model will only work while you keep the operation small, so you don't drown in overheads. What you're doing is taking a raw material of little value, adding as little labour and material to it as you can manage (efficiency), and placing it as close as you can afford to, to the consumer. The profit levels (%), if not the absolute amounts ($), are enormous if you can do it and keep it all in hand.
In fact, value-adding is so powerful that it can enable you to compete with much bigger operations in their areas of strength. They've got economies of scale, you've got a very tightly-integrated operation.

You could, for instance, take some or all of the above. Register a trademark that taps into regional pride - maybe something as simple as "{state}'s Pride" or "{province}'s Pride".
Did you say you've got bees?
Make and sell branded "Homemade natural beeswax candles" through anyone who'll take them on, but aim for high prices through high-end kitchen-supply and food stores.
Make and sell branded "Natural beeswax shoe-polish" in a limited range (black, dark tan, light tan, neutral) of larger containers priced just below national brands in smaller containers. Keep your supply-chain short and just place them locally or regionally.
Don't sell bulk honey. Bottle it all and sell it branded. Oh, possibly one exception - sell branded bulk containers with a tap to groceries, Mom'n'Pop stores, and health food stores who'll also buy a few jars to sell. Let them take on weighing customer's containers, refilling them, reweighing, and charging for the difference.
Make other beeswax and/or honey value-added products - lotions, heck - maybe even confectionery and baked goods (baklava, anyone?) Some of it you distribute through shops, some you sell direct at farmer's markets, some both. You're selling your own regional-branded products - if they grow past your own supply, buy from other local beekeepers.


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## Elizabeth (Jun 4, 2002)

RedneckPete said:


> Hey, there is an open thread on exactly that topic. Make your point there.
> 
> Pete


uh, Pete-

I posted on THIS thread yesterday and I believe it was my post which later led seedspreader to start HIS thread in response. My post was very much on topic, so I don't understand your comment.


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## wogglebug (May 22, 2004)

RedneckPete said:


> Hey, there is an open thread on exactly that topic. Make your point there.
> 
> Pete


There is absolutely nothing wrong with responding, as she did, to a post made in this thread.

There is, however, something distinctly questionable about criticising someone, as you did, for responding to a post in this thread.


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## rainbird (Jan 9, 2008)

I know a fella who makes about $10,000 a year growing mushrooms in his basement. So far, it's just been a hobby for him (only takes up 1 1/2 rooms in his basement), but now he's scaling up, to sell to local restaurants, and expects to retire on his mushroom business, once he hits $25-30K a year.

If you have a market for it in your area (farmer's market, local restaurants, pizza places, ethnic grocery stores, etc), and it isn't already saturated (make sure there aren't already 20-30 other guys growing), then you should be able to make a decent buck off of fungus, without ever leaving your house.


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## MaineFarmMom (Dec 29, 2002)

I net more than that on one acre growing vegetables.


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## HomesteadBaker (Feb 8, 2006)

MaineFarmMom said:


> I net more than that on one acre growing vegetables.


Tell us more, please! What do you grow? How/where do you market your products? Anything that might help would be great.

Thanks.

Kitty


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## Wendy (May 10, 2002)

> In NC after I process 1000 in a year, then I can't legally do anymore so we would have to locate a processing plant. I've been unable to find one that will do a small number of birds. There was one close to us but the USDA closed them down last spring while I needed them.....so we processed our own.


In Indiana it is also 1,000 birds a year, but I can do 1,000, hubby can do 1,000, the kids could each do 1,000. Now that would just be waaaaay to many birds for us to do! 

Anyway, I make excellent money on broilers. My last batch I raised 100. I sold all of those to family. I usually do 2 batches a year & never have a problem selling them. I think I'll do some turkeys this year also.

You might try raising red worms. They aren't too much work. 

Get some rabbits & sell bagged rabbit manure to the people in town that want it for their small gardens or flowerbeds. You can also sell the rabbits.

I am putting in more berries & fruit trees this year. Those are always a hit with people.

I also plan to do fall farm tours that are done in our county every year. I wasn't quite ready last year. This will bring in potential customers for things.

I sell eggs. Enough to pay the feed bill plus some. Chickens aren't a whole lot of work.


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## MaineFarmMom (Dec 29, 2002)

HomesteadBaker said:


> Tell us more, please! What do you grow? How/where do you market your products? Anything that might help would be great.
> 
> Thanks.
> 
> Kitty


Most of what I grow is listed here. I use a lot of season extenders like low tunnels, row covers, hoop houses, a 22 x 48 four-season greenhouse and a seedling house for transplants. The seedling house is heated, the hoops and greenhouse are not. 

Succession planting is crucial. When something comes out something else goes in quickly. For example, when the broccoli that doesn't form side shoots is pulled out the plants will go into the compost pile, I'll add and inch or two of compost and plant the fall crop of peas. Bare soil doesn't earn money.

I sell seedlings in May and June. 

My blog is not very informative right now but there are a lot of entries with information on what I do. If you decide to read and have questions you can leave a comment. They come to me in email. I have time to answer (and it would get me out of painting the woodwork!). Growth in the greenhouse is slow right now, the seed orders are in and I'm on vacation.

If anyone looks at the greenhouse and thinks you can't afford one, you probably can. I don't remember off the top of my head but the total cost with shipping, lumber, etc. was about $3,300. If you aim for $3 a square foot and subtract the cost of seeds and starting them you'll almost earn the cost of the greenhouse the first year. If you're an experience grower you can aim for closer to $5 a sq ft. and make it more than pay for itself the first year.

Eliot Coleman and Alison Weidiger are four season growers. Their winter growing seasons are different. Eliot has three books and a winter growing manual that are very helpful.

I'll stop here because I could go on and on because I'm passionate about what I do. No sense in doing that if I'm going to bore everyone though!


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## indypartridge (Oct 26, 2004)

I just saw this in a local paper. Couldn't believe it: SHRIMP farming in INDIANA?!?!
http://www.shelbyvilledailyunion.com/features/cnhinsagriculture_story_157085720.html
Don't know any particulars, but I'm looking into it.


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## michiganfarmer (Oct 15, 2005)

make maple syrup


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## Use Less (Nov 8, 2007)

Some folks near us have a heated greenhouse for tomatoes, lettuces & herbs in winter, but are close enough to a city with a reputation for being cultured & eclectic that delivery isn't a huge issue. Also I met someone with a hydroponic sprouting operation, same proviso re delivery. Both systems cost $$ to set up. I believe the greenhouse was less so, and not so high-maintenance. Checking into ethnic specialities is an idea. A large Chinese population will pay well for duck eggs or eggs with chicks partially developed, Caribbean or Middle Eastern will buy meat goats. Some of the ideas already given sound pretty pricey in money or labor against eventual income, as perhaps these ideas do, too. Unfortunately off-farm is usually an easier way of getting a solid and consistent return for your hours. Sue


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## DrippingSprings (Sep 22, 2004)

around here you can buy dairy calves for about 100 a piece. I used to buy a dozen at a time and hold them until they hit about 800 pounds then Id take them to auction. I cleared about 400 each on them. That was when I only had 5 acres.


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## Silvercreek Farmer (Oct 13, 2005)

indypartridge said:


> I just saw this in a local paper. Couldn't believe it: SHRIMP farming in INDIANA?!?!
> http://www.shelbyvilledailyunion.com/features/cnhinsagriculture_story_157085720.html
> Don't know any particulars, but I'm looking into it.


Just saw a program last night about NC farmers converting from tobacco to prawns, catfish, tilapia, ect. One fellow said he was making more off of 4 acres of fish ponds, than he was off of 80 acres of tobacco. Of course start-up expenses are high, but there are probably programs to help. Apparently the amount of seafood harvested from the ocean has been regulated to a sustainable level and there is no more to be had, without depleting the resource, so as demand rises, the only way to satisfy it is do farm fish. Sounded pretty good to me.


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## rainbird (Jan 9, 2008)

michiganfarmer said:


> make maple syrup


Actually, if you have access to them--and can identify a market--birch syrup may be a better choice. It's an extremely small product niche ... there is a single-family business in Alaska that is--I believe--the only birch syrup producer on the continent, and they alone make something like 25% of the world's birch syrup. I think all of the rest of it comes from Siberia.

It takes quite a bit more birch sap to produce syrup, but it also sells for quite a bit more than maple syrup.


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## WisJim (Jan 14, 2004)

I know a half dozen or more families who have CSAs and vary from doing it as part of their income to it being the full support of the family. Typically, they market garden 2 to 10 acres, sell boxes of pre-ordered for the season produce to families who may be 20 to 70 miles away, and work hard at it. Many of them have family help or have interns that work through the summer for minimal pay and lots of experience. The ones that don't have other work also have berries and fruit trees and bees and make maple syrup, and some also have chickens. One family makes a salve from their herbs and beeswax. It takes some years of experience to get good enough at gardening to be able to make your living at it, but it can be done.


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## wogglebug (May 22, 2004)

Sorry to pop up again. I'm being mouthy, I know.

However... SAVE MONEY. Saved money is worth more than earnt money. Money saved is money you would have paid tax on, THEN spent. Money saved is money you don't have to earn first, THEN spend. If you can save money, then it doesn't cost you money, only time (well, maybe lesser amounts of money, but the principle applies). It's as if you earnt cash in the black economy, and never had to pay tax. Buy work clothes and footwear at Goodwill/Salvation Army/StVincents if you can.

Kill your own meat. Grow your own vegetables. Divert a little food your way from your income stream. If you handle grain, learn to sprout it over winter rather than buying as many greens. You can live well on eggs, milk and home-made cheese most of the time, with just the occasional Sunday roast chicken (and Monday chicken sandwiches, and Tuesday chicken casserole with vegetables and garbanzos, and Wednesday chicken-soup from the bones and white beans and your freezer-box of leftovers), Thursday rabbit, Friday rabbit casserole, Saturday rabbit soup - ah, heck, we'll stir in a couple of whipped eggs to make it "egg flower" soup - well there's the week gone and we've still got leftovers and we've scarcely touched the eggs, milk and cheese, let alone the home-killed and home-cured ham and bacon, occasional goat buck kid with big lumps salted as corned kid, tender young gelatinous bones boiled up as soup and stock. Oh yes - if you do make your own cheese, learn how to salvage the protein from the whey by making ricotta.

You can buy dairy bull calves cheap. Raising them is false economy, unless the pasture costs you nothing. If so, then good - free beef. However, let's get back to the calves. A lot of them are a poor chance to make it, but have only cost you a few dollars to buy. Well, good - butcher the weak ones right there. You get veal at almost nothing a pound, boil up the gelatinous bones for stock, and you get calf-skin to tan, and maybe make "buckskin" clothes from.

Barter with your neighbours. Cut down your energy usage. Turn off lights and "phantom-use" electrical appliances when you're not using them. Use clothes instead of house-heat, and turn the thermostat down - the lower you keep the house in winter (or higher in summer) the more you save - heat differential, rather than absolute temperature, is what costs money. Adopt good driving practices rather than driving aggressively without forethought. Trade down or downsize from a SUV to a little Volkswagen or Honda - preferably diesel - with a box trailer. Or at least run a little old understressed vehicle when you don't need a big one. Do the work you can (oil and filter changes, etc) on your own vehicles.

Go dumpster diving, garage saling and curb cruising. Buy a bread machine and a blender at garage sales, use the blender to grind a little wheat each week, and cook a couple of loaves of soaked-ground grain. They'll improve rapidly over the first few times, and if they're totally inedible to you the poultry, pigs or goats will still appreciate them while you're learning.

You're not going to grow rich saving money, but it can cover the gap between income and outgo. $20 a week is $1,000 a year, and most people can save at least that much easily, twice that with little effort; and lots more if they put some time, thought and effort into it.


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## Terri (May 10, 2002)

About saving money: If you are working 7 days a week you are probably buying at least one meal a day. Might I suggest a workable solution? 

Once a week, cook a roast and a turkey. Then, eat off of them for a week or two: freeze some of it if you wish.

If you are spending $6 once a day, 7 days a week, that is $2000 a year. 

I have known people who did this, and 3 people would eat 1 turkey a week. When they cooked the turkey, they ALSO baked a lot of potatos, made gravy, and such. I thought it sounded dull which is why I suggested a roast as well. Leftovers can be frozen.

Cooking your own meals, 1 person would need about $25 a week for groceries. How does that stack up to what you are doing?


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## TNHermit (Jul 14, 2005)

"Ten Acres Enough" is available on google books for download


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## Guest (Feb 7, 2008)

I have no idea what your area is like.but I'll share a thought with you..

A million years ago when I was young, my neighbors in rural PA were money crunching..they hit on a wonderful notion..turned their farm into a "maize maze"..planted corn in circular patterns and became filthy rich from the city tourists who came in DROVES to play in the corn maze..they THEN developed hay rides in horse-drawn wagons, a small petting zoo, and another neighbor set up a tiny cafe across the street..amazing how much $ city folks will spend to romp in a corn maze.


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## Carolyn (Jan 5, 2008)

There are many things you can do. We will do farmers market this summer, which will include various jams and jellies, people love them, also home baked items. Our big selling item right now is goats milk soap. Eggs also do well for us. In the fall pumpkins and squash are good. Ornamental corn decorations and corn husk flowers and dolls are good. There are many wild "weeds" that make beautiful fall and Christmas wreaths, swags and decorations, People will even buy corn shocks, we put a bow and a few decorations on some of them, some people llike to do ther own. we even do some container gardening, there are a few people that will come and break up a piece of ground for a small fee. dd1 is planning on quitting her full time job ths summer cause we can do as well as she makes at her job and prepare for what is to come. it is very possible to make money, not with drugs, but with imagination and good marketing. we are't out to make millins, but enough to pay for our living and to prepare for what may come. good luck carolyn


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## jenofthewoods (Jan 21, 2008)

Theres an organic farm not far from me that makes around 35,000 selling CSA shares on 5 acres of land. And they sell to local area restaurants and farmers market. They really have it down pat.


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## Guest123 (Oct 10, 2006)

It is definately possible to make that much money or more from 10 acres. The biggest problem for you though is your work schedule. Like someone else mentioned, not much is happening on the farm in the winter. The things that you can do in the winter cost more to do (feed, not pasture-heating buildings or greenhouses).
I think with the increasing cost of feed and hay , a lot of people will NOT be keeping animals over winter. 

One thing that I have thought a lot about doing is a small scale hatchery. I am not looking to put McMurrays or Ideal out of business, just something small with a limited variety. I currently have 2 300 egg incubators, and a few other smaller ones, and last year I sold about 1500 chicks at flea markets and auctions. I would like to add a website and start taking orders to be mailed out. I need to check out costs such as mailing boxes, postage, and other expenses. If anyone has any info on doing this let me know.


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## rbart (Nov 13, 2007)

How about goat milk soap? You don,t need to own them just buy the milk from a neighbor. You get 64 bars per gallon that sells for 4.00 to s 6.00$ per bar. There are recipes all over the net. Work inside and stay warm all winter. I do the lye mix in an outside lean to. The pouring,cutting and wrapping can all be done inside. good luck.


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## agmantoo (May 23, 2003)

Can you locate a couple of rentals on the property? I can readily net $400 to $500/month off a low level rental home. There are lots of homes available for free to just move them. Becoming a landlord to many is a nightmare. To others an opportunity. If you do not want the tenants in your back yard just add more rentals and move. You want something working for you when you are not working! Food, clothing and shelter rank high on the essential needs lists.


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## highlands (Jul 18, 2004)

It is very doable. We make quite a bit more than that from about ten acres of our land. We raise pastured pigs as our primary farming project. We started with four pigs and it did take years to build up to the level we are at now with ~200 pigs = 40 sows + boars + all the piglets growers, finishers, etc. But it is doable.

There is more than just getting good at raising the pigs, you also will need to learn all about getting them turned into pork, find slaughter, butcher and processing, develop markets, etc. Same as with any business.

The key is going to find out what you enjoy doing, are good at and have a market for. Then you have to have the patience and persistence to put in the time to develop it.

Cheers

-Walter
Sugar Mountain Farm
in the mountains of Vermont
http://SugarMtnFarm.com/blog/
http://HollyGraphicArt.com/
http://NoNAIS.org


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## rbart (Nov 13, 2007)

what is a csa?


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## highlands (Jul 18, 2004)

Community
Supported
Agriculture

Farm where people buy shares of the harvest ahead of time.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community-supported_agriculture


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