Farming in the shade

Today's blog post is written by Jan of SlowMoneyFarm . Jan grew up on a family farm with Charolais, hay and corn as well as exposure to Brown Swiss cattle. She and her husband currently raise a variety of poultry, rabbits and raised bed gardens (vegetables and herbs) with a focus on heritage/heirloom production and conserving rare breeds. They bred and showed several national top 10 Giant Chinchilla rabbits last year, and Jan uses social media to promote and offer food choices to the public. When Joel Salatin says something about agriculture people listen. What he does is special. It's a great thing. He's written books and given lectures around the world. People want to buy food from HIM. What most miss, however, is that he's doing what thousands of other farmers are doing coast to coast and border to border. He's finding what works for him, marketing it to work for him and selling to a specific market. That's not a bad thing - it works for him. But we're...

We are fairly busy with other stuff this week (primary election, daughter's wedding), and so perhaps you'll excuse me if I route you to read other blogs? Here's an interesting post: I recently listened to a local farmer describe his extensive crop rotations, soil fertility and how he shunned chemicals. Farm superior to the unhealthy "monoculture" of conventional corn and soybeans planted by his neighbor, he said. And he made it all too clear--he didn't care what his neighbor thought anyway. Read the full post here.

Boy, that's a convoluted title. A fellow blogger (small farmer in Alabama) hit the nail on the head with her blog post today. Be careful to investigate photos and videos of farming practices. Often there is more to the story, especially when the video/photo is posted and narrated by someone other than the farmer. Please go look at her photos and insightful blog post here.

Instead of my usual "Friday Fun Farm Facts" post, I'm going to link to a blog post by another blogger on the income and expenses of the average farmer. The statistics are a little surprising and the graph is downright shocking. Please read it here.

From another Ag Blogger, Chris Chinn: Last week I traveled to Washington, DC to testify before the Subcommittee on Agriculture, Energy and Trade (Subcommittee of the House Committee on Small Business) on behalf of America’s farmers and ranchers about the Department of Labor’s proposed rules regarding Child Labor on farms and ranches. The Department of Labor has proposed new rules that would restrict children under the age of 16 from working on a farm or ranch. The list of tasks youth would not be allowed to do is astonishing to me. For example, milking cows would not be allowed, and neither would building a fence... Read more here . This is very important to farm families, and I'd appreciate you becoming aware of the issue.

From another farm blogger: "One of my favorite sites, Grist.org, ran an article yesterday by farmer and writer Steph Larsen, entitled "When are we going to stop seeing farmers as rubes and hayseeds?" She brings up an excellent discussion point, and I think it's just the tip of the iceberg, because I think it goes beyond analyzing just the general public's perception of farmers--it's the attitude toward food in this country. Because the corporate-government machine has made food into a commodity, most people have adapted that mentality about it, too. In the movie Ratatouille, the main character, Remy, is told by his father, Django, "Food is fuel. You get picky about what you put in the tank, your engine is gonna die. Now shut up and eat your garbage." Frankly, I think that too many people have adopted exactly that mentality regarding their diet. Read more of the article, "Perceptions About Farmers" here . I'm sharing this blog from some...

"There’s a guy in Illinois who’s a farmer. He farms 5000 acres of corn and soybeans over several areas. He is responsible for all of the business decisions for the operation, including which varieties to plant, when to sell what he harvests and for how much. His tractors and combines are huge machines. They are equipped with laptop computers and the latest GPS technology. As part of his income, he sells seed and cattle equipment to other farmers. He sits on the Board of Directors for a statewide farm organization, often traveling to meetings and conventions and providing input on the operation of county farm bureaus in his district. During busy times, he hires outside employees to help get the job done around the farm." "There’s another farmer, also from Illinois. A fifth-generation farmer, he takes environmental stewardship seriously..." Read the rest of the post here .

"My husband and I have been married 36 years and we have been Dairy Farmers for those 36 years. My husband took over the farm from his parents in 1972 , 2 years before we got married. But with the low milk prices we have been hit hard with bills that have backed up." Read more about why this farm family is throwing in the towel here.

"I made my mind up I would never marry a farmer," a friend of mine stated after we were discussing milk prices and the long grueling hours. She was raised on a farm and had decided that farming life was not for her." "My first thought was--I can't believe you feel that way. Followed by--that's OK; everyone has a God given place in this world." "Farming is not for everyone." Read the full article here.

From another ag blogger at Zweber Family Farm News: The average American moves every 5-7 years. While there are no figures on how often a “farmer” moves, I gander it is much less (Once to the farm and then to a retirement home). Our heritage is deeply rooted in where we are and what we do. Many farms have been in the family for several generations. Farming is a legacy. A map only shows the topography. When planning it might make sense to put a waste treatment plant in a seemly wide open area. What those plans don’t consider are the current land owners hopes and dreams. Maps do not show the value this land has in a community. Maybe that land is being farmed by a fourth generation, in hopes of passing it on to the fifth. Maybe the farmer has spent thousands of dollars restoring the soil’s fertility, preserving the water-ways, and creating natural habitat for wildlife. Maybe the farmer has been donating part of their crop to a local shelter, so that others can have fresh local food. Read...

From another farm blog: I hear many city people complaining that farming has gotten too big, that mega farms abound and we have no small farms left. In some ways that is true. In the 1930s, about 25% of the country’s population resided on the nation’s 6,000,000 farms. By 1997, 157,000 farms accounted for 72% of farm sales, with only 2% of the U.S. population residing on farms. Yet when you dig into the facts, the average farm in the U.S. is still under 500 acres, a size that is not mega. Finish reading the article here .

Wow. Go pour yourself a cup of coffee or tea, turn off the radio, and clear your schedule for 15 minutes. You're gonna want to read this without interruption. This farmer's wife blogger is part poet and says the things I would like to but can't even begin to. If you've ever wondered about the motivation and the thinking that drives a farmer, you need to read this. There's even a bit part about how the farmers have never set their own prices, which reminds me that I haven't addressed Mulchandmore's question about dairy prices. Ready? Click here .

I love to read other blogs. When I find some that relate to farming, do you mind if I share them with you? Today I was pleased to read about the American Sheep Industry Association on this blog post.