Tips for a (hopefully) future farmer?

[RadEggs]

So I realy want to start a small shared farm when I am done with school (yes, I already have some people planing on doing this with me), and I was thinking I could use some insider tips, like how to handle holidays (what to plant, and tips on pumpkin patches), how to get chickens to help till soil, where to buy the best seeds, and things like that. Just stuff you have to be a farmer to know. I know it is hard work, (I am solely responsible for our chickens, and I love caring for them, even cleaning the coop) and I am going to do an internship to get some knowledge, but I would still like advice. Please don't try to dissuade me, I am 100% dedicated to this.
Also, I live in oregon, which is important for what crops to grow. I will not be raising any hybrid layers or meat birds, because hybrids have shorter lifespans, and it would kill me to watch a meatbird slowly die. I would love tips on selling rare breeds, though, as I am thinking about svart höna or Isabella brahma. I would also like tips for cucumber growing and oat growing. These are my favorite foods (Oatmeal and cucumber) and I would love to try growing some cucumber this summer to practice. Also, how do you keep chickens from eating your crops? Cause this year I have to grow the cucumber in the chicken area, as my dad will not share the planters because he saves them for tomatoes. A LOT of tomatoes.
Thanks!
- Radish

 

[RadEggs]

And yes, my nickname being radish is very funny.

 

[Acre4Me]

how do you keep chickens from eating your crops?

Fencing. Fence them out or fence them in. But they WILL eat your plants or fruit.

how to get chickens to help till soil

If there is grass they will turn it to dirt. But they won’t till the soil like a tiller. They will make dust baths- but not usually where you want them to.

Good luck. Lots to learn.

Pumpkins. Well, around here the local farm plants they to be ready for pumpkin patch time late Sept. depending on variety, you will count backwards (and include time for seed to sprout. Here we have Squash Vine Borer (SVB), but I don’t think this is an issue on the west coast (lucky).

Cucumbers - we have issues with cucumber beetles spreading disease. Not sure what your issues are there. But, you will likely need support for the cucumber vines. There are compact cucumbers though. I would recommend trying a variety -slicers, pickles, English, lemon, etc. my FIL grows lemon cucumbers in PNW, very tasty, but here they succumb quickly to disease.

Overall, a GREAT resource for you will be you county agricultural extension office -look it up. They are usually very helpful, and may offer classes. In addition, the state agriculture department likely has a good website which often include info for farms and gardens, including lists of pests or issue in your area. You may find classes through a local community college, that may be free or low cost about gardening. There may be a gardening/horticulture society you can find as a resource too.

 

[RadEggs]

Fencing. Fence them out or fence them in. But they WILL eat your plants or fruit.

If there is grass they will turn it to dirt. But they won’t till the soil like a tiller. They will make dust baths- but not usually where you want them to.

Good luck. Lots to learn.

Pumpkins. Well, around here the local farm plants they to be ready for pumpkin patch time late Sept. depending on variety, you will count backwards (and include time for seed to sprout. Here we have Squash Vine Borer (SVB), but I don’t think this is an issue on the west coast (lucky).

Cucumbers - we have issues with cucumber beetles spreading disease. Not sure what your issues are there. But, you will likely need support for the cucumber vines. There are compact cucumbers though. I would recommend trying a variety -slicers, pickles, English, lemon, etc. my FIL grows lemon cucumbers in PNW, very tasty, but here they succumb quickly to disease.

Overall, a GREAT resource for you will be you county agricultural extension office -look it up. They are usually very helpful, and may offer classes. In addition, the state agriculture department likely has a good website which often include info for farms and gardens, including lists of pests or issue in your area. You may find classes through a local community college, that may be free or low cost about gardening. There may be a gardening/horticulture society you can find as a resource too.

Thank you! Thankfully mine hate cucumbers, so I think I can still grow them. I kinda knew they would just eat stuff, but was holding out hope maybe there was a solution other than fencing.

 

[Sally PB]

So I realy want to start a small shared farm when I am done with school

Do you have the land now? How many acres? How long until you're done with school?

There is a LOT you can do to improve your soil NOW that will pay dividends in the future. If you have a year or two, you can take marginal soil to pretty dang good in that time. If you have a couple of months, you can still add organic matter.

Another thing to do (if you have the land now) is to study it. What is the topography; where is it shaded, sunny (and for how many hours a day); will you have to clear out rocks or trees or stumps; can you get the soil tested for fertility and pH? If it's not under cultivation, what is growing there now?

If you are looking for land to buy, the above still applies, if you are allowed access to it.

 

[lomine]

I'm new to gardening but I'll share what I've learned.

If the ground is fairy hard the chickens won't dig it up. If you want an animal to really till the earth, you are better off using pigs. I've haven't owned pigs, but I've seen what they can do. Also, chicken poop is what they call "hot." Meaning if you put too much fresh chicken poop in the soil it will burn the plants and/or prevent seedlings from growing. It has to be composted or aged for at least 6 months before you want to use it in a garden.

Cucumber roots are very sensitive, so it is best to use the direct sow method. Plant the seed in the place you want it to grow. You'll need a trellis of some kind for it to grow on. Even strings tied between a couple of t-posts will work. You will need to protect the plant from the chickens. Even if they don't like to eat cucumber, the young sprouts will look very tasty. Powdery mildew was big issue for me last year because we got a ton more rain than normal. It got too out of hand, but the plant still produced so I didn't bother trying to treat it. I have done some reading on different ways to prevent and treat so I'll be more prepared this year.

I would also suggest you look into the practice of crop rotation. It's important not to keep planting the same type of plant in the same space over several years. It depletes the soil and can cause a build-up of diseases. You may want to tell your dad about it too if he has been planting his tomatoes in the same spot for over three years.

A local nursey is also a great place to go for help. They'll know what grows well in your area.

 

[Red Mangrove]

I'm personally working on turning my land into an orchard so that one day my chickens can subsist entirely on the fruit that grows here. Tilling the earth is back-breaking labor that degrades the soil, so fruit trees seem like a far more harmonious way of farming to me. My death is inevitable and my time is limited, so every minute I'm not wasting in hard labor is considered a win to me

Also, depending on which part of Oregon you're in, a coop may be entirely unnecessary. I've personally watched my free-range chickens dramatically improve the soil quality here by eating bugs, pooping and raking everything

Just get some tough chickens. I think a rooster from a broody, tough and pea-combed breed would be ideal. Cubalaya or Sumatra. So that the daughters inherit this broodiness and can expand flock numbers. Too many production and dual purpose breeds have zero survival instincts and zero broodiness

 

[gtaus]

I could use some insider tips, like how to handle holidays

I don't know if you are still following this thread, but if you are working with other people, you need to talk to each other and agree on who gets what holday(s) off so it's not an issue when the day comes. If you have small animals, you usually have to care for them every day, holiday or not. It's just not an option for the lifestyle you want to live.

I know it is hard work, (I am solely responsible for our chickens, and I love caring for them, even cleaning the coop)

Good news. Having chickens is probably the easiest animal I have ever had to care for. If you set up your coop for dry deep bedding, you only need to clean it out once or twice a year. I have a 5-gallon PCV bucket feeder and a 3-gallon waterer for my chickens. If I wanted to fill them both up, they would last a good 7-10 days for my 10 chickens. Not very hard at all.

I am going to do an internship to get some knowledge,

That's a great idea. Not only will you learn about how things are done on a working farm, but you will soon find out if it is a lifestyle you want for yourself. I hope you come back and update this thread on your internship experience.

I will not be raising any hybrid layers or meat birds, because hybrids have shorter lifespans, and it would kill me to watch a meatbird slowly die.

Obviously, you can have whatever chickens you want.

However, I would encourage you to consider getting hybrid layers for better egg production and meat birds for the table.

I started out with meat birds and harvested them at about 10 weeks. They didn't die slowly. But you need to harvest the Cornish Cross meat birds at that age because they will suffer if you continue to keep them. Learning how to butcher animals is a great farming skill to learn. It puts meat on the table. And it also prepares you mentally for those times that you may have to cull a chicken from your flock.

My hybird layers are just better than my dual-purpose breeds in terms of egg production. In any case, I have found that my chickens, hybrids or not, are really only good for two years of egg production. There is no advantage to carrying over my hens into a third winter. That goes for both the hybrid layers and the dual purpose chickens I have raised.

That gets into flock rotation and learning how to harvest those older chickens for the table. Those butchering skills you learned from raising meat chickens will come in handy at that time.

I only mention these things because most working farms need to make money. Feeding old hens that are not laying eggs gets expensive.

Also, how do you keep chickens from eating your crops?

Fencing.

I converted my entire chicken run into a chicken run composting system. I toss all the old coop litter, grass clippings, leaves, wood chips, weeds from the garden, kitchen scraps and leftovers, into the chicken run. Each year, I now harvest hundreds of dollars' worth of high-quality chicken run compost for my gardens.

I am not running a farm, but my 10 hens make more than enough compost for all my raised garden beds. Last year, I added two new raised beds and top filled about six other raised beds with fresh chicken compost. I estimate I only used maybe 10% of the finished compost in my chicken run. It's just great to have chickens and gardens. I don't know how much land you plan on planting, but I have more chicken run compost than I can use in my raised beds.

Good luck in your internship and I hope you revisit this thread to keep us posted on your experience.

 

[itsasmallfarm]

Hello, I run a small farm business for the past few years started off with a market garden then graduated to bees. here are a few tips i can give you. (keep in mind my chickens and ducks are a hobby)

#1
watch out for quotas on your animals, where i live we can only have 299 egg layers before having to buy into a quota system. i don't know anyone making a living off 299 egg layers here (my friends mother had my guess any where from 100-200 egg layers and was just in the green)

#2
be prepared to make changes, i had dreams of raising chickens for a living, turned out that was a bad idea for me, then went to market gardening, works out okay. then added bees for the pollination and honey production, turns out I can make much more off bees then gardening and chickens. and I really enjoy them so its win-win.