Small Farms

If you have a small farm and want to make a little money each year, consider pumpkin farming.  It is a relatively easy way to earn cash, and it only takes a little bit of your time each fall and spring.  All you need is a tilled area of soil (an acre or two is perfect), someone to plow and disc your acreage and pumpkin seeds.  Add gourd seeds as well if you want to add a little variety to your business.  Both pumpkins and gourds have about the same length growing season, so they work perfectly together when planning this type of crop.

What do you do with your crop when it is ready to harvest?  Sell them, of course!  People love to buy pumpkins and gourds for decorations, especially if you can sell them at a slightly lower price than your local grocery store/retail giant does.  Most people sell them according to size, such as $1.00 for small, $3.00 for medium and $5-6 for the larger ones.  If you have really big ones, consider charging a little more.

If you have a little more acreage, you can combine your pumpkin business with something else, such as a corn maze, hayride, pony rides and haunted houses.  Don’t forget about school tours too!

Here are some links to pumpkin farms to give you some ideas for your own pumpkin farm business:

Kingsway Pumpkin Farm

Big Orange Pumpkin Farm

Barten Pumpkins

Bishop’s Pumpkin Farm

Adobe Pumpkin Farm

Have a great week!

~~Charlotte

In yesterday’s blog I mentioned building a corn maze to create income for your farm (agritainment).  Since you may not know where to start on a project like this, I’m going to give you a few pointers and places to visit to get “corn maze patterns.”

If you’re worried that you need really high tech equipment and a gps to create your maze, don’t worry.  You can create great mazes that will attract people without spending a small fortune.

• First, check with your town’s business office to see if it is legal for you to operate a corn maze and get any applicable licenses first.
• Second, get some free corn maze creating software.  You can get this free at Corn Mazes America.
• Third, obtain insurance once you’ve decided the scope of your project.  Liability insurance will cover you in case someone gets injured while visiting your maze and surrounding property.  Insurance will cost in the neighborhood of $1,200.
• Fourth, decide on a marketing plan to get the word out.  Options include ads in local newspapers, fliers, brochures, radio ads and creating a website.
• Fifth, decide if you want to have any additional things to do on your property to increase profits, such as hayrides, pumpkin patches, selling cider, haunted houses or pony rides.  You may also need additional insurance if you plan to offer rides of any kind and licenses to sell food if you make it on your property.
• Sixth, decide what to charge for admission.  Most farmers charge around $6 per person, and are open on weekends only.  Most farmers can expect about 3,000 visitors per 4 weekends of operation.

Think you’re interested in this farm business sideline?  The USDA figures there will be a 30% growth in the agritourism industry over the next 10 years.  Find more resources for this project at these websites:

Precision Corn Mazes - when you want to hire someone to do this for you

The Corn Maze Directory

~~Charlotte

SmallFarms4You.com

Many small farms can make a modest income from the business they run, but what if they need to supplement their income to get through those tough winter months?  The answer for many is agritainment - agricultural entertainment.  If you haven’t heard of this before, consider this - how many pick-your-own pumpkin farms have you ever been too?  You’ve probably taken hay rides there or perhaps visited a corn maze.  Odds are you paid a small fee for the privilege.  These things are considered agritainment!

Some ideas to mull over for starting your own agritainment include the following:

• Wagon rides
• Pony rides
• Petting zoos
• School tours
• Birthday parties
• Ghost tours
• Haunted hayrides
• Haunted houses

In addition to these entertainment ideas, selling products also boosts sales:

• Cider
• Pies
• Canned goods
• Craft items
• Jams and jellies
• Honey
• Syrup

Basically, anything you grow or make on your property can be turned into an additional money maker to supplement your income.  Check out the following website on more ways to make money on your farm:  Alternative Farming Systems Information Center.

~~Charlotte

SmallFarms4You.com