Necessity is the Mother of Invention

Hello All,

So as you all know were just starting out on our farm, and farm equipment is expensive to say the least. We are by no means rich or even well off and to keep our farm moving and growing has been a continual money hunt. I've noticed that upkeep isn't to expensive as long as you have the skills to do it yourself and the ingenuity to find different ways of doing things.

The big money eaters are the new things we want to add to the farm. Like the market garden we put tin last year where there had not been a garden before. We had no equipment to till it ourselves so we had to hire someone to come in and do it for us. Well, this year we put the garden in the same spot and hired the same person to once again till the garden under but it cost half the price because the long time consuming job of breaking the sod and starting the garden from scratch had already been done the year before. Next year we should be able to till it ourselves with the large walk behind tiller we got last weekend knocking the cost down to maintenance on the tiller and gas. This is just one example but it seems that everything on our farm follows this suit.

So because we are constantly adding new things and because we always have lack of funds their are a lot of things we need.... and can't afford. This is where necessity becomes the mother of invention. We have a potatoe farming neighbor who has been the nicest guy. We probably give him and his wife a good laugh about how much we don"t know when it comes to farming, but he is always helpful and patient with all our question asking. Well he saw us putting in garden rows last year by hand. If you've never actually done this before let me tell you it sounds and even looks easier than it is. It's truly back breaking labor. So he went home and took an old piece of a potatoe rower and welded it to a frame that could be attached to our ride on mower. It only dose one row at a time but it works beautifully. We cut our gardening time this year in half. Next year I hope to acquire a planter of some sort, especially for the corn.

So I have to say for everyone dreaming of doing this, listen to the advice of your neighbors. They know more than you that's why there still here. Be kind to your neighbors and they will help you out, and don't be afraid to ask questions. Many of the older farmers in our area are only to happy to spend time telling stories and explaining things. They feel that farming is a dying profession and they love to see a new generation trying to live off the land. I've posted new picks in the farming album.

Have a great day.