Saturday, December 28, 2013

Location Importance

This is one thing I find not everyone actually takes into account.  Your location can be your savior or your downfall.  So, lets break this down a bit.

1.)  Climatic location:
This one is not thought of often.  If you could have a farm, were would you want to be?  Well, lets really think about this.  Dream of a place that is warm, but not hot year round.  Green and little irrigation needed.  You can grow your own stuff when ever you want to.  Yeah, that place with the creek running through so that you don't have worry about water.  Trees to provide shade.  Yeah, that dream place, you are picturing it now.  That place, does not exists.  Once you realize that, you will be ahead of the game.  Realize that you if you decide to purchase new, you have the world (or your country) open to you.  So, realize that nothing is perfect, unless you figure out how to make it so for you.  For warm climates you may have to dig extra wells for adequate water.  For freezing climates you may have to find a way to keep water defrosted.  Coastal climates you may have to have buildings that will stand up to a hurricane.


2.)  Location to city:
The location to your nearest city can be very important depending on the type of farm you are going to do.  If you are going to grain farm and sell to an elevator, then it wont matter as much if you are close to a city.  If you are going for a mixed farm and sell the products of your farm to the general public, then being close to a city will be the best thing for you.  It gives you the outlet you need with out traveling long distances yourself.  On the other hand, you don't want to be too close to a city.  Closer you are, the higher your chances of violence occurring on your farm and towards your animals.  Also the closer you are to a city, the higher your taxes usually are going to be.

3)  Location of your farm buildings:
(a)This is just as important as the other two.  Your farm buildings need to be located where you can access them.  May sound easy, but think of this.  It is winter, you live where it snows, and you just got hit with a snow storm.  Getting to your farm buildings may not be as easy as you think.  Or the opposite.  You are in a very hot climate.  When the weather is 100 F and you have 90% humidity, just walking 500 feet to a barn carrying bales of hay can really over heat you.  So think of your climate and weather when you are planning your buildings.
(b)Another thing you need to take into account is the smells.  It is a farm, and they are animals, and they do defecate.  So, if you are going to have them enclosed for any reason, you may want those buildings a bit farther from your home so that there is not an unpleasant smell if you choose to open your windows.
(c)Also, if you have a water source you may think that having your barn close to that to water animals would be logical.  But think of your average rain fall or snow run off.  Be sure to not place it within a flooding area or an area lower then the surrounding land so that your barn will be dry.
(d)Do you plan on moving animals from one pasture to another?  How will they access the barn?  The water source?  All of these things, plus a lot more has to be considered when you are looking at locations for your farm buildings and fences.

Your locations, climate, buildings, and closeness to a city, are all things you need to consider when you are wanting to start a farm.  If you are buying and starting from scratch if you consider these things carefully that can be your first success, or your first failure.  These things can all be overcame, but it is not easy.  There is hope for those, like us, that inherit a farm and you have to figure out how to get around every one of these.  But if you are starting new, do it right and do it in a way that works for you to start with.

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