Book recommendations on farming

Pintman Paddy Losty

Hi all,


Myself and the wife have been giving serious consideration on getting out of the rat-race and getting in to farming in order to have an easier pace of life.


We have a fair amount of a nest egg saved up so will be looking to purchase a large enough tract of land to raise cattle or sheep on. Just waiting for the right property to come on the market.


In the mean time does anyone have any good books to recommend on farming to get the basics. We figure we will learn as we go once we have the land, machinery and a herd bought.

cute geoge

aca farm handbook annual
It might open your eyes

Say my name

Richard Perkins seems to be well received.

I haven't had the pleasure of reading his book (make that two now) but I think people lapped it up.
He starts from the beginning I believe in farming.

https://youtu.be/_p4SCh_KYgk

_Brian

I read dirt to soil, found it very interesting, I’m sure there’s stuff in there we could all implement.

Pintman Paddy Losty

Pintman Paddy Losty wrote: »

Hi all,

Myself and the wife have been giving serious consideration on getting out of the rat-race and getting in to farming in order to have an easier pace of life.

We have a fair amount of a nest egg saved up so will be looking to purchase a large enough tract of land to raise cattle or sheep on. Just waiting for the right property to come on the market.

In the mean time does anyone have any good books to recommend on farming to get the basics. We figure we will learn as we go once we have the land, machinery and a herd bought.

Learning as you go can work out terribly expensive. How many acres would you be looking to buy and in what area?

Head over to YouTube and check out Greg Judys videos. I think he has similar thinking to me on machinery, less is more.

https://www.kennys.ie/science-technology/the-art-and-science-of-grazing-how-grass-farmers-can-create-sustainable-systems-for-healthy-animals-and-farm-ecosystems

Birdnuts

_Brian wrote: »

I read dirt to soil, found it very interesting, I’m sure there’s stuff in there we could all implement.

Sounds like the book I'm reading atm Grass,Soil, Hope - a great read that will really opens one mind when it comes to where farming needs to be at in the future

jfh

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Learning as you go can work out terribly expensive. How many acres would you be looking to buy and in what area?

Head over to YouTube and check out Greg Judys videos. I think he has similar thinking to me on machinery, less is more.

https://www.kennys.ie/science-technology/the-art-and-science-of-grazing-how-grass-farmers-can-create-sustainable-systems-for-healthy-animals-and-farm-ecosystems

Just bought that on your recommendation

Say my name

Say my name wrote: »

Richard Perkins seems to be well received.

I haven't had the pleasure of reading his book (make that two now) but I think people lapped it up.
He starts from the beginning I believe in farming.

https://youtu.be/_p4SCh_KYgk

NOTS are doing an online course with him for 30e. It's 60e with a pdf of his book or 90e with a hard copy.
A lot cheaper than buying it directly from him.

Base price

Pintman Paddy Losty wrote: »

Hi all,


Myself and the wife have been giving serious consideration on getting out of the rat-race and getting in to farming in order to have an easier pace of life.


We have a fair amount of a nest egg saved up so will be looking to purchase a large enough tract of land to raise cattle or sheep on. Just waiting for the right property to come on the market.


In the mean time does anyone have any good books to recommend on farming to get the basics. We figure we will learn as we go once we have the land, machinery and a herd bought.

IMO try and get a bit of experience on the weekends (presumably during your free time) assisting/working on a livestock farm. You can read all the farming books in the world but unless you have experienced welts on your hands from a fork/grape you won't have a clue of the amount of physical work that is involved in rearing livestock.

Castlekeeper

Pintman Paddy Losty wrote: »

Hi all,


Myself and the wife have been giving serious consideration on getting out of the rat-race and getting in to farming in order to have an easier pace of life.


We have a fair amount of a nest egg saved up so will be looking to purchase a large enough tract of land to raise cattle or sheep on. Just waiting for the right property to come on the market.


In the mean time does anyone have any good books to recommend on farming to get the basics. We figure we will learn as we go once we have the land, machinery and a herd bought.

If you've enough to do all that, you've enough to retire and live off investments and dividends .
Pick somewhere you'd like to live and don't spend any more money for a while, most farming enterprises give a poor return apart maybe from dairying which ends up paying the owner operator minimum wage for a dirty job. Most other spending only damages the farm for very little return but keeps a whole load of others fed, dry, and warm.
10 acres will rear you a few cattle or sheep, any more land or stock for a hobby ( and that's all it is) is a waste of time and money.
There was a few old books by John Seymour on self sufficiency and farming a smallholding that should be still easily available. They would be very practical and easily accessible.
There's a Smallholding section on this board that might be worth browsing.
If it's a Michael O'Leary or Tony O'Reilly style move, it doesn't matter what you do, you can afford it.
The best of luck and enjoy the journey.

jfh

jfh wrote: »

Just bought that on your recommendation

Lots of good books out there. BioFarm conferences are another good resource.

davidk1394

Birdnuts wrote: »

Sounds like the book I'm reading atm Grass,Soil, Hope - a great read that will really opens one mind when it comes to where farming needs to be at in the future

Did you get the book online?

893bet

Is your intention to use your nest egg to purchase a farm so that you can have an income off the farm and get out of the rat race? You might want to rethink....

Birdnuts

davidk1394 wrote: »

Did you get the book online?

Christmas Present

Birdnuts

Castlekeeper wrote: »

If you've enough to do all that, you've enough to retire and live off investments and dividends .
Pick somewhere you'd like to live and don't spend any more money for a while, most farming enterprises give a poor return apart maybe from dairying which ends up paying the owner operator minimum wage for a dirty job. Most other spending only damages the farm for very little return but keeps a whole load of others fed, dry, and warm.
10 acres will rear you a few cattle or sheep, any more land or stock for a hobby ( and that's all it is) is a waste of time and money.
There was a few old books by John Seymour on self sufficiency and farming a smallholding that should be still easily available. They would be very practical and easily accessible.
There's a Smallholding section on this board that might be worth browsing.
If it's a Michael O'Leary or Tony O'Reilly style move, it doesn't matter what you do, you can afford it.
The best of luck and enjoy the journey.

Yes indeed - helped me when I started out, grew some great veg on what was previously degraded blanket bog.

_Brian

jfh wrote: »

Just bought that on your recommendation

Just did the same.

Castlekeeper

_Brian wrote: »

Just did the same.

Let us know what you think, I'd a look at it at a friends and, well, I didn't buy it after.
Now I only skimmed through a few chapters, but my impression was , that like a lot of such American publications, that it was a bit long on pictures but short on detail.
"Grazing for townies" would have sermed to me to be a more suitable subtitle.
I may be completely wrong of course.

TooOldBoots

Pintman Paddy Losty wrote: »

Hi all,


Myself and the wife have been giving serious consideration on getting out of the rat-race and getting in to farming in order to have an easier pace of life.


We have a fair amount of a nest egg saved up so will be looking to purchase a large enough tract of land to raise cattle or sheep on. Just waiting for the right property to come on the market.


In the mean time does anyone have any good books to recommend on farming to get the basics. We figure we will learn as we go once we have the land, machinery and a herd bought.

Farming in Ireland is the biggest rat race in existence. 90% of farmers are working off farm plus farming plus maybe have the wife working too.
Most farms barely turn a profit, and are debt laden.
Working 8 hour job then another few hours a day farming = ~12hour/day
if you just worked the job and forgot the farm then you'd be financially better off.
If that isn't a rat race idk what is.
let me know if you find the answer in those books

_Brian

Farming can be heavy, drudgery with little to no financial returns at the end. I can see why folk who grew up on farms can’t imagine not doing it and prefer it to corporate life.

However.
If OP buys a wee farm, looks after it, sets it up well as they do their bit of farming. When it becomes too much they will have the option to lease it for a regular income. There’s always the option to sell on. If they bought a run down farm add improved it over 10-15’years it would likely at least hold its value or increase in value.

Sounds to me like there isn’t no need for profit that it’s a lifestyle rather than a business they want. Just better be warned that it’s not all rosey and spring lambs frolicking through flower filled meadows. There’s endless hard, heavy dirty thankless work, there’s kicking animals, dead animals, brutal animals to handle and herd.

Tileman

Op

Do u mean to buy land to run as commercial and try live off the return?

If so I would rethink that. You would be using your nest egg for no profit. That’s fine if you have substantial money and can live off your savings but not if you are trying to make loan repayments and live off it.
However if you are just looking for a small holding around 20 acres to live and have a past time and are able to retire from your job it is a lovely way of life. You won’t make money on it but you will be busy and have great variety to fill your days.

The OP is in a position, after the right education (meaning keep to **** away from Teagasc), to purchase a farm that suits what they want to do as opposed to inheriting something that someone else tells them is what they should do.

Usually because that's the way it's always been done. (Never mind that that's not true).

https://www.donedeal.ie/holidayhomes-for-sale/traditional-cottage-with-sheds-on-26-acres/26658246



Something like this would suit the OP......tidy up the cottage and enjoy a nice life out of rat race

This will be bought,house tided up,stocked and basic machinery for less than a 3 bed semi in most of dublin

I know,what i would prefer anyway

Castlekeeper

[Deleted User] wrote: »

https://www.donedeal.ie/holidayhomes-for-sale/traditional-cottage-with-sheds-on-26-acres/26658246



Something like this would suit the OP......tidy up the cottage and enjoy a nice life out of rat race

This will be bought,house tided up,stocked and basic machinery for less than a 3 bed semi in most of dublin

I know,what i would prefer anyway

A bleak looking corner of the world!

_Brian

Deleted User wrote: »

https://www.donedeal.ie/holidayhomes-for-sale/traditional-cottage-with-sheds-on-26-acres/26658246



Something like this would suit the OP......tidy up the cottage and enjoy a nice life out of rat race

This will be bought,house tided up,stocked and basic machinery for less than a 3 bed semi in most of dublin

I know,what i would prefer anyway

Theres a brilliant opportunity for OP...
Corner of a field for 8-10 tents and you will take in decent cash over the season too.. Have a friend who does this between May BH & Halloween and he has a handy cash income for very little work

TooOldBoots

_Brian wrote: »

Theres a brilliant opportunity for OP...
Corner of a field for 8-10 tents and you will take in decent cash over the season too.. Have a friend who does this between May BH & Halloween and he has a handy cash income for very little work

I'd like my job going around picking up beer cans, rubbish, nappies and used condoms after them. Then deal with the noise, non payers, council and neighbours who now hate your guts for bring them around.
Your decent cash would be well earned. That doesn't sound like the easy life

_Brian

TooOldBoots wrote: »

I'd like my job going around picking up beer cans, rubbish, nappies and used condoms after them. Then deal with the noise, non payers, council and neighbours who now hate your guts for bring them around.
Your decent cash would be well earned. That doesn't sound like the easy life

Key with a campsite is charge strong money amd avoid the sort of rif raf that cause the problems you mentioned. I like to pay up front when I book as do lots of people.

All I can say is my friend does it, it’s not work free because nothing is but he’s taking in cash weekly over the season that he’d never see otherwise.

Kevhog1988

Deleted User wrote: »

https://www.donedeal.ie/holidayhomes-for-sale/traditional-cottage-with-sheds-on-26-acres/26658246



Something like this would suit the OP......tidy up the cottage and enjoy a nice life out of rat race

This will be bought,house tided up,stocked and basic machinery for less than a 3 bed semi in most of dublin

I know,what i would prefer anyway

Theres a fine house and 26 acres in Kilkelly at the moment too.