PART TIME FARMING

Long Acre

Ok first ever post. Have been reading others for a good while.

I am part time farmer. Full time PAYE worker.
For the last ten years have invested heavily on the farm reseeding fencing sheds machinery the usual.
Have 70 acres of average land well fragmented 6 plots.
I have Ulcertaive Colitis for 11 years also liver problems linked with the UC. This year got stomach ulcers (severe pain).
I have always pushed on with work & life, refused to let illness slow me down. I no longer feel i am fit for both farming & working off farm.

Would apprecaite any advice from fellow farmers.

massey woman

RELAX and ENJOY your life

8560

are you a young man or 50 plus? . i suppose you are asking will you set the land?.

if you are over 50 id say yes and mind yourself. if your younger you should get better and carry on.

i know when you stop farming ,its hard to get going again. or could you afford to give up your job?

Long Acre

8560 wrote: »

are you a young man or 50 plus? . i suppose you are asking will you set the land?.

if you are over 50 id say yes and mind yourself. if your younger you should get better and carry on.

i know when you stop farming ,its hard to get going again. or could you afford to give up your job?

I am 30

Would much prefer to give up job and continue farming (job is much more stressful) But I have wife and young child to consider. Have mortgage on house but not much debt on farm.

whelan1

i am 37 with 3 kids would love an off farm job to have a secure income , nothing like being paid every week to ensure the mortgage is being paid , does your oh have a job ?

Ashill5

Is your farm making enough to support your family?
How secure is your PAYE job?
Can you afford to give up your PAYE Job?
Is your wife working?
Where do you see yourself in 10 years time?
Best of all talk to your wife and discuss your options as she may have some suggestions!! Farming is a great way of life but it's great to have income coming every week!
You are put on this Planet for a couple of years so make the most of it!:)

Long Acre

whelan1 wrote: »

i am 37 with 3 kids would love an off farm job to have a secure income , nothing like being paid every week to ensure the mortgage is being paid , does your oh have a job ?

Thanks for reply.

My OH has a job. But not paid while on maternity leave.
Is there a reason you do not have an off farm job?

Long Acre

Ashill5 wrote: »

Is your farm making enough to support your family?
How secure is your PAYE job?
Can you afford to give up your PAYE Job?
Is your wife working?
Where do you see yourself in 10 years time?
Best of all talk to your wife and discuss your options as she may have some suggestions!! Farming is a great way of life but it's great to have income coming every week!
You are put on this Planet for a couple of years so make the most of it!:)

Prob is but i am still reinvesting to improve things
Job is not very secure - construction based job
If i give up job things would be tight
Wife is due back to work after maternity leave
I would like to see my self full time farming in 10 years
Have had several discussions with my wife.

mossfort

Long Acre wrote: »

Ok first ever post. Have been reading others for a good while.

I am part time farmer. Full time PAYE worker.
For the last ten years have invested heavily on the farm reseeding fencing sheds machinery the usual.
Have 70 acres of average land well fragmented 6 plots.
I have Ulcertaive Colitis for 11 years also liver problems linked with the UC. This year got stomach ulcers (severe pain).
I have always pushed on with work & life, refused to let illness slow me down. I no longer feel i am fit for both farming & working off farm.

Would apprecaite any advice from fellow farmers.

i am in somewhat of a similar situation where i have a stomach hernia which came on about two years ago. afters a year of suffering i finally got it under control with the proper medication but for the last six months i have chronic pain in my neck and shoulder due to compressed discs.
i used to work as a bricklayer but gave it up as work got scarce and have concentrated on working on my farm at home. i enrolled in a horticultural course for one day a week which fits in with the farm work.
at the end of the day do whatever you are happy doing and if the construction job is very heavy work you should consider your options . maybe if you give up the job you might be entitled to farm assist or illness benefit which might help with with cashflow .

whelan1

Long Acre wrote: »

Thanks for reply.

My OH has a job. But not paid while on maternity leave.
Is there a reason you do not have an off farm job?

i have 150 cows dats main reason :rolleyes: would give anything to have a secure cheque at the end of the week every week

dar31

whelan1 wrote: »

i have 150 cows dats main reason :rolleyes: would give anything to have a secure cheque at the end of the week every week

could you not milk them before and after work, and do the heavy stuff at the weekend. and sure the kids are young, they wouldn't miss you.
as for a life sure you should be grateful you have a job, what about all the poor buggers forced on to the dole line.;)

whelan1

ye sure who needs sleep and the 2 year old should be ok on his own from 6 am til 7 pm each day:D

vincenzolorenzo

dar31 wrote: »

could you not milk them before and after work, and do the heavy stuff at the weekend. and sure the kids are young, they wouldn't miss you.
as for a life sure you should be grateful you have a job, what about all the poor buggers forced on to the dole line.;)

A bit harsh? Very hard to be a part time dairy farmer. And impossible IMO to do it part time when you have 150 cows on the go. With that size of a farm if she were to go and get a job the farm would just go downhill. Simple as

millertime78

Long Acre wrote: »

Ok first ever post. Have been reading others for a good while.

I am part time farmer. Full time PAYE worker.
For the last ten years have invested heavily on the farm reseeding fencing sheds machinery the usual.
Have 70 acres of average land well fragmented 6 plots.
I have Ulcertaive Colitis for 11 years also liver problems linked with the UC. This year got stomach ulcers (severe pain).
I have always pushed on with work & life, refused to let illness slow me down. I no longer feel i am fit for both farming & working off farm.

Would apprecaite any advice from fellow farmers.

I am the same age as you and for the last few years have been working and part time farming. It took me some time but I've reduced stocking levels to a reasonable amount ie dry stock & sucklers (no sheep). This took time as I was reluctant to do it (family pride etc) but I have no regrets. Much better quality of life, my career at work has improved and I no longer feel I'm chasing my tail.


Your health is your wealth, feck the farm if only for a few years in order to sort yourself out. If you've got a full time job mind that as the income is guaranteed.

Best of luck & I hope you make the right decision.

Long Acre

vincenzolorenzo wrote: »

A bit harsh? Very hard to be a part time dairy farmer. And impossible IMO to do it part time when you have 150 cows on the go. With that size of a farm if she were to go and get a job the farm would just go downhill. Simple as

I agree with this. Working full time and farming cant be done without something losing out, either one or both will not be done to full potential.
I often come home in the evening planning to do a bit of fencing or topping by the time i get dinner & check stock i am fed up or tired. When are part time farmers supposed to get time for family?

whelan1

Long Acre wrote: »

I agree with this. Working full time and farming cant be done without something losing out, either one or both will not be done to full potential.
I often come home in the evening planning to do a bit of fencing or topping by the time i get dinner & check stock i am fed up or tired. When are part time farmers supposed to get time for family?

could you get a relative or neighbour to check stock etc and take the burden off you even 1 day a week would make a difference

Tora Bora

vincenzolorenzo wrote: »

A bit harsh? Very hard to be a part time dairy farmer. And impossible IMO to do it part time when you have 150 cows on the go. With that size of a farm if she were to go and get a job the farm would just go downhill. Simple as

Exactly. 150 cows is more then a full time job, for anybody. Mightn't think it if you looked at net pay at the end of the week, month or year.

T

Long Acre

Thanks lads for all the comments!

I made a decision to stay working until end of this year. (if the job lasts that long). Have not made this lightly hours of talking to family, weeks of thinking. Going to give the farming a real good shot.
I am passionate about farming but have no real interest in my Job other than the wages.
I think & hope if i put in the hours i am currently working off farm + Saturday. I should be able to survive & keep bills paid. If some part time work comes my way i will take in on esp in the winter months. If SFP goes in 2013 i may have to change plans. I intend to work extremley hard & push all aspects of the farm in particular grass growing & managment need to improve.
My goal for the future is to have a farm to hand on to the next genaration in better condition that when i got it.

Maybe i am making the biggest mistake of my life but i feel it is the right move for my family & I.

Thanks for listening & taking an interest


PS I really hate being told i am lucky to have a job hear it most days.

dar31

vincenzolorenzo wrote: »

A bit harsh? Very hard to be a part time dairy farmer. And impossible IMO to do it part time when you have 150 cows on the go. With that size of a farm if she were to go and get a job the farm would just go downhill. Simple as

the sarcasm seems to have been over looked here.

i milking 170 cows and calve over 230 a year. i fully understand what is involved and how little free time is avaible. its funny but sad, my eldest daughter refers to the time on a Sunday between 11 and 4 as "daddy's weekend"
even to milk 50 cows part time is a job in its self, you have to admire those that do it, dont think id do it.

vincenzolorenzo

Sorry about that! You know only too well the story yourself so!

agcons

best of luck what ever you do, having to deal with a chronic illness is not simple. IMO no matter what enterprise (other than dairying and small scale hort) you get into you wont make a living wage, so you have to streamline the farm operations to fit in with the rest of your life so that it becomes a source of relaxation and enjoyment to you. Keep a diary of your time for a month then analyse it and see where time is being wasted, chasing around the place.
You can have a fine farm without spending either a lot of money or time on it. I see people spending a lot of money on reclaimation, machinery and the like with no real hope of an economic return on the investment.
While money may be the root of all evil the lack of it can cause a lot of stress too, as the kids get older their expenses will grow with them and you will have to meet them from somewhere, these days its easier to keep a job than get one.

I dont think its possible in the long run to run a successfull dairy farm on a part time basis. The workload is just too great and unrelenting. Sooner or later either the dairy goes or the farmer goes.