for new "farmers"

There have been quite a few new posters here lately, many of whom are buying land in the country for the first time. I'm posting this article from the NYS Farm Bureau "Grassroots." hoping that you will read it with an open mind. It talks about people moving to the country for the first time and the problems that can occur when the idealized vision meets the reality of modern farming.

I know, from posts and questions asked and from the sinceretiy of the posts, that you are all entering into this with your eyes open and hoping for the best. I also know that you are all good people, but there is that in modern agriculture that doens't get into the dream of the simple life - noise, smells, inconveniently slow equipment on highways, cattle that think a fence is a challenge to be overcome rather than a limit to be abided by, and the difference in attitude toward the land and animals inherent in the "farming as industry" and "farming as nostalgia." Yep, country life is paced a little slower, except during planting and harvest. Farmers work not 9-5, but 4-9, and sometimes well into the night.

Give it a read, ponder on where and what you are moving into. I hope that you can get a better idea, and an appreciation for all those strange things that will be going on around you.

http://www.nyfb.org/Grassroots/grass1105/war.htm