Part-Time Farming Answer

Part-Time Farming Answer

For Man; Wbo like Country

Life, Extra Income

Part-time farming may be the answer for you if you have or want a town or city job but still like “life in the country.”

E. D. Chastain, Jr., associate economist at VPI, says the trend toward part-time farming is on the upswing. Part-time farmers, however, do not include those who live in the country but produce little if any farm products for sale. Neither do they include those who depend on the farm for a living but actually produce only for farm use.

Chastain lists these advantages of part-time farming: It furnishes an additional source of income to the farm family through products sold from the farm, the cost of living can be reduced by using products in the home, and it provides an opportunity for a family to enjoy the advantages of living in the country. Often of prime value is the security factor— a part-time farm will help tide. you over in times of unfavorable economic conditions or during periods of unemployment.

However, there are some drawbacks. The part-time farmer will usually have to work after the regular“working day” at a job elsewhere. Transportation is often a problem, and when job opportunities appear somewhere else, it is not as easy to move as if you were living in an urban area.

There are several factors which influence the success of the part-time farmer. Anyone who farms should really to do so. If you want only "a home in the country,” likely you should not raise. produce for sale.

It must be possible for you to work at both jobs satisfactorily. The travel involved should not hamper work on either the farm or at the off-farm job. The type of farming should be considered in terms of time permitted by off-farm work.