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Natasha Post, Author
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What Is A Small Farm?
Definition of a Small Farm
A small farm in America is defined as one earning between $1000 to $5000. Small farms are generally used for subsistence and commercial purposes. They use very little to no expensive technologies for farming. Small farms have become popular with the increasing demand for better, fresh and healthy food. They are also thought to be more sustainable.
The following are some of the things you can do on a small farm:
Fruit Farming Definitions
Many families love going out on weekends to pick fruits, and growing fruits on your small farm can be a very lucrative business. Managing a small fruit farm is cheap. You can recruit a few employees to help around. What’s more, buyers come to you to buy the fruits, thus saving you on transportation costs. To get more returns plant more than one fruit, provide enough parking spaces for visitors, invest in good customer service and create more business networks.
Dairy Farming Definition
When it comes to dairy farming, factory farms dominate the milk market. However, this does not mean there is no space for small dairy farmers. In fact, there is a continuing decline in the number of licensed farms which creates room for more suppliers and entrepreneurs with small farms in rural areas. For small dairy farming to be successful, you need to learn how to improve milk production.
Organic Farming Definition
The growing market of health-conscious consumers has created a big demand for organic products. Unlike in the past, there are now more restaurants and supermarkets specializing in organic produce. These businesses rely on organic farmers to supply them, and with a small farm, you can be one of the most sought-after organic farmers.
Flower Farming Definition
A lot of tourists love visiting flower farms. Besides, flower farms are very versatile. With a small farm of flowers, you can supply flower shops and even connect with event organizers to supply flowers for decorations, thus creating more income channels.
Small Farm Productivity
For a long time, large farms have been thought to be more productive than small farms. This was also why more equipment was shipped from large farms. This is from the fact that a good number of large farms practice monoculture. Monoculture is the practice of growing one crop on vast tracts of land. This is especially so because it is easier to use machinery on one type of crop, but the result is a massive harvest of only one crop. On the other hand, farmers with small farms.
Because of the use of machinery in large-scale farming, there is a lot of bare ground left between crops. This space goes to waste or worse still grows weeds that the farmer will have to remove, thus spending extra money that has no returns. However, because of the intercropping in small firms, no space is left idle. The main difference between large farms and small farms comes in the yield per unit area of one crop. Large farms produce more, but the overall production per unit area regardless of the crop type is higher on small farms.
How Small Farms Contribute to the Society (Food Security)
They Support Food Production
Small farms produce a lot of food and are thus a valuable asset to long-term economic sustainability and food security.
Contribute to Balanced Development
The small farms in rural areas highly contribute to balanced development. With so many people moving to cities and towns to look for greener pastures, small farms create a reason for them to remain.
Maintain and Accommodate Social Connections
Agriculture on small farms mostly depends on human labor, unlike in large farms where machines are used. When employees on small farms get together, they interact and get to create friendships and even networks.
Consolidation of Power
One of the major issues facing society today is the consolidation of power. Small farms are helping solve this crisis by providing diversity in societal structure which is essential in maintaining the diversity of ownership.
Benefits of Small Farms
Some of the benefits of small farms include:
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- They do more with the land provided hence more efficient
- Agriculture on small farms is more environmental friendly thus more sustainable.
- Farming on small farms embraces crop rotation, which uses different parts of the soil at different times
- Agriculture on small farms encourages intercropping which allows the farmer to diversify their risks. If one crop fails, the other one may do well.
- Small farms promote rural economy
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Transporting Small Farm Equipment
Tractor Transport ships machinery from small and large farms. We are dedicated to finding the most affordable transport prices to fit every farmers needs. Contact us today for a farm equipment shipping rate! (877) 373-0109