Just purchased a farm

[tngamecockfan]

Been a member here for some time but never posted before. I have always wanted to live and work on a farm. Well, at 59/12 I just purchased a 109 acre farm in Rutherford County, TN at an absolute auction.

This property includes a small chicken coop/house, work shop with huge chain lift, and 2 metal barns. It also has some pastures, 4 ponds, woods, and had some cattle which also sold at the auction.

The roads through the property are in bad shape with a lot of rock areas. I will need to fill in some of these low areas with rock and fill over with some kind of material (clay, soil, crush-n-run, river rock). I will also need to probably dig up some of the rocks in the fields. So having said this it's evident to me I will need a tractor with a front end loader.

This farm had 2 MF tractors for sale which I didn't bid. 1 had a blown engine and the other had an AC cab and front end loader. It went for 16,300. I was told that the old man who purchased the tractor 10 years ago brand new pay at least $60,000 for it.

Never been on or used a tractor. But I can learn anything. I need to crawl before I walk so I am in no hurry to make a decision. But I can't afford to spend a lot of money and will also need a bushhog for the pastures. Since there are 4 ponds on the property I might need to think about a backhoe attachment to deepen and/or enlarge the ponds which are all spring fed.

I have read here that MF probably makes the best tractor for the money. What would be the best model of MF, or another brand, for me to purchase.

BTW, I am also a beekeeper and have bees on my property in town, 4 farms and 1 rural home with about 8 acres of open land and near farm land. Having a tractor would probably make my life easier on the farm when removing heavy supers of honey. I plan on planting tulip poplars, bee bee trees, and probably some vitex trees. Al have good nectar flows with the latter two being later in the summer when most of the nectar flow has dried up.

Will probably purchase some calves starting next spring, graze them and then sell them off in the fall. This would help bring in some income without the expense of cutting and baleinlg hay and winter.

 

[RoyJackson]

Welcome to TBN!!!

For a complete novice, you sure have some work ahead of you!! And, a lot of learning!
One recommendation...don't over extend yourself financially.

And, good luck!!!

 

[Carykong]

Sounds like a great new frontier. Time and experience improving your new farm will be your best teacher. Yeah,you will need a tractor. Define your needs and the right tractor will become apparent. Grazing livestock? Another big commitment. Fencing. Time. Feed. My friend grazes Longhorns. The Longhorn thrives on nearly anything,almost like a deer. Very tough. Raising calfs will really suck up your time. Enjoy the journey. BTW, I have old family ties in the Paris to Clarksville area going back to 19th century. Great part of the country.

 

[kebo]

Congrat's on your new farm purchase!! Sounds like it's a great place to do your hobby farming, and hopefully make some extra income with it. What part of Tennessee is Rutherford county located in? My mom is from the Monterey area, in Putnam County I believe. We used to visit up there alot, but most of her family there has passed on, I just have one cousin and her family living there now.

For that much land, I would bite the bullet and start out with a pretty good sized tractor, rather than starting out undersized to save money and realize later on you should have bought bigger. My opinion (and you will get many here) is to go with at least 35hp, but honestly think you should be looking at 40hp+ especially if you plan to get into growing & cutting your own hay. Then you will probably want to be looking at about 50hp tractors just for the sheer hp and weight advantage they will give you. Definitely get a FEL, and if the property has hills/slopes, muddy areas, or any creek crossings I would also recommend getting one with 4x4 as well.

As for which color, the big four all make good tractors, and they all have some known issues so it would be good to do some research here (and other places too) to avoid buying a particular tractor model with a history of problems. They are other brands such as Mahindra that you may want to look at too. If you plan on buying new, the dealership (and their responses and attitudes) may also play into helping you decide which color to purchase. Also there have been several threads posted here in the past with lots of GREAT advice for folks who are new to using tractors. Tractors are indispensable on farms, but can also get someone hurt if they don't respect them, or "grow into" using them with a cautious attitude. It would be good to spend some time to search for them and read up on general tractor use.

I personally prefer the green brand, but that's just my preference. As I mentioned, Kubota, MF, and NH all make good units too so you'll have to do your homework to decide which one suits you best, has the features you want, and the price you are willing to pay. Maybe once you figure out what size of tractor you want/need, you can come back here with more specific questions about them?

Good luck, and keep us posted on what you wind up buying. Btw, do you post on the Gamecock Central forums, or maybe Cockytalk? If you do, then I think I know your username there. I post there too, so here's a big GO GAMECOCKS!!

 

[sam5570]

Welcome to TBN!!!

For a complete novice, you sure have some work ahead of you!! And, a lot of learning!
One recommendation...don't over extend yourself financially.

And, good luck!!!

i second

 

[TripleR]

Pretty good advice given and I am sure more will come; not sure I can improve on any of it.

Since you know nothing about tractors, I would check out some rental places and take a tractor out to your place for a day or two, try some projects and see how it does to establish a baseline for comparison.

To someone new to tractors, a 35-40 HP machine will initially feel pretty big, but tractors "shrink" with use.

I personally wouldn't want anything under 50 HP on that size property and my preference would be quite a bit bigger.

For enlarging your ponds, depending on size of course, you can't beat an excavator. A backhoe is really going to boost the cost, so a lot of thought must go into the decision as to return on investment.

I have raised cattle and depending on the market, made money and lost money, so I quit. There are people on here who are doing this now and can give you much better info than I and can help you with your endeavors.

I am sure you already know this, but farming is hard work and very time consuming.

Buying used, I don't pay any attention to brand only condition and capability.

 

[vjcoppola]

Congrats on the new farm, yes you will need a tractor, at least one. Before you spend much money you might consider buying an older less expensive machine. As you gain experience you will be able to make a better decision about a newer machine. I've made it for 32 years with an old Ford 2000 and it's done everything I've needed it to do including all the beekeeping tasks. We ran over 700 colonies and that tractor with just a trip bucket loader and a rear mounted fork lift was used for moving palletized bees, moving and loading pallets of supers and loading 2 or 3 tractor trailer loads of honey barrels each year.

I just purchased a 50 hp Mahindra 5010 which is better suited for all the general farm work but seems too large for bee work. Most guys use a skidsteer for beework. I think they make a mess in the bee yards, the best machine I've seenfor that work is the swinger, Swinger loader Sales : Swinger of Michigan, LLC - Swinger loaders :: Home , a fork lift with articulating steering.

 

[tngamecockfan]

Thanks to all of you that replied. To answer a few question of your replies.

Farm has cross fencing and gates.

My wife use to raise cattle with her previous husband for many years. Their 2 boys raise cattle so I do have a resource for information.

After the auction one farmer approached me about renting land to graze his cattle. Told him to call me back later and I have closed on the property and my head is on straight.

Have an older brother-in-law who knows a lot about tractors and loved to work/tinker with them. Hopefully he can get me setup with tractor that will not cost an arm and a leg. And I will option for dependibility over tractor name.

I plan on doing this slow and learning. I take a lot of notes in my beekeeping and I expect to do the same with this farm. All my bee data is input into spreadsheets and I make graphs of what each hive looks like for every frame and every box when I look and what it looks like after I finish.

I wouldn't expect to get over 2 or 3 young cows next spring. Perhaps the use of calves is not the correct term. These will be young cows that are on their own (no longer nursing and needing mama).

I live in Murfreesboro, TN about a mile from downtown. Cookville which is the county seat for Putnum count is about an hour away. The farm has a Rockvale, TN address. Rock being the key word in a lot of the land in Rutherford and some of the other surrounding counties. They grow mainly cotton, soybeans, and corn in and around Murfreesboro. There are farm fields in the city limits which is over 100,000 people. Not to mention some deer and a huge population of turkeys in the city limits. See them in peoples' yards and walking along entrances to subdivisions.

My immediate family live in St. Matthews (Mom, son), Orangeburg (sister), W.Cola (daughter). I moved to TN from Irmo. Been a Gamecock season ticket holder for over 32 years. Purchased my first new truck from the Ford dealership in Lexington.

I don't plan on extending myself financially. I am a Dave Ramsey follower (who lives and broadcasts from the Nashville area). If I don't have the money I usually do without.

 

[rekees4300]

What would be the best model of MF, or another brand, for me to purchase.

Seem to recall that a general rule of thumb is to have 1 horsepower per acre. Take a look at the MF 5400 Series.

5400 Mid Range Tractors | 75-115 HP Tractors | Massey Ferguson

 

[CaptJCHill]

Consider a skid steer and a smaller tractor instead of a big tractor with a loader.You will have a lot more versatility with the implements you can rent for the skid steer
I have found that my skid steer is my go to machine more often than the tractor on my similar ,but smaller 42 acres.A 45hp tractor with a loader is really just a 45hp wheelbarrow and I sold my newer big one to get the skidsteer and small tractor,also you can have some extra income potential doing skid steer work .Congratulations on your new lifestyle choice you will have no regrets.
John

 

[Sparrky]

Another Dave Ramsey listener welcome, I had a somewhat good year last year and bought a Mahindra 6000 4wd with FEL with quick detach. Under DR's plan I only had one payment.:thumbsup: I like the height it will lift and after using a friends 28hp Kabota I knew something bigger was needed for any serious lifting with out tipping up on three wheels on a slight incline. With a 50 and above you will be able to get a rock bucket and thereby clearing some rocks from your fields and put them in the wet spots. The tractor had 650 hours and I paid 1650 for it.

 

[yucholian]

Don't buy a backhoe attachment for the tractor.
For the same money, get a dedicated used excavator.

 

[Bob Ha]

tngamecockfan, I want give a recommendation but will tell you a few things that has bit us.

We have two tractors both 72hp (62 pto). One is 4wd and both have FEL.

Been doing similar as you plan on doing. We have 4 ponds, raise cattle, brush hog, FEL work and produce hay. We produce about 500 bales yearly.

Purchased a baler.... oh crap our tractors wouldn't handle the baler so we sold it and purchased a small baler.

Purchased a 10' heavy duty brush hog and both tractor will handle it but in some cases when the grass (clover) is thick it pulls down our machines.

Purchased a 4 bottom plow (moldboard) and our machines will handle some of our soils but when we hit clay it pulls down our machines.

Purchased the rest of our equipment based on our tractors ability.

We've been doing this for 6 years now and already looking to upgrade our tractors.

Only suggestion I will give is think long and hard about the size and accessories prior to purchasing. Once you decide move up to the next machine size.

Good luck and enjoy.

 

[ShenandoahJoe]

Renting your land to a farmer with a going concern is a great idea. It takes away all the time pressure to figure out what you want to do. You'll keep your tax status, you can learn a lot about what your land is good for, and you're making a few bucks while you do it.

 

[Old Red]

Been on a couple of those rock side paradise farms in your county chasing turkeys. I really like the area. I too am a big Ramsey fan from KY! Good luck. I have a Bobcat T190 skid steer and it has been a very handy machine on my farm!

 

[Smallplot]

When all is said and done, you can pick up an older - 70s or early 80's - full sized tractor with 100-120 HP a lot cheaper than buying a new 50 HP tractor. No need for front wheel assist with these brutes for what you have said you will be doing. There are several MFG that make aftermarket loaders to fit these older machines as well. They will have heavier front ends and better suited for people who may not know the limits of a small tractor.

Personally I would not worry about getting a back hoe to dig out a pond, especially a spring fed pond. You can hire someone to come in with a track hoe to do this, the right equipment for the right task. :thumbsup:

 

[Obed]

Personally I would not worry about getting a back hoe to dig out a pond, especially a spring fed pond. You can hire someone to come in with a track hoe to do this, the right equipment for the right task. :thumbsup:

Agreed.

Get a tractor big enough to do what you really need. Any bigger just means more fuel costs and that can add up quick at almost $4/gal. I'd get something big enough for your bush hog.

Hay making equipment for 100 acres may not pay for itself. You can hire out the making of the hay. My dad's farm in TN is the same size as yours. He raises about 80 head of cattle. He hasn't made hay himself in the past 35 years. It is cheaper and easier to hire it out. He now just buys hay from someone else and pastures his cattle longer. He says that is cheaper than lime and fertilizer and hiring out the haymaking. Thus, I wouldn't size the tractor for making hay. My dad's tractor is 45 HP and 37 years old and does everything he needs it to do.

Definitely get a FEL. That's one expense you won't regret. Buying used will get you the best bang for the buck.

Good luck and congrats on the farm purchase.

Obed

 

[Verticaltrx]

I'm going to give some advice that may not be popular on here, but here it goes.


To make money farming, you do not need all the big equipment everyone is suggesting. In fact, that is a good way to not make money farming. One of the more successful farms around here is over 100ac and the only tractor they have is an old B-series Kubota (maybe 25hp or so). They do direct market beef, poultry and pork and let the animals do the work. The tractor is only used for the occasional mowing around the fences, tilling, moving things around the farm, turning the compost pile, etc. They buy what hay they need which greatly reduces the size of tractor needed. There is a good book by Joel Salatin called 'You Can Farm', it explains the whole concept in good detail. Joel is a little out there on some things, but making money farming isn't one of them (and all of his monetary principles coincide with Dave Ramsey).

My wife and I are getting started in a similar operation and the only two tractors I have are a '53 Ford NAA and a B3200 Kubota. I make 500-700 square bales of hay a year with that combo as well as doing all the work around our farms.

Now with all that said, if you simply want to be a 'gentleman farmer' and not really care if the farm is profitable, then by all means buy as much tractor as you can afford.

Personally, If I were in your shoes (can you tell I'm a Dave listener too, lol) I'd buy a good 4wd compact tractor with a loader in the 30-40hp range (L series Kubota, 3000-4000 series Deere). It would do all the mowing around a farm, building fence, gardening, cleaning out barns, moving materials, grading driveways, and light field work. Just keep cows on the land during the growing months and you avoid the need for hay/big equipment altogether. Also if you run enough cattle you won't have the need to do much mowing anyways.

Attached are some pics of me doing farm work with what most would consider a miniscule little tractor:

 

[piller]

Welcome to TBN and congrats on your farm purchase. I'm in Oakdale, in between Crossville and Knoxville. I'm also a beekeeper, just started that last year. I lease out some of my farm and it is a good arrangement for me.

 

[Martian]

Two best posts so far a Roy's first comment and Verticaltrx's last comment.

Don't overextend yourself, and know what your getting. I bought a 85HP utility tractor because I wanted it, didn't need it. That said it's done everything and more I've asked of it and wouldn't trade down for a smaller model if I had a chance. But, by no means have I made money off the scenario. Many people will tell you, that if you don't enjoy doing this stuff yourself, hire it out, because it will more than likely be cheaper. All of us here enjoy the manual labor and seat time, and it is really fun.

Now that we got that out of the way, I think you would be very happy with, as Verticaltrx mentioned, a Deere 3x20/4x20, Kubota Grand L series, Kioti DK series (and the list goes on) Also be aware, that just like cars, there are premium and plane versions of these tractors. What I've listed is the premium versions and will cost you slightly more, I think it's worth it, others don't. The standard editions will usually do the same work, just not as comfortable.

Welcome and good luck on your search!