[Market-farming] $90k per acre

Andy Fellenz fellenz at fltg.net
Fri Apr 25 09:05:34 EDT 2008


Sure you can make $90K/acre, especially if you extrapolate from a 44X60 
foot plot, or even from 14 44X60 intensively managed plots.  One thing 
to remember is that gross revenues get the headlines, but net revenues 
are what pays your bills.  What I did not see in the write-up was any 
discussion of labor costs to manage the micro scale polyculture system 
the professor is trialing or how he is doing his marketing.  Marketing 
is critical with this style system as you are counting on retail pricing 
and will never have much of any one thing at a time. 

I  grow more than 50 different fruits and vegetables each year on <10 
acres and do intercropping with annual vegetables mixed into my 
orchard.  I have found as I have scaled up from an ~1/2 acre market 
garden that designing for efficient utilization of labor and equipment 
makes a bigger difference on the bottom line than to try to cram as much 
as you can into a small area.  



Andy
www.FellenzFamilyFarm.com


Christian wrote:
> http://extension.osu.edu/~news/story-print.php?id=4487 
> <http://extension.osu.edu/%7Enews/story-print.php?id=4487>
>
> I am not a real farmer yet (YET) but this sounds like a good idea to 
> me. Polyculture instead of monoculture. In other words. Don't grow so 
> many acres of just one product but mix it up. Grow multiple products 
> per acre. High value crops. And grow them close to town so the 
> customers don't have to travel so far to get to them.
>
> Any thoughts? I can't wait until 50 people tell me it can't be done. 
> That will assure me that it CAN be done.
>
>
> http://extension.osu.edu/~news/story-print.php?id=4487 
> <http://extension.osu.edu/%7Enews/story-print.php?id=4487>
>
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