- Farmall 560 Tractor--$2,700
- David Brown 990 Tractor--$3,000
- Tractor and Equipment Maintenance--$300
- Greenhouse-- About $1,700 finished and ready to be heated
- Garlic and Straw--$400
- Cover Crops--$300
- Growing Supplies, Roller Table, Irrigation--$1,000
- Brush Hog--$300
- Welder, Welding Supplies--$250
- Fuel--$200
- Yurt Supplies--$100
- Transporting Ourselves to the Farm--$500+
That puts a grand total at somewhere around $11,000, and I'm sure there are a few things we've neglected to count. There are quite a few more expenses in front of us too. We need a tractor sized rototiller for seedbed prep; we need seed; we need more irrigation supplies; we need hand implements; we need some kind of trasplanting mechanism; and we definitely want some kind of mechanized cultivation equipment (I'll be putting my welder to work on those last two, but the cost of loose iron to weld with is not to be underestimated.).
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| The David Brown. It's technically just as powerful as the much larger in stature Farmall 560. |
The largest single expenses are obviously the tractors. We got the Farmall 560 first. It was the best we could find at the time and it really got the job done well. But it is a real gas guzzler--probably the single biggest reason we jumped at the David Brown 990. The 990 sips diesel. We put 10 gallons in when we first got in September and it ran for the rest of the season. The 560 can suck 10 gallons through its engine in half a day. We do like them both, but they really serve the same purpose for us and we don't need two tractors that do the same thing. Plus the David Brown is a very cute little English tractor. Take a look:
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| Farmalls are nice a well equipped tractors, but they really were made for row cropping and heavier tillage. |
On a side note, it was a hell of an adventure getting the tractors home. I drove the 560 all the way from Star Prarie to Amery--about 15 or 20 miles. As I was to discover, the tie rods on this tractor are severely worn, so once I got to 20 or 25 mph the steering started to wobble from left to right. Big bumps would initiate the wobble sequence and I'd have to gently press the brakes to regain control. There was one massive hill on the way home too. It must be about half a mile long and about a hundred or more feet down--a 30 or 40 degree pitch. I swear I must've just about shit my pants.
Hence, we tried the trailer approach for the D.B. We used our old farm truck (see below) and a borrowed trailer to do it. Of course the engine on our truck was kind of worn out (I've since replaced the engine with a completely rebuilt engine) and the brakes weren't were too greatly. Needless to say, there were no trailer brakes either. At one point during our 20 mile trek home I almost went into the ditch with our 7,000lb load. Despite driving slowly on the busy Highway, there wasn't enough room to slow down for our turn and, having to slam on the brakes, we started skidding towards a steep embankment down towards a marsh. Luckily we were able to stop in the nick of time--right at the edge of the embankment in fact. Next time I think I'll wire up some trailer brakes.
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| It's a good farm truck, and with a new engine it'll make a great market and delivery truck, too. It should average about 20mpg with its new slant 6 engine. |
However, we do plan to be in the "black" next year. Overall, we think we'll be grossing about $25,000. If $10,000 are the year's expenses, that should leave a fine salary for one person. Unfortunately one of us will have to keep an off-farm job to make it work. If it weren't for our student loans, that would not be the case.
Wish Us Luck!
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