What Do You Need to Start Your Farm?

No one’s ever said that it is easy to start a farm. However, farming is an extremely rewarding profession and if it’s always been your dream, then you’ll want to make sure that you’re taking the right steps to give yourself an agricultural advantage. There are a number of factors you’ll need to consider, as well as many tools you should obtain, to build up a successful farming operation.

Not sure where to begin? Never fear! High Plains Equipment, with locations in Devils Lake and Harvey, is your North Dakota farm equipment dealer. Read on to learn more about the tools you’ll need to begin farming, along with some tips for securing your pastoral victory.

1. Take Time to Obtain Tools

It’s likely that you don’t have an endless budget to spend on several brand-new, shiny, high-tech pieces of farm equipment right off the bat. But you do need to start somewhere. Take the time to acquire a few crucial pieces of equipment and if you need to buy used, then know that there are many great used tractors, cultivators and other machines that will serve you well until you can afford to replace them down the road.

At the very least, you should try to obtain:

• A compact tractor or a UTV with a few attachments to help you till land
• A handcart to carry around loose materials or heavy items
• A set of hand tools, including screwdrivers, adjustable wrenches, a claw hammer and pliers
• A set of gardening tools, including a hoe, a rake, trowels or spades and a pitchfork
• A trailer for transporting crops, soil, fertilizer, seedlings and so forth

2. Start Small

Maybe your dreams include a vast expanse of land full of corn, wheat and soybeans, along with a hen house and a barn full of cattle. But you know you can’t go from a tiny vegetable plot to a large agricultural operation instantly. 

Clear a few acres of land and choose one crop to begin with that will be successful in your climate; for example, here in North Dakota, soybeans are our top crop. You can and should rotate your crops each year to avoid depleting the soil of its nutrients, so you can try something else next year.

You can always add acreage or diversify your crops later on, and animals can be obtained on a slow schedule. A few chickens are much easier to manage than several different types of livestock if you’re new to farming.

3. Be Prepared

If managing animals, you’ll want to have a good veterinarian to help you take care of them. Waste also needs to be considered; determine how and where you’ll dispose of your agricultural waste before you start. You’ll also need a game plan for crop irrigation, which will involve judicious water management. There’s a lot to think about, but if you plot everything out in advance and don’t get ahead of yourself, then you can ensure your farm’s success.

Stop by one of our dealership locations in either Harvey or Devils Lake, ND, to view our inventory of new and used farm equipment for sale, including precision farming tools. We can assist you with financing options as well. High Plains Equipment proudly serves Minot and Grand Forks, ND.