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Tips on Property Selection

© Don De Beyer

The small scale farmer usually finds the purchase of land to be their single largest expense. It is therfore critical that the land they choose is appropriate for the type of farming they wish to develop. There are several factors that will influence the decision to purchase a piece of property. The price of the property is important, but as it can vary tremendously from region to region, and country to country, I will not evaluate it here. Some of the other factors to consider are location, topography, soil, climate, and structures. Depending on the type of farm, some factors may be of less importance than others. For example: a small crop farm would need a suitable climate, good soil, and a relatively flat topography. A livestock farm would look for lots of structures like barns, fences, storage, and livestock handling facilities. A mixed farm (growing both crops and livestock) would select the farm that has the best mix of all factors.

The location of the farm is important for three reasons. First it must be close enough to the farmer's source of off farm income. Second, it must have ready access to agribusinesses such as feed/farm supply stores, and agricultural markets. Lastly, is the property close to urban areas for family shopping and recreation.

The type of soil and topography on a property will control to a degree the types of crops that can be produced. Soil conditions are not easily, or necessarily possible to change, so it is best to have a soil analysis done before buying. Then decide if the soil meets the requirements of the crops likely to be grown. As for topography, anything more than gently rolling hills may look attractive, but can make it dangerous or impossible work with farm machinery.

The climate of the area will have an effect on the length of the growing season, daily high and low temperatures, and distribution of rainfall/snow throughout the year. As a result certain crops may not be able to grow or may produce substandard yields. For the livestock farmer one of the results of a cold winter will be higher feed cost. Weather is one of the favourite topics of farmers because it has such a tremendous effect on the farm.

The structures on the property such as barns, storage bins, machinery sheds, fences etc. all are important to the farmer. In most cases they are cheaper to buy with the property than to build later. Select those properties with new or near new structures that have the potential to be expanded and upgraded as needed.