How to get started with agtech and farming investments?

I’ve got a 2800 m2 plot right near my house, and honestly, I have zero clue what to plant.
Any suggestions on how to actually use this space so it isn't just sitting there looking empty?

bluepuma36 said:I’ve got a 2800 m2 plot right near my house, and honestly, I have zero clue what to plant.
Any suggestions on how to actually use this space so it isn't just sitting there looking empty?

The real question is, how much time and manual labor are you actually willing to put into that plot every single day?

Charles Ramos7 said:$50/lb? 😲 You can't even find those prices at a legitimate big-box retailer with tax included, full certifications, and a solid quality guarantee 😕

In the Midwest, artisanal smoked sausage goes for about $15, which is already $67/lb.. and you can't even compare that to what you'd find from a massive commercial processing plant...

Question - total city boy here, thinking about buying some land...

I wasn't originally looking to buy much, just enough for a house, but the sellers are playing hardball—it’s all or nothing. They’re older folks looking to downsize into a condo, and honestly, the price is too good to pass up.

So, besides the lot for my house, I’d end up with about a dozen extra parcels of farmland and timberland. We're talking several acres in total.

Full disclosure: there is zero chance I’m actually going to farm any of this. My idea was maybe plant some trees on the plots where it makes sense geometrically and just let them grow. I'm assuming you don't really have to "maintain" a forest, right?

Here's the real question—what kind of headaches am I walking into? What are the penalties for a landowner who just lets the land sit idle? How difficult is it to lease out or sell these pieces (and what does the tax/fee structure look like)? Also, can I just plant trees like that, or is there heavy oversight/regulations involved?

I really don't want to buy something that ends up being a massive anchor around my neck. Any advice is appreciated.

Listen, just go out there and find some farmer who needs grass for his cattle, then have them mow it for you for free. Why bother planting forests? Who’s actually gonna deal with pulling up all those stumps later? Where do you even find people like that these days?

Charles Howard74 said:Listen, just go out there and find some farmer who needs grass for his cattle, then have them mow it for you for free. Why bother planting forests? Who’s actually gonna deal with pulling up all those stumps later? Where do you even find people like that these days?

The Vrbovec-Krizevac move...

If you end up pulling the trigger on one, you’ve gotta swing by my place sometime. I'll show you how much ground I can cover just using a riding mower without any heavy machinery. I'm out there managing about 5 acres spread across 18 different spots. One of them is even way up near Gradec, right outside Columbus. Honestly, I practically grew up right in front of Melina, just riding the line between the number 6 streetcar and the town square... and now..........;O)

Quick question—I just bought a house with a decent-sized yard. I’ve got about 3,000 square meters of unused land sitting there, part of a larger 4,600 square meter lot. What’s actually worth planting on a "small" plot like this to get the best return? The property is near Columbus; it’s hilly overall, but this specific 3,000 square meter patch is flat.

I mean, it’s a cheap country... definitely an area worth keeping an eye on... especially with all those old minefields out there... ))) check this out
this..
http://www.redcross.org/content/dam/redcross/departments/safety/first-aid/first-aid-tips.html

Greetings! I am not entirely certain if I have landed in the correct corner of this forum, so please, do feel free to move my post elsewhere if I am out of place. I find myself in the position of having some agricultural land to offer for sale. It is only because my family members won't be able to tend to it once the time comes—and quite frankly, I simply cannot find the hours in my schedule to manage it myself due to my other commitments. Does anyone else ever feel like there just aren't enough hours in the day? The property is located out in Columbus and spans approximately two acres (roughly 13,000 square meters). Regarding the price, I am looking at a rate per square foot, though I am certainly open to negotiation; I am not set in stone on that figure! If this sounds like something you might be interested in, please do not hesitate to reach out to me directly. I look forward to hearing from you! Best regards,

What is the current state of truffle cultivation? Is there actually any profit to be made here, considering those astronomical prices per pound?

Charles Johnson84 said:Greetings! I am not entirely certain if I have landed in the correct corner of this forum, so please, do feel free to move my post elsewhere if I am out of place. I find myself in the position of having some agricultural land to offer for sale. It is only because my family members won't be able to tend to it once the time comes—and quite frankly, I simply cannot find the hours in my schedule to manage it myself due to my other commitments. Does anyone else ever feel like there just aren't enough hours in the day? The property is located out in Columbus and spans approximately two acres (roughly 13,000 square meters). Regarding the price, I am looking at a rate per square foot, though I am certainly open to negotiation; I am not set in stone on that figure! If this sounds like something you might be interested in, please do not hesitate to reach out to me directly. I look forward to hearing from you! Best regards,

Hey, we're actually interested! How can we get ahold of you?

Does anyone know if there's a specific plant or fruit tree that plays well with walnuts? I have a feeling they might be great neighbors...

You’d probably have better luck posting this over in Agriculture
.

Well, I figured I’d jump in here too.
We have two families currently living in Washington, D.C., and we’re actually planning to pack up and move out to Lake—which, mind you, is one of those areas designated as part of the Federal Reserve's special oversight zones—within the next year to try our hand at some kind of farming. It’s a huge relief that we aren't starting from absolute zero, though; we already own a substantial amount of land and a house out there, so at least that’s one less thing to lose sleep over.
The real question is—given how brutal the weather can get in Lake—what kind of agricultural ventures actually make sense there? And more importantly, who should we be talking to about securing government subsidies?

Hey everyone. I have a question regarding land pricing. I’m looking to pick up some acreage near Santa Barbara or maybe Santa Monica specifically to plant some fig and olive trees. Initially, I was scouting around Manhattan, but the prices there are just completely irrational given how rocky the terrain is and how isolated those plots are from any actual infrastructure or road access. Because of that, I found a spot near Newport priced at about $2 per square foot. I’m wondering if that’s actually a sound investment at that rate, and also whether starting out with 5,000 square feet split across two different locations is too small of a scale to be worthwhile. Naturally, I still need to run a soil analysis first; since the site is a bit further inland from the coast, I’m not entirely certain if these specific crops will thrive in that microclimate.

At the exact same time.

In parts of California, you can find rates hitting $1 per square foot. Honestly, if you’re just messing around with this as a hobby, I think that’s plenty. But if you're actually buying heavy machinery and trying to run a serious operation? Yeah, that’s nowhere near enough. 🤷

Thanks for getting back to me. I’m specifically looking at the area around Santa Monica because I already own a house there; otherwise, I’d be scouting for land in the rural Midwest where prices are incomparably more reasonable. However, since I don't have any existing residential structures out in the countryside, I can't really pull the trigger on anything else yet. My goal is to take this business seriously, so my plan would be to acquire a larger plot of land, but the math just doesn't work out for a return on investment given current market rates. For instance, based on the listings I've seen, grabbing just one hectare to start would run me about $22,000—and that’s for raw, neglected land that’s essentially a mess and requires significant work to make it usable. The only upside is that it has road access and isn't low-lying ground, which makes it decent for an orchard.
I have another question regarding storage, specifically for tools and eventually the fruit itself: is it legally permissible to erect a small structure on agricultural land? I'm wondering if there are specific permits required, as I can't exactly maintain an orchard without some sort of dedicated space for equipment. Along those same lines, looking toward the later stages of the operation involving fruit processing, would I be allowed to build a small facility dedicated solely to processing? It seems highly impractical to haul everything back to my primary residence, which is 6.2 miles away, at least once the harvest scales up beyond a tiny amount.

So, some of those little utility trailers you see at Home Depot don't technically need a permit, but honestly? I wouldn't recommend it. They’ll just smear whatever mess you're hauling all over your interior. Better off grabbing a hitch and a trailer so you can haul everything with your car. You don't even need some crazy heavy-duty truck for it either. I’ve got one with a 660-pound capacity, and man, I can't believe how much stuff it actually holds. Plus, registration is pretty easy every few years, so it's really not a huge investment.