Being a farmers wife is not at all a glamorous job by no means. There are days when I have to climb into the pig pen and trudge through the mud and gunk to flip the water trough back over. Every day I feed and water chickens and have to walk through poop to get the job done and to collect the eggs. My hair isn't fashionably styled, my nails aren't neatly manicured, and I don't wear designer labels that are neatly pressed. I worry over livestock, pets, propogations, greenhouse temps, moisture levels, fencing issues, vegetables diseases, family time, and money. Being a farmers wife means you have to take care of everything and then some. Not everyone is cut out to do it. There are many days that the worth of it all is questioned.
There is a saying that goes something like -you can make a small fortune in farming provided you start out with a large one. This is so very true. Jeffrey works a full time year round job away from the farm and then takes on part time side jobs. I handle the market when we have it open and during the winter I do holiday work at local retailers. But along with all of this we still have the farm to worry and people and animals depending on us.
Because my job is part time I get to handle 95% of the maintenance at the farm. Jeffrey and I both do the planting and he handles the fertilizing but beyond that the rest falls on the farmers wife's shoulders. I water the greenhouses. I make sure they are opened to cool off and closed in time to hold some heat in for the cold night. I weed the beds, thin the plants, harvest the plants, sell and deliver the produce. In the smaller greenhouse I propogate the plants, water them daily, maintain the temp in there just like the large one, and pray for a good outcome come spring. I also have to take care of surplus vegetables that don't sell which means freezing or canning. Due to selling baked goods at the farm now I also have to try to make sure that I have enough of our veggies to use for that and still have enough to keep our customers happy. It is a balancing act that feels like walking on a tightrope at times.
We have a commercial farm that actually brings in a small amount of income that we depend on. The farmers wife roll in the commercial aspect is even larger than the maintenance of the farm itsself. With our farm I send out a monthly newsletter to let our customers know what is going on, what's new at the farm, recipes. This takes a nice chunk of time to get done. We also have a blog as you can see haha-and this is time consuming also. Most of the time while I blog I am also doing laundry, starting dinner, updating the facebook page, and any other tasks I can get done at the same time. I have a facebook page for the farm and am trying to expand our following. I send emails and make calls to try to generate more customers. I try to come up with things to sell at the farm to generate more cash flow and to offer more to our customers. I am trying to get our market to be a one stop shop. We focus on locally grown and locally made so part of my job is rounding up the locally made. There is not ever a moment of my day that isn't farm related.
So if you are thinking that farming is a life that looks like fun-it is. It is also a ton of hard work and non stop thought and requires total commitment. Most people only see the reward side of various ventures. The hard part doesn't seem so hard until you have to do it. Being a farmers wife is a tough job and there are days when I don't think I will be able to lift the greenhouse door one more time but I do it because that's my job and I love it. I just have to keep reminding myself that I love it haha. So when that man in your life comes to you and poses the question of making a living at farming please keep in mind what I have written. The bulk of the work will always fall on your shoulders. Just as with everything else in life-think before you leap.
There is a saying that goes something like -you can make a small fortune in farming provided you start out with a large one. This is so very true. Jeffrey works a full time year round job away from the farm and then takes on part time side jobs. I handle the market when we have it open and during the winter I do holiday work at local retailers. But along with all of this we still have the farm to worry and people and animals depending on us.
Because my job is part time I get to handle 95% of the maintenance at the farm. Jeffrey and I both do the planting and he handles the fertilizing but beyond that the rest falls on the farmers wife's shoulders. I water the greenhouses. I make sure they are opened to cool off and closed in time to hold some heat in for the cold night. I weed the beds, thin the plants, harvest the plants, sell and deliver the produce. In the smaller greenhouse I propogate the plants, water them daily, maintain the temp in there just like the large one, and pray for a good outcome come spring. I also have to take care of surplus vegetables that don't sell which means freezing or canning. Due to selling baked goods at the farm now I also have to try to make sure that I have enough of our veggies to use for that and still have enough to keep our customers happy. It is a balancing act that feels like walking on a tightrope at times.
We have a commercial farm that actually brings in a small amount of income that we depend on. The farmers wife roll in the commercial aspect is even larger than the maintenance of the farm itsself. With our farm I send out a monthly newsletter to let our customers know what is going on, what's new at the farm, recipes. This takes a nice chunk of time to get done. We also have a blog as you can see haha-and this is time consuming also. Most of the time while I blog I am also doing laundry, starting dinner, updating the facebook page, and any other tasks I can get done at the same time. I have a facebook page for the farm and am trying to expand our following. I send emails and make calls to try to generate more customers. I try to come up with things to sell at the farm to generate more cash flow and to offer more to our customers. I am trying to get our market to be a one stop shop. We focus on locally grown and locally made so part of my job is rounding up the locally made. There is not ever a moment of my day that isn't farm related.
So if you are thinking that farming is a life that looks like fun-it is. It is also a ton of hard work and non stop thought and requires total commitment. Most people only see the reward side of various ventures. The hard part doesn't seem so hard until you have to do it. Being a farmers wife is a tough job and there are days when I don't think I will be able to lift the greenhouse door one more time but I do it because that's my job and I love it. I just have to keep reminding myself that I love it haha. So when that man in your life comes to you and poses the question of making a living at farming please keep in mind what I have written. The bulk of the work will always fall on your shoulders. Just as with everything else in life-think before you leap.
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