[Vwdiesel] lowering gasoline prices

[LBaird119 at aol.com]

> Smaller farms SHOULD be run very efficiently.

  ALL farms SHOULD be run efficiently.  Just being small doesn't make
you proficient, neither does being big.  Big usually just lets smaller
errors be less painful.

Farming
>  is not for hobbyists.

  Then I guess Dad and his brothers should have gotten out of it long ago.
They all held regular jobs while running and working in the orchard.  :)  I
guess things are a bit different in the ~40 or so acre fruit orchards than in
other farming.  Most of the farmers around here had a tendency to work
full time as well as farm.  Things are changing as they are passing down
to the next generation.  We'll see how they do.
>
>  Oh, and another thing, listen to the former generation
>  of farmers instead of the government. If more farmers
>  followed this creed, there would be less bankruptcies.
>  Just my two cents.

  If the farmers saw more of the money that the consumer pays for the
product there'd be less bankruptcies!  I've never heard of any government
advice on growing apples/pears/peaches/etc.  Of course I have no
direct knowledge of field farming problems.  Farming practices have
changed so drastically that the former generations advice would be
useless unless they've stayed with it.  Likewise you aren't qualified to
just step in and start farming unless you've been in and around it for
several years.  Few orchardist spray "dilute" anymore, most are
put on as concentrate.  Trees are closer as are the rows.  Sprays are
used as little as possible instead of on a regular basis.  Grass is kept
mowed to keep pest harbors to a minimum...
  With apples, it takes ~$14/box to break even.  Problem is that when
the farmer is seeing $8/box, the consumer is paying upper 30's to $50
a box.  When the farmer is seeing ~$20/box, the consumer is  still paying
low 40's to low $50's a box!  The right broker goes a long way as well
as a good packing shed, good farming practices, good weather and a
thinning spray that works!  ;-)  Anybody want to mix up a batch of
DiNitro-whatever the rest of it's called?  (Elgetol)  It actually wasn't
pulled, everybody just quit making it.  :(
 I really need to get up and play with that new tractor!  :)  I'll settle for
getting a good load worked up for the .222 though.  :)
     Loren