What to do with a 4 hectare upland farm?
By r3jcorp
@r3jcorp (1382)
Philippines
April 26, 2011 1:20am CST
We are left with a 4 hectare upland farm by my father who recently passed away. I don't know what to do with it. I have only 1 sibling who happens to be a girl too and we have no background on farming. I've been contemplating on how to make a good use of it so I am hoping that I could find a good buyer so that I could use the money to an investment that would benefit the whole family. But that would be too difficult.
Today, as my supervisor is talking about an environmental plan which a consultant was advising but their are managers who are not open to it, it gives me a good idea. The consultant was telling that instead of planting ornamental plants in the housing area and the idle lands in the main area, plant Calamansi (citrus plants) instead. That would be pleasant for the sight and at the same time it would bear fruits which will be beneficial to everyone. In the Philippines, Calamansi is essential to everyone's kitchen. It could be use as fruit juice, for seasoning and is very good for the health. If I could plant even only one hectare of the land with calamansi, would I earn a lot? Considering the time to wait for it to bear fruit plus the great demand for the product, I think I could put the land for a more productive use. During the discussion, my supervisor remember too that a certain Japanese was looking for a big land to rent for a coffee plantation. I am hoping that we could get in touch with this investor and have a positive agreement. In this case, I don't need to dispose the land which my father really loves. Do you think it would be nice?
5 responses
@kalav56 (11464)
• India
26 Apr 11
HI
Do not sell the land . Keep it; cultivation and yield are difficult unless you work very hard. But, if you have an aptitude, do not have ANY other job or are able to spare time concentrating on this , get in touch with other people who know about it and cultivate the land.But, what was your father doing with it earlier?Is it just uncultivated land? Do not look at profit from it . Regarding leasing it out, I don't know how the laws work in your country but, in our country the land is sometimes usurped by the tiller even to the extent of being unjust.THe agreements need to be foolproof and all the technical terms need to be known.
@kalav56 (11464)
• India
27 Apr 11
Takeheart r3jcorp. Your father's spirit would definitely guide you regarding this. Keep the land, and try and employ one person to take care, [even if the yield pays his monthly income , apart from regular expenditure]it should be enough]. It is easy to part with land but it is virtually impossible to buy it. Lead a simple life and save up money for retirement. You will find this land a great blessing when you are unable to be active in your profession.Are the trees fully grown now or does it gobble up money for reclamation?
@r3jcorp (1382)
• Philippines
27 Apr 11
My father acquire the land 20 years ago for health reason. He have a heart problem, his heart is not functioning well, he should work hard for it to pump blood, at least that's how he explains it to us when we are still small. During those time too, he has no work because the U.S. Naval Base move to other country. So he got it so his walking exercise will have benefit and because he enjoy planting too much. Then, he started planting different fruit bearing trees, hundreds of them, without much plans of having an income from it. He wanted it for consumption only but he already planted too much. The time too came when his separation pay was almost not enough for his medicines so he got no capital to fertilize the trees. At one point, he managed to get a contractor to do it, but was not successful. I guess the land serves its purpose because my father's life was extended for more than 20 years.
Now, I am contemplating on what to do with it. The problems are: I don't have a knowledge in farming, I don't have a capital and I don't have the time to do it. I wish I could resign from work and have even small capital to do it. I am thinking of using the vacant spaces between the trees for other crops which could easily grow and harvested like Calamansi or Pineapple. I am praying that my father's soul would guide me on what to do. I am regretting that I did not have the interest to till it when he was still here.
@yallit (3677)
• Philippines
26 Apr 11
My condolences regarding your father passing away.
If you have a capital to start a business, I suggest you utilize that land instead of selling it. As for what type of agriculture business you'll invest in depends on where that land is located. Study the terrain. Check what sort of crops can grow in your land. Also, think about using the land for raising farm animals. You can raise cows or goats. There are few goat raisers in the Philippines, you may want to take a look into that market as well. You can also have the 2 hectares rented by the Japanese investor and use the remaining 2. There are a lot of possibilities that you can try.
@r3jcorp (1382)
• Philippines
26 Apr 11
Thank you Yallit... The problem is that I don't have a capital to fund a business. Actually the area is full of mangoes and coconut already but I don't have funds to buy fertilizers and other equipment used for spraying mangoes. I am hoping to sell a portion of the land for capital but for now, offering it for rental would be a great start.
@yallit (3677)
• Philippines
26 Apr 11
Aaaw. It would have been great if you have the needed capital to start a business of your own. In that case, possible options would be:
1. to sell a portion of the land (which I think you would be able to sell it at a high price given that the land is full of fruit bearing trees)
2. go with the option to have your land rented (just 2 hectares of it) but make sure that the contract is favorable to you
3. or you can try to loan from the bank
1 person likes this
@machizmo (279)
• United States
26 Apr 11
I know what I would do if I had a lot of land like that. I would get me all kinds of poultry houses and places to keep them and sell even more of what I am doing now. If if you want to do the planting side of agriculture just take time with it and realize you can learn how to do things and you will meet all kinds of people that will help you in learning about farming.
@Devilova (5392)
• Indonesia
26 Apr 11
Better to rent it to others rather then selling it.
Or you can pay someone to do the hard work, you just see and make an order.
You can pay them for money or the precentage of the harvest.
Pick the right once to be planted, in order to get more benefit.
Choose that can as soon as get harvested in 2-3 month.
@topffer (42156)
• France
26 Apr 11
4 hectares is not many land, but it can be too much for fruit trees. The problem with them is that you will need a lot of people to pick the fruits. Here it is very difficult workers for a month to pick fruits and many land owners have abandoned the trees... 4 hectares are enough for a few sheep or goats, but I think you will not earn a lot with them. Chickens or ducks are certainly better if you can invest. But if you have no knowledge on farming, I would recommend to rent this land : take your time to find a good farmer.
Have a nice day.
