Where would you go?

[pourfarmer]

Say you wanted to start farming, and you had a bit of cash. But couldn't afford to buy cultivated land.

Is there anywhere (in Canada) that has good fertile land, but not populated or cultivated that may be ripe for the picking? If a guy was young and ambitious, wanted to homestead and clear some land.

Question was asked to me, from a recent EU immigrant who wants to "make a go of it".

I suggested, Peace River area or Great Clay belt in northern Ontario. After looking at local real estate prices I see those options may not be as affordable as they once were. Any advise or direction for my new friend would be helpful.

[Taiga]

Say you wanted to start farming, and you had a bit of cash. But couldn't afford to buy cultivated land.

Is there anywhere (in Canada) that has good fertile land, but not populated or cultivated that may be ripe for the picking? If a guy was young and ambitious, wanted to homestead and clear some land.

Question was asked to me, from a recent EU immigrant who wants to "make a go of it".

I suggested, Peace River area or Great Clay belt in northern Ontario. After looking at local real estate prices I see those options may not be as affordable as they once were. Any advise or direction for my new friend would be helpful.

Tell your friend to factor in the $1000-$1500/Ac to get the land cleared and into a cultivated state. The land may not look so cheap by the end of all that, not to mention the time lost (unproductive) doing all that work. There is something satisfying about breaking land though.

[farmaholic]

Isn't there enough land in production right now?

Maybe access to markets should be on his radar. Or in areas where most of the local production can be consumed locally.

Or find a farming venture that isn't so commodity based.

When I was much younger, I thought a mushroom greenhouse would have been good.
Then I thought an old folks care home would be good....
All talk no action!!!!!!!

[Braveheart]

Argentina sounds pretty good.

[Guest]

Tell your friend to factor in the $1000-$1500/Ac to get the land cleared and into a cultivated state. The land may not look so cheap by the end of all that, not to mention the time lost (unproductive) doing all that work. There is something satisfying about breaking land though.

Every farmer should break some land , really makes you appreciate farmland

[farmaholic]

Every farmer should break some land , really makes you appreciate farmland

Clearing bush even more.... a neighbor had land pretty much 100% cleared for decades, there were hay sloughs left where some of the bushes were. One and a half generations later with the land being rented out and there are willows as high as the tractor used to cut the hay with growing back in those sloughs.

Zero appreciation for the back breaking labour(in those days) it took to clear them. The sloughs were always utilized but what possessed the last set of tennents to drive around those "sapling" willows is beyond me. Now they're out of hand.

[Marusko]

Zero appreciation for the back breaking labour(in those days) it took to clear them. The sloughs were always utilized but what possessed the last set of tennents to drive around those "sapling" willows is beyond me. Now they're out of hand.

too wet to seed in spring, no use for bog hay? Just because it's been done before, doesn't mean it should continue. If you feel so strongly about it, approach the landlord and offer to hay the sloughs that their unappreciative tenant is ignoring.

To answer the OP. Peace country would be my suggestion. It's the most isolated from the advance of diseases, bugs, and invasive weeds slowly marching north. Kenney has declared he'll put crown land up for sale, should be new land. Global warming should benefit the region's agricultural potential. Not as pricey and competitive there for land as Alberta in general.

That said, what are his aspirations? If the intent is to do a small, diverse operation with direct-to-consumer sales, i.e. small scale "local" meat and market garden type stuff, they'll want to be close to a large town or city.

[agstar77]

To a psychiatrist.

[Guest]

Nice little pocket of land north of Hwy 55 between Meath Park and Choiceland/Nipawin. Used to work around there in my FCC days. Short season but depends if you think climate change will affect anything in your lifetime. In the meantime pick your varieties, bit of livestock. Otherwise become a Russian citizen, Putin is giving it away.

https://www.rt.com/business/431053-russia-free-land-giveaway/

[makar]

To answer the OP. Peace country would be my suggestion. It's the most isolated from the advance of diseases, bugs, and invasive weeds slowly marching north. Kenney has declared he'll put crown land up for sale, should be new land. Global warming should benefit the region's agricultural potential. Not as pricey and competitive there for land as Alberta in general. This dont sound like peace country im farming in, sure as hell still waiting for the global warming thing to kick in.

[farmaholic]

Marusko, the current are haying them.

I like Agstar's answer

[makar]

I can get 2000 an acre for as poor a soil as you can find, no chance in hell to make it unless you can afford to burn money, dont come here with no cash and start cutting bush, we here all did but times now are different, second farm i cleared in 1990 diesel was eight cents, last piece was hundred a acre for fuel just to get it the root harrow stage.

[Marusko]

This dont sound like peace country im farming in, sure as hell still waiting for the global warming thing to kick in.

Yeah, and here in north-central AB, I'd say we've been having Peace country falls! cool, snowy/rainy for 3 years. Drying 50-80% of the crop, whereas before then, never touched a dryer.

[poorboy]

I would suggest he/she buy a small acreage close to a major city. Get a good trade that will always be in demand such as plumber or auto body shop guy. Raise organic or market garden type stuff to market direct to the big city or raise small dogs, huge demand for them. Make sure there are lots of buildings and people in the area, so that you will have enough support for a plumbing business or auto repair business.

Use the proceeds from your trade to buy land as it comes up for sale. Good part of this is that you can often schedule your work to fit a farms harvest or calving schedule. Carpenter is also a good business.

I doubt that anyone could start farming totally from scratch in Canada right now with limited capital and not struggle for years to move ahead financially. Much faster path and more financial stable route is with a trade or very good off farm job.

[WiltonRanch]

Yeah, and here in north-central AB, I'd say we've been having Peace country falls! cool, snowy/rainy for 3 years. Drying 50-80% of the crop, whereas before then, never touched a dryer.

Same here in nw sask except every farm seems to have an old batch dryer sitting in the bush from times of the past. Apparently in the 70’s they dried everything for a spell. Went for a long spell of getting dryer until the 02’ drought then it’s gradually gotten wetter with these cold wet crap harvests but dad talks about these types of periods when he was a young man. Land was reasonable considering the economic activity around here. However ground is absolutely nuts now. It’s priced like Alberta now.