Introduction to Agriculture in Your Area and Getting Your Questions Answered : Getting Your Questions Answered

Getting Your Questions Answered

You have started in a good place by utilizing some resources of the Growing New Farmers Project. For more information see their website at http://www.growingnewfarmers.org . The project is made up of a consortium of agricultural professionals from many different organizations who want to help new farmers succeed.

Agriculture is an ancient profession, but also a very contemporary and dynamic one. Obtaining current, accurate information is critical to the success of any business today, including an agricultural one. Relevant information can be found on market pricing, production practices, labor, taxes, nutrition, weather, and any number of other topics. This section will be for agriculture in general. For more specific references see the resources in the other sections of this course.

1. First decide What Your Question Is. That may seem extremely obvious but many new farmers have a hard time getting their questions answered not because the information is not available but because they aren't asking the right questions. That brings us to the second point..
2. Figure out Who to Ask Your Question to. Another seemingly obvious point but anybody who has been transfered more than 3 times on any one phone call knows the importance of this one.

Here is an example of some frequent types of questions:

• What can I produce to make enough money for an ag assessment?
• How much money can I make from a 1/2 acre of garlic?

These seem like reasonable questions but they are virtually impossible to answer. Why? First because they are too general. Second because anyone who knows anything will tell you "it depends". If they don't you should probably run because they are probably selling something.

What would be better questions? It depends* on the person's priorities, goals, and situation. Here are some examples...

• What are the advantages and disadvantages of an ag assessment?
• What are the requirements for an ag assessment?
• I would like to grow garlic. What resources on production and marketing are available?
• I have a 1/2 acre I would like to grow on during the weekends for some extra money. What are some crop and marketing options?

Next...Information Resources

* You will hear "it depends" a lot in this course. The main reason is because there are no right answers. Everyone's situation, abilities, priorities and values are different. That is why it is so important to get as much as information as you can, and from different sources, so that you can make the best decision for your situation.