Life on the Farm: 5 Things I’ve Learned About Farming

I grew up in small town Minnesota where almost everyone is a farmer, has a uncle or grandpa who is farmer, or works for a farmer.

Although I grew up surrounded by farming I never thought I would marry a farmer and knew nothing about it. And if I’m being completely honest I had no interest in it.

I thought farming meant smelly livestock, yards crowded with equipment, long hours, and hard work.

It is all those things but it is so much more than that. Here are five things I have learned about farming since being a farm wife.

1) It is a family affair.

My husband grew up watching his dad farm and tagging along whenever possible, and now our kids do the same (especially our son.) I love that the buddy seat is always open for our kids to come ride, and that they can walk down to the shop to visit their dad whenever they want. They love the one on one time riding with him and soak up their surroundings. They are so interested in learning about how everything works. They also know their dad always keeps the best snacks in the tractor or combine. We are my husband’s support during the busy seasons, and he looks forward to our fields visits and meal drop offs. As our kids grow there is less room in the cab. Last year we were still able to fit, but I’m not sure we will this year!

2) You’re plans are ruled by the weather

Never in my life had I hoped for rain, until I married a farmer. During the busy seasons, which is most of the year besides winter, if it is nice and there is work to be done don’t bother making plans. I am such a planner, so this really drives me crazy! Over the years I have learned when the best times are to make plans and am sure to have something on the calendar during those times! I am always excited for an occasional rainy day during harvest or planting, and as soon as I see the first drops I am planning a date night or a family outing! Farmers can tend to be workaholics, so as farm wives I feel it is important to push them to take breaks and spend time doing things they enjoy other than working.

3) Farming Takes Faith

The act of planting a seed and watching it grow is a miracle in itself. We pray over the crops all season long. We have to have faith:

The seeds will grow.

The markets will stay stable.

It will rain. But not too much.

It won’t freeze too early.

It won’t snow until harvest is done.

If we didn’t have faith we would spend too much time worrying about the weather, the markets, and things that are not in our control. There are too many unknowns in farming, and without faith I don’t know how you would get through it.

4) The Business of Farming

The amount of money it takes to run a farming operation was daunting to me as a new farm wife. I had no idea how much seed, equipment, and fertilizer all cost. A combine costs around $400,000. Wait, what?! I wondered how we could possibly make a profit after paying for all of the expenses. And that is where faith comes in, and planning and budgeting.

Knowing when to sell and how much to sell for is sort of a gamble. If you wait too long the price could go down, and if you sell too soon the price could go up. The markets fluctuate so much and you really need to watch and know your numbers. My husband handles his marketing, thankfully. I don’t think I could handle making the decision of when to sell!

5) A Farmer Does Not Have A Work Schedule

There have been many days I thought about how nice it would be to know my husband would be home at 6 every night, or to have some sort of work schedule, but with farming this is not the case. Especially during spring and fall. There are long days and long nights. Busy days in the field for my husband and long days parenting alone for me. I used to get a pit in my stomach thinking about the busy seasons and wondered how I was going to get through running the household on my own while my husband was busy in the field. Somehow we manage and support each other through it. The busy weeks fly by, and we look forward to Sundays.

Farming truly is a way of life. Your life really does revolve around farming. If a farmer didn’t love his work he likely wouldn’t be doing it. There are long days, and nights, and many factors that are out of our control, but we get through it together. I am so thankful my husband gets to do what he loves while supporting our family. I do not have an active role on the farm such as driving tractor, but I am perfectly content making meals, book keeping, and taking care of our kids. Little by little I have grown to love life as a farm wife, and am so thankful for our life on the farm.