What's the best farming advice a previous generation gave you?

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Maybe the best farming advice in general works, but it's cool to hear advice from your farm's previous generations.

I'd say for me it is "Never forget about management.  Sometimes you have to work smarter, not harder.  Find what makes the cash flow work, then stick to the plan"  Not necessarily a perfect quote but something like that.

There's got to be some really good quotes out there from Grandpa (and Grandma).  Let's hear **!

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When you get knocked down get back up and dust yourself off so someone else can knock you down again.   Grandpa.

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"A stitch in time saves nine"

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Build and maintain strong working capital.

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My grandfather always told my dad "never farm anything you have to feed" he said it about cows, but my dad applied that to catfish when it blew up.  Now most pounds are farmed in the bottoms, leveled back into fields, or enrolled in CRP/WRP.  Seems like pretty good advice here in the delta

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Weight, grades, and money; three things easy to keep ahead on if your ahead, three things easy to get behind on, if your behind.

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Something well bought is half sold.

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Livestock is also deadstock.

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You make a decision, then you make it work.

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Don't worry about the good years they will take care of themselves, try to minimize the bad ones because it might take years to recover from one bad year.

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“Don’t let your wants get away from your needs”

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The generation before me never gave me any advise.  Only told me I couldn’t make it and tried to make it so I couldn’t get any land to use.  It’s still that way and now they are 80

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"If someone ever offers you a mint or a piece of gum, take it" haha

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"Live below your means." from my neighbor, landlord and friend ***********.  It is the problem with the whole country and many farmers right now.  We went from all time stock market high, economy is booming, America is great to needing a trillion dollar bailout, kids won't be eating, big and small business going broke in one month!?!?!?!

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Don't make your debts in good times and try to pay them off during the bad times

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"Farming is the best job or work you can ever have.......IF YOU CAN MAKE IT WORK."    That came from my dad in 1994. I was 17 years old.   Many around us where failing and being sold out.  We where working so hard to "MAKE IT WORK"  that I was tired of it and thinking I would do something else after I graduated. He clearly wanted me to stay.   It changed my mind.   He was absolutely right

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Don't trip over a dollar to pick up a nickel. Pick up the dollar  and make ten.

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Take care of your soil. Once it is gone you never get it back. The best info lately is realizing the benefits of cover crops and no-till.

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My grandfathers quote pertaining to my pending career in farming, "Don't do it for the money".  I sure wish the grumpy tool was here now, could really use his input.  Thanks for the post.

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When I started farming I always talked to my neighbor for advice which was more of a grandparent to me than a neighbor and more often than not we had a drought or hail or wind or something that ruined the crop and he would always tell me... “ this is great next year country”. I’ve found this too be true because every time my crop disappoints sure I’m upset at first but still feel the need to try again and think there’s always next year

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Take care of the pennies and the dollars will take care of themselves.

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Even in a very wet spring my grandpa would say always plan for a drought, and I have found that to be true. Cant predicted the weather,  and a wet year can make for low yields but a drought could mean no yields.

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My dad is 92 and still giving good advice, I’m 57 and sometimes I still listen.
Some of his nuggets are:
It is your “young” money that counts.
It matters what you make, but it matters more what you spend.
If you have a job you love, you will never “work” a day in your life.

My *** told my wife, before she started dating: “Marriage is not a reform school” (So I’m not reformed.)

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A farting horse will never tire.   A farting man you should not hire.

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The best thing you can put in your fields,  is “your shadow”

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Only 3 pieces of equipment make you money - a good planter, sprayer, and combine

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I didnt get any, other than,"get in a different profession". We dont farm enough to matter however for me its about letting my kids have the opportunity to learn how nature works, why to put in tile, people skills,  equipment maintenance, livestock care, maybe I learned all that by dads suttle way of teaching. We are a small farm and we really have to be good managers of money, yields, marketing and time because we get no discounts, no 25 cent extra on corn/soybeans because we can haul today.  All in all I guess my advise from the older generation is "work harder becasue you dont have as much".

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Take care of the land and it will take care of you.

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The good years will break you before the bad ones.

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Keep the cows.

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"It takes money to buy whiskey"!   -  Meaning have some cash around

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My Mentor told me, "You make a lot more money in your office seat than your tractor seat."  This isn't what I wanted to hear, but have found it to be very true over the last 20 years....

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Farmers rarely go broke because of the bad years.  They go broke paying for what they bought in the good years.

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When laying on your deathbed no one says "I wish I would have farmed more, instead of spending time with the family".

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I was told to always focus on your own stuff and don’t worry about what the “neighbours” have.

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Pay more attention to your spending in good years because you might not be able to afford some of those commitments in bad years.

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I never knew my Great Grandfather but reading his journal I am pretty sure he had a good attitude, more often than not the first thing he wrote was "A Fine Day".  I had my son cut this saying out on the plasma cutter and it hangs on my shop wall to remind me to have a good attitude.

When I think about my own life it is amazing the things I have learned from my parents, grandparents and other people in the community.  lets not forget the things we have learned and remember to pass them on to the next generation.  I feel as a parent and grandparent it is my job to pass everything I have learned in my lifetime on to future generations.  I can't count the number of times my kids and  grandkids  looked up at me and asked how did you learn how to do that?........... answer from parents and grandparents most of the time.

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“Be married to your wife, not the farm”

Call (844) 200-FARM

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What's the best farming advice a previous generation gave you?

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