Software professionals in agriculture - fantasy or success
- Thread starter rajk123
- Start date
I am thick into the venture
Dear Friends, I have read all your postings. There are positive and negative thoughts about jumping into agri. I have already jumped into this and swimming past 2 years, while working. I am spending passionatly few hours every week. Though I have not started any crop so far, but my plan is grand and already i am enjoying the kind of confidance and self respect that this profession gives. I have employed two guys so far. My first crop will go in next 3 months. I will have my first cow also during the same time.
So far, my experiences are as follows;
1. Nothing wrong in getting into farming. You need not jump completly. After all we are technology guys and we can find ways of remotely monitoring your project untill the time is right.
2. Think. Farming might give you work for next 40 years and keep you busy in the family.
3. Buy cheaper land and start from scratch. It could be barren land. It will give you all kinds of exposures while developing the same. You are also not going to bet your hard earned money. Moreover anything you do will be a value additioin and the land will appreciate.
4. Keep away from land mafia, big cities, STPs, middle men and the like. Choose an innocent place and people.
5. Buy somewhere around your native place. That way you will be recognised and people around will believe you and will work for you. Villagers are not after money alone. They need care, affection and assurance. You can provide that. Travel as necessary. I travel once in a quarter by cheaper transport (Train and occassionally flight).
6. Organic and multi species is what I have chosen. There are many books that I am reading and taking notes. I am also in touch with successful farmrs and observing their crop combinations, expenditure etc. I have not seen failures so far.
7. People who are after cash crops, cotton, sugar cane, jatropha and the like are after money. Keep yourself away from their business model. They are doing intensive farming from close quarters, which you cannot manage.
8. Develop knowledge slowly (by reading, watching net) your knowledge about nature, soil, plant behaviours, insets, microbes, trees, water management etc. That is not only fun you will enjoy that. The world around will look better and new.
9. You can go slow initiatlly untill you start your crop. I am taking more time to setup everything, for after starting the crop, it will require continuous attention. I am planning for a guy/gal with excel sheet to track individual units of land for land preparation, seed germination, replantation, watering schedules etc.
10. Since you are technocrafts, you can invent many things and your workers will really enjoy your company.
11. I have brought an earth Auger for fencing work. I estimate that there will be thousands of holds to be drilled (fencing, tree plantations) and this equipment will save a lot of money and pain. This is well apprecaited by my assistant over there. Likewise you can use your imagination / business knowledge to decide each move.
I will meet you again with more of my thoughts and experiences.
Dear Friends, I have read all your postings. There are positive and negative thoughts about jumping into agri. I have already jumped into this and swimming past 2 years, while working. I am spending passionatly few hours every week. Though I have not started any crop so far, but my plan is grand and already i am enjoying the kind of confidance and self respect that this profession gives. I have employed two guys so far. My first crop will go in next 3 months. I will have my first cow also during the same time.
So far, my experiences are as follows;
1. Nothing wrong in getting into farming. You need not jump completly. After all we are technology guys and we can find ways of remotely monitoring your project untill the time is right.
2. Think. Farming might give you work for next 40 years and keep you busy in the family.
3. Buy cheaper land and start from scratch. It could be barren land. It will give you all kinds of exposures while developing the same. You are also not going to bet your hard earned money. Moreover anything you do will be a value additioin and the land will appreciate.
4. Keep away from land mafia, big cities, STPs, middle men and the like. Choose an innocent place and people.
5. Buy somewhere around your native place. That way you will be recognised and people around will believe you and will work for you. Villagers are not after money alone. They need care, affection and assurance. You can provide that. Travel as necessary. I travel once in a quarter by cheaper transport (Train and occassionally flight).
6. Organic and multi species is what I have chosen. There are many books that I am reading and taking notes. I am also in touch with successful farmrs and observing their crop combinations, expenditure etc. I have not seen failures so far.
7. People who are after cash crops, cotton, sugar cane, jatropha and the like are after money. Keep yourself away from their business model. They are doing intensive farming from close quarters, which you cannot manage.
8. Develop knowledge slowly (by reading, watching net) your knowledge about nature, soil, plant behaviours, insets, microbes, trees, water management etc. That is not only fun you will enjoy that. The world around will look better and new.
9. You can go slow initiatlly untill you start your crop. I am taking more time to setup everything, for after starting the crop, it will require continuous attention. I am planning for a guy/gal with excel sheet to track individual units of land for land preparation, seed germination, replantation, watering schedules etc.
10. Since you are technocrafts, you can invent many things and your workers will really enjoy your company.
11. I have brought an earth Auger for fencing work. I estimate that there will be thousands of holds to be drilled (fencing, tree plantations) and this equipment will save a lot of money and pain. This is well apprecaited by my assistant over there. Likewise you can use your imagination / business knowledge to decide each move.
I will meet you again with more of my thoughts and experiences.
Dear sir
I entered in to Agriculture and felt the actual reality is far from imagination. Now adays goverment is spoiling villagers by providing Free schemes such as one rupee rice scheme , Free current / Bore well, Free land etc. They have everything free and as well as govt projects to work for 2 hours and get 150 rs for their expenditure. They drink and never like to work. sincerity had gone away and they become money minded
I entered in to Agriculture and felt the actual reality is far from imagination. Now adays goverment is spoiling villagers by providing Free schemes such as one rupee rice scheme , Free current / Bore well, Free land etc. They have everything free and as well as govt projects to work for 2 hours and get 150 rs for their expenditure. They drink and never like to work. sincerity had gone away and they become money minded
Thanks for the info, alwarn and krishnann.
software professionals and agri
Dear friend,
1.A good thought provoking question. First of all, all professions, businesses call for good attention and size, absentee entreprenuership will not work, week end monitoring also will not work and to beat this, size of business should be large so economies of scale will help to hire good managers.
2. You should start the project on sound and scientific footing, self experimentation leads to losses.
3. if possible group activity like 5 people should start separately one project on contiguous land.
4. Some IT professionals can work from farm if possible, then supervision is best.
5. some IT professionals are on their own not working as employee of large corporate they can try point no. 4.
for more detailed discussions you can contact me in person
anil patil
Dear friend,
1.A good thought provoking question. First of all, all professions, businesses call for good attention and size, absentee entreprenuership will not work, week end monitoring also will not work and to beat this, size of business should be large so economies of scale will help to hire good managers.
2. You should start the project on sound and scientific footing, self experimentation leads to losses.
3. if possible group activity like 5 people should start separately one project on contiguous land.
4. Some IT professionals can work from farm if possible, then supervision is best.
5. some IT professionals are on their own not working as employee of large corporate they can try point no. 4.
for more detailed discussions you can contact me in person
anil patil
Just realised everything is more expensive when a software engineer buys it!
Need hard work
Farmning will be success ful to those put their hard work. After ample initial investments, If they allocate time similar to their work in corporat sector, then success is sure.
Hard work means:
1. For field crops: have to predict ahead the price of their farm products during harvest, and sow the crops accordingly
2. For allied agri sectors even though the calculations show high returns from dairy, goat etc it will be achievable only when they run this business along with crop cultivation as a main motto.
Farmning will be success ful to those put their hard work. After ample initial investments, If they allocate time similar to their work in corporat sector, then success is sure.
Hard work means:
1. For field crops: have to predict ahead the price of their farm products during harvest, and sow the crops accordingly
2. For allied agri sectors even though the calculations show high returns from dairy, goat etc it will be achievable only when they run this business along with crop cultivation as a main motto.
Hi agri1972,
Agree with your points.
What I meant in my earlier post is that people seem to jack up rates of everything when a software professional approaches them. This applies to the land, labour and everything else that one needs to obtain for farming.
Is that your experience also?
Thank you.
Agree with your points.
What I meant in my earlier post is that people seem to jack up rates of everything when a software professional approaches them. This applies to the land, labour and everything else that one needs to obtain for farming.
Is that your experience also?
Thank you.