Living on the Land
If you were to estimate, what percentage of farms in Kansas are less than 100 acres, between 100 and 500 acres, and more than 500 acres? An entrepreneur came to my office and asked a similar question which has spurred me to consider the programs we have offered in the past and potential changes down the road.
If you guessed even thirds on the three size categories, you are a much better estimator than I. Many of our current programs target larger producers but we plan to target all producers in a new series of meetings titled Living on the Land.
According to Merriam-Webster, there are seven ways to define the word farm. However, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) defines a farm as “any place from which $1,000 or more of agricultural products were produced and sold, or normally would have been sold, during the year.”
Every five years the USDA conducts a Census of Agriculture which encompasses a wide range of measurables of which one is farm size. The most current Census was conducted in 2012. Of the 61,773 farms in the state of Kansas, 20,460 (33%) are less than 100 acres, 21,796 (35%) are between 100 and 500 acres, and 19,517 (32%) are over 500 acres.
The Census even breaks the data out by specific counties. Since the Wildcat District covers three counties (Crawford, Labette, and Montgomery), I was curious if it resembled the statewide average. Of the 2,835 farms in the Wildcat District, 1,240 (44%) are less than 100 acres, 1,118 (39%) are between 100 and 500 acres, and 477 (17%) are more than 500 acres.
Our first meeting in the Living on the Land Series is coming up at the Girard High School Cafeteria on the evening of February 16th at 6:00. The first meeting will feature Roger McEowen, the Kansas Farm Bureau Professor of Agricultural Law and Taxation at Washburn University speaking about Kansas Fence Law. This topic is obviously important to anyone who owns a fence (or has had fence disputes in the past). In addition, Jacob Weber, Wildcat District Horticulturist will present on Fruit Tree Pruning. Also, I will discuss Local Foods Production (or lack thereof) in the state of Kansas.
As always, we welcome input on forthcoming topics for the series. Small pasture management and wildlife habitat are areas we anticipate covering in the future. That being said, the potential topics are bountiful. If you have questions or would like more information, please call me at the office (620) 724-8233, or e-mail me at jcoltrain@ksu.edu, or visit the Wildcat Extension District website at www.wildcatdistrict.ksu.edu.
Contact:
Josh Coltrain
Crop Production and Local Foods Agent
Wildcat Extension District
jcoltrain@ksu.edu
(620) 724-8233
K-State Research and Extension is an Equal Opportunity Provider and Employer
