Taking the Long View When It Comes to Drought Management in Texas

[rocfarm]

Land will come back that's not the issue . Inputs are.
Twenty years ago I could sell two calves and buy six tons of fertilizer, today one calf won't buy a ton.
It's still about grass management be it pasture or hay, as inputs climb with the current cow prices leaves few levers to pull.
We buy retail and sell wholesale that only leaves inputs to control. This is about knowing the true cost to maintain a cow per day as well as per year.
Might be more economical to run stockers or heavies from March to October.
There is no one size fit's all.
Better sharpen your red crayon and buy some more Big Chief tablets lot of goesintos to look at.

I can't do the more intensive right now, but I like hearing the other folks talk about their trading. Maybe someday I'll be able to dabble in that.

But even if I marked all my purchases for the farm to market right now, it seems I'm in the black. Kinda crazy.

Never thought I'd be able to sell my tractor for more than I paid for it, but these past few years have been crazy.

As I said above, wondering if I'm stupid not to just sell everything and wait for the next downturn to get back in…

 

[Caustic Burno]

I can't do the more intensive right now, but I like hearing the other folks talk about their trading. Maybe someday I'll be able to dabble in that.

But even if I marked all my purchases for the farm to market right now, it seems I'm in the black. Kinda crazy.

Never thought I'd be able to sell my tractor for more than I paid for it, but these past few years have been crazy.

As I said above, wondering if I'm stupid not to just sell everything and wait for the next downturn to get back in…

I think it's easier to run stock on Wall Street for profitability.

 

[rocfarm]

Of

I think it's easier to run stock on Wall Street for profitability.

Maybe, but it wouldn't be as fun.

 

[Bob Kinford]

Stay liquid and versatile. I don't know a single person making money moving a hot wire every few days. I know lots of people including myself that make a living with their land, equipment, livestock, wildlife all combined. In any business the money often lies in the cracks between the seat cushions. You just need to know when to look where.

You need to tell that to Alejandro Carrillos and the thirty or fourty ranchers in Mexico who have been doing it for a few decades. When he started he was running 100+ acres per cow, feeding for six months out of the year and weaning calves at four months. After ten years he was running 30 acres to the cow without any supplements other than sea salt, and not weaning until the calves were 10 months old. After 20 years he's running around 20 acres per cow on good years and still under 30 acres per cow in drought years.