"Dannydanbo;c-16580445" wrote:
Both of my parents were raised on small farms with their brothers and sisters and I assure you they were not a hobby, they were a way of life that provided food and money from selling crops and animals to provide for their needs.
They may be among the few.
Also, when you say small, how small do you mean?
Less than 100 acres? If so, what did they
do with such a small plot of land?
Many small farms can't run how they used to. From what I've read, many small (200-ish acre) farms in the US are only making around $8000 per year, most farmers are having to find other work to survive, thus, their farm is more of a hobby, than their main source of income.
Meanwhile, in Australia, in some areas, the size of farms are shrinking, as hobby farms and weekend tree changers are becoming more popular. There's been laws made about how small a patch of rural land can be, if they don't have them, then all the farm land gets swallowed up by people wanting oversized back yards.
My parents have a farm, it's several thousand acres in size. Most of it is uncleared but is suitable for grazing. They're sheep farmers.
Regardless of what each of us think of as 'normal' sizes for farms, I think the game could do with a little flexibility.
I'd really like to see sim farmers who can grow/shrink the size of their farm. So if you only want a single lot farmlet, you can have that, or if you want a 6 lot farm, you can go big, and hope the cows come home!
It'd be nice to be able to employ other sims to help run your farm. It would be even better to have to provide workers with accommodation, and use a system similar to how a butler operates. And also have the option to hire specialist seasonal workers too. Like a shearer for your sheep, or a hay maker, or a crop sprayer (could even be done by plane).
It'd be nice to be able to set tasks for your workers like:
- Repair fence
- Repair tractor
- Plough field
- Plant field with _____
- Round up livestock
- Feed chickens
