Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
5 Site
W
hen choosing country land, you have many factors to consider. Arrange the following
items in an order that is appropriate for your location, financial situation, and goals. Be sure
to seek competent, experienced advisers on matters with which you are unfamiliar. Contact
your county Extension agent to learn about soil, water, climate, and plant growth in the area.
Visit other horse farms to get an idea of how well various facility features work in your loc-
ale.
Location
Before you even begin looking at properties, decide how far away from a town you and your
family can realistically live. How many miles and minutes are you willing to drive to your
job(s) each day? Where is the closest school? Will you spend most of your time in the car
ferrying your children into town for activities? Will you have convenient access to the ser-
vices of a farrier, veterinarian, and feed store? Some of the most beautiful horse country and
the best land bargains are a stiff commute from employment centers. Don't make the mis-
take of falling in love with a place that would be perfect for horses but tough for the realities
of human existence.
Determine a reasonable distance you are willing to commute daily and, using a compass,
draw an appropriately sized circle on a map to identify the area in which to begin looking.
But don't automatically eliminate a property slightly outside of the circle, because its other
advantages may result in a quality of living far beyond what is available inside the radius.
If you are considering a remote location, make test drives to the property and see how much
time traveling usurps. There is little sense in living in a wonderful spot if you can see it only
occasionally in the daylight!
Climate
Although climate is somewhat predictable, be aware of small pockets of unusual weather.
Such microclimates can make one property ideal and another nearby windblown, flooded,
gloomy, or dry. Consider temperature, precipitation, wind, humidity, and length of growing
and riding seasons. Become thoroughly familiar with an area before you buy. I have seen
