farm entrepeneurs and dreamers?

[Jessaboo]

I agree with reinbeau on herbs - always a market for them, grow easily, not many pests, great for bees, nice looking, etc. etc.

Beach Plums are becoming a big deal - they grow well in PA and are pretty easy to deal with. I guess it would take a few years to get a real harvest tho.

KonasDad is right on the money for targeting Asian markets, too - I have read lots of articles online about how big the market is - especially if it is a u-pick scenario. I guess that would have to depend on your local population though.

What about approaching local restaurants and seeing what they might want that they can't get locally? The local thing is so huge. Maybe you could contract to grow specific varieties of herbs or veggies that they want for their menus.

I hate to encourage more corn growing but in our area corn mazes are big biz come Sept/Oct/Nov. One farm near me makes their entire year's worth of operating expenses from a one acre corn maze. I think they charge $3.00 to get in - give the kids a map and a candy apple and let them go. Crazy.

Good luck!

[BjornBee]

Some great ideas.

The corn maze thing I looked into. And although you can have pick your own, farm wagon rides, etc., on the farm with not too much problems, the moment you are not "selling" agriculture, you now cross into "entertainment". I spoke to two farm operations and they said the same thing. Just the zoning alone could be a problem, then there is state licensing, entertainment taxes, liability and insurance issues, and so on. Seems agriculture based eco-tourist is one thing, but at least in Pennsylvania, these corn maze operations are categorized as entertainment and must go through many hoops to operate.

[Jerrymac]

Good thing we live in the land of the free

                                                   

[Scadsobees]

Bjorn,
What kind of things does your mother enjoy doing? Gardening? Marketing? Talking to people?

If this is something that you would like your mom to be able to help out with in the future, something that doesn't take a whole ton of work but has a need for somebody to be around to supervise sounds good, like u-pick fruits or herbs or a combination of some of them.

Rick 

[KONASDAD]

add high end restauraunts for fresh veggy sales as being a "locavore" has become chic.

see... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Local_food