It is iffy financially mostly because of labour availability. And costs. But. I am still going to go ahead and create a proposal for a working farm ..a kind that has never existed. An automated urban farm with a kitchen-sink/duct-tape approach wrt available Agtech.
Even if it gets rejected, it will become part of public records(it is public land). I am ok with it. Maybe someone will take it up some day and run with it even if I can’t now...but perhaps it might go through..regardless..
I am familiar with how the previous farmer farmed it as he has been mentoring me for the past 6 something years with my own farm. I want to take all that and modernize it.
1. Starting with minimal and automated tillage.
2. Swarming robots for cultivation, weed management and data collection of pest/inputs/yield prediction.
3. Updated paperwork and certification. I want to create my own protocols, compliance and audit standards for automated farms. Including traceability and best practices.
Bad news: it’s super cost prohibitive. Because I have to be grounded in reality, I am going to chisel it to suit the project.
Having said that...I can’t help fantasize about cutting edge futuristic farm of the future..with existing Agtech.
Any ideas? Forget about the costs. Just vision.
Gather data on how the plans are doing (think lora-wan sensors) and try to minimize both waste and costly investments (like unneeded fertilizers and treatments).
Hire a someone who knows how plants grow and when they are in their better condition.
Surprisingly some plants give the sweetest fruits when they are near death (think grapes and wine).
When you have data, you can focus on investment and ROI. It is also more prudent ;-)
Instead of robotic swarms that would be difficult to maintain, it uses simple rotating arm with farm implements attached as needed. It is independent from fossil fuels, runs silently on modest amount of electricity. The emphasis is not on cutting-edge tech but on self-sufficiency and on improving the quality of the soil.