Buying An Orchard Property
Orchards have always been in great demand. The reason has been very simple - they beautify homes and backyards. For many the sheer joy of seeing the fruits of the plants hanging from the trees is enough for them to put in hundreds of Dollars to get that excitement. Others use the property as vegetative cover against erosion. They would use that to protect the residential buildings against storms too. Some people have used orchards as tourist attractions. These are centuries old properties that have become famous. Still less a reason, orchards have become economic properties as people sell the fruits for money.
Orchards have agricultural undertones to them making them look like farm properties but you still need to approach this aspect of real estate like any other. You will have to take all due care to ensure that the purchase you are making is in the right direction.
You need to consider the location of the orchard. If you are contemplating resale, the location will determine its price. If you have it situated in a popular tourist area, then you are bound to derive bigger returns from the sale of the property.
Your initial step towards an orchard farm property is to appraise the quality of the trees. You need to find out how they are bearing fruits. Though you may not need the fruits or depend on it's economically, that is the center of attraction of the property. An orchard derives it beauty from the fruits. They make the property beautiful.
You may want to examine the soil type to judge its suitability. You can do the inspection yourself if you are good at that to you can employ an agricultural expert. In other cases, you are trying to see if the soil is loamy and can support the trees without necessarily requiring intensive application of fertilizers.
How will you obtain water for the plants? Is there a nearby stream, creek or river? Of you will have to rely on irrigation. If there is, is the system good enough to ensure adequate supply of water?
If you are buying the property to take advantage of the fruits, you will need to consider security. Are the fruits protected against pilfering? Is the place properly fenced? How close if the place to the nearest market? Is there a market for the produce at all? You will also have to consider access to the orchard in all seasons. It should be easy for farm vehicles and trucks to reach the orchard. You will need this if it is time for harvest or need to send some supplies to the farm.
Now that you have some fair idea as to what to look for when buying an orchard we move on to where to get the best orchard properties.
You first state to look at is New Mexico. Here you will move to the south west when the weather favors tropical trees. You can find large orchards with good maintenance records. You can have as large as a 30 acre farm full of good looking trees. Many of these orchards have well-equipped irrigation systems and amply sized residential facilities. Most of these properties have large water storage facilities and parking. Access roads are in good condition and easily maneuvered by a truck or farm vehicle.
You can also search Morehead, in Kentucky where the weather favors these types of properties. Monroe, Tennessee is another good location.
There is an alternative to buying an orchard outright. You can buy an orchard land property and then develop it into a full orchard. Third way you will pay less for it but the downside the initial investment that you will have to make. You can buy an arable land in a state with warm weather like Mexico and then build the orchard. The resale value of such a property will be great.
Jan writes for
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