You've reached the Virginia Cooperative Extension Newsletter Archive. These files cover more than ten years of newsletters posted on our old website (through April/May 2009), and are provided for historical purposes only. As such, they may contain out-of-date references and broken links.
To see our latest newsletters and current information, visit our website at http://www.ext.vt.edu/news/.
Newsletter Archive index: http://sites.ext.vt.edu/newsletter-archive/
2002 Southwest Virginia Farm Custom-Work Rate Guide
Farm Business Management Update, June/July 2003
By Tom Covey and Daniel Osborne
In December 2002, over 5,400 custom-work rate surveys were sent out to farmers and custom operators in Southwest Virginia. Responses were received from the following counties: Alleghany, Bedford, Bland, Carroll, Craig, Dickenson, Floyd, Giles, Grayson, Lee, Montgomery, Patrick, Pulaski, Roanoke, Russell, Scott, Smyth, Tazewell, Washington, Wise, and Wythe. The Farm Business Management Agents in the Southwest Extension District reviewed the survey results and summarized the completed surveys. In addition, all custom jobs surveyed with less than ten responses are not reported in this guide. The results reported in Table 1 are not intended to set custom-work rates, but rather to serve as a guide from which to begin negotiations. For more information on farm custom-work, contact your local Farm Business Management Extension Agent.
| Table 1: Custom rates reported in Southwest VA | COST PER UNIT | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Custom Job | Unit | No. | Average | High | Low |
| Mowing | Acre | 18 | 14.67 | 50.00 | 5.00 |
| Mowing | Hour | 27 | 22.48 | 35.00 | 15.00 |
| Mowing/Conditioning | Acre | 12 | 17.83 | 50.00 | 7.00 |
| Mowing/Conditioning | Hour | 21 | 28.57 | 60.00 | 15.00 |
| Tedding | Hour | 17 | 22.65 | 40.00 | 15.00 |
| Raking | Acre | 13 | 9.31 | 20.00 | 5.00 |
| Raking | Hour | 19 | 23.68 | 40.00 | 15.00 |
| Square Bailing | Bale | 20 | 0.77 | 3.00 | 0.25 |
| Square Cut, Rake, Bale, etc. | Bale | 19 | 1.29 | 2.50 | 0.45 |
| Round Bale < 1000# | Bale | 53 | 6.38 | 20.00 | 2.00 |
| Round Bale 1100-1600 | Bale | 15 | 8.30 | 16.00 | 5.00 |
| Round Bale > 1600# | Bale | 10 | 10.45 | 20.00 | 7.00 |
| Brush Hogging | Acre | 19 | 22.84 | 50.00 | 8.00 |
| Brush Hogging | Hour | 34 | 28.82 | 65.00 | 15.00 |
| Clipping | Acre | 12 | 22.33 | 60.00 | 8.00 |
| Clipping | Hour | 22 | 22.95 | 45.00 | 15.00 |
| Moldboard Plowing | Hour | 12 | 24.83 | 40.00 | 15.00 |
| General Pesticide Application | Acre | 14 | 11.22 | 25.60 | 3.00 |
| Post Driving | Post | 24 | 1.42 | 4.00 | 0.30 |
| Post Driving | Hour | 12 | 26.42 | 50.00 | 15.00 |
| Post Drilling | Post | 13 | 1.32 | 5.00 | 0.30 |
| Two-ton Truck | Mile | 12 | 1.78 | 4.00 | 1.00 |
| Goose-Neck | Mile | 52 | 1.61 | 4.00 | 0.25 |
| Bulldozer | Hour | 38 | 55.92 | 85.00 | 40.00 |
| Backhoe | Hour | 33 | 47.91 | 75.00 | 35.00 |
Visit Virginia Cooperative Extension