Farms
Cash comes at harvest but expenses happen year-round. We track costs by crop, manage seasonal cash flow, and keep your books ready for lenders.
Cash Comes at Harvest
The seasonal nature of agriculture creates a cash flow pattern unlike any other business. You spend money in spring on seeds, fertilizer, labor, and equipment maintenance. Income arrives in fall or whenever the market is ready to buy. The gap between can stretch for months, and a weather event can change everything.
Most farm operators know their land, their crops, and their markets. They understand what grows well in MetroWest soils and what customers at the farmer’s market want to buy. But the financial side often runs on instinct rather than clean records. Receipts accumulate in a drawer until tax time, when everything becomes a scramble.
The Cash Gap
The Cash Gap
Income arrives when products sell. Expenses arrive year-round. Managing this gap is the central financial challenge of farm operations. Without visibility into the timing, you’re always guessing whether there’s enough to cover next month’s bills.
The Bookkeeping Reality
The Bookkeeping Reality
During busy seasons you’re in the field from dawn to dark. Financial records can’t demand hours you don’t have. We handle the books so they stay current without pulling you away from the work that actually generates revenue.
Between Growing and Selling
The farms we work with aren’t industrial operations. They’re family businesses. Vegetable growers selling through CSAs and farmer’s markets. Orchards with pick-your-own seasons and cider sales. Nurseries supplying landscapers across Greater Boston. Vineyards building a local brand one bottle at a time.
These operations often have multiple revenue streams. A farmstand, wholesale accounts, an online store, maybe a pumpkin patch or corn maze in fall. Each channel has different margins and different timing. Seasonal labor appears in April and disappears by November. The books have to capture all of this without creating more work during your busiest months.
Who We Work With
Who We Work With
Market farms, orchards, nurseries, vineyards, Christmas tree farms, and specialty crop operations in MetroWest and Greater Boston. Businesses selling through farmer’s markets, CSAs, farmstands, wholesale channels, and direct to consumers.
The Juggling Act
The Juggling Act
You’re managing crops, weather, labor, equipment, customers, and regulations while also trying to keep track of what you’re spending and earning. The financial side can’t add hours to your day during planting or harvest when every minute matters.
Where Farm Books Get Complicated
Farm accounting isn’t the same as retail or service business accounting. The tax code treats agricultural operations differently. Prepaid expenses like seed and fertilizer need proper timing. Livestock and growing crops require specific treatment. Equipment follows its own depreciation rules. General bookkeepers often miss these details and leave money on the table.
The other challenge is separation. On a family farm where you live on the property, personal and business expenses blur together. The same truck hauls produce to market and runs family errands. Utilities serve the barn and the house. Getting this right matters for tax purposes and for understanding what the farm actually makes.
Enterprise Costing
Enterprise Costing
Without tracking costs by crop or product line, you can’t know what makes money. That specialty tomato operation might generate good revenue but lose money once you factor in the labor. We set up tracking by enterprise so you see true margins and can make informed planting decisions.
Equipment and Prepaid Inputs
Equipment and Prepaid Inputs
Tractors and implements depreciate on specific schedules. Section 179 deductions and bonus depreciation can save thousands when applied correctly. Seeds and fertilizer bought in winter for spring planting need proper expense timing. We handle these correctly so your financials reflect reality.
Planning by the Numbers
When the books are clean and organized, you make better decisions. You can see which crops or products actually contribute profit and which ones drain resources. Expansion becomes calculated rather than hopeful. Dropping an underperforming enterprise becomes obvious when the numbers are in front of you.
Financial records also open doors. Lenders want to see organized books before approving operating loans or equipment financing. USDA programs and grants require clean documentation. Come tax time, your accountant receives a complete package instead of a pile of receipts, which means you capture every deduction you’re entitled to.
Growing What Pays
Growing What Pays
Real cost data by enterprise shows where to focus. Maybe the wholesale accounts barely break even while the farmstand produces strong margins. You adjust your operation based on facts rather than gut feeling. Next season’s crop plan reflects what the numbers actually say.
Ready for Lenders and Tax Season
Ready for Lenders and Tax Season
When you need financing for a new greenhouse or tractor, you have the records to back up the request. When April arrives, your books are already closed and organized. No scramble, no missed deductions, no surprises from the accountant.
Greater Boston's Trusted Bookkeeping Partner
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