#farming
Farming
Agricultural tax rules for farmers and ranchers, including Schedule F income reporting, crop insurance deferrals, livestock sales, conservation deductions, and farm-specific income averaging
H-2A Wage Rules for 2026: What Changed in Farm Labor Costs
The Department of Labor's October 2025 H-2A rule replaced the flat state AEWR with a two-tier OEWS-based wage system and a new housing credit of $0.71 to $3.18 per hour, projected to save U.S. farms $2.4 billion a year — but it requires separate pay codes by skill level and documented job orders to survive an audit.
Solar Farmland Leases: A Landowner's Guide to Rates, Rollback Taxes, and Contract Terms
Solar ground leases on farmland pay $500-$1,200 per acre annually nationally once construction begins, but landowners who skip the decommissioning bond, rollback-tax reimbursement, and escalator clause often lose more than they gain over a 20-to-35-year term.
Petting Zoo and Mobile Animal Encounter Bookkeeping: Schedule C vs. Schedule F, USDA Licensing, and Sales Tax
Petting zoo admission fees are Schedule C income, not Schedule F farm income — a split that affects self-employment tax, the farmer estimated-tax exception, and audit risk. This guide covers the USDA APHIS Class C exhibitor license ($30–$300/year), liability insurance from $545–$780/year, state admissions-tax traps for mobile trailers, and how to keep agritourism books separate from the farm ledger.
Choose-and-Cut Christmas Tree Farm and Wreath Producer Bookkeeping: A Practical Guide
Christmas tree growers face an 8–10 year pre-productive period that forces Section 263A capitalization on Schedule F. This guide explains UNICAP cost allocation, ASC 606 recognition across choose-and-cut, wholesale, wreath, and agritourism revenue, Section 179 equipment planning, H-2A labor, and the KPIs that matter.
Artisan Cheese Maker and Farmstead Creamery Bookkeeping: How to Track Milk-to-Wheel Costs, Aging Cave WIP, and Yield KPIs Without Losing Your Margin
A practical accounting guide for farmstead creameries covering Section 263A inventory capitalization, aging cave WIP cost layers, FDA Pasteurized Milk Ordinance and 21 CFR 133 raw milk compliance, Section 179 equipment treatment, channel-specific revenue recognition under ASC 606, and the yield and cost-per-wheel KPIs that separate sustainable cheesemakers from hobbyists.
Inside the Numbers: A Bookkeeping Playbook for Hydroponic, Vertical Farm, and Microgreens Producers
A working playbook for indoor-agriculture bookkeeping — Schedule F vs. C, Section 263A UNICAP exemptions for short-cycle crops, ASC 606 across five sales channels, Section 179 and restored 100% bonus depreciation, FSMA Produce Safety Rule compliance, and the per-square-foot and per-tray KPIs that separate real businesses from expensive hobbies.
Maple Syrup Sugarhouse Bookkeeping: Schedule F vs C, Section 263A, and the KPIs That Predict Your Season
A working guide for sugarhouse operators — how to split Schedule F farming from Schedule C manufacturing, capitalize sap-to-syrup costs under Section 263A, expense a $40,000 reverse-osmosis unit under Section 179, and track the five KPIs (starting with 0.34 gallons per tap) that predict whether next season pays the mortgage.
Commercial Honey Producer and Beekeeping Operation Bookkeeping: Schedule F, the Section 263A(d) Pre-Productive Period Election, Multi-State Pollination Revenue, and Pounds-Per-Hive KPIs
How commercial honey producers and pollination apiarists structure books for Schedule F, elect out of Section 263A pre-productive period capitalization, depreciate bees as 7-year livestock, source pollination revenue across state lines, comply with FDA honey labeling, and track pounds-per-colony and revenue-per-hive KPIs at a 1,000-hive scale.
Garden Center and Plant Nursery Bookkeeping: Live-Plant Inventory, Section 263A, and Seasonal Cash Flow
How retail garden centers and wholesale nurseries should value live-plant inventory, set mortality reserves by category, decide whether to elect out of Section 263A under the two-year preproductive rule, treat greenhouse heat and labor as direct COGS, and forecast cash through a spring-heavy revenue cycle.
Hard Cidery Bookkeeping: TTB Excise Tax, CBMA Credits, WIP Costing, and the Section 263A Orchard Trap
A practical bookkeeping guide for craft cideries — how to qualify for the $0.226 per wine gallon hard cider tax rate on TTB Form 5000.24, apply CBMA credits within the 750,000-gallon ceiling, track apple and pear inputs through WIP, segregate orchard costs under the Section 263A farming exception, and separate tasting room, DTC, wholesale, and self-distribution channels.
Specialty Mushroom Farm Bookkeeping: A Practical Guide for Indoor Cultivators
A working guide for indoor gourmet mushroom growers — Schedule F treatment, the Section 263A pre-productive-period exception, a mushroom-specific chart of accounts, flush-by-flush yield tracking, channel-by-channel margins, Section 179 depreciation on fruiting chambers, and ASC 606 deferred revenue for CSAs and workshops.
Winery and Vineyard Accounting: Bonded Wineries, Vintage WIP, TTB Excise Tax, CBMA Credits, Section 263A, and DTC Revenue
How bonded wineries cost a vintage from crush to bottling, claim CBMA excise credits, apply Section 263A to vineyards, and recognize tasting room, wine club, and wholesale revenue under ASC 606.