Farms, ranches & agritourism
Books and taxes for lavender farms.
A visitor paying to walk the bloom rows in July, essential oil sold by the bottle after distilling, and sachets and soap sold in the gift shop. Gus sorts all of it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
July came in at $11,700. The new steam distiller went in as equipment, not distillery supplies.
- Field walk admissionsField admissions
- Wholesale oil order, spa clientWholesale oil sales
- Steam distiller repair partDistillery equipment
- Glass bottles, oil supplierPackaging
- Farm stand weekend staffSeasonal labor
Why your books are different
Lavender farm books go wrong in the same few places.
A generalist sees gift shop sales. Your business is a field people pay to walk, a distillery turning that same bloom into oil, and a shop selling both the oil and things made from it. When the books do not separate those, you cannot tell if growing, distilling, or retailing is what actually earns its keep.
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1
Field admissions and gift shop sales get rung up together
A visitor pays to walk the bloom rows, then buys a bar of lavender soap on the way out, both through the same register. Lumped together, you cannot tell whether people come for the field experience or the products for sale.
What we doKeeps field admissions separate from retail product sales, so you can see what each part of the visit actually earns. -
2
Distilling turns a crop into inventory, and the books miss the step
Raw lavender cut from the field becomes essential oil after distilling, and that oil becomes soap, sachets, or lotion after more work. Treated as one expense-to-sale line, the books cannot show what distilling or making products actually costs versus what selling the raw crop would bring.
What we doTracks field harvest, distilled oil, and finished retail goods as separate stages, so the accountant can see what each step adds. -
3
The distiller gets filed like a kitchen appliance
A steam distiller can cost several thousand dollars and run for a decade, but on a bank statement it can look like just another piece of shop equipment bought for the gift store.
What we doFlags the distiller and related equipment the month it shows up and logs it as farm equipment, not shop supplies. -
4
Wholesale oil orders and retail bottle sales blur together
A spa or soap maker buying oil in bulk pays a very different price per ounce than a visitor buying one bottle at the farm stand, but both often land in the same sales category.
What we doKeeps wholesale oil sales separate from retail bottle sales, so pricing and margin on each stay visible. -
5
Field walk weekend help pays like cash
The extra hands who greet visitors, run the gift shop register, and watch the parking field on a bloom-season Saturday are often paid at the end of the day, leaving no clean record of the season's labor cost.
What we doTracks weekend field and shop labor as its own line, so you can see what a bloom weekend costs against what it brings in.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a lavender farm.
Set up once for how you get paid and what you spend. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Field admissionsVisitors paying to walk the bloom rows during peak season.
- Retail oil salesSingle bottles of essential oil sold at the farm stand.
- Wholesale oil salesBulk oil sold to spas, soap makers, and other resellers.
- Gift shop salesSoap, sachets, lotion, and other products made from the farm's lavender.
- Workshop feesWreath-making or distilling classes booked on top of a field visit.
Money out
- Field maintenanceWeeding, pruning, and replacing lavender plants that age out.
- Distillery equipmentSteam distillers and related parts, logged so they get written off right.
- PackagingBottles, labels, jars, and soap wrapping for oil and gift shop goods.
- Seasonal laborWeekend field and gift shop staff during bloom season.
- AdvertisingLocal ads and social posts that bring visitors out for bloom season.
- Field day expensesPortable toilets, parking prep, and signage for busy weekends.
- Liability insuranceCoverage for visitors walking the rows during field season.
What we watch for you
- Field vs. retail mix
How much comes from field admissions versus oil and gift shop sales, so you know which side draws people.
- Wholesale vs. retail oil mix
How much oil moves in bulk versus by the bottle, since margins differ a lot between the two.
- Bloom-week labor share
What weekend staff costs against what the busiest bloom weekends bring in.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so tax season is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things lavender farm owners ask Gus.
Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.
Usually it can. I logged it as farm equipment, not shop supplies, and flagged it so the accountant makes the call with your whole year in view.
I keep them in separate lines from the same register, so you can see whether people are paying to walk the field or to buy what's made from it.
Yes, as long as you send what went out. I keep it as its own line so you can see what a bloom weekend really costs.
The tax side
The tax side of a lavender farm.
Most of what goes wrong here is the steps between field and shop. A distiller filed like a shop tool, wholesale and retail oil sales blurred together, and a set-aside nobody started until bloom season ended.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Schedule F farm incomeGrowing lavender to sell, distill, or process generally lands on Schedule F instead of the Schedule C a typical small business files, which changes how income and certain costs are handled.
- Distillery and field equipmentSteam distillers, irrigation systems, and similar purchases can usually be written off the year you buy them. Bonus depreciation is 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025.
- Contractor 1099s for seasonal staffAnyone not on payroll who you paid $2,000 or more in 2026 for field, shop, or distilling help gets a 1099-NEC by January 31.
- The pass-through deductionMost owner-operators can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income, and it comes out right when the books stay right all season.
Deductions lavender farms miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Lavender plant replacement stock
- Distiller repair parts
- Glass bottles and jars
- Product labels and packaging
- Soap and lotion base supplies
- Farm stand signage
- Liability insurance
- Local ads and flyers
- Portable toilet rental
- Field irrigation repair
- Workshop supplies for classes
- Uniforms with your farm's name
General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.
All year, not just April
A lavender farm year, kept every month.
Bloom season peaks in a few summer weeks. Your taxes come on a schedule the rest of the year. Your team keeps you ahead of both. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Plan the year
Last year's return gets started, the seasonal help 1099 list is ready, and you get a monthly set-aside so bloom season funds it evenly.
- April
Filed. Done.
Your return is filed and signed before the fields come into bloom, so field prep gets your full attention.
- July
Halfway check
Where you stand at peak bloom, and whether wholesale oil orders are keeping pace with what the field produced.
- October
Before winter pruning
Gus looks at distillery or field equipment worth adding before next season and what this year's numbers say about pricing.
What you get
What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.
Book a call- Monthly bookkeeping
Every transaction sorted into categories set up for lavender farms. You never categorize a thing.
- An accountant checks every transaction
Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.
- Your business tax return, filed
Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.
- The monthly number
What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.
- Your own bookkeeper
A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.
- On your books all year
Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.
- Cancel any time
No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.
Straight answers
Questions lavender farm owners ask first.
Can Gus tell field admissions apart from shop sales?
Yes. He keeps field walk admissions, oil sales, and gift shop products in their own categories, so you can see what each part of the visit actually earns.
We sell oil both wholesale and by the bottle at the stand. Does that need separate tracking?
Yes, and Gus does it for you. Wholesale and retail oil sales stay in their own lines, since pricing and margin differ a lot between the two.
Do I have to change how I run the field or the shop register?
No. Run the field and the gift shop register just like you do now. Gus reads what happened from your bank statement, and an oil or gift shop sale he cannot place gets one question, remembered from then on.
My bloom-season shop help is paid cash at the end of the day. Can Gus still track it?
Yes, as long as you send what was paid out. Keeping it as its own labor line is what lets you see what a bloom weekend really costs.
Is a new steam distiller written off all at once?
Usually. A distiller bought to process the harvest typically qualifies for a full write-off the year you buy it, though some seasons call for spreading it out. Gus tags the purchase and hands the decision to the accountant.
We turn our own lavender into soap and lotion. Does that change how the books work?
Gus tracks the harvest, the distilled oil, and the finished products as separate stages, so the accountant can see what each step actually adds before it reaches the shelf.
Is a real accountant checking my books?
Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.
What does it cost, and can I cancel?
It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.
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What makes a bookkeeper worth paying for Every business we keep books for
Book a call
Pick a time. That's the whole signup.
Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.
- $197 a month to start
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever