The number to watch
Credit outstanding going into harvest. Farm credit runs to the harvest rather than to a date, so the whole village settles in the same few weeks and your exposure peaks predictably. The figure to know before the season is the total and its ageing per party, because that is what tells you how much more you can safely give. Having a statement ready when settlement time comes is what makes those weeks orderly rather than fraught.
The season decides everything
Fertiliser and seed demand arrives in a few weeks around sowing and collapses afterwards, so the stocking decision is made once and cannot be corrected. Last season's movement report over the same weeks is the only sensible basis for it. Ordering short means missing the season entirely; ordering long means capital sitting until next year in goods with a shelf life. The report answers both questions at once.
Bags, packs and batch
Fertiliser sells by the bag, pesticide by the litre and by the pack, and seed by the packet and by weight. Each needs its own unit on the item. Batch and expiry matter for agri-chemicals, and recording them on the bill protects you when a farmer returns with a complaint — you can identify exactly what was supplied and when, which is also what your supplier will ask for.
Credit until harvest
Farm credit runs to the harvest rather than to a fixed date, which makes it longer and more concentrated than almost any other trade. The whole village settles in the same few weeks, so your exposure peaks predictably. Knowing the total and its ageing before the season, and having a statement to hand when settlement time comes, is what turns that from a worry into a plan.