Hello, my name is Luke Woodson Kneuss. I’m 29 years old.
I’ve been farming for 11 years. I grow vegetables, beef, hay, corn and soybeans at my farm in Tuscarawas County, Ohio.
Sustainable farming practices are important to me because I am a product of multigenerational farming due to sustainable practices.
My favorite thing about being a farmer is the humbleness I share with my community of farmers.
My farmer idol or superhero is my grandfather Donald Kneuss, because he was always grinning ear to ear while farming.
My favorite song to listen to on the farm is Pink Moon by Nick Drake.
When I’m not farming, I like to share the harvest abundance with those in need.
My favorite thing to grow is pumpkins. My favorite thing to eat is tomatoes.
If I could change one thing about the food system, it would be to provide low-income access to fresh, affordable produce.
Something you don’t know about me is that I enjoy foraging for wild edibles.
If I could tell the world one thing about what being a farmer is like, it would be that a passionate heart can carry a weary back through an 80 hour work week.
I am reducing post-harvest losses by donating.
I conserve water on my farm by utilizing drip irrigation.
Climate change is affecting my farm through seasonal variations when the rain is less predictable, and lately continues for a month straight.
One thing I’m doing to protect the environment on my farm is devoting portions of land strictly to organic production.
I think we need more young people involved in farming because we are a dying culture of simple folk out to do good for others.
One thing I’m doing to create healthy soil on my farm is minimal tillage and soil inoculants.
One thing I’m doing to prevent erosion from my farm is planting willows in stream buffer zones.
The most difficult thing about sustainable farming is finding support from a community that has only survived through monocrop and GMO utilization.
I chose the agricultural life because I want to provide the best available source of nutrition to my friends and family.
The following resources, programs or organizations are most valuable to my farm: Online publications of encouragement such as Food Tank!
