Farm History

Andrew Richter came to the Endicott area in the 1890's and homesteaded in the Winona area. His son Anton farmed in the 1920's thru the 1950's and turned it over to his son Elmo who farmed the same land until 1982. Mark took over in 1982 and has farmed it since.

Farm Future

We strive to be the best stewards of the lands that we farm. That is why we converted 100% to Direct Seeding 10 years ago. I will continue to Direct Seed and plan on using more technological advances to become a more efficent sustainable grain producer.

Why Shepherd's Grain?

I have always liked the principle of knowing where my grain was going, and now with the Find the Farmer we will be able to track the grain back to the source.

When did you start Direct Seeding?

I tried no-till seeding back in 1981 and have been doing some form of reduced tillage thru the years. It wasn't until 1998 that I bought a drill and went 100%.

What are some of your goals?

I would like to pass the land to the next generation in a better sustainable condition. I'm amazed how my ground will soak up the rain with no moisture or soil loss and watch the neighboring intensive tilled land wash away with the same rainfall event. I hope to witness to my neighbors that Direct Seeding does work and is a better alternative than all the tillage that is being used currently. We are custom direct seeding in our area and are able to show how it works on their farm.