Freitag family honors farm legacy

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Alexandra Steussy-Williams, front center, is working to convince her family to convert their family farm in Wisconsin from row crops of corn and soybeans to a more-sustainable and ecologically-friendly pasture grass to rent out for a farmer's livestock herd to graze. 'The grass grows year after year,' says Helen Steussy, her mom. 'No need to harvest and replant and harvest again. No need to buy and use all those chemicals. Healthier for the cows. Healthier for the planet. And healthier for us! Great job, Alex!' From left to right in back are dairy-farmer Jason Gruenenfelder and his two daughters of Blanchardville, Wisconsin, along with Barbara Sammond, Nic McPhee, Misty McPhee, Christopher Sammond, Calvin Steussy, Nic Steussy, Chris Steussy and Cally Parkinson. In front from left are Nic Sammond and Alex Steussy-Williams. Anyone interested in land for grazing near New Glarus, Wisconsin, email alex.steussywilliams@wisc.edu for more information. Visit grasslandag.org for more information regarding grazing in general.

Submitted by Alexandra Steussy-Williams/For Agri-View

Helen Steussy

Alexandra Steussy-Williams For Agri-View

The descendants of the Freitag Farm live dispersed across the country and around the globe, from California to South Korea. They gather each year for a reunion at the old farm in Green County, Wisconsin, where they lease their acreage to a cash-grain farmer. As non-operating landowners, the newest generations of Freitags are considering what the most honorable way to steward the land is.

Alexandra Steussy-Williams is a communications specialist with Grassland 2.0 and the University of Wisconsin-Department of Agronomy. She received her master’s degree in agroecology from UW-Madison; she served for two years as Agri-View’s assistant editor.