Grant Hoffer

Diversified Vegetable Pre-Apprenticeship
Ross Student Farm, Penn State

Farm stat: 80 pounds of potatoes in one afternoon
Favorite farm task: seeding and transplanting
Least favorite farm task: Moving tarps
Favorite beneficial creature: bumble bees

Grant participated as a pre-apprentice at Ross Student Farm, Penn State, where he learned the basics of vegetable farming and the value of hard work. As someone who is mechanically inclined, Grant has always been fascinated by and willing to help assemble tools, which came in handy for farm and agricultural work. It didn’t surprise us that the first time he operated a BCS tractor was an especially memorable one filled with thrill and fright–eventually, he became comfortable and even familiar enough to repair it!

Upon graduating from the program, Grant hopes to conduct research in a weed science program at Penn State and save money along the way to start his own farm.

“Putting in hard work and careful planning at the beginning of the season will pay off later. Setting yourself up for success by organizing tools and equipment helps improve the workflow, especially in the peak of the busy season.”