Navy-veteran Lenny Evans Miles, Jr. navigates the combine down the road to one of the several family fields of Bluestem Farms LLC, near Chestertown, Md.
Since returning from his military service he has also ventured out on his own, using his Post 9-11 GI Bill to earn his degree in Food and Agribusiness Marketing and Management from the University of Delaware. Miles has become a diverse farmer using organic and conventional practices to plant corn, soybeans, wheat, and vegetables on the ground he tills.
Living near the Chesapeake Bay, he has implemented Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) and Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) practices on land he is tilling along with planting cover crops in the fall to help prevent nutrient run off. A graduate of the LEAD Maryland program (develops leadership to serve agriculture, natural resources, and rural communities) Miles is involved with agricultural groups around the State.
USDA Photo by Preston Keres. Original public domain image from Flickr