Dakota Farmer

Darren Hefty, co-host of the popular ag TV show and new radio call-in show, says his dad gave him a checkbook at age 4 and his first hired man at 12.

March 27, 2014

1 Min Read

I enjoyed watching Brian and Darren Hefty doing their Ag PhD radio show for XM Sirius Radio live at the recent Western Corn Belt Precision Ag Conference.

I grew up across the road from the Heftys near Baltic, S.D. I didn’t know Brian or Darren, though. I am 15-20 years older than they are. They were kids when I worked for their Dad, Ron Hefty, one summer.

Ron started Hefty Farm Supply in 1969. With the help of his all of his children, it grew into the major regional seed, chemical, fertilizer and equipment retailer it is today. All the Heftys seem to be savvy marketers. They have a popular TV show called Ag PhD and have now expanded into radio. You can listen to their live call-in show weekdays from 2-3 p.m. Central Time on Sirius Radio Channel 80.

At the Western Cornbelt Precision Ag Conference, Brian and Darren fielded calls from the audience about everything from how deep to soil test to how to evaluate new corn hybrids. Brian says new hybrids are being released so quickly that he looks at the parentage lines to get a better feel for whether he wants to plant them.

Brian and Darren frequently mentioned the lessons their dad taught them about farming and business. If you’re hoping to groom your kids to be able to take over your farm one day, you might find this tale interesting: Darren says that his dad gave him a checkbook when he was 4-years-old and he had his first hired man at 12. Darren was good at spotting sick hogs so he would mark them before he went to school and his hired man would treat them during the day.

Learn more at www.HeftySeed.com.

Subscribe to receive top agriculture news
Be informed daily with these free e-newsletters

You May Also Like