Ashley and Clint Hornberger are farmers and ranchers in Kansas who love what they do and hope to pass their legacy on to their children. Learn more about this family.

ASHLEY:

Clint is the fifth generation to farm this piece of Douglas County. We are raising the sixth generation in our sons Case, C.J. and Cord. We both work off the farm too; I’m a crop insurance underwriter at Great American Insurance, and Clint works as a fire service trainer for Kansas Fire Rescue Training Institute (KFRTI) and as assistant chief for Willow Springs Fire District #3.

We have a cow-calf operation, and we finish all our steers for direct sales. We sell our beef at the Baldwin City farmers market and to a few local restaurants. We also grow hay, corn and soybeans. We think sustainability is important in agriculture, so we use rotational grazing with our cattle herd and cover crops and no-till practices on our crop fields.

What are the summer chores on your operation?

Summer cattle chores would be feeding, building fence and moving cattle to fresh paddocks with the rotational grazing program we have. Summer is hay season, so we stay busy mowing, raking, baling and moving hay.

Our boys are in 4-H, so we are busy with their 4-H project animals in the summer too. This includes teaching them how to care for the animals, leading them and doing other fair prep work.

What is the hardest and best part of your job as a rancher?

Some of the hardest parts are dealing with things that are out of our control like natural disasters, sickness or disease, markets, etc. However, one of the hardest parts is also one of the best parts, which is seeing the full life cycle of these animals. We are there when they are born, and we are there when they fulfill their purpose. It’s a humbling experience.
We love our job, so we think a lot of it is “best.” We are fortunate to be able to be immersed in miracles every day: birth, the beauty of nature, wildlife, plants and beautiful sunrises and sunsets. We see and experience majestic things every day. Having a freezer full of home-grown beef is also a big plus!

What does sustainability mean to you?

Sustainability means taking care of our environment so the next generation can enjoy it. We make all our decisions with our sons in mind, hoping to preserve what we have for them, as generations before us have done.

What is your family's favorite protein? And what is your favorite way to prepare it?

Beef, of course! Some of our favorite meals, especially in the summer, are burgers or steaks on the grill. We do have busy boys, so we use our slow cooker year-round. We love Salsa Verde Roast; we shred it for tacos, nachos, burritos or just eat it on its own. It’s delicious, easy and kid-friendly!

What is one thing you wish consumers knew about your operation?

We genuinely care about our animals. There is not a single decision we make regarding them, their health or their feed that is taken lightly. We plan everything out and have a reason for everything we do.

Also, ranching is not an easy job. We do it because we love it, but it is hard sometimes. It is physically, emotionally and mentally challenging. It is also one of the most rewarding things we have ever done.

What three things matter the most to you as a rancher?

1. Kids
2. Cows
3. The environment

Where do you see the future of your operation going?

We would like to continue to grow our cow herd and direct market beef sales. We have also talked about diversifying our operation to fill some gaps in the local markets.

What’s a typical day/week/month look like for you?

I’m not sure we have a “typical” day. We both work off the farm too, so our days vary wildly.

In the summer though, we stay busy with work, making hay, feeding cows, chauffeuring our kids to their activities and attending local farmers markets every Saturday morning and every 3rd Friday evening.

What’s one thing you've changed on your operation since you started?

We started direct marketing our beef. It was a substantial change that eventually changed more of our operation than we thought it would in all the best ways.

What's a question you have for consumers? 

Not a question…but we would like to tell consumers to reach out if they have questions! If you have a question about farming or agriculture, reach out to a farmer. Don’t just believe everything you read or hear.