Whether raising cattle or swine, acres of row crops, or vegetables and peanuts, Southern farmers stay busy from sunup to sundown. Through it all, family is always there — to plan together, to work with, and to depend on. That’s one of the many benefits of being Southern farmers: working side by side, often with relatives, to anchor the region’s food security and economy while blending deep-rooted heritage with modern innovation.

To spotlight its Southern farmers, GreenPoint Ag captures the essence of deep heritage through its “Southern Farming” video series, a project led by Dylan Robbins, GreenPoint’s social media and content producer. Partly owned by Tennessee Farmers Cooperative, GreenPoint Ag is a farmer-owned agricultural input supplier serving producers throughout 10 states.

“‘Southern Farming’ is our way of sharing our growers’ stories and shedding light on practices that the public may never get to see,” Dylan says. “Over the past few years, we’ve been able to meet some amazing families.”

One such family is the McDaniels of Brighton. David McDaniel, his three sons — Jonathan, Jeffrey, and Joseph — their wives, and grandsons operate a multigenerational family farm in West Tennessee’s Tipton County. David has farmed for about 40 years, and his sons joined the operation around 2007 after growing up on the farm, where they primarily raise corn, soybeans, wheat, and cotton.

“As many of us know, working with family can sometimes hinder productivity, but this family thrives on it,” says Dylan. “Each person has a set of skills that elevates their operation. The McDaniels don't back down from a challenge and are always welcoming and willing to help.”

The McDaniels’ farm is run basically by family members. Roles are divided so that Jonathan and Jeffrey typically handle spraying and planting, while Joseph focuses on summer crop scouting and soil sampling and runs the combine in the fall. All three sons participate in harvest.

“Right now, we’re mainly spraying cotton to control weeds and insects,” says David when asked about the day’s schedule. “We’re getting the cotton pickers and combine ready for fall harvest and catching up on everything that we didn’t get done earlier in the year because we were so busy.”

Sustainability and leaving the farm better than they found it are core values for the McDaniels, alongside hard work. The family also notes that this year’s planting season went smoothly with few equipment breakdowns, which helped them keep machines rolling and stay more efficient.

In Central Alabama, the Wendland family is busy managing its productive beef herd. Autauga Farming Company is a family-run operation located along the Alabama River near Autaugaville. The farm is managed by cow and livestock manager Dan Wendland, who works alongside his father, Andy, the primary decision-maker, and his brother, Drew, who oversees the row-crop operation. The farm was founded in 1919 as a sub-unit of McQueen Smith Farms and purchased as an independent operation by Andy’s father, Milton Wendland, in 1960.

The Wendlands’ cow-calf operation is primarily a fall-calving herd typical of the Southeast. They implement structured herd management practices, including multi-step spring workings in which cattle are gathered, sorted, weighed, vaccinated, dewormed, and electronically tagged as part of a three-step process leading to weaning. To address region-specific health challenges in the hot, humid Southeast, they follow the Zoetis Wean Vac program to reduce illnesses such as blackleg and clostridial disease, aligning with the requirements of the feeder calf sale where their cattle are marketed.