Wyatt Guetterman: the Next Generation Modern-day Farmer
Most teenagers spend their free time playing video games like Farming Simulator, but 16-year-old Wyatt is involved in the day-to-day operations on his family’s farm. Wyatt’s family has farmed row crops for multiple generations but more recently became involved with producing sod, too. Grassroots Sod, located in Bucyrus, Kansas, was founded in 2004 by Wyatt’s parents, Mike and Jodi Guetterman.
Wyatt recently completed his sophomore year of high school, where he is involved in FFA, basketball and soccer.
Wyatt credits his dad and uncles as his biggest farming mentors. He’s worked alongside them in the fields and on equipment, learning more and gaining new responsibilities every year. In addition to his involvement with farming row crops, Wyatt cuts and stacks rolls of sod every day.
Like most teenagers, he’s no stranger to technology. Wyatt is farming using tractors with autosteer navigation, turn automation and an automated sod stacker. During a recent demo with a Sabanto Steward™ equipped tractor, Wyatt experienced a fully autonomous tractor for the first time.
“It was the first time I’ve seen a tractor go by itself,” described Wyatt. “It’s a whole different look at farming.”
Wyatt was the sole operator of the autonomous tractor while it was at his family’s sod farm, using his iPad and cell phone to control the tractor remotely. His favorite part? Freedom from the cab gave him more time to do other things.
Wyatt used our Mission Control software to generate a path plan for the tractor and mower.
While out baling hay, Wyatt used his iPad to start mowing sod with the Sabanto Steward system. Once Steward alerted that the field was finished, someone moved the tractor to the next field, and Wyatt remotely started the tractor on a new mission without leaving the cab of his tractor.
Looking into the future, autonomy is something he’s looking to implement on his family’s farm, especially with their sod business.
“That’s the biggest next step to make – not to eliminate people around the farm but to keep it more of a family operation,” explained Wyatt.
Wyatt plans to stay involved with his family’s farming operation and keep expanding. Growing up in an era with ever-evolving precision ag technology, Wyatt represents the next generation of modern-day farmers.
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