Farming Magazine: History, Editors, Content and Readers
Profile updated November 2026
Farming Magazine is a seasonal quarterly published from Mt. Hope, Ohio, in the heart of Holmes County's Amish country, and edited by David Kline, an Amish farmer, naturalist and author, with his wife Elsie. Its pages mix practical articles on livestock, bees, gardens and woodlots with essays on land, faith and rural community from farmers and writers across North America.
| Editors | David and Elsie Kline |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Friends of the Agrarians, Box 85, Mt. Hope, Ohio |
| Frequency | Quarterly, seasonal issues |
| Volume | Volume 24 in 2024 (No. 95 that fall) |
| Subscription | $22 a year, $40 for two years; $6.50 cover price |
| ISSN | 1539-7432 |
| Official website | FarmingMagazine.net |
History of Farming Magazine (Ohio, David Kline)
David Kline was born in 1945 on his family's farm in northeastern Ohio. An Amish farmer with an eighth-grade education and a self-taught writer, he served as a conscientious objector at a Cleveland hospital after being drafted in 1965 and returned to the farm with Elsie in 1968. Their 120-acre farm, Larksong, became a certified organic dairy in 2000 and is still worked largely with horses.
Kline, whose mentor was Wendell Berry, became known as a writer through books including Great Possessions: An Amish Farmer's Journal, Scratching the Woodchuck, Letters from Larksong and The Round of a Country Year. Farming Magazine grew out of the same agrarian outlook. Published by Friends of the Agrarians, it reached its 24th volume in 2024, which places its start around the turn of the century, and the Klines edit it from home.
The magazine is very much a family project: the Fall 2024 masthead lists Dennis and Marie Kline as proofreaders and copy editors and Martha Kline as designer.
Farming Magazine (Ohio, David Kline) Today
Each quarterly issue opens with Letter from Larksong, David Kline's editorial, and runs a dozen or more features. The Fall 2024 issue included Ulf Kintzel on forty years as a shepherd, forest farming goldenseal, raising ducks, fall bee swarms, an Indian summer harvest, making sauerkraut, and essays on gardens, family and the land.
Regular columns include My Turn, Conversations with the Land by Jim Van Der Pol, Weather Wisdom by Bruce Stambaugh and Bee Talk by Sam Miller. That issue also ran the final installment of Fireside Chats with Dr. Paul, from organic veterinarian Dr. Paul Dettloff, who died in July 2023.
What Farming Magazine (Ohio, David Kline) Is Publishing Now
Livestock, bees and crops
Sheep, dairy, poultry, horses, beekeeping, forest farming and garden Q and A, written by working farmers.
Land and community essays
Reflections on stewardship, Plain community life, faith and family from Amish, Mennonite and other rural writers.
The farm home
Hints for Farm and Home, seasonal recipes, poetry, book reviews, letters and The Last Row.
Farming Magazine (Ohio, David Kline) Editors and Staff
The Fall 2024 masthead and contents name these editors and contributors:
- David Kline - Editor
- Elsie Kline - Editor
- Dennis Kline - Proofreader and copy editor
- Marie Kline - Proofreader and copy editor
- Martha Kline - Magazine design
- Jim Van Der Pol - Columnist, Conversations with the Land
Who Reads Farming Magazine (Ohio, David Kline)
Readers include Amish and Mennonite farm families, organic and grass-based farmers, horse farmers, gardeners and agrarian-minded readers far from Ohio. Many run small diversified farms like the Klines': the 2022 Census of Agriculture found 95% of U.S. farms are family farms. SARE offers free resources on cover crops and soil health that match the magazine's interests.
Farming Magazine readers know the quiet comedy of a team of Belgians that decides it is done for the day at 3 p.m. farm.FM collects that kind of moment as farm satire and farm humor, with ranch humor for the shepherds and graziers. Its farm jokes require no electricity to enjoy if someone prints them out.
If the name is new to you, farm.FM is the nation's first satirical farm site, with Tractor Tunes country music for farmers on the side. One of its regular writers keeps a whole archive of stories like that.
Farming Magazine (Ohio, David Kline) Sources and Agriculture Authority Links
- Farming Magazine, Fall 2024 (PDF) - a full issue with masthead.
- Farm and Dairy: profile of David Kline - the editor's life and Larksong farm.
- Counterpoint Press: David Kline - the editor's books.
- SARE: 10 ways cover crops enhance soil health - sustainable farming research.
- USDA NASS: 2022 Census of Agriculture - family farm data.
Farming Magazine (Ohio, David Kline) FAQ
Who edits Farming Magazine?
David and Elsie Kline, from their farm in the Mt. Hope area of Holmes County, Ohio.
How often is Farming Magazine published?
Quarterly, in seasonal issues.
How much is a subscription?
$22 for one year or $40 for two years, per the Fall 2024 masthead.
Who publishes Farming Magazine?
Friends of the Agrarians, Box 85, Mt. Hope, Ohio.
Season after season, Farming Magazine carries David Kline's agrarian vision from Larksong to farm kitchens across the country.