John is the National Editor at Farm Journal. Doing a little bit of everything, he covers “big picture” stories and conservation issues. He was born and raised near Mexico, Mo. on a beef cattle farm, graduating from the University of Missouri – Columbia with degrees in wildlife biology and forest management, with a minor in Agronomy. He worked for the Missouri Dept. of Conservation as a land management biologist where he was responsible for sharecrop contracts with local farmers on state land. He also helped establish the first program within the Dept. that made allowances for wildlife habitat within complex cropping systems focusing on soil conservation practices like reduced tillage and warm season grass establishment. He authored the booklet “Farming and Wildlife in Missouri which showed farmers how they could manage positively for wildlife populations with practices like narrow row soybeans and paddock grazing. He has been a landscape designer and contractor, marketer for McDonalds restaurants in Europe, Mexico and the States and a graphic designer of product packaging. Before joining Farm Journal, he published a popular regional entertainment newspaper called “The Little Dixie Weekender.” He resides on the family farm with an adopted English setter. Contact John jbucnker@farmjournal.com 573-581-9643 Farm Journal P.O. Box 958 Mexico, MO 65265
