She's cutting edge with her goat cheeses. She's got the hogs and is looking at the organic side of that. In a slew of ways, Ms. Grove defies convention. For one thing, she graduated with honors from Iowa State University in 1992, earning a bachelor's degree in animal science. For five years, Mrs. Grove toiled as an insurance agent in Warrenton and Manassas, before she took up farming full-time in 1998.
Females lack the physical strength, experience and know-how, insist naysayers.
Ms. Grove stands 5 feet 7 inches and weighs 140 pounds. She braids her dirty-blond hair and wears it in a tight bun. A ripple of calluses have formed on both hands. You've got no business farming. Ms. Grove says she politely ignores them.