PDF files containing content presented during each of the weekend workshops are being added to many of the workshop profiles as the information becomes available. If details of the workshop you are interested in are not currently online, please check back soon as we intend to expand this content of this page shortly.
- 9:30-11:30am
- Mob Grazing (Joel Salatin)
- Fresh Mozzarella and Ricotta Cheese in Your Own Kitchen (Angel King)
- Small Scale Intensive Farming Systems I (for Urban and Rural Production)
- (Andy Pressman & Lee Rinehart)
- 9:30-10:25am
- How to Be a Successful Farmers’ Market Vendor (Christie Welch)
- Preserving the Farm Through Estate and Business Planning (Robert Moore)
- Can Small Farms Move Off The Energy Grid? (Maurus Brown)
- Homestead Goat Husbandry for Beginners (Laura Ann Bergman)
- Organic Certification for New & Old Producers & Processors (OEFFA Organic Certification Staff)
- Ecological Design in the Garden (Elyse Perruchon & Annie Warmke)
- Mental Models: Making Weed Control Work for You (Doug Doohan)
- Organic Corn Variety Performance and Management (Peter Thomison)
- 10:30-11:30am
- Managing Small Farmers’ Markets for Success (Christie Welch)
- Top 10 Marketing Opportunities Using Social Networks (Rob Leeds & Dr. Julie Fox)
- Building Green, Living Green (Jay & Annie Warmke)
- Cow Selection and Management for Organic and Sustainable Dairies (Paul Dutter)
- SARE Resources Available for Farmers and Farm Organizations (Mike Hogan)
- Urban Gardening: Why, What, How (Rachel Tayse)
- Using Ecological Principles to Design Small Fruit Systems (Joseph Kovach)
- OEFFA Grain Growers Chapter Meeting (Marty Warnecke)
- 1:45-3:45pm
- Basic Off-Grid Living (Christine Tailer)
- High Quality Organic Small Grain Production (Deborah Stinner)
- Small Scale Intensive Farming Systems II (for Urban and Rural Production)
- (Andy Pressman & Lee Rinehart)
- Grass-fed Fluid Milk Production (Warren & Victoria Taylor with Chris Hamn)
- 1:45-2:40pm
- Raising Chickens in a Food Forest (Ed Chen)
- Unnatural Selection: GMOs (Julia Yarden)
- Running and Winning Grassroots Food Campaigns (Sarah Alexander)
- Regulatory Panel on Food Safety (David G. Cox, Tom Cassell, & others)
- Soil Testing and Organic Farming: Things to Know About Your Soil (Alan Sundermeier)
- Rain Water Harvesting (Chris Luers)
- Pruning and Training of Apple Trees (Dr. Gary Gao)
- 2:50-3:45pm
- Niche Pork Production, Processing and Marketing (J.B. King)
- Eat Locally Grown Food All Year (Mary Lou Shaw)
- Making Connections: Creating a Local Food Guide for Your Region (Deborah Jordan)
- Management Approaches & Resources for Certified Organic Producers
- (Paul Dutter & Mike Anderson)
- Looking Back in Time at Victory Gardening (Karen Feltham)
- Weed Trees in Your Forest Garden: What To Do? (Janell Baran)
Mob grazing is a method of grass-based cattle or ruminant farming that involves putting high stock densities on small pieces of pasture that are relatively mature. While it might go against everything you've ever heard about grazing, keynote speaker Joel Salatin is here to tell you why he's doing it on his farm and why it might be right for your own business. Additionally, learn how this technique is particularly suited to scaling up through the use of leased farms thereby leaving production integrity intact on the home farm.
Angel King, artisan cheese maker at Blue Jacket Dairy, will share her love of cheesemaking by demonstrating how to make two easy cheeses. Learn how you can make fresh mozzarella and ricotta cheese in your own kitchen with inexpensive kitchen tools. Enhance your meals with fresh cheese and enjoy!
Andy Pressman and Lee Rinehart, ATTRA agriculture specialists with NCAT, will describe some innovative agricultural practices as they apply to small scale urban and rural production. Drawing from the production methodologies of SPIN (Small-Plot-INtensive) Farming, Grow Biointensive Mini-Farming, and Permaculture, they will give examples of designs for small-scale intensive crop production, planning, soil health, and tools and equipment. If you didn’t get enough of Andy’s SPIN presentation last year, be sure to catch this year’s workshops.
If you are new to selling at a farmers’ market, or are considering
becoming a vendor, come get advice from Christie Welch on how to prepare and what to expect. Christie, a Farmers’ Market Specialist, has been
with the OSU South Centers Business Development Network since 2003. She provides training to farm market vendors on money, marketing, and management.
Farmland preservation is crucial to a local and sustainable food system.
For more than 20 years, Wright Law Company has specialized in the legal needs of farmers and others in the agricultural industry. In this session, Robert Moore, an attorney with Wright Law, will present a discussion on business and estate planning strategies that can be
implemented to help ensure that a viable farm is passed to the next generation.
Getting off the energy grid is one way to create a more sustainable farm. Many small farm owners are developing their own energy generation systems to power their farming operations. Dr. Maurus Brown, Extension Specialist at OSU South Centers, will explore the energy systems and options available to farmers.
Are you considering a dairy goat for your small farm or homestead? This workshop will touch upon the basics of goat husbandry, including care, breeding, lactation, and health issues from a small herd perspective. Laura Ann Bergman will share her advice based on her experience tending a small herd at Stratford Ecological Center.
OEFFA Organic Certification has been a USDA NOP (National Organic
Program) Accredited certification agency since 2002 when the NOP began. OEFFA currently certifies more than 600 operations throughout the Midwest - from dairies to coffee roasters and everything in between. This informative session led by OEFFA Organic Certification staff will answer your questions about the certification process. Come as a new producer/processor who would like to find out how to certify an operation, or as a seasoned certified grower with unanswered questions.
If gardens are an ecosystem, then the gardener is an ecosystem manager
whose job it is to promote healthy relationships between soil, plants, and insects. Elyse Perruchon and Annie Warmke, passionate ecosystem
managers, will examine a number of different balanced and functional gardens of all scales, from rain gardens to market gardens. Their goal is to encourage gardeners to learn how to create balance in their own gardens. At the end of the workshop, they will have seeds for trading to encourage participants to experiment with new heirloom varieties or renew old favorites.
Weeds continue to be a major challenge for many organic producers, but a small number of farmers have virtually eliminated weeds as limiting factor on their farms. Doug Doohan, professor in the OSU Horticulture and Crop Science Department, is leading a team of multi-state and international research scientists that is investigating why some organic farmers have been successful in managing weeds. The research team is investigating the knowledge, attitudes, and perceptions of organic farmers with regard to weed management. Doug will explain how organic farmers can participate in this project and the potential benefits for organic farmers that may result from this project.
Dr. Peter Thomison will present the results from multiple years of field
testing hybrid and open pollinated corn varieties. He will address seed vigor, crop performance, and management considerations for specific
varieties. Dr. Thomison is a Professor and the Corn Production/Cropping Systems Extension Specialist in the Horticulture and Crop Science
Department at The Ohio State University.
Small farmers’ markets are full of challenges and opportunities. In the
second workshop by farmers’ market expert Christie Welch, she will discuss best practices and strategies for managing a small farmers’
market for success. Christie has served on the board of the Chillicothe Farmers’ Market for the past four years, and is herself a farm market vendor.
See how easy it is to improve your marketing through new technology. Rob
Leeds and Dr. Julie Fox will explain what social networking is, how to use it, how others are succeeding with it, and what resources can make
it work for you. Rob is an Agricultural/Natural Resources Extension agent in Delaware County, whose successful direct marketing has turned
his farm into an entertainment destination for more than 40,000 customers during the month of October. Julie serves as a Direct
Marketing and Tourism Development Specialist for The Ohio State University, College of Food, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.
Join Jay and Annie Warmke, pioneers in green living, as they take you on
a virtual tour of Blue Rock Station, a sustainable living center they developed in rural Ohio. Learn practical no-nonsense ways to use passive
and active solar energy, thermal mass, and clean garbage to make attractive useful buildings. Photos and discussion will also include
solar ovens , greenhouses, natural gardening, animal care without the vet, and more.
There are many traits and management practices that affect the
production and health of dairy cows. Join Paul Dutter, OEFFA Organic Certification Livestock Specialist, to look at genetic and physical
traits that are correlated with production, health, and longevity for dairy cows. He will discuss differences in breeds and individuals within
breeds, as well as how different breeds better fit different management systems and styles.
USDA Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) resources are available to help farm families and farm organizations become more sustainable. Mike Hogan is an extension educator who serves as the state coordinator for SARE in Ohio. He will outline SARE products and programs, including grants, books, websites, and online training programs.
Urban homesteader Rachel Tayse understands that growing your own food
for yourself is important, no matter where you live. Rachel will explain which plants work best in small spaces, and how your small space can be
successful. Indoor/outdoor plantings, dwarf varieties, container, and heirloom methods will be covered.
By using ecological principles, small fruit farmers can better work with
nature to grow their crop. Joe Kovach is an Associate Professor of Entomology and IPM Coordinator at Ohio State University. He has spent
most of his 25 year career evaluating alternative pest control methods and sustainable fruit and vegetable growing systems. In this talk, he
will share his experiences in implementing ecological principles.
All OEFFA members who are interested in learning more about the OEFFA Grain Growers Chapter and its activities are welcome to attend this meeting, led by the Chapter President and Marty Warnecke, certified organic farmer. Come network with other grain growers and discuss how
working together can strengthen our efforts to produce, process and market sustainably grown grains.
At Straight Creek Valley Farm, Christine Tailer’s lifestyle is off the
grid, but still includes the use of Internet, telephone, television and even microwave - all powered with energy generated right on the farm
with solar and wind power. Christine will describe living in a 388 square foot home, use of a propane-fired on-demand hot water heater, and
heating with a wood stove, as well as how she and her husband transitioned from typical city dwellers to rural electric independence.
The Ohio State University, along with farmers, artisan millers, and
bakers are researching the organic production of high quality spelt, hard wheat, high oil oats and malting/food grade barley. Research Scientist and Leader of The Ohio State University’s Organic Food and Farming Education and Research Program Deborah Stinner will share information on the progress thus far, and how these groups are working together to build a strong production and processing network for specialty small grains in Ohio and the Midwest.
In this session Andy Pressman and Lee Rinehart, ATTRA agriculture
specialists with NCAT, will continue their exploration of small scale urban and rural production. They will will discuss the integration of
livestock into the small system, including issues related to raising livestock in urban areas. The workshop will culminate with a comprehensive discussion on marketing options and techniques.
Pasture-based milk offers health benefits to consumers, but can also
offer financial benefits to farmers. Chris Harnn of Harnn Valley Farms co-manages a 250 head dairy herd on grass and supplies milk to Snowville
Creamery. He will share his management techniques and discuss the economic benefits. The creamery's owners, Warren and Victoria Taylor,
will talk about what they call the "economic model of grass-fed progressive fluid milk products," meaning milk that is fresh and local,
from grass-fed cows, and minimally processed. This session will cover the entire milk process from herd to half-gallon.
In a balanced food forest, produce and animal production systems can
support and nurture each other. Certified permaculture designer Ed Chen will describe how he uses the gleaning nature of chickens and the growth
habitat of different vegetables to create food for his family and customers. Ed will also discuss how the various forages available to
chickens at different points in the season contribute to different taste and nutritional qualities in the meat.
The USDA co-patent of “Terminator” technology has opened a veritable
Pandora’s box of GMOs (genetically modified organisms) into our food supply systems, as well as in the environment. Join Julia Yarden of
Earth and Sky Farms as she gives an update on current events in biology, medicine and human rights in what may now be known to western science as
“the largest unauthorized feeding experiment ever conducted in human history.”
This hands-on workshop focuses on using grassroots organizing for food
campaigns. Participants will work through the basics of grassroots organizing for social change, using current food policy issues as an
example. Learn from Sarah Alexander of Food and Water Watch how to see your work through the lens of grassroots organizing and gain the skills
needed to create an effective grassroots campaign. Skills building will focus on campaign targeting, as well as refining campaign goals, strategies, and tactics.
Confused by all the rules and regulations that apply to food sales?
David G. Cox, General Counsel for the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund, will lead this panel of government regulators familiar with Ohio’s
food safety laws. The workshop will discuss and answer questions regarding licensing, enforcement, and other regulatory standards that
apply to the retail sale of foods in Ohio.
At its core, organic farming is about soil management. Smart farmers
make their soil nutrient management decisions based on their own specific soil conditions, determined by soil test information. Alan
Sundermeier, Ohio State University Extension Educator in Wood County, will discuss how to use that information to determine how to improve soil fertility organically.
Noticed your water costs increasing recently? Learn how to use free water for your garden, landscaping, and many other needs around your home. Chris Luers from the urban sustainability project Little Square Farm will offer ideas for how you can harvest, store and use the rain water that falls from the sky.
Both proper pruning and training of apple trees are critical for the
success of an orchard operation, especially an organic apple orchard. Young apple trees need training to develop into the right shape and
size. Mature fruit apple trees require annual pruning to maintain the balance of fruiting and growth to maximize fruit yield and quality.
Learn principles and practices from Dr. Gary Gao, a Horticulture Extension Educator, Associate Professor at The Ohio State University,
and an award-winning author.
With more than 40 years of farm experience in various production settings, J.B. King has a lot of experience to share. In this workshop, he will cover pork breeding stock selection, housing, farrowing, growing, finishing, and transportation. Additionally, he will discuss how to select a slaughter facility, packaging and marketing to the needs of your customers.
Continue eating locally through the entire Ohio winter! Mary Lou Shaw
will help you explore ways to extend the growing season with progressive planting, row covers, cold frames, or a lean-to greenhouse. Then learn
how to preserve the harvest from your garden, farm market, or CSA using methods such as canning, freezing, pickling, fermenting, basement root cellaring, or solar food dehydration.
Regional food guides educate, market, connect, map and develop resources. Find out how to create, finance, design, and distribute a resource that can highlight and grow your local and sustainable food economy. Deborah Jordan, producer of the /Central Ohio River Valley (CORV) Local Food Guide/ to the greater Cincinnati tri-state region, will discuss what worked and what didn’t with the publications in 2008 and 2009, and how they're getting ready for 2010.
This presentation by Paul Dutter, OEFFA Certification Livestock
Specialist, and Mike Anderson, OEFFA Organic Education Program Coordinator, will offer current information and available resources on
sustainable, organic growing. Whether you are transitioning from conventional farming to organic agriculture, just entering organic
agriculture, or working to make your farming operation more environmentally friendly and profitable, there are many resources
available. Learn about some of the many free resources available to help you meet the opportunities and challenges in organic production.
Are Victory Gardens making a comeback? This popular national gardening
movement helped support the American war effort by providing food and conserving resources in the 1940s. Karen Feltham, a Master Gardener,
brings the history of Victory Gardening to life and discusses why the movement may still be relevant in 2010.
Managing invasive trees the conventional way is time-consuming, expensive, unsustainable, and just plain hard work. Janell Baran recently received a USDA SARE Farmer/Rancher grant to demonstrate that there is an equally effective, easier, cheaper, and organic way to
control the most invasive tree species in Ohio: /Ailanthus altissima/ or Tree-of-Heaven. In addition, she is exploring the potential for using the dying trees to cultivate edible mushrooms in situ, raising the possibility for additional economic returns above and beyond those
offered by good forest management practices. In this presentation, she will describe her control technique and discuss the results of her
mushroom cultivation project to date.
- 9:30-11:30am
- Small Scale Backyard Chickens (Wayne Shingler)
- Developing Community Kitchens (Leslie Schaller)
- Recordkeeping Made Easy for Certified Organic Producers (David Benchoff & Paul Dutter)
- Tree Grafting: Have Fun and Learn a Great Skill (Bill Johnson)
- From A to Z: Setting Up a Healthy School Lunch Program (Chef Ann Cooper)
- 9:30-10:25am
- Clean and Green (Trudy Stewart)
- Solar and Wind as Cash Crops: Can Farmers Make Money from Renewable Energy? (Jay Warmke)
- Practicing Biodymanic Farming and Gardening (Charles Griffin)
- Drip Irrigation Systems (Dan Kamburoff)
- Understanding Soil Biology and Its Role in Organic Crop Farming Systems (Larry Phelan)
- 10:35-11:30am
- Worm Composting 101 (Jeremy & Kellie Gedert)
- Basic Farming with Horses (Alex C. Dragovich)
- Foundations of Biodymanic Farming and Gardening (Charles Griffin)
- Food Safety Is Everyone’s Business, But It Begins on the Farm (Hal Kneen)
- USDA NRCS Conservation Programs for Farmers (Bob Hendershot)
- 1:30-2:30pm
- Sustainable Beekeeping (Christine Tailer)
- Living the Good Life: Autobiographical Literature of Self-sufficiency, Integrity and Social
- Responsibility (Rich Tomsu)
- Transition Initiatives: Local Actions Meet Global Challenges (Mary Cunnyngham & Cindy Parker)
- Connecting the Community: From Field to Sales Floor (Joe Gallo, Joe Uniatowski, & others)
- Stepping Up to Renewable Energy (Russ Meeker)
- Farmland Tenure Options: Creative Ways to Hold Land in Ohio (Meredith Fox)
- Forest Farming American Ginseng and Goldenseal (Tanner Filyaw)
- Microbial Inoculants and Biochemical Fungicides for Plant Disease Control
- (Brian McSpadden Gardener)
- Using Cover Crops to Improve Soil Productivity (Dr. Rafiq Islam)
- Farm to School Program Opportunities in Ohio
- (Sara Tedeschi, Noreen Warnock & Amalie Lipstreu)
Can city dwellers enjoy fresh eggs and meat from their own small flock? Wayne Shingler does in his backyard in Columbus. He offers this comprehensive course for the city dweller that has never raised chickens. Wayne will discuss setting up the brooder, getting chicks
settled in, care and feeding, housing and equipment, home processing, and dealing with adversity from neighbors and local government.
Leslie Schaller was part of the founding staff of the Appalachian Center for Economic Network’s Food Ventures program, overseeing the development of the kitchen incubator facility. She will discuss the Food Ventures Center model and how it provides a network hub for the growth of a locally controlled food economy. Leslie will also provide those wishing to create a community facility for food processing and production with ways to assess infrastructure needs.
David Benchoff and Paul Dutter will explain how good recordkeeping is useful to you as the grower/producer and really can be easy to manage.
David, a certified organic producer since 2003, will discuss planting records, harvest records, field maps, sales records, and more. Paul,
OEFFA Certification Livestock Specialist, will cover livestock records, from individual health records to feed and grazing records to keeping an
inventory of your animals. Their well-organized, manageable and user-friendly systems can help you improve your own record keeping, and put a smile on the face of your organic inspector.
Want to save Grandma’s favorite apple? Do you have a small space for
fruit trees and want to have as much variety as possible, even yellow, red, and green apples on one tree? Want to harvest over a longer
timeframe? Want to help save a vanishing skill? Fruit grower Bill Johnson’s hands-on workshop will show you how fun and easy grafting can
be, and you’ll get to take home fruit scions. Bring a sharp knife or box cutter.
Currently working with the Boulder Valley School District in Colorado,
Chef Ann Cooper will present on how to reform school lunch programs, from feasibility studies to menu cycles and procurement. Join Chef Ann
to understand the five barriers to school lunch reform, how to overcome those barriers, and tricks of the trade. She will introduce the F3: Food
Family Farming Foundation’s pivotal project, The Lunch Box: a web portal that provides free and accessible tools, recipes and community connections to support school food reform.
Many commercial household cleaners contain harsh chemicals. Luckily,
natural cleaners and essential oils can be used to safely, easily, and cost effectively clean your home. Come get advice from Trudy Stewart,
who will bring recipes for homemade cleaners from scouring powder to furniture polish.
Renewable energy is a hot topic these days, and the prospects for making
money in this emerging industry are strong for farmers. Join /Green Technology/ author Jay Warmke to hear about various options, ranging
from bio-fuels to wind farms to bio-digesters. Come prepared to learn how farmers can take advantage of the coming dramatic increases in fuel
costs.
Charles Griffin, a certified biodynamic instructor, will review several
accomplished biodynamic farming and gardening operations in order to demonstrate the core values and benefits of this approach to food
production. Viewing the farm as an organism means efficiently managing animal, plant, soil, and human resources. Join him immediately following
this session for his workshop taking a more philosophical look at biodynamics.
A drip irrigation system can improve vegetable and fruit production
while saving water. Dan Kamburoff is the owner and president of Columbus Irrigation Co. and has been commercially raising produce and using
different types of irrigation for more than 30 years. He will describein detail the purpose and use of the components that make up a drip irrigation system.
Organic farming is more than translating the methods of conventional farming into organic ones. The early founders of organic farming all
emphasized the complexity of living systems and especially the biological component of the soil as essential to system health. Larry
Phelan, professor at OARDC/The Ohio State University, will provide information about soil organisms, and examples from research in order to
demonstrate why properly “feeding the soil” is important to crop yield, competition with weeds, susceptibility to insect pests, nutritional quality, and the resilience of our agricultural fields.
Worms can turbo-boost composting both inside and outside, providing even
more of the soil nutrients essential in organic gardening. Learn how to turn your food waste into a valuable resource while having a lot of fun.
Jeremy & Kellie Gedert have been composting with worms for more than two years, and will share their techniques.
Since 1995, organic farmer Alex Dragovich has been using horsepower to grow small grains and produce on his farm. He will provide a basic understanding of what you need in terms of knowledge and equipment to successfully farm with horses as a major power source.
Biodynamics takes its beginning from a lecture series given by Rudolf
Steiner in 1924 and is considered the first organic farming movement. Learn about how biodynamic practitioners support and enhance life
processes to produce food of the highest nutritional quality, enliven the environment, and support the growth of community. Join Charles
Griffin to explore the biodynamic holistic worldview in this session as well as in the preceding session for his workshop taking a more hands-on look at biodynamics.
Food safety is front page news. It is discussed at the farmers’ market, the local coffee shop, and around the dinner table. Perceived safety of fresh food, especially produce, changes customer buying habits and your ability to sell and pay the bills. Are you aware of and following recognized good agricultural practices (GAP) in your produce operation? OSU Extension Educator Hal Kneen will give you specific insight into what you can do to improve your operation’s food safety practices.
The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) offers many programs that support on-farm conservation practice efforts. Bob Hendershot, NRCS state grassland conservationist, will discuss these conservation programs and the technical and financial assistance available locally from the NRCS and SWCD offices. Bob will outline the processes, procedures and requirements for different conservation programs, highlighting the Organic Environmental Quality Incentive Program (EQIP) and the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP).
Ohio beekeepers are now faced with a variety of pests and diseases.
Traditionally focused classes and clubs teach the use of chemicals and medicines to combat these problems. Christine Tailer will cover
alternative practices, some of which are actually centuries old. Learn about preserving swarmed feral colonies, using homemade grease patties,
powdered sugar, mite boards, and fresh mint, and utilizing alternative models such as top bar hives.
As we appreciate the importance of healthy food and attempt to live the good life, we are often inspired by books whose authors describe their experiences. In this workshop, 2009 OEFFA Stewardship Award winner and organic farmer Rich Tomsu will discuss Scott Nearing’s /Living the Good Life/, Joan Dye Gussow’s /This Organic Life/, Barbara Kingsolver’s /Animal, Vegetable, Miracle/, and Gene Logsdon’s /You Can Go Home Again/, sharing his personal experiences and inviting attendees to share their own.
The Transition Initiative is a worldwide network that provides support
and assistance to communities that act together to meet the goals of decreasing dependence on foreign oil, reducing their carbon footprint, and addressing the global economic crisis locally. Mary Cunnyngham and Cindy Parker will give a history of this initiative, share where and how it is working in Ohio, and outline the role small farmers can play in meeting global challenges.
Have you wondered how to approach a grocery store or restaurant to sell
your farm products? Join buyer representatives from various businesses interested in featuring locally produced food, including Whole Foods, Chipotle, LocalCrop.com, and Northstar Cafe. Learn what requirements they have when a farmer is interested in selling his/her goods to these outlets, and understand their perspective when looking to procure local and organic items.
Generating energy and being less dependent on utilities and fossil fuel
is a goal for many farms, but is perceived to be very expensive. Learn about first reducing your energy use, and then about “right-sizing” your
system, including using hybrid technologies. Ecopreneur Russ Meeker will guide you through the myths surrounding renewable sources, and into the
new and real options that are available for financing sustainable energy systems.
Many farm owners in Ohio are under the impression that farmland can only be bought or rented. However, there are many other options for farmland
tenure in the state. Meredith Fox, the Farm Link Coordinator for the Countryside Conservancy, will discuss the options available and provide
resources for participants as they seek to implement these alternative tenure opportunities. Informative for both established and beginning or expanding farmers.
Don’t limit farming to your fields—utilize your woodland areas by
growing native forest crops such as ginseng and goldenseal. Tanner Filyaw, Native Plant and Non-Timber Forest Products Specialist with
Rural Action, will provide an introduction to developing sustainable natural resource-based income strategies from forested lands. He will
discuss site selection, planting techniques and bed preparation, crop maintenance, markets, harvesting and drying.
There are many sustainable approaches to vegetable and fruit plant disease control, including use of disease-free seed, resistant cultivars, appropriate rotations, and good soil management practices. However, plant diseases can still be a problem despite the use of such practices. In such instances, off-farm inputs can be useful. Associate Professor of Plant Pathology at The Ohio State University Brian McSpadden Gardener will discuss when and how organically-acceptable biopesticides can improve crop quality and productivity.
Multiple long-term studies conducted at the OSU South Centers have
quantified the effects of cover cropping on field crop production and soil quality. Cover cropping has been shown to reduce fertilizer costs,
improve crop yields, reduce soil erosion and protect water quality. Dr. Rafiq Islam from the Ohio State University will talk about the
challenges and opportunities that cover cropping offers, and its critical role in organic production systems.
Interested in integrating local foods into your school district’s lunch
program? Join Noreen Warnock, Ohio representative for the National Farm to School Network and Amalie Lipstreu, coordinator for the Ohio Food
Policy Council to hear about Ohio examples and learn what you can do. Sara Tedeschi, Great Lakes Farm to School Network Coordinator, will
facilitate this workshop and highlight some national examples to show what can be replicated in Ohio. For parents, food service providers, school district representatives and farmers.