Audience: Specialty Grower

2024 Beginning Farmer Series

Are you a beginning farmer trying to nail down all the resources and information you need to be successful? This series is designed to introduce you to some of the most important topics and resources of which a farm should be aware. OSU Extension, USDA and Farm Credit staff will present critical information on each of these topics allowing attendees to build relationships with these critical partners.

 

This series of events is free and open to the public but we do ask for pre-registration for planning purposes.  You can click the QR in the flyer or THIS LINK to register.

Click here to view, print, or download the flyer –> 2024 Beginning Farmer Series

Urban Agriculture Critical Infrastructure Grant RFP Due Soon! Apply by February 1st!

I want to remind everyone that the newly established Franklin County Urban Agriculture Critical Infrastructure grant is accepting applications until February 1st!

To apply for the grant or to get more information (e.g. application questions, scoring criteria, and eligibility requirements), please visit Franklin Soil and Water Conservation District’s website. Additionally, Franklin Soil & Water Conservation District posted the Grant Info Session recording on YouTube!

This grant aims to address a significant funding gap that small growers face when looking to scale up their operations. The current City-County Community Garden Grant continues to be very successful in its purpose, however, the total request amount for this existing grant is capped at $3,000 per applicant and it is only available for nonprofits – so another source of support is needed for local growers who have outgrown the Community Garden Grant and want to scale up their operations. Franklin Soil and Water Conservation District will also provide technical assistance, education, and key third party connections to grantees while ensuring equitable support for socially disadvantaged growers, including BIPOC growers, women growers, and low income growers.

 

 

CLICK HERE to learn more about the grant. 

Urban Agriculture Critical Infrastructure Grant Information Session on Monday December 11th @ 5pm

I have been working with local partners on a great opportunity for urban producers to capacity build.  This is applicable for both profit and not-for-profit producers.  There will be an information session for potential grant awardees to learn more about the grant and get questions answered on Monday December 11th @ 5pm. It will be recorded as well.

 

CLICK HERE to learn more about the grant. 

 

Info Session for Urban Agriculture Critical Infrastructure Grant

Monday, December 11, 2023
5:00 PM – 6:00 PM

Please join us virtually for info-sessions related to the upcoming Urban Agriculture Critical Infrastructure Grant! (https://www.franklinswcd.org/urban-ag-grant) If you are interested in applying for the grant and have questions, this event is for you! You can access this info session via the Teams link below. This session will be recorded and posted publicly for anyone who cannot make it. If you have any questions or need accommodations, please reach out to Annabel Spranger at aspranger@franklinswcd.org .

Join on your computer, mobile app or room device

Click here to join the meeting

Meeting ID: 229 915 886 363
Passcode: HShq3y

Backyard Poultry Certification Course

Interest in keeping backyard poultry has been increasing steadily with a huge jump in growth around the COVID pandemic and Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza outbreak due to egg price increases and egg shortages.  We have also see a big jump in the number of 4H kiddos who want to keep chickens and turkeys for 4H livestock projects.  Many cities and municipalities require a certification before they allow you to keep backyard poultry.  Lots of people just want to learn more about this for their own family and personal food security.  Maybe this is the perfect holiday gift for that hard to buy family member.  Whatever your reason, we have you covered.

 

The course costs $25 dollars. (Super cheep!)  Click on the QR code or head to go.osu.edu/chicken

This self-paced course is expected to take 2-3 hours to complete and includes the following 6 modules:

  • Getting Started
  • Brooding, Basic Husbandry & Nutrition
  • Housing
  • Egg Production
  • Maximizing Health
  • Biosecurity

After completing this course, learners will be able to:

  • Identify rules and regulations relevant to raising backyard poultry in their state, city, or municipality
  • Source healthy birds to raise in their backyard
  • Apply concepts of basic husbandry, nutrition, and housing to successfully raise backyard poultry.
  • Explain how eggs are produced
  • Practice safe handling of birds and eggs
  • Recognize health-related abnormalities of poultry through physical examination
  • Describe the roles of of veterinary care and biosecurity in maximizing poultry health

There are NO refunds issued for this course.
If you have questions about the course, contact Tim McDermott at mcdermott.15@osu.edu for assistance.

Food Systems Webinar Series from CDFA

Check out the upcoming CDFA Food Systems Finance Webinar Series! They are very excited to kick things off on Tuesday, February 28 at 2:00 PM ET with our first installment – Bonds & Food Systems. The series will consist of five free webinars featuring programs and case studies, as well as traditional financing tools available for food and agriculture-related businesses and projects. Each webinar is designed to complement our recently released CDFA Food Systems Finance Best Practices Guidebook by expanding upon the tools outlined in CDFA’s toolbox approach. Please feel free to share this series with your network. We hope you are able to join!

The webinars are free, but registration is required.

 

  • February 28, 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM Eastern – Bonds & Food Systems

  • April 25, 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM Eastern – Access to Capital Tools & Food Systems

  • June 27, 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM Eastern – Targeted Tools & Food Systems

  • August 29, 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM Eastern – Investment Tools & Food Systems

  • November 28, 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM Eastern – Restoring Local Food Systems Through Finance

OSU Extension to host Mid-Ohio Small Farm Conference – March 11th, 2023- in Mansfield, Ohio

Ohio State Extension announced plans to host a Small Farm Conference in Mansfield Ohio on March 11, 2023. The theme for this year’s Mid-Ohio Small Farm Conference is “Sowing Seeds for Success.”

Conference session topics are geared to beginning and small farm owners as well as to farms looking to diversify their operation. There will be five different conference tracks including: Farm Office, Horticulture and Produce Production, Livestock, Agritourism/ Marketing, Natural Resources.

Some conference topic highlights include: How to purchase our family farm, food animal processing, bee keeping, sweet corn, blueberry and pumpkin production, small ruminant nutrition, agritourism laws, fruit tree pruning and cut flower diseases.

Anyone interested in developing, growing or diversifying their small farm is invited to attend including market gardeners, farmers market vendors, and anyone interested in small farm living.

Attendees will have the opportunity to browse a trade show featuring the newest and most innovative ideas and services for their farming operation. The conference provides an opportunity to talk with the vendors and network with others.

The Conference will take place from 8:30 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. at the Mansfield OSU Campus in Ovalwood Hall, just minutes from I-71 and US Rt 30.

For conference and registration call OSU Extension Morrow County 419-947-1070, or OSU Extension Knox County 740-397-0401. Please follow this link to register for the conference: https://go.osu.edu/2023osusmallfarmconf 

 

Click here to view, print, or download the flyer –> Small Farm Conference Brochure 2023

Marketing 101 for Urban Farmers on Thursday February 2nd, 2023 at 6:30pm

There is an upcoming opportunity for Urban Farmers hosted at OSU Extension Franklin County.  See the details below. There is a cost of $10 per person.  For any questions contact Mike Hogan at hogan.1@osu.edu 

 

CLICK here to view, download, or print the flyer –> Marketing Urban Farming_Franklin Co Training

Attention Ohio Food Producers – Ohio CAN

This looks like a great opportunity. Producers can sell food to the Ohio Association of Foodbanks.   Try the QR code in the pic below or if that does not work,  open the PDF of the flyer at the bottom to get more information.  You can also click HERE for the press release as well as HERE for the website page with more information.

CLICK HERE to view, print, or download the flyer –>  Ohio CAN One Pager

 

High Tunnel Soil Borne Disease Testing

We have numerous high tunnels in Franklin County at both community gardens and urban farms.  USDA ARS (Agricultural Research Service) based in Wooster is now accepting samples for free to test the soil in high tunnels for the presence of soil borne disease.

CLICK HERE for the submission form and more information. –> Soil_submission_form_2022

Questions? Please contact Anna Testen, anna.testen@usda.gov or 330-641-2862.