Natural Resources

Ohio Farm Bureau ExploreAg Camps

by

Ohio Farm Bureau Federation is pleased to announce they will once again be hosting several free ExploreAg Camp experiences this summer!

Purpose: Discover careers linked to agriculture and related STEM fields through a series of immersive and hands-on experiences and tours.

Who: Ohio students entering grades 9-12 in the fall, or soon-to-be recent high school graduates.

Cost: Free

Learn more and apply by April 30 at ExploreAg.org

2025 ExploreAg Summer Sessions

  • May 30, COLT Electric Lineman Training, Mt. Gilead
  • June 8-13, Ohio State Columbus Campus
  • June 17-20, Wilmington College
  • July 6-11, University of Findlay
  • July 13-18, Ohio State Wooster Campus

ExploreAg is Ohio Farm Bureau’s signature ag literacy and workforce development program, offering free week, multiday and daylong immersion programs for high school students. In ExploreAg, teens learn about agriculture and related STEM fields from industry experts, scientists and educators.

Questions or concerns? Contact info@exploreag.org.

2025 Southeast Ohio Pheasants Forever Youth Event

by

Southeast Ohio Pheasants Forever will hold their 23rd Annual Educational Youth Event on Saturday, April 12, 2025 at the Johnstown Community Sportsman’s Club.

When: Saturday, April 12, 2025 from 9:00am to 3:00pm

Where: Johnstown Community Sportsman’s Club located at 7357 Sportsman Club Rd., Johnstown, OH 43031

Who: Youth of all ages!

Cost: FREE!

Events include conservation, habitat, firearm safety, tree stand safety, bird house building, duck decoy painting, wildlife calling demonstrations, fishing, taxidermy, veterinary station, flint knapping, leather crafts, DARE Program, litter recycling, boating safety, and many others!

Meadows for Monarchs Project

by

Transform part of your property into a vibrant, biodiverse wildflower meadow. 

The Meadows for Monarch project combines instruction from habitat restoration experts with a lending library of tools, equipment, and native seed mixes—everything you need to convert ordinary grass into extraordinary habitat for monarchs and other pollinators. 

About the program 

The Meadows for Monarchs Project combines instruction from habitat restoration experts and access to a lending library of tools, equipment, and native seed mixes to help Licking County residents restore crucial habitat for monarch butterflies and other pollinators. 

Geared towards Licking County landowners and grounds managers, the goal of the project is to transform small parcels of little-utilized grassy areas into thriving wildflower meadows in order to reverse habitat loss, support biodiversity, build climate-resilient landscapes and create a pathway for pollinators to survive and thrive.

How it works

After enrolling in the program, you’ll be encouraged to attend a series of training workshops prior to gaining access to a lending library of tools and equipment for site preparation, including seeders, backpack sprayers, and solarization materials. Once your plot is prepped using one of the recommended site preparation methods, you’ll have access to a supply of native seed mix to plant your own wildflower meadow for monarchs and other pollinators.

Timeline

Enrollment is open on a rolling basis now through spring 2025, with training workshops offered between January and July. These educational sessions provide participants with the knowledge and tools needed to plan, prepare, and plant meadows and pocket prairies.

Proper site preparation is a critically important step in the pollinator habitat creation process. Depending on the methodology used, site preparation typically requires several months to complete. We recommend prepping your site between late spring through early fall 2025 so that the plots will be ready to be seeded in the late fall of 2025.  

Find out more and register by visiting: https://www.lickingpollinatorpathway.org/meadows

REMINDER: OSU Extension Small Farm Conference Registrations Due

by

OSU Extension Small Farm Conference to be held – at Ohio State University Wooster Shisler Center Wooster, Ohio

By: Julie Wayman

Community Development Educator

OSU Extension Ashtabula County

____

Ohio State Extension announced plans to host a Small Farm Conference in Wooster, OH on March 8th. The theme for this year’s 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: Horticulture and Crop Production, Business Management, Livestock, Natural Resources and Diversifying Your Enterprise.

Some conference topic highlights include: Growing in a Hoophouse, Integrated Disease Management Strategies for Apple and Peaches, High Tunnel Tour, Using Cover Crops for Soil Regeneration, Creating Habitat for Beneficial Insects on the Farm, Growing Microgreens, Money to Grow: Grants 101, Growing Your Farm With Agritourism, Navigating Licenses/Certificates for your Small Farm Market, How Can Value – Added Help Your Farm, Vaccination Programs for a Small Farm, Grassfed Beef Tour.

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. – 4:30 p.m. at the Ohio State University Wooster Campus Shisler Conference Center, 1680 Madison Ave, Wooster, Ohio 44691.

For conference and registration information 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/2025smallfarmconference

2025 East Ohio Women in Agriculture Conference

by

Registration is now open for the 2025 East Ohio Women in Agriculture Conference on Friday, March 21 from 9:00 am – 4:00 pm at Shisler Event Center on The Ohio State University’s Wooster Campus, 1880 Madison Avenue, Wooster, OH 44691. This is a very special year as we celebrate our tenth year together with our biggest conference yet!

This year’s program will feature 24 break-out sessions in 6 tracks including: Plants, Animals, Business & Marketing, Home & Family, Special Interest, and Personal Development. These informative and interactive sessions are presented by Ohio State University Extension educators, farmers, industry professionals, and partner agencies.

We are thrilled to have international speaker, author, and farm coach, Elaine Froese, at our conference this spring. She’s on a mission to guide farm families, across North America, to get unstuck, communicate better, find harmony through understanding, and secure a profitable farm legacy. Elaine is traveling from her home farm in Manitoba, Canada to speak with us! She will share a special keynote about Living an Intentional Life, will teach a breakout session to help tackle tough family conversations, and will have Coach on Call individual sessions available throughout the day. Every participant will also get a copy of Elaine’s book, “Farming’s In-Law Factor.” You can learn more about Elaine Froese at elainefroese.com.

Registration information can be found at go.osu.edu/eowiareg25 and you can learn about sponsorship opportunities at go.osu.edu/eowiasponsor25.

Ohio Forestry and Wildlife Conservation Camp

by

Join Ohio 4-H, Hocking College and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources for a fun-filled weekend of learning and exploring about forestry and wildlife education, fishing, hiking, tree climbing, outdoor survival, careers, college opportunities, and more!

  • May 2-4, 2025 at Canter’s Cave 4-H Camp in Jackson, OH
  • Cost is $115 and registrations are due April 1, 2025
  • Open to campers in grades 7 through 11
  • Spots are limited and are granted on a first-come, first-served basis.

Register by visiting: go.osu.edu/25ForestryWLCamp

Ohio BASS Nation Community Club

by

If you have a passion for the great sport of bass fishing, but do not have a school or community sponsored team, the Ohio BASS Nation now has a way for you to compete at the state level, with the potential to earn scholarship funds, and a path to the national stage! All anglers who currently attend high school in the state of Ohio are invited to join a “Community Club.”

Visit the Ohio BASS Nation website or contact Tasha Burgess, Ohio BASS Nation Youth Director, at obnyouth@gmail.com for more information.

President’s Environmental Youth Award

by

Encourage youth with an existing environmental stewardship project or an idea for a project to apply so that their achievements can be further recognized. The President’s Environmental Youth Award (PEYA) recognizes outstanding environmental stewardship projects developed by K-12 youth. The PEYA program promotes awareness of our nation’s natural resources and encourages positive community involvement.

Youth must have completed their project while they were in kindergarten through the 12th grade and the project must be sponsored by an adult who is 21 or older. Applicants from all 50 states as well as U.S. territories are eligible to compete for a national Presidential award.

Visit the President’s Environmental Youth Aware webpage for more information about eligibility requirements, judging criteria, and how to apply.

Explore Maine’s Aquaculture Industry with Virtual Field Trips from Maine 4-H

by

Virtual Field Trips (VFTs) are an innovative way for youth to explore and learn about places and people that would otherwise be infeasible! These immersive, online experiences bring Maine’s thriving aquaculture industry to life—no travel required.

Accessible at no cost, the Virtual Field Trips are designed to break down geographical and financial barriers, making high-quality, hands-on learning available to all. Register online to receive a link to the VFTs. Each field trip also comes with complimentary 4-H activity guides and lesson plans to help facilitate meaningful engagement with youth.

The first VFT currently available features the University of Maine’s Center for Cooperative Aquaculture Research (CCAR), a large-scale, land-based aquaculture facility in Franklin, Maine. Additional virtual field trips are in development and will be rolled out throughout 2025 and 2026. These experiences offer insight into seafood production, workforce development, career exploration, and STEM concepts related to aquaculture technologies.

To register for a virtual field trip, visit extension.umaine.edu/hancock/aquaculture/vft.

For more information: contact Carla Scocchi, 4-H Youth Development Professional at carla.scocchi@maine.edu.

Calling All Gardeners! 2025 Ohio Garden Trials

by

The 2025 Home Garden Trials are now available. It’s hard to believe that it’s already time to start ordering seeds. The trials are open to any home gardener in the state of Ohio. This means you and all of your friends. This is the seventh year of the trials and we have some exciting news. We have brought back a cut flower trial, a herb trial, and a youth trial (to get the kids excited about gardening). We’ve been listening to feedback and this year we’ve added lots of varieties that can be grown in containers.

The purpose of the trials is to have gardeners grow 2 varieties of a vegetable or flower side-by-side and then give us their feedback through our online reporting site. To learn more details about the trials, you can visit the Trials Home Page

There are a total of 13 trials this year. You can select to do from one to five vegetable trials plus the flower, herb, and youth trials. Community Gardens can choose to do all 13, if they would like. The cost of each trial is $3 plus shipping. If you pick up your order at the Athens County Extension Office, there are reduced shipping charges. To see a description of this year’s trials AND to place your order for this year, visit the 2025 Trials Home. The deadline to order is Feb. 16 for guaranteed seeds or March 2 for remaining seeds.

The seeds for this year’s trials have been donated by Rupp Seed.

This year we have:

Cool Season veggies

  • Carrots
  • Lettuce
  • Peas
  • Spinach
  • Beets

Warm Season Vegetables

  • Cucumbers
  • Green Beans
  • Summer Squash
  • Peppers (Sweet)
  • Tomatoes (Cherry)

Flowers

  • Zinnias

Herbs

  • Parsley

Youth

  • Crazy Beans