We are in the middle of Farmers Market season when the market tables are overflowing with glorious veggies, fruits and field flowers.  Some familiar (zucchini, tomatoes, beets and chard),  others new discoveries like rainbow carrots, dragon beans and broom corn.  It is these unusual fruits of the fields that our littlest Market Buddies are most curious about….the ones that spark conversation between farmer and our children.

Soon the fragrant apples will appear and it will be pumpkin fest and corn maze time.  The farmers markets are so important in allowing us to see the rhythm of the seasons from Spring to Fall.  The first crop of season being Maple syrup, moving onto berries which seem to last for just a precious second.

As hard as our farmers work each and every day during the natural growing season, seamlessly moving from one crop to the next, they are limited by our climate to the length of their season.

It is our mission to extend their growing possibilities to 4 seasons.  There are many ways to do this from hot houses to freezing summer crops for off season storage and sales. Hydroponics and aquaponics have been very successful in the states of Michigan and Ohio. A local incubator kitchen fosters creation of value-added products such as canned salsas, jams, sauces from the produce they grow.  All these initiatives are not only important for our health but great for our local economy…keeping dollars right here in the Seneca County area.

We have some amazing partners in our mission in the Ohio Farm Bureau, Seneca Conservation District, 4-H Youth Programs, OSU Extension, SIEDC, Seneca Area Chamber of Commerce and our farmers.

This generation of little ones is curious and we can show them by example how growing local, eating local and uniting farm to main street strengthens our economy and makes us Seneca County proud.

We are brand new.  Grow Seneca is our community coalition…we welcome your ideas, suggestions and involvement.

Please join us at our first annual Farm to Table Dinner on September 26th.  Outdoors on historic Court Street to celebrate the harvest and thank our local farmers.                               Tickets available by clicking here.

Cindy Kalnow