Ohio Soil Health Week

Ohio Soil Health Week provides a time and space to celebrate, honor, and protect Ohio's soils. This weeklong celebration includes outreach, education opportunities, and events to raise awareness around Ohio's most valuable natural resource: our soil. The celebration will occur annually every second full week in November, honoring the late David Brandt, a sustainable agriculture trailblazer and the "Godfather of Soil Health", whose birthday falls that week. Ohio Soil Health Week will feature a variety of events hosted by multiple organizations and individuals around the state—all celebrating soil health.

Event Series Ohio Soil Health Week

Environmental Professionals Network: Inaugural Ohio Soil Health Week Breakfast

Nationwide and Ohio Farm Bureau 4-H Center 2201 Fred Taylor Drive, Columbus, United States

This Environmental Professionals Network (EPN) Program brings together myriad soil science and health professionals and experts to celebrate the first annual Ohio Soil Health Week. The event includes a morning breakfast with planned talks from soil health researchers, farm managers from across Ohio, and representatives from OEFFA. Mainly, the speakers will present on the theme of soil health in diverse landscapes in Ohio, including on production agriculture fields, gardens, livestock grazing paddocks, prairies and grasslands, and lawns and landscaped areas. The speakers will discuss how healthy soils hold more water, reduce run-off, and protect water quality. They’ll describe how healthy soil practices build soil fertility reducing the need for fertilizer and providing a positive return on investment for farmers. Additionally, the event will educate attendants both in-person and online (through a YouTube livestream) about how healthy soil practices can sequester carbon to mitigate harmful greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change and build on-farm resilience. All participants, regardless of in-person or virtual attendance, must register online. The cost of attendance for non-students is $25, $5 for students, and free for all virtual livestream participants. The price of in-person registration includes a coffee bar and a breakfast buffet.

$25
Event Series Ohio Soil Health Week

Determining Biological Nitrogen Fixation in Maize Varieties in Ohio

Waterman Farm 2548 Carmack Road, Columbus, Ohio

To celebrate the first annual Ohio Soil Health Week, participants are invited to visit a maize experiment at Waterman Farm in Columbus, Ohio (adjacent to OSU) where different maize varieties were grown during the summer of 2024 that fix nitrogen (N) from the air, promoted by beneficial bacteria in aerial roots with mucilage, offsetting the need for mineral N fertilization. The Maize plots in this experiment are a great example that Improved, Heirloom and Mexican Landrace Maize can be grown in Ohio with little nitrogen input, providing researchers and farmers a reliable solution to decrease over-reliance on fertilizers and reduce environmental hazards on soil.  

Event Series Ohio Soil Health Week

Soil Health and Human Health: Intersection of Microbiomes

Zoom

In honor of the inaugural Ohio Soil Health Week, the Nature Conservancy is hosting a webinar with Danielle “Dani” Kusner, who teaches about the soil and human microbiomes at Deep Soil LLC, empowering farmers and consumers to make choices that heal the soil and their bodies. She is a Certified Crop Advisor and expanded her expertise into human health as a Certified Terrain Advocate through The Metabolic Terrain Institute of Health. Dani earned a degree in Sustainability Studies from The University of Dayton in 2008 and since then, has been on a journey of transforming soils and food production through people's connection with Mother Earth. Register for the free webinar here.

Event Series 2024 OEFFA Farm Tour and Workshop Series

The USDA and You: Conservation Programs

Zoom

Explore USDA conservation programs and the ways they can benefit farmers. This session will focus on the NRCS’s Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP). Learn about the historic funding in the Inflation Reduction Act, as well as how the programs work, their impact, and how farmers and farm advocates can influence their implementation to improve them over time. If you have used one of these programs, or are thinking about it, please join the conversation! Register at the link below.

Event Series Ohio Soil Health Week

Soil Health Breakfast

Licking County Soil & Water Conservation District 771 East Main Street Suite 100, Newark, Ohio, United States

Join Licking County Soil & Water Conservation District for bacon, eggs, and soil health! Attendees will receive a free breakfast while learning how to use Web Soil Survey to create a personalized soil map. The hosts will share information about cover crops, soil health, and drought assistance programs, and attendees will have the opportunity to take their own soil test. The meeting will provide fertilizer re-certification credit. No registration required.

Event Series Ohio Soil Health Week

Celebrating Soil Health in the Miami Valley

The Foodbank's Urban Garden 56 Armor Place, Dayton, United States

Let's celebrate Ohio Soil Health Week with a special focus on the Miami Valley. Local organizations such as The Foodbank, Inc., The Ohio State University Extension Montgomery County Office, Central State University Extension Southwest Office, and Five Rivers MetroParks are collaborating to provide their programs at The Foodbank's Urban Garden. Exploring the innovative approach to tackling hunger through soil health, the tour of The Foodbank, Inc.'s Urban Garden shines a light on sustainable solutions in the Dayton area. The OSU Extension's demonstration of the Soil Moisture "Robot" and insights on interpreting soil test results lay the groundwork for understanding soil's vital role. Further discussions with Five Rivers MetroParks delve into the potential of soils as carbon sinks, offering a dual benefit of climate change mitigation and enhanced soil fertility, while the compost kitchen initiative demonstrates practical steps for waste reduction and soil enrichment. CSU Extension complements this knowledge with a deep dive into the benefits of cover crops and soil biology alongside practical soil infiltration tests, offering a holistic view of soil health. Register for free here.

Event Series Ohio Soil Health Week

Those Who Feed Us: An Art Exhibition Celebration Soils

Hopkins Hall Lobby (main floor) 128 North Oval Mall, Columbus, United States

To celebrate Ohio Soil Health Week, the Living Art and Ecology Lab at The Ohio State University’s Department of Art invites you to a short, juried exhibition seeking to appreciate those who feed us through building and maintaining our soils. Artists are invited to submit work that explores soil as community: from microbes and mycelium, to plants and people, and beyond. Artists working in all mediums are welcome to apply. Submissions are due by October 20th at 11:59 p.m. Registration not required.

Event Series Ohio Soil Health Week

2024 BIPOC Farm Tour Circuit

Eden's Harvest 307 Saint Louis Avenue, Dayton, United States

Join the Agraria Center for Regenerative Practice in celebrating the first annual Ohio Soil Health Week with a full day of BIPOC farm tours. This is a unique opportunity to recognize and celebrate the contributions of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color in the regenerative farming community, as well as the practices they use to regenerate the soil. Tour Highlights: Farm Visits: Explore diverse regenerative farming practices and learn from new and experienced BIPOC farmers. Lunch: Enjoy a farm-to-table lunch featuring fresh ingredients sourced directly from from of the farms we will visit, creating a delicious and sustainable dining experience. Networking: Engage with fellow farmers, community members, and advocates for regenerative agriculture. Register by Monday, November 11, 2024 here. Limited spots available.

Event Series Ohio Soil Health Week

Soil Health Rally

Athens County Municipal Court 8 East Washington Street, Athens, United States

Celebrate Ohio Soil Health Week by joining Rural Action and partners to learn about soil health in Ohio and hear from local and state speakers. Get fired up for soil health by learning about its role in food production, watershed health, and climate mitigation. Visit Rural Action at tables around the Athens Courthouse steps before and after the speakers to enjoy demos and learn more in-depth. Attendees at this event will learn about the past, present, and future of soil health conservation in Ohio and what they can do in their backyard to take part. Registration not required.