Carolyn Harding with local women organic farmers. Kate Hodges, of Foraged & Sown organic farm, and Katie Hawkins, of Happy Toes homestead. Both women got started as urban farmers, one is certified organic and the other is in the transition to organic certification.
Since 2015, Kate Hodges has farmed two certified organic acres of herbs, vegetables, and berries on multiple growing sites around Central Ohio. She is a first-generation, female farmer committed to environmentally- and socially-just practices.
Kate is the flavor finder of Foraged & Sown. She has been gardening her whole life and foraging for much of it. She finds herself enamored equally with cultivated and wild flavors.
As farmer, you'll find her building perennial systems and carefully harvesting to ensure plant vigor. As forager, you'll find her traversing different terrains in search of greens, berries, nuts and roots.
foragedandsown.com
Katie Hawkins of Happy Toes Homestead, grew up gardening and fell in love with cooking from scratch for friends and family in college. Her passion for making tasty, sustainable food inspired her to create Happy Toes Homestead, LLC. in 2017.
Before digging into farming, she studied Environmental Studies at Denison University and, over the years, she worked on a variety of local (and a few not-so-local) small-scale farming operations and farmers markets. Happy Toes Homestead, LLC. is her (and her husband, Jacob's) home, and she believes in using farming practices that not only produce absolutely delicious vegetables, fruits, and herbs and breathtakingly beautiful flowers, but that also help her local community enjoy healthy and green lifestyles.
happytoeshomestead.com
And a shout out to:
Emily Pek, founder of Frayed Knot Farm. Thirty miles east of downtown Cleveland, Emily grows over 50 varieties of annual and perennial flowers, many of which are heirloom seeds on less than an acre. Using hand scale and regenerative farming practices, the farm has transformed from mowed grass and heavy clay soil to a thriving ecologically diverse ecosystem. Flowers and foraged botanicals are cut for CSA bouquet subscriptions, weddings & events and workshops.
https://www.frayedknotfarm.com/
And a shout out to:
Annie Warmke - BlueRockStation.org
WomenGrowOhio -https://www.facebook.com/womengrowohio/
photo of Kate Hodges at Foraged & Sown Organic Farm
GrassRoot Ohio w/ Carolyn Harding - Conversations with every-day people, working on important issues here in Columbus and all around Ohio!
Tune in every Friday 5:00pm, EST on 94.1FM Columbus, Ohio & streaming worldwide @ WGRN.org
All shows/podcasts archived at SoundCloud! https://soundcloud.com/user-42674753
