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Get to know new Ohio Farm Bureau President Bill Patterson in the September/October issue of Our Ohio magazine, as we visit him and his family on their farm in Chesterland. Patterson speaks about the combination of agriculture and service that defines his heritage and is at the heart of his new role, as well as how Farm Bureau can remain strong in the next 100 years.

One of the ways Farm Bureau remains strong is through the growth of rural broadband, which has long been a priority issue for our members. Ohio Farm Bureau Executive Vice President Adam Sharp’s Across the Table column in this issue highlights how the pandemic made the need for better broadband very apparent and how critical it is in all aspects of life on the farm. Thanks in large part to Farm Bureau’s advocacy efforts, there is now broadband expansion funding throughout the state.

In this issue of the magazine, we take flight with a Fisher Crop Care by Air and explore how farming from the sky can be a beneficial way to keep crops strong throughout the growing season. A visit to Hondros Farms speaks to lessons learned as the hemp operation makes adjustments in year two. 

This year’s Golden Owl Award winner Don Hammersmith, recently retired from Ayersville High School, talks about how teaching is like farming — you plant seeds and watch them grow. Another feature story in September/October’s magazine focuses on the National Conservation Foundation’s Next Generation Leadership Institute cohort from the perspective of inaugural member Samantha Steiner, a Warren County Farm Bureau member. 

A new OSU Impact section from an important Ohio Farm Bureau partner, Ohio State University College of Food, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, is included in this issue, as is the fourth and final installment of a series on the conservation practices at work throughout the Blanchard River Demonstration Farms Network.

In-person Grow and Know events continue to increase as we turn to the popular fall agritourism season. Some comfort food also can be found in the September/October magazine as the temperatures begin to become more temperate.

These are just some of what members will find in the latest issue of Our Ohio magazine, a benefit of Farm Bureau membership and Our Ohio supporters. A digital edition is also available.

Feature photo: Patterson Fruit Farm. Photo by Dave Gore.