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You can feel it in the air and see it in the fields — harvest season is here. Combines are rolling, wagons are full, and those long, dusty evenings mean farmers are racing against time again. It’s one of the busiest, most rewarding times of year, but it’s also one of the most dangerous.

For our farmers, harvest is go-time. There are only so many good weather days, and you make every one of them count. That often means early mornings, late nights and grabbing supper from the seat of a tractor.

Fatigue and stress can sneak up on even the most seasoned farmer. Please, take care of yourselves. Check your lights and slow-moving vehicle emblems before you hit the road. Make sure you’ve got a plan for who’s running where — and if you need a hand, ask for it. A few minutes spent double-checking equipment or resting your eyes can make all the difference at the end of a long season.

And for everyone else — our friends, neighbors and community members — this is your reminder to slow down and stay alert on rural roads. You’re going to see a lot more farm equipment in the coming weeks. Tractors, grain carts and combines don’t move fast because they can’t. They’re built for the fields, not for the highway.

When you come up behind a slow-moving vehicle, take a breath. Slow down early. Passing safely may take a little patience, but it’s worth it. What looks like an open stretch of road might hide a field driveway or a wide turn ahead. Those flashing amber lights and bright orange triangles aren’t decoration — they’re a signal to give space and time.

Farmers aren’t out there to inconvenience anyone — they’re doing their job to feed all of us. The person behind that steering wheel might be someone you know: your neighbor, the parent of one of your children’s classmates or the farmer who sells sweet corn at the local stand. They’re working hard to bring in a year’s worth of effort before the weather changes.

Harvest season is also a good reminder that rural roads aren’t just for travel — they’re part of our community’s heartbeat. So whether you’re hauling corn or just heading home from work, let’s look out for each other. Keep your phone down, your eyes up and your patience close at hand.

At the end of the day, everyone — farmers, families and travelers alike — wants the same thing: to get home safe. Let’s make sure this harvest season ends with everyone right where they belong.

Submitted by Mandy Orahood, the organization director at Ohio Farm Bureau Federation for Ashtabula, Geauga, Lake and Trumbull counties.

OFBF Mission: Working together for Ohio farmers to advance agriculture and strengthen our communities.