How have I been surprised by joy?

Lol. A kindred spirit. I have a degree in Sustainable Agriculture. I know our current extension officer well, but this is unfortunately not her area of expertise. However, recently I spoke with someone from the ODNR (Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources, Legacy Program) and found it unexpectedly useful! I learned quite a bit about forestry conservation in just an hour. I was very impressed with her passion, her expertise, and the services the ODNR offer to the public for free. She is helping a friend of mine to design his property to include a forest for food and other crops and helping him to write a grant to pay for half of it. It will also restore many indigenous species and bring the property back into balance. She knew a lot about precipitation patterns, water movement in the soil, how topography and certain trees and plants affect water levels, she sussed out immediately where the water table was, she seemed to identify every tree and plant we saw, all sorts of things. I was surprised how much of it was relevant to gardening in uncertain times, and I learned heaps. I would think Colorado has a DNR too? I agree about edu websites, but there are other good ones, too, like the USDA, ATTRA, SARE, Anyway, wonderful chatting with you, and thank you so much for the tips!

I better get some sleep now, I’m digging potatoes tomorrow! 🙂