Day 11 - The final day!

We began this day early, as usual, to travel from Ashland to Columbus to visit OSU's Waterman Agricultural and Natural Resources Laboratory. Becca Miller from the Waterman Dairy showed us around the dairy from newborn calves to milk cows. It was interesting to see the differences between the dairies that we visited on this trip. One thing that was different at Waterman was the waste disposal system. They had a large tank of water at the high end of the barn and it would flush the barn two times a day. Waterman is an all Jersey dairy, which was also different from the other places we visited. They are able to grow the feed for the Jersey's easier than Holsteins because they eat less and are able to produce enough milk to be economical.

  

   

Sporting those booties for biosecurity reasons.                                                                

After the dairy, we were able to visit the plant division with Anna Marconi. Seeing the variety of plants that they grow and the projects that they grow these crops for is very inspiring. Some of these things are having pediatric cancer patients and their families come and pick a bag of fresh produce to take home. They are taught how to prepare and use the produce they pick. Low income families are invited out to pick fresh produce. There is also a section of the plot that is used for dining services on campus. We had the opportunity to taste an edible flower, the Nasturtium. It had a bit of a radish taste. There were lots of vegetables that were new to most of us like Kohlrabi, Ground Cherries and different varieties of tomatoes and peppers.

   

Touring the gardens at OSU Waterman Agricultural and Natural Resources Lab.

From OSU we had a long wait before our flight home, so we ventured to some spots near Columbus. Ice cream seems to be the food we ate the most on this trip and today was no exception. Ye Olde Mill in Utica, Ohio serves Velvet ice cream. We had lunch and learned more about how ice cream is made. Supper was pierogies at a place called Pierogi Mountain that we had seen on Diners, Drive Ins and Dives. That was an experience! Then off to the airport to wait on our flight home. A bit delayed but we all made it home and were happy to see our families.

    

Ready to go home!