Fall is a busy season for forest farmers. This is the time when seeds and fruits ripen on many native species including ramps, ginseng, pawpaws, persimmons, and more. Additionally, the seeds of forest herbs are often planted in the fall so that they can undergo their natural cold stratification requirement through the winter before sprouting in spring.
Fall is also a
perfect time for gathering together outdoors! Over the last month we have hosted and attended several regional events, and plan to attend a few more in the coming weeks (see below for upcoming events).
We attended the 46th annual Ozark Area Community Conference on September 26-28, 2025 in Ozark County Missouri. This event is a long standing forum for a sustainable and regenerative economy in the Ozarks which has been meeting for decades. The event brought together
ecologically-informed growers, activists, small business operators, musicians, writers, and innovators - many of whom are forest farming practitioners. This year, the event included a forest farming panel which we were invited to join. The panel also included several forest farming practitioners with both newly established and mature food forests.
Forest farming panel at the Ozark Area Community Conference (Photo credit: Clara Vaughn)
We also hosted a forest farming workshop in collaboration with Lincoln University Extension and the University of Missouri Center for Agroforestry. This workshop served as a training opportunity for natural resource professionals. Although ramps
(Allium tricoccum) were a special focus of the event, we also heard from Dr. Nadia Navarrette-Tindall on other native plants such as sochan (Rudbeckia laciniata) - a native coneflower relative with traditional use as a cooked green. Hannah Hemmelgarn shared about various funding support opportunities for forest farming and training opportunities provided by the Center for Agroforestry.
Participants learn about ramp biology, ecology, and sustainability at the workshop (Photo credit: Olga Romanova)Workshop participant gathers ramp seeds (left) and a close up of ramp seeds (right) (Photo credit: Olga Romanova)
Forest Farming Survey
Are you a Missouri based small farmer or forest landowner? The Missouri Forest Farming Survey is still open, and we need your input!
Filling out this survey will help the MWFFC understand people's knowledge and interests about forest farming. The results from this survey will be used to assess how to best serve small farmers in the state.
Complete the survey now and enter to win a $50 Visa gift card!
Join us on zoom
over the lunch hour on Friday, October 17th for our monthly forest farming office hours, where we will talk about forest farming, answer questions, and connect with farmers in the region and beyond. This is a great opportunity to learn and expand your network.
Register for our October office hours using the link below. The registration link is also posted on our website. See you there!
Click the link
below to register via zoom. If you have specific questions you would like to discuss, send them in advance to [houstone@lincolnu.edu].
Join Lincoln University and others for a celebration of Missouri native edible plants and more at Finca Fest -- Jefferson City, MO on Oct. 28, 3pm-6pm.
Learn about native plants through educational displays from Cooperative Extension and Cooperative Research.
This event will also include food tasting prepared with native plants, small ruminant meats,
and locally grown vegetables.
Our friends at Grovewood Farms are happy to offer ramp seeds this season. Grovewood Farms is operated by Julia
Donovan, a fourth generation farmer, working her 20 acres of Sugar Maple forest in Suttons Bay, Michigan. The understory has been undisturbed for more than 100 years, resulting in a carpet of beautiful ramps.
If you are interested in seeds please email Julia at jmzellner@comcast.net or give her a ring/text at 440.382.6593.
Our friends at Grovewood Farms are happy to offer ramp seeds this season. Grovewood Farms is operated by Julia
Donovan, a fourth generation farmer, working her 20 acres of Sugar Maple forest in Suttons Bay, Michigan. The understory has been undisturbed for more than 100 years, resulting in a carpet of beautiful ramps. 
