We bought a bag of green beans from you today that we could not eat. They must have been old, they…read moretasted terrible.

Finally got to shop here! This little farmers 3 is right at the corner of 21st St and Deo Dr…read more It's right there when you turn in for Tractor Supply and Big Lots. They take cash ,card , and EBT. The people there're friendly,helpful, and fun to chat with! There's a good selection of produce there and not overwhelming either. The prices are really good too. They have huge cantaloupes.for a great price. There's watermelon, peaches, nectarines, blackberries, a nice selection of tomatoes too and more to offer. We spent under $20.00 and left with a good bit of produce. It's definitely worth it to stop in to see what they offer and what may catch your eye!

What do I have to say about this farm to make you pay a visit!? This was a truly a one-of-a-kind…read moreexperience and worth the price of admission. When I emailed Julie, the owner, to pick a date and time I didn't realize what my boyfriend and I were in for; we tried to go a few weeks prior, but it's by appt only. He and I essentially got the farm to ourselves-- we each got to walk an alpaca, hold and bottle-feed the babies, hang out with the larger group of alpacas (there are a 100 total here), talk to Julie more in depth (who is so sweet and knowledgeable), and visit the store. We came on a perfectly sunny and warm-ish day, which allowed for the alpacas to be super social. We spent 2 hours at the farm and came home with so many memories of our morning there, along with great photos!

On a lovely, temperate Saturday afternoon my girlfriend and I visited Road Runner Rascals alpaca…read morefarm, having made a reservation a couple of weeks earlier. The cost was $25 per person, and we figured that it would simply involve getting a few photo ops with alpacas, and perhaps getting up close and personal with a few to scratch their furry necks etc. Little did we know that the ranch runner, Julie Judge, was offering up a full experience! Road Runner Rascals has around 100 alpacas overall, and when we arrived we realized that it would truly just be the two of us interacting with the alpacas -- no other groups of people. Julie introduced us to the alpacas, then proceeded to halter a couple of them (named Savoy and Plum Crazy) for us to walk around the pasture. I didn't have "walking an alpaca" on my bingo card for life, and yet that's exactly what we did. The alpacas were very docile, and happily let themselves be led on a long walk through a sprawling, hilly pasture. They make the most adorable noises, and have definite personalities -- we could tell when they wanted to go certain places, and their curiosity was also very obvious. After walking them for at least half an hour, we brought them back to the stable...where Julie was warming up milk for us to bottle-feed a ten-day old alpaca! I don't know why, but the feeling of feeding warm milk out of a pop bottle to a baby alpaca is just something you have to experience for yourself. Afterwards, Julie opened up the back paddock and a veritable herd of alpacas came wandering out, surrounding my parked car, then walking up to us to be petted, some lying down, some rolling around in the grass, and generally just doing what alpacas do. Funnily enough, this wasn't our first alpaca experience, having visited another alpaca farm a few years ago, but what Julie offers at Road Runner Rascals is truly next level. It's also heartening to know that she has donated alpacas to a nearby autism center, and also has some connections with OSU and other local businesses. All told, my girlfriend and I have had a lot of great days this year, but this is easily one of the best. We made a point of buying a few things from the gift shop as well, but the real takeaway is the memorable experience itself, and it's one not to be missed by any animal lover in the region!

I highly recommend CSA shares to anyone who wants to eat more local foods, learn more about how…read moretheir foods are grown, and try a greater variety of produce. (What is a CSA? Visit www.localharvest.org/csa). I found Bird's Haven Farms through localharvest.org, a website that allows you to search for local farmers, markets, and CSAs. From the very first day I picked up my share from Bird's Haven Farms, I was in love. This year, I signed up for the 2012 CSA subscription the day the email hit my inbox. What's great about Bird's Haven? First off, I can pick up at the Westerville Farmers' Market, a smaller weeknight market where I don't have to fight the Saturday crowds at Worthington or Clintonville. Second, the cost is very reasonable considering the amazing quantity of vegetables that we receive over the season. I took pictures every week last summer so I could truly assess how much we got. It was 22 weeks of insane bounty! Third, the extras were just phenomenal. The first week we went to pick up, we got a hanging basket of flowers. Other weeks, we'd occasionally get strawberries or fresh-picked flowers or some other addition to our vegetables that made the day special. Fourth, and this is the best part, they don't pre-box the CSA. They post a list of what's included that week and how many you can take, and you get to pick from big boxes of produce. That means that if you're first to get to the market that day, you get your pick of the harvest. If you're a big family, you can pick out the baseball-bat sized zucchini. If you're not cooking tonight, you can pick out the tomatoes that need a day to ripen so they'll be perfect for tomorrow's dinner. You get to pick what works for you. And finally, I love Bird's Haven for their service. Each week, CSA subscribers receive a recipe for in-season vegetables and a little update on the farm. When I went on vacation, they held back my CSA for a week and let me get double the next week (not all farmers are so understanding). And they're always really friendly!

My husband and I are always looking for short trips out of Columbus on our motorcycle and U-Pick…read morestrawberries at Bird's Haven Farm was today's trip. It is an easy 40 minute ride from Columbus and the second half of the trip was beautiful, rural & idyllic. The small farm is just past the edge of the paved road and is very easy to find. When we got there we were greeted with a smile and a basket for our ripe red gems. The strawberries were early this year, so even though we got to the farm an hour before they closed there were still ripe fruits on the plants. Early in the picking I wanted to make sure it was worth the effort and sampled a strawberry- it was small, but perfectly sweet, ripe and had the most beautiful flavor. It was worth it. They have beautiful plants and fresh veggies you can buy there too and since we missed the farmer's market this morning it was perfect. Their plants were healthy and loved and I can't wait to plant my sage and rosemary. They do take credit cards for those of us who never cary cash. They do recommend calling ahead to make sure the fields have ripe fruit. Make sure you also wear appropriate footwear. They use a black plastic landscape mulching system to cut down on weeds, but the isles are pretty weedy and can get muddy if it has rained. The fields are new this year, so the seasons to come will just be that much better. I can't wait. The Bird family has a wonderful thing going here.

I took a vacation day on a Monday in October to go apple picking. The first few apple orchards I…read morecalled were open but not for U-pick. Windy Hill, or Charlie's Apples was! Driving from Columbus, it took about 30 minutes to get there. After passing a whole lot of nothing, we finally saw the Charlie's Apples sign to the left. We pulled in, first to see a nice, fairly large country house. There was a hand-painted sign instructing us to drive to the right, where we saw another hand-painted sign instructing us to get a bag, drive to orchard, pay when done. Simple enough. Of the three bag options: 5, 10 or 20 pounds. Because I only visit an apple orchard one time a year, I opted for the huge, 20 pounder, priced at $14. Off to pickin'. There was just one group out there, two parents and about 6 young children. It's good there weren't many more people because it was a little small, smaller than other orchards I've visited. They had one variety available to pick: Gold Rush, yellow, light green similar to a Golden Delicious, with a crisp, sweet/tart flavor. The skin was a little tough, but perfect for storage. They can be stored for months! When the pickin' commenced, I found myself with approximately 60 apples. Not bad for $14. We drove around to pay. I was confused for a second or two before noticing that we were to pay on the honor system. There was a little metal box with a bunch of money in it. You wrote your name on a piece of paper, along with what was purchased, and the final price (Pricing: Apples $8/10 lbs., Apples $14/20 lbs., Hard cider $5/750 ml). Open daily from 9a to dark, and staffed on the weekends. Closed March-August for regular business. Available for cider purchases by appointment only.

Such a nice orchard. They dont spray the apples with any chemicals which I find so refreshing. Dont…read moremind the spots on the apples or the teeny worm holes you might find. The orchard sits on private land and the land is peaceful and serene. There are 2 sweet dogs that Follow you around and hang out as you pick. Follow the signs to the little barn to get your bags or pre picked apple and cider. Follow the signs to go pick. Pay as you leave in the same spot you first got the bags from. Their current hours are 9 to 5 everyday.

So I went to copia farms today. We were in Sunbury, it was kind of close…read more The store is 300sqft, with coolers and freezers. No staff. Self pay It is a sophisticated pay system with scanner. Cards only. Eggs were 4.99. They also had chicken, beef, sausage; all frozen Honor system is their business model I guess.

Good, healthy food choices for the home. It a little bit of a drive from the inner city of…read moreColumbus, but totally worth the effort. Raw milk is available through the medium of purchasing a herd share.