No. 48 • Discovery
The thing I enjoy most about being part of Edible Ohio Valley is the opportunity for constant learning. With every article I edit, every interview I do, I discover something I didn’t previously know or understand fully. When you’re as deep into a career as I am, the chance to learn and grow is valuable and satisfying.
Take Hannah Purnell’s well-researched article on the connection between food and mood. We’ve long known, of course, that what we eat affects how we feel physically, but a growing body of science (including expertise right in our own backyard) suggests that what we eat also affects how we feel mentally. It’s more than just, “I feel guilty about eating that whole pint of ice cream.” Now I understand how food interacts with our brain at a cellular level and influences our mental health.
And talk about unseen connections: Cedric Rose’s Garden column explores the hidden network of microorganisms underground that work symbiotically with plants and other critters to foster soil health. One of Cedric’s sources compares the network of mycorrhizae to the internet—vast, essential, and linked. Now I know to leave the roots of my garden plants intact at the end of the growing season, cropping the above-ground parts only, so that those roots can help nourish and support the soil.
I also enjoy my quarterly conversations with notable Ohio Valleyans for the Last Word. I’ll note that the column is taking a brief hiatus this issue; the several people we reached out to over the summer were, due to busy schedules, unable to sit down for an interview. In its traditional spot on the last page of the magazine you’ll find the lovely work of a colleague from Edible Communities.
As fall comes on, let’s all commit to seeking deeper understanding.
Bryn Mooth
Edible Ohio Valley
In this Issue
Notables: Michaela Farm (Oldenburg, IN), One-derings (Clarksville, OH), The Farm on Central (Carlisle, OH), Mom ‘n ‘em (Cincinnati, OH)
Features: Garden: Mysterious Mycorrhizae by Cedric Rose; Cultivators: Playing the Long Game by Polly Campbell; Sustain: You Feel What You Eat by Hannah Purnell; Food as Health: Nourishing Table by various contributors
Edible Communities Signature Section: Is Plastic Waste the Cost of Eating? by Food Tank
Local Guides: Dining Guide & Local Gifts
Edible Ink: Mushrooms by Bambi Edlund
On the Cover: Spore print by Maureen Fellinger/Agraria Center for Regenerative Practice in Yellow Springs, OH