April 12 will be a big day for agriculture in Polk County.

The first tailgate market of the year starts at 8 a.m. in Columbus with the day ending with the Farm to Fork supper at the Mill Spring Agricultural Center.
This year’s event marks the fourth occasion of the meal and also heralds in a new approach to the supper – a celebration and kickoff for the upcoming growing season with a hearty meal, good music and a lot of fun.
“The Farm to Fork Supper means so much to the Mill Spring Ag Center,” said the Ag Center’s Director Patrick McLendon “It is our biggest fundraiser of the year and we depend on it to move forward with the project and programs that the Ag Center offers.”
Aside from restoring the Mill Spring School back into a working building, the center offers classes and events year round as well as promoting sustainable agriculture through its many demonstration and exhibition gardens.
The Ag Center is near the end of its Farm Class Series, a multi-month educational series dedicated to teaching gardening, farming, homesteading and more.
“The Farm Class Series was great and over the course of the program we educated more than a 100 people but we won’t stop there, we are in the process of expanding the gardens at the Ag Center to showcase new growing techniques and as always, will be holding classes throughout the year to help the citizens of Polk,” said McLendon.
All of these activities and programs are made possible by fundraisers such as the Farm to Fork, donations, grants and renting the office space made available by renovating the building.
“The Farm to Fork Supper is what allows us to keep moving forward,” Mclendon said and noted that tickets to the supper are available at the Mill Spring Farm Store and online.

– article submitted
by Patrick McLendon