Tour Locations & Schedule

Hirsch Fruit Farm
12846 State Route 772
Chillicothe, OH 45601

Rhoads Farm Inc.
1051 State Route 56 East
Circleville, Ohio 43113

Tours at Hirsch Fruit Farm will be
from 8 - 11:30 a.m.

At 12 p.m. OPGMA will host a brief session during lunch.

Lunch will be available for sale on-site. The average cost is
$6-$9 per person.
CASH ONLY.

Attendees can then drive to Rhoads Farm for a tour and additional education.

Maps will be available onsite. 

Registration Information

OPGMA Members
$20 1st company attendee
$10 each additional attendee

Non-Members
$25 1st company attendee
$10 each additional attendee

Merchandising Workshop
$20 per person

Children 12 and Under Attend FREE!

No refunds after June 21.

Visit opgma.org/cancel to view the cancellation policy.

Need a Nearby Hotel?

Hampton Inn & Suites
100 N. Plaza Blvd.
Chillicothe, Ohio 45601
740-773-1616

  Click here to make a
reservation online.

Use Group Reservation Code OPG in the special discount section to get the group rate.

The discount rate for a double is $101 and a king is $110.

Complimentary hot breakfast is included with your stay. Click here for more information and to
reserve a room.

• Tour Hirsch Fruit Farm and find out first-hand how they have remained successful for nearly 125 years!
  
  
• Learn how Rhoads Farm’s partnership with Trellis Growing Systems has propelled them to the forefront of blackberry production in the Midwest.
  
  
• See the latest and greatest equipment, packaging, chemicals, seeds, and services designed to grow your business.
  
  
• Network with more than 250 growers and marketers from across Ohio.
  


• Register for the hands-on visual merchandising workshop and learn how to drive sales using cutting-edge techniques.

Click here to download a PDF registration form.
 

NEW! Merchandising Your Farm Market to Attract Customers

2-3:30 p.m. at Rhoads Farm Inc.
Your customers’ expectations are not defined by what they are experiencing in your market alone, but also by what they experience from all types of retailers. Join Joe Baer, Founder and Creative Director of ZenGenius, Inc, as he leads a vibrant discussion on today’s retail merchandising trends and how they influence customer expectations. Joe will also share his insights on basic merchandising principles which can be applied to your own market. Then we’ll roll up our sleeves and work in teams in a fun, fast paced, hands-on merchandising challenge. Test your skills and knowledge with an interactive activity designed to improve the merchandising at your own farm market.

Attendees will have time to tour Rhoads Farm imediately following the workshop. Additional $20 per-person fee applies.

Tour Locations

Hirsch Fruit Farm - Chillicothe, Ohio 
Hirsch Fruit Farm was founded in 1890, growing 20 acres of peaches as well as running a diversified operation with cattle, hogs, dairy, chickens, sheep, corn, wheat, and hay. Now under the control of fourth generation owners, brother Steve and Mike Hirsch, the farm includes 485 acres and produces asparagus, matted-row strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, black raspberries, stone fruits, apples, grapes, and vegetables. Hirsch Fruit Farm has also expanded its operation to include an off-farm market on the north side of Chillicothe, and it operates a cider processing facility in addition to offering produce at two farm stands and several farmer’s markets in southern Ohio. Steve and Mike continue to uphold the traditions of quality and value that began with their great grandfather, John Hirsh nearly 125 years ago. Mike is the president of OPGMA.
 

Rhoads Farm Inc. - Circleville, Ohio 
Rhoads Farm Inc. was started in Pickaway County in 1958 by 9-year-old Brent Rhoads. Since then it has been a family owned and operated business and grown from a few acres into a fully operational garden center, landscape company, wholesale tree nursery, and fruit/vegetable farm. Today the Rhoads family produces 150 acres of fresh fruits and vegetables that are sold through wholesale outlets and farmers markets in and around the Columbus area.

In recent years blackberries have become a major crop for the Rhoads family as a result of a partnership with Fort Wayne-based Trellis Growing Systems. In 2010 the first commercial planting of blackberries (10 acres) was installed on the farm using the "Rotating Cross Arm" trellis. This innovative system has many benefits including winter protection, harvest efficiency, and increased quality. Another 12-acre planting will be installed this season to make the Rhoads family the largest blackberry producer in the Midwest. The blackberries are sold and packed under the Giumarra label for the national market.

Strawberries are grown on the annual plasticulture system that enables them to produce large high quality fruit that ripens well before the traditional berry season. The fruit is picked daily starting in mid-May and continues for three to four weeks.

Other crops that that are produced at Rhoads Farm Inc. include sweet corn, cantaloupe, brussels sprouts, sweet cherries, peaches, and figs.  

Stay tuned and check your OPGMA E-mail Updates for the most up-to-date information.

Don't receive OPGMA E-mail Updates? Click here to join our mailing list.