Mike grew up an outdoorsman. He was often found hunting and fishing with his father where he gained a deep respect for the natural world. From a young age, he cultivated seasonal gardens and unearthed an interest in aquatic ecosystems. In 2015, he discovered the exciting practice of aquaponics where the method grows fine quality products year round. After completing an aquaponics course, he moved back home and purchased a small farm in Clermont County where he established his own aquaponic farm and business. Roothouse Aquaponics sold its first harvest in early 2020 and now serves over 30 retail and restaurant customers in the Greater Cincinnati area. Mike and the Roothouse Team grow delicious living head lettuce, herbs, power greens, edible flowers, and raise a sashimi grade Tilapia.
Mike McGraw was born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio. After graduating from St. Xavier High School in 2008, he received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Music from The University of Michigan. He then spent 6 years in Nashville, producing music and videography in the entertainment industry.
Aquaponics is an extremely conservation-minded practice of agriculture, using less water and land resources for year round daily harvests. Taking conservation practices a step further, Roothouse only uses rainwater in its greenhouse and there is no use of any pesticide or herbicide. In addition, Roothouse employs all Non-GMO products, and creates zero-waste from its facility. The biosecure ecosystem is a proven successful practice for conservation of our natural resources.
Mark Liming was raised on a farm in Felicity, Ohio. Farming has become his life’s work. Mark, his wife, Tricia and two sons, Clinton and Brett, bought their own farm in 2007 in Bethel, not far from the main Liming family farm, where his parents live. In addition to running these two farms, he also rents some land in the Felicity/Bethel area. Mark raises Limousin beef cattle, some sheep, and has acres of farmland for corn, soybeans, wheat and hay. Conservation practices installed on his land include cover crops, no-till and a solar water pump for one of his pastures.
In 2007, Mark was elected to Farm Service Agency’s Clermont County Committee to represent farmers in Monroe, Tate, Washington, and Franklin Townships, and served two farms. He and his family were also heavily involved in FFA while his sons were in high school, with Clinton achieving the highest degree possible – the American degree, while Brett graduated from UC with a degree in architectural engineering.
Todd Winemiller
Todd Winemiller grew up working on his family farm in Batavia and has been a resident of Clermont County for over 50 years. Todd and his wife Deborah live on Taylor Pike outside of Newtonsville with their three children, Lexie, Madison and son Ryan. Along with Todd’s cousin, the family farms approximately 3,500 acres. The farm includes about 1,200 acres of corn with the remainder in soybeans. The farm has been 100% no-till for 21 years.
Todd is currently completing his fourth term as District Supervisor. He has also played an active role with the Farm Service Agency in Owensville, serving for 10 years on the FSA County Committee, six of those as chairman. Todd also serves on the OSU Extension Office’s advisory committee. He has also helped establish policy and conduct interviews with potential applicants seeking staff positions with OSU. Prior to his term as Supervisor, Todd participated in a special project with NRCS, Clermont SWCD and Miami University’s Institute for the Environment and Sustainability. Graduate students from the university visited the Winemiller farm to learn about agricultural practices.
Todd is a pilot and very active in local aviation chapters, where he has serve as President, Vice President and board member. Through this experience, Todd has gained a good understanding of organizational management, including knowledge of “Roberts Rules.” Todd wants to continue to use his experience to help SWCD better serve local landowners in the county.
