Root 42 Harvests: A Modern Farm with Family Roots

It is said that passion is contagious and that experiencing someone’s passion can inspire it in yourself. You could say that is how our story began, with Jake’s innate, infectious passion for plants. So it shouldn’t be surprising to learn that our story began in a garden. On the first day we met in 2013, Jake took me (Katie) on a tour of demonstration gardens on the campus of Michigan State University (MSU). Jake was a graduate student at MSU working on his master’s degree in viticulture and I was a young professional in the energy efficiency industry. That day, on top of it being our first date, marked the first unofficial horticulture lessons that Jake gave to me. We spent our young relationship touring botanical gardens, visiting farmers’ markets, and caring for an up-and-coming vineyard outside of Lansing, Michigan in our spare time. Nearly one year later, Jake took me back to the gardens at MSU and asked me to marry him.

At our first home in DeWitt, Michigan we started our first small vineyard in our backyard. We planted our first gardens together and built our first cold frames. Tending to our vineyard and gardens brought us pure joy and deepened our passions for plants and fresh produce to cook with, preserve, and eat even more.

In 2018, Jake and I moved to Ohio, my home state, to start new roots together, to start our family. With the help of our extended family we planted our second vineyard together at our home in Medina before our first daughter Abigail was born. In 2019, we built our first greenhouse and started growing hydroponic lettuces and herbs. It was evident early on that our greenhouse and garden brought happiness not only to Jake and me, but to Abigail as well. Gardening quickly became a family affair.

You could say that in many ways the year 2020 was the final spark that we needed to put aside any fears or doubts in our dreams and launch Root 42 Harvests. With few other places to go and spend our time, we became even more engrossed in our vineyard, raised garden beds, and hydroponic greenhouse. Our passion became our distraction from the uncertainty of the world around us. We quickly started producing more fresh produce than we could enjoy on our own and shared the fruits of our labor with family, friends, and neighbors. A rattled food supply chain due to the pandemic, hits to food production by West Coast wildfires, and food recalls that continue to create uncertainty in the quality of certain produce fortified our beliefs that there was a growing need for more locally grown, sustainable, and safe produce in Ohio.

As I look back on the story we started writing together, ten years and counting, Root 42 Harvests was born when Jake’s knowledge, skills, and innate passion, the passion that inspired me, finally met a purpose. We are thrilled that our new business enables us to work side by side doing what we love and sharing with Northeast Ohio the fruits of our labor, one that is truly a labor of love.

Know Your Growers

Jake Emling, Co-Founder & Horticulturist

Jake attended Michigan State University where he earned both undergraduate and graduate degrees in horticulture. He has 11 years of experience across a variety of specialties including agriculture, agronomy, entomology, and viticulture. During his early career in Michigan he worked for Michigan State University, AgroLiquid, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Beginning in July 2018 he joined CropKing, Inc. based out of Lodi, Ohio. His experience with hydroponics, aquaculture, and aquaponics was instrumental to his desire to start Root 42 Harvests with his wife Katie. In 2022, Jake started working as a Process Design Engineer for AdeptAg (formerly AgriNomix) in Oberlin, Ohio. In April 2023, Jake took a leave of absence from AdeptAg to devote 100% of his time to Emling Agricultural Services / Root 42 Harvests and helping to raise his two young children.

While his professional career has focused around outdoor/indoor cultivation practices and nutrient & pest management, he has an undeniable passion for viticulture and enology. Over the past ten years, Jake has been involved in the establishment and/or management of at least one dozen vineyards in France, Washington, Michigan, and Ohio.

His international work and travel has enabled him to teach, learn from, and work with growers around the globe. Giving back, especially to the next generation of gardeners and farmers, has always been a central part of Jake’s career. He has personally created and taught at educational programs and seminars on various modern horticulture techniques across the United States in front of audiences ranging from school age kids to fellow industry professionals. Passing along the knowledge and experiences Jake has already amassed in his young career is a guiding principle of Root 42 Harvests.

In August 2021, Jake earned the highest certification awarded through the American Society for Horticultural Science (ASHS) by being named a Certified Professional Horticulturist (CPH). As a CPH, Jake has met the continuing education and practical experience criteria established by the ASHS Board and has demonstrated continuing experience, education, and professional development in the horticultural industry.

Katie Emling, Co-Founder and Operations Manager

Katie earned her Bachelor of Science from John Carroll University and Master of Science from Carnegie Mellon University. She focused her graduate studies on environmental sustainability and green design. She has ten years of experience in energy efficiency and energy consulting. During her early career in Michigan, she worked for DNV GL and Consumers Energy. Since 2018, she has served as an energy analyst for Brakey Energy.

Her primary career and personal interests in sustainability have shaped the decisions Root 42 Harvests has made to minimize their environmental footprint and monitor energy and water consumption associated with their business operations.

Under Jake’s guidance, Katie manages Root 42 Harvests’ greenhouse to ensure the hydroponic system is working as it was designed and the growing conditions remain at optimal levels. She is also in charge of marketing and community engagement. Not to mention, she absolutely loves preparing meals for her family using Root 42 Harvests’ homegrown produce!