A nationally recognized landscape designer from Akron has been selected to participate on a panel of experts called the “Ground Crew.” Sabrena Schweyer, APLD, co-owner of the Akron-based firm Salsbury-Schweyer, Inc, has joined six garden authorities to answer questions in a weekly Cleveland Plain Dealer column.

“Ask the Ground Crew” explores community questions about garden and landscape plants, pests and best practices for creating and maintaining outstanding outdoor spaces in the Northeast Ohio region. Schweyer, the Ground Crew’s only professional landscape designer, is a recognized expert in sustainable residential landscape design.

Putting fresh, local, sustainably grown vegetables on the table of everyone in our community is the aim of an organization called City Fresh.

City Fresh is a Cuyahoga County nonprofit program of the New Agrarian Center that supports the creation of a sustainable local food system in Northeast Ohio. Founded by Brad Masi, the program was meant to address the needs of those who are most at-risk within our community.

The New Agrarian Center is committed to building a stronger and more sustainable regional food system in Northeast Ohio: a food system that promotes health in the broadest sense of the word -- healthy land, healthy communities, healthy individuals and a healthy economy.

Earlier this month, a diverse group of loosely affiliated organizations came together to facilitate the Growing Hope Food Summit. Community members were invited to the summit to assist in creating a shared awareness of our local food system and its gaps, to help launch a movement to increase access to healthy food, explore ways to strengthen the local food economy and connect and empower Summit County residents to act collectively.

After the release of the Community Health Assessment in March, completed for the five- county local area on behalf of three area hospitals, an interest in fresh healthy food was found to be high among all categories of participants. Thus was created the Growing Hope Food Summit, produced by Round River Consulting and staged with efforts of the Summit Food Policy Coalition, Akron Summit Community Action, Inc. and many others.  Hosted at St. Joseph’s Family Center April 1 and 2, free daycare was available, and the Mustard Seed Market provided lunch.

Most residents don’t realize that deserts exist throughout Northeast Ohio. In fact, there are a number of “food deserts” scattered throughout the region.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, food deserts are areas that lack access to affordable fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat milk and other foods that make up the full range of a healthy diet. Last year, The American Journal of Epidemiology reported that people with no supermarket near their homes were up to 46 percent less likely to have a healthy diet than those with more shopping options.