Theresa Roegge was explaining to preschoolers about how pumpkins grow, but the adults in the background were the ones taking notes.

Seeing what Theresa and Mike Roegge have done with their Mill Creek Farm just might convince them to try the same thing.

"It's just inspiring to me what this couple has done with this acreage instead of traditional crops," said a Hancock County landowner on the tour. "It's exactly what I want to do, to put my knowledge to work and try to grow food for people."

Friday's visit to Mill Creek Farm wrapped up this year's sustainable agriculture tour sponsored by University of Illinois Extension. Other tours this spring and summer highlighted llamas and alpacas, gourmet mushrooms and asparagus, farm-raised prawns, organic apples and heritage turkeys, ducks and chickens.

"My hope for the whole tour series is that people see the diversity of Illinois agriculture and the entrepreneurial spirit," said Deborah Cavanaugh-Grant, Extension small farm and sustainable agriculture specialist who coordinated the tours.

"Mill Creek Farm is a great example of a local foods operation that has grown and flourished by responding to what the community wants."

The farm -- launched in 1995 with strawberries and pumpkins -- grew to include sweet corn, asparagus, green beans and tomatoes and an educational agritourism business complete with a corn maze. It showcases another option for small farming operations.

Mike Roegge wants to see more small farmers tap into the blend of agriculture and tourism.

"People want to be entertained, and at the same time, you can tell them a story about agriculture. There's nothing wrong about linking those two together. There needs to be more of this," he said.

"With the way farmers struggle today, you know this could end up being an outlet to try to help make ends meet," Theresa Roegge said.

John Pike, a board member of the Agriculture and Tourism Partners of Illinois Association and an Extension community and economic development educator, said specialty crops like pumpkins or sweet corn are a big thing for Illinois agriculture and for a lot of rural communities.

"We need to realize the customers that travel to these attractions buy whatever product it is, the people who come into the Quincy community to visit this farm from out of the area, it's not uncommon for them to have lunch in one of the restaurants in town. They might buy some gas and some candy bars for the trip home," Pike said.

"The economic impact of operations like what the Roegges have add to the local economy much more than the money they're collecting from produce selling on the farm."

Specialty farming operations also "trade" customers in an area, with a pumpkin patch pointing visitors to a nearby winery and the winery suggesting a stop at an orchard. "By working together, businesses that would be looked at as competitors put together a

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bigger package for the area and draw people from longer distances who spend more time," Pike said.

Specialty operations succeed by offering high quality products. "We don't sell stuff we wouldn't want to eat ourselves," Mike Roegge said.

They also listen to what their customers want, expanding what they grew over the years. "There's nothing complicated about it," he said. "As long as you're doing what the public wants you to do, you're going to succeed."

And catering to the younger generation could provide better-educated consumers for the future.

"When I was growing up, a lot of kids wanted to be farmers. Today kids know nothing about what goes on on farms. It just helps to enlighten them," Theresa Roegge said. "They really do get an education out here, things they didn't know or plain didn't remember, and it's always fun. As long as you're open to it, everybody can learn something every day."

-- dhusar@whig.com/221-3379