Merged Summer 09

SUMMER 2009

SMALL FARM QUARTERLY Good Living and Good Farming – Connecting People, Land, and Communities

Feature Articles Nutrient Budgeting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Page 4 Grazing for Carbon Credits . . . . . . . . . .Page 7 Meet the Greenhorns . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Page 10 The Winter Greens Garden . . . . . . . . . .Page 16

Supplement to Country Folks

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July 6, 2009

SMALL FARM QUARTERLY

SMALL FARM QUARTERLY - SUMMER 2009 TABLE OF CONTENTS SMALL FARM PROGRAM UPDATE Cornell Small Farms Program Update.......................................................................Page 3

BUSINESS MANAGEMENT Cracking the Code, by Kate Rossiter ..........................................................................Page 7 Dairy Profit Teams help farms bring management to the forefront,

by Rebecca Schuelke Staehr ......................................................................................Page 15

COMMUNITY & WORLD

SMALL FARM QUARTERLY Good Farming and Good Living — Connecting People, Land, and Communities Small Farm Quarterly is for farmers and farm families — including spouses and children - who value the quality of life that smaller farms provide.

Farmer to Farmer, by Mike Dennis ..............................................................................Page 6

COWS AND CROPS A Close Look at Nutrient Budgeting,

by Laurie Drinkwater, Ann Piombino .............................................................................Page 4 Cover Crop Demonstrations, by Brian Aldrich ...........................................................Page 8 Dear Vicki Vetch, by the Drinkwater Lab ....................................................................Page 17 Balancing Act, by Sara Zglobicki ...............................................................................Page 21

FOREST AND WOODLOT Feral Swine Update ...................................................................................................Page 15

GRAZING Grazing for Carbon Credits, by Nancy Glazier...........................................................Page 7 Graze NY, by Stacy Russell ........................................................................................Page 18 Two Hot Topics for Graziers, by Mike Dennis...........................................................Page 21

HORTICULTURE Phytophthora blight on vegetables, by Amara Camp ...............................................Page 5 The Winter Greens Garden, by Judson Reid ............................................................Page 16 Cover Crops Case Studies: Iron Kettle Farm, by Molly Shaw ................................Page 23

LOCAL FOODS & MARKETING From Garlic to “Scape-a-Moli”, by Kara Lynn Dunn ................................................Page 19 Choosing the Right Marketing Channels,

by Matthew N. LeRoux and Todd M. Schmit ...............................................................Page 22

NEW FARMERS Meet the Greenhorns, by Severine von Tscharner Fleming......................................Page 10 Beginning Farmer 101, by Laura Biasillo ..................................................................Page 19

NON-DAIRY LIVESTOCK Marketing Sheep and Lambs, by Ulf Kintzel ..............................................................Page 9 Northeast Meats Wild West, by Margaret Wedge .....................................................Page 18

NORTHEAST SARE SPOTLIGHT Taming the Wild Beach Plum, by Violet Stone and Abha Gupta..............................Page 11

ORGANIC FARMING

OUR GOALS ARE TO: • Celebrate the Northeast region’s smaller farms; • Inspire and inform farm families and their supporters; • Help farmers share expertise and opinions with each other; • Increase awareness of the benefits that small farms contribute to society and the environment.

• Share important research, extension, and other resources.

Small Farm Quarterly is produced by Lee Publications, Inc., and is distributed four times a year as a special section of Country Folks. Volume 7 publication dates: July 6 and October 5, 2009; January 5 and April 6, 2010.

EDITORIAL TEAM: • Anu Rangarajan, Cornell Small Farms Program Editor in Chief • Joanna Green, Cornell Small Farms Program Managing Editor • Brian Aldrich, Cayuga County CCE Field Crops • Laura Biasillo, Broome County CCE New Farmers • Celeste Carmichael, NYS 4-H Youth Development Program Youth Pages; Home and Family • Mike Dennis, Shady Pine Farm Grazing • Gary Goff, Cornell Natural Resources Department Forest and Woodlot • Martha Herbert Izzi, Vermont Farmer Vermont • Betsy Lamb, CCE Integrated Pest Management Program Horticulture • Susan Neal, Farmer Women in Agriculture • Rebecca Schuelke Staehr, NY Farm Viability Institute Business Management • John Thurgood, Delaware County CCE-NYC Watershed Agriculture Program Stewardship and Nature

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Stand Up and Be Counted, by NY-NASS....................................................................Page 3

RESOURCE SPOTLIGHTS American Farmland Trust Resources for the Northeast..........................................Page 7 The Greenhorns-support for young farmers ..........................................................Page 10 Urban Farms ..............................................................................................................Page 20 Women’s Tools, Clothing and Equipment ...............................................................Page 24

SMALL FARM SPOTLIGHTS On Warren Pond Farm, by Jill Swanson ....................................................................Page 14 Producer Finds Success in No-Till Planting, by Christopher C. Wager .................Page 22

About copyright: The material published in Small Farm Quarterly is not copyrighted unless otherwise noted.

However, we ask that you please be sure to credit both the author and Small Farm Quarterly.

SUPPORTING ORGANIZATIONS: NY Agricultural Environmental Management www.nys-soilandwater.org 518-457-3738

Cornell Small Farms Program www.smallfarms.cornell.edu 607-255-9227

STEWARDSHIP & NATURE Agricultural Environmental Management: Branching out to serve NY’s vegetable, fruit and greenhouse growers,

by Barbara Silvestri .....................................................................................................Page 23

www.cce.cornell.edu www.cals.cornell.edu

URBAN AGRICULTURE The Future of Urban Agriculture, by Kathryn Werntz ..............................................Page 20

WOMEN IN AGRICULTURE

Watershed Agricultural Council www.nycwatershed.org 607-865-7790

NYS 4-H Teen Program www.cce.cornell.edu/4h 607-255-0886

Tools of the Trade, by Susan Neal.............................................................................Page 24

YOUTH PAGES

ABOUT OUR ADS...

Go Green With Gardening, by Brett, Megan and Joel Rosko ...................................Page 12 Hard Work Pays Off for Young Limousin Cattle Farmer,

by Kristine Gessner .....................................................................................................Page 12 Tractor-Two Views, by Kyle Frank and Allen Presher ................................................Page 13

All advertisements in Small Farm Quarterly are managed by Lee Publications. Cornell’s Small Farms Program, Cornell Cooperative Extension, and other Small Farm Quarterly sponsors and contributors do not endorse advertisers, their products or services. We receive no revenues from advertisers.

Cover photo by Molly Shaw. Seven year old Lance Jensen enjoys strawberries at his family’s Iron Kettle Farm in Candor, NY.

To find out how your business or organization can advertise in Small Farm Quarterly, contact: Bruce Button, Lee Publications, 1-518-673-3237, bbutton@leepub.com.

July 6, 2009

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SMALL FARM QUARTERLY

Cornell Small Farms Program Update GOODBYE JOANNA! On June 30th, Joanna Green retired from Cornell University after more than 25 years of leadership in sustainable agriculture and local food systems development. Joanna served as Extension Associate with the Cornell Small Farms Program for the past 8 years, and was the Managing Editor for Small Farm Quarterly up through this Summer issue. Prior to that, she spent fifteen years with the Cornell Farming Alternatives Program, and five years with the non-profit Center for Local Food & Agriculture.

food system in NY and recommends immediate steps for action. The report is the culmination of two years of discussion and research involving participants from all sectors of the state's food system.

nell.edu/pages/projects/workteams/LM/localmarket.cfm.

CHECK OUT OUR NY SUSTAINABLE AG QUARTERLY The Small Farms Program, in cooperation with the Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program (NESARE) released the Spring issue of the NY Sustainable Ag Quarterly in mid-May. The online magazine highlights the many creative approaches that NY farms and organizations

After "retirement" Joanna will be serving as part-time Director of the Groundswell Center for Local Food & Farming, a new farm-based education center being developed here in Ithaca. Joanna says, "I have immensely enjoyed my time at Cornell, and I treasure all the relationships I've developed over the years with farmers, Cooperative Extension and Cornell colleagues, agency and NGO staff, and many others. I look forward to continuing to work closely with many of you as we put together Groundswell's training and educational programs."

NYS LOCAL MARKETS WORK TEAM PUBLISHES REPORT Our NYS Local Markets Work Team announces publication of its report, Enhancing the Viability of Local Markets in NYS. The report identifies the most significant opportunities and challenges to expanding a regional

Work Team leaders encourage all those with an interest in local food systems to consider the report's recommendations and help to implement them. To download the full report and to learn more about the NYS Local Markets Work Team, visit: www.smallfarms.cor-

ORGANIC FARMING

Stand Up and Be Counted USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service is conducting a major new survey of organic producers and those in transition to organic.

By NY-NASS

from crops while the remaining amount came from dairy and livestock items."

"The 2007 Census of Agriculture showed 1,137 farms engaged in organic production in New York, fourth in the nation," reports Steve Ropel, Director of the National Agricultural Statistics Service, New York Field Office. "Organic sales in 2007 reached $54.2 million," Ropel continued. "Thirty-four percent of the value came

The point Ropel wants to make is that organic farming is beginning to change the landscape of New York's and the nation's agriculture. And to find out how organic farming is doing that, USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will conduct it's first-ever, wide-scale

How can I get Small Farm Quarterly?

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Your organization collects the names, forwards them to Country Folks Subscriptions, and pays Country Folks just $2.50 for each subscriber.

Country Folks mails out the copies.

Bulk orders: You can order multiple copies of any issue for just 10¢ a copy!

Minimum order is 50. Orders must be placed at least 4 weeks before the publication date - Fall 2009 copies need to be ordered by September 4.

To find out more, contact: Tracy Crouse Country Folks Subscriptions P.O. Box 121, Palatine Bridge, NY 13428 1-888-596-5329 email: subscriptions@leepub.com

survey of organic agriculture.

Through the Organic Production Survey, which was mailed in early May, organic producers have an opportunity to share their voices and help ensure the continued growth and sustainability of organic farming in the United States.

This survey is a follow-on from the 2007 Census of Agriculture and a result of the organic initiative included in the 2007 Farm Bill. It includes every producer who indicated using organic practices or transitioning to organic production in 2007. Some of the items looked at by this survey for the 2008 calendar year, include: * Production of field crops, vegetables, fruits, tree nuts, berries, livestock and poultry * Production practices, including pest management, cover crops, crop rotation, rotational grazing, conservation tillage, water management and buffer zones * Production expenses * Marketing practices, including wholesale, retail and direct-to-consumer sales * Value-added production and processing Survey results will help shape decisions regarding farm policy, funding allocations, availability of goods and services, community development and other key issues. In addition, the information can help producers of organic agriculture make

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are taking toward sustainable farming. The latest issue spotlights two farms in Saratoga Springs, NY that are drawing the community to the farm through a colorful schedule of yearround classes. The magazine also details upcoming NESARE grant opportunities, scholarships, and funding available to support sustainable agriculture events. To join our email distribution list contact Violet Stone at vws7@cornell.edu. You can view current and past issues at: www.smallfarms.cornell.edu/ pages/news/SARE.cfm SMALL FARMS ENERGY WORK TEAM FIELD DAYS Our new NY Small Farms Energy Work Team is hosting a series of summer field days on New York farms that feature conservation or renewable energy projects. The field days will take place during a two week period from July 27th - August 7th and span from the North Country to the Southern Tier. One of the field days features a "walk-through energy evaluation" on a small dairy led by a trained auditor.

Participants will have a chance to see the auditor's recommendations for saving energy and dollars. Other field days showcase small farms that produce their own fuel, or have installed systems based on wind, solar, or hydro-power. To learn more about the field days, or the Energy Work Team and its other activities, visit www.smallfarms.cornell.edu/ pages/projects/workteams/energy/energy.cfm or contact Violet Stone at 607-255-9227 or vws7@cornell.edu. informed decisions about the future of their own organic production operations.

Ropel emphasized that respondents are guaranteed by law (Title 7, U.S. Code) that their individual information will be kept confidential.

NASS uses the information only for statistical purposes and publishes data only in tabulated totals. The report cannot be used for purposes of taxation, investigation, or regulation. The privacy of individual Census records is also protected from disclosure through the Freedom of Information Act. Respondents are encouraged to complete the Organic Production Survey online via a secure Web-based response system at www.agcensus.usda.gov. Online responses not only save the respondent time, but also save the government money on return postage and data entry.

To enter the online system, respondents will need the ID number printed on the mailing label of their survey form. Survey forms are required to be returned by June 17. Survey results will be published in early 2010 and will be available online at www.agcensus.usda.gov.

For more information or for help completing your form, call 888.424.7828 (toll-free), or visit www.agcensus.usda.gov.

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800-331-9122 or 301-662-4197

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Small Farm Quarterly is Recruiting!

We are looking for several new members to join the Small Farm Quarterly Editorial Team, and we are always looking for new writers and photographers. We are especially looking for editors and writers from outside of New York State, so that we can improve our coverage of New England and Pennsylvania small farm issues and innovators. All SFQ editors and writers are volunteers. If you're interested, please contact Violet Stone at 607-255-9227 or vws7@cornell.edu.

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COWS

July 6, 2009

SMALL FARM QUARTERLY

AND

CROPS

harvest is greatest in tonnage, it contains the greatest amount of water, and thus a smaller amount of nutrients are removed.

A Close Look at Nutrient Budgeting Cornell's Drinkwater Lab group is developing data and tools to help organic farmers - and other farmers -- manage nutrients more sustainably.

By Laurie Drinkwater and Ann Piombino Nutrient budgeting is a way to look at the effects of certain management practices on soil nutrient stocks over multiple growing seasons. The goal of nutrient budgeting is to determine whether crop rotation and soil fertility management practices are building, depleting, or maintaining soil nutrient reserves. The idea is basically the same as monitoring a bank account balance, only instead of tracking money, we are tracking nutrients.

Figure 1. A nutrient budget can be constructed for any management unit, such as a single field or permanent bed, or an entire farm. This type of budgeting emphasizes the net result of nutrient inputs and removals on soil stocks. Internal nutrient cycling processes such as decomposition and plant uptake help to determine these flows but are not measured for the purposes of these simple budgets.

For the purpose of nutrient management on farms, we usually emphasize the flows of nutrients that are directly controlled by the farmer. Nutrients are added as fertilizers, amendments, or-in the case of nitrogen--through biological nitrogen fixation and subsequent plowdown of green manures. Nutrients are removed during crop harvest or removal of residues. The difference between the additions and removals of nutrients is the nutrient balance for the period of time in question. This is usually referred to as a "simple nutrient mass balance."

Inputs - Exports = Net Balance (surplus or deficit)

Table 3. Nitrogen and phosphorus balances for a three-year vegetable rotation under different soil fertility management regimes. The compost is horse manure plus bedding.

Crop Yield Input Moderate compost Spinach 6 t/ac Compost Broccoli 8 t/ac Compost Lettuce 10 t/ac Compost Three year balance Very low compost Spinach 6 t/ac Compost Broccoli 8 t/ac Compost Lettuce 10 t/ac Compost Three year balance Green manure, no compost Spinach 6 t/ac Green manure Broccoli 8 t/ac Green manure Lettuce 10 t/ac Green manure Three year balance

Rate

Nitrogen, lb/ac N input N export 110 65 110 83 110 39 330 187

N balance 45 27 71 143

Phosphorus, P input 45 45 45 135

1 t/ac 1 t/ac 1 t/ac

22 22 22 66

65 83 39 187

-43 -61 -17 -121

9 9 9 27

8 11 5 24

1 -2 4 3

-------

123 80 153 356

65 83 39 187

58 -3 114 169

0 0 0 0

8 11 5 24

-8 -11 -5 -24

5 t/ac 5 t/ac 5 t/ac

CONSTRUCTING A NUTRIENT BUDGET In order to construct a nutrient budget, you'll need to know the nutrient content of soil amendments and crops. Tables 1 and 2 show the nutrient contents of common soil amendments and a few crops. As Table 1 shows, soil amendments vary widely in nutrient content, even those amendments derived from the same source (e.g., note the difference between the poultry manure-based amendments).

Notice that the animal manure-based amendments have much more P relative to N, resulting in low N:P ratios compared to the plant-based amendments (which are the first three amendments listed). This is why continued use of manure-based composts (particularly poultry) as an N source results in the over-application of P. The plant-based materials are a better match for the crop materials that will be harvested.

Table 1. Nitrogen and phosphorus contents of some common plant- and animal manure-based soil amendments.

Soil amendment

%N

%P

N:P

3.34 0.18 0.04 1.10 1.00 2.97 3.66 0.44

0.46 0.03 0.01 1.58 1.22 1.92 1.54 0.15

7.3 6.0 7.2 0.7 0.8 1.5 2.4 2.9

If you add more nutrients through compost or other soil amendments than you remove with your crop harvest, surplus nutrients will accumulate in your soil reserves. On the other hand, if you are removing nutrients faster than you are adding them to the soil, your soil has a deficit and soil nutrient reserves will be depleted over time. Farming practices that result in a nutrient deficit are commonly called "mining the soil."

alfalfa meal wegmans wood chips UF grass/leaf compost Wegmans egg farm compost no wood Wegmans egg farm compost w/wood poultry manure FH Hudson's poultry litter horse manure w/bedding compost

Nutrient budgets can be constructed for any nutrient. However, our emphasis has been on the big three: nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K). Nutrient balances do not provide specific information on plant-available nutrient levels, although there is a rough correlation with soil reserves and plant-available nutrient pools.

Table 2 shows that nutrient contents of crops also vary widely.

Because they are seeds, grain crops tend to have very high concentrations of nutrients relative to vegetable crops. This sample of different crops also shows variation in the relative nutrient contents (the N to P ratio). Nutrient exports are determined by the concentration of nutrients in the harvest and by total yields.

HOW TO USE NUTRIENT BUDGETING Nutrient budgeting can be used to analyze the impact of different crop and fertility management scenarios on soil nutrient stocks. For example, you can compare the impacts of different manures or application rates on nutrient stocks, or the difference in nutrient export between different crops in a rotation.

Table 2. Nutrient contents of crops commonly grown in New York are shown. All values are for nutrient contents on a dry weight basis. %N %P N:P Broccoli 0.452 0.075 6.0 Lettuce 0.205 0.028 7.3 Tomatoes 0.108 0.037 2.9 Tofu soybeans 6.26 0.38 16 Field corn 1.39 0.43 3.2

The budget can also be used to see how your management regime will impact the ratios of major nutrients over time. For example, if your current management results in a K deficit and a P surplus and you continue with these practices, you will end up with nutrient reserves that are rich in P but low in K over the long haul. The information from nutrient budgeting can be combined with soil tests and observations on crop performance to improve nutrient management on your farm.

Other Factors in Nutrient Loss Nutrients can also leave the farm due to processes that are not under the direct control of the farmer, i.e., through erosion, leaching, and gaseous losses of nitrogen. Under Northeast conditions, levels derived from budgeting for nutrients other than N are pretty reliable as long as erosion is controlled. In the case of N, you can interpret deficits to mean that you are depleting soil N pools, possibly at a rate faster than indicated by the budget since there will always be some level of gaseous and leaching losses. If the budget indicates a surplus of N, you are most likely building soil N pools.

However, N retention will depend on how you are managing carbon and will probably be somewhat less than indicated by the budget. If you have very large N surpluses, you probably have significant leaching and gaseous losses of N.

The inputs in the compost-based systems vary, depending on the application rate, since we are using the same compost at two different rates (5 T and 1T per acre). The green manure system is a vetch/rye cover crop and the values shown are based

NUTRIENT BUDGET EXAMPLES Let's look at some sample nutrient budgets for a vegetable system with a three-year rotation using different soil fertility management practices. In reality, there could be yield differences due to different amounts/types of soil amendments added, however to make it easier to compare these scenarios, we have kept the yields the same for the three different fertility systems.

(We have seen cases in mature organic systems where significant differences in compost additions did not impact yield.)

The balances shown in Table 3 are based on real yield values we have measured on-farm and reflect realistic nutrient contents for the inputs and harvested crops. First, in terms of exports for these three crops (under the N export and P export columns), broccoli removes the greatest amount of nitrogen and phosphorus, followed by spinach, then lettuce. Even though the lettuce

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lb/ac P export 8 11 5 24

P balance 37 34 40 111

on good stands we have measured on organic farms. No P is added in the case of the green manure, although legumes can increase available P pools because they are able to access soil P that is not readily available to other plants.

Comparing the balances shows that the moderate compost system results in a surplus of both N and P every year, for a total three-year surplus of 149 lb N and 99 lb P. This rate of nutrient application is too high for the long term and will eventually lead to environmental pollution and very high soil P levels. The low compost rate results in a deficit of N while P is nearly balanced (very small surplus). In the green manure-based system, after three years there is surplus N but we have exported P (since none was added).

This sample balance shows that, compared to the common application rates for compost (5-10 tons per acre) vegetable crops tend to remove less N and P than is typically added at these rates. Also, if we had combined low compost additions with at least one green manure crop during the three-year cycle, both nutrients would be closer to being balanced.

A NUTRIENT BUDGETING TOOL We are in the process of developing a computer-based nutrient budgeting tool that can be used to calculate net balances in soils of organic grain and vegetable farms of the Northeast. We have accumulated large amounts of data on nutrient contents for common inputs and crops in our region and continue to collect data on legume nitrogen fixation to improve our estimates of green manure nitrogen inputs. Extension educators at Penn State recently tested the budgeting tool and gave valuable feedback to help us with revisions. Soon, we will be looking for growers who are interested in serving as guinea pigs to help test this software!

FOR MORE INFORMATION The Natural Resources Conservation Service Web site (http://npk.nrcs.usda.gov/) provides crop nutrient information for a wide variety of crops. You can estimate removal of N, P, and K of most field and vegetable crops as long as you can estimate yields.

We have also developed a database of nutrient concentrations for vegetables grown on organic farms in the Northeast. We expect to make these databases available on the Internet soon.

For more information contact the Drinkwater Laboratory, Cornell University, 134A Plant Science Bldg., Ithaca, NY 14853, or send an email to dearvickivetch@cornell.edu. We are very thankful to many farmers who have allowed us to sample their fields, crops, and composts.

Several past and present members of the Drinkwater lab made contributions to this work, particularly Steve Vanek, Stacey Williams, and Meagan Schipanski.

July 6, 2009

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SMALL FARM QUARTERLY

HORTICULTURE

Phytophthora blight on vegetables What you need to know

By Amara Camp If you grow vegetables, you should always be on the lookout for Phytophthora blight. What at first glance might appear to be just a few drowned peppers in a low part of the field could be the start of an infection, and recognizing the symptoms early can help you manage the disease more effectively.

Phytophthora blight is caused by the water mold Phytophthora capsici. It affects all cucurbits, tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, snap beans, and lima beans. The initial symptoms on peppers and cucurbits are usually general wilting caused by an infection in the roots or crown of the plant. Crowns (especially of cucurbits or young peppers) may become shriveled, and the plant later dies.

White spores of Phytophthora blight produced on a zucchini fruit in a concentric ring pattern.

Eventually the whole fruit will rot and "melt."

Photo by Amara Camp

Beans can become infected when Phytophthora blight spores splash from the soil onto the pods. The pods shrivel and rot, sometimes producing powdery white spores.

Photo by Amara Camp

For this reason, a few infected plants in a low corner of the field one year may not seem like such a big deal. But, if the plants have Phytophthora blight, there may be many dead plants throughout the field in subsequent years, as overwintering spores are spread through the field by cultivation. For this reason, it is important to keep Phytophthora blight off of your farm, and to know how to quickly diagnose and manage the disease once it is on your farm.

Cucurbit fruits of any age develop soft spots (especially where the fruit touches the soil), then "melt" and become partially covered in what looks like powdered sugar, but is actually the spores of Phytophthora blight. These spores sometimes appear in a pattern of concentric rings, and can also be formed on pepper, tomato, and eggplant fruit, as well as bean pods. When the humidity is especially high, they are sometimes seen on stems and leaves.

What makes Phytophthora blight so challenging is (1) the speed with which it can spread through a field during wet weather and (2) the fact that once it is in a field, it is very hard to get rid of. As the name "water mold" suggests, Phytophthora blight thrives in wet conditions, which may occur in low, poorly-drained, or over-irrigated parts of a field. With sufficient moisture, lemon-shaped spores are produced on fruits and stems of plants, resulting in the "powdered sugar" appearance. Within hours, these lemon-shaped spores each release 2040 smaller spores which swim through saturated soil or standing water and are attracted to roots and fruits of susceptible vegetables.

Millions of these spores are produced very quickly during warm, wet weather, and can be spread rapidly between plants by moving water, people, and animals. While neither of these spores can survive the colder winters

Wilting is often the first symptom of Phytophthora blight infection, especially on cucurbits and peppers. Photo by Amara Camp

we experience in the northeast United States, it is common for fields to have populations of Phytophthora blight that cause disease year after year. This is because another type of spore is produced which is able to survive cold winters and initiate new disease cycles at the beginning of the next growing season. These spores can also remain in the soil for years before germinating and infecting a susceptible crop.

Here you see the shriveled crown of a summer squash plant infected with Phytophthora blight and the typical powdery white spores forming on the crown. Photo by Amara Camp IF YOU DON'T HAVE IT YET...

Because spores are not blown through the air, the most likely way for a new Phytophthora blight infection to start is to bring spores onto your farm in plants, water, or soil. You must take precautions to prevent this. First, never dump culled fruit (especially from another farm) into a production field. A single infected squash or pepper can be full of overwintering spores which can quickly establish a new population of Phytophthora blight on your farm.

Second, be mindful of your irrigation water source. Spores of Phytophthora blight are frequently found in surface water in agricultural areas because run-off from infested fields drains into nearby streams and ponds.

Third, obtain compost only from trusted sources to be sure that it does not contain spores of Phytophthora blight. The temperature necessary to kill overwintering spores is greater than 110째 F, so it is essential to keep diseased plants and cull fruit out of your compost pile. Only compost that has been heated to and maintained at this temperature for several days during the composting process should be brought onto your farm from other places. Even vermicompost can be a source, as the overwintering spores of Phytophthora blight are not killed by passing through a

The life cycle of Phytophthora blight includes two kinds of spores. Short-lived spores are produced rapidly, but don't survive the winter in the Northeast United States. The thick-walled overwintering spores can survive for years in the soil. Millions of the short-lived spores are produced on the surface of stems and fruits (A). When one of these lemon-shaped spores is magnified about 400 times (B), you can see it release swimming spores (one is indicated by the arrow). Both of these kinds of spores are produced abundantly in warm, wet weather, and can be spread in moving water (C), infecting and killing other plants. Two different types of Phytophthora blight (called "A1" and "A2") can infect the same plant (D). When this happens, many thick-walled overwintering spores are produced (E; magnified about 200 times), which remain in the soil as plants decay. These spores can germinate and infect more plants in subsequent years.

Graphic by Amara Camp and Dr. Chris Smart worm's digestive system. For this reason, worms should either not be fed culled fruit, or the vermicompost should also be heated during production.

ONCE YOU HAVE IT...

If you already have Phytophthora blight on your farm, do not despair! There is no "silver bullet" solution to this problem, but an integrated management approach can help you protect your crop. Because water is so important to the spread and multiplication of Phytophthora blight, controlling water in an infested field should be a high priority.

Promote good soil drainage and plant tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, and bushing cucurbits on raised beds. The fruits of vining cucurbits tend to roll into furrows between rows, so don't plant them on raised beds unless you are prepared to move all the fruit onto the ridge. Be careful not to over-irrigate, because even in dry years too much irrigation can start a Phytophthora blight epidemic. Take precautions to prevent the movement of Phytophthora blight around your farm, or into streams or ponds.

Rotate to non-host crops or plant tolerant varieties: currently only available in sweet peppers. Although overwintering spores can survive in soil for a long time, every year you rotate away from a susceptible vegetable crop reduces the number of overwintering spores that survive, and the level of disease in your field. But watch your weeds! Several weed species (including common purselane, wild geranium, and wild solanaceous weeds) can be infected by Phytophthora blight without showing symptoms, while more overwintering spores are produced in their roots.

This reduces the effectiveness of your rotation strategy.

Overwintering spores can be in any soil that is moved from one part of your farm to another, and short-lived spores can move wherever water drains. If you start to see infected plants in a field, rouging nearby plants can slow the spread of the disease (especially in a dry year). Cultivate infected fields last or clean equipment between fields.

Dispose of Phytophthora-infected plants in a sanitary landfill, or bury them away from a production field.

Chemical fungicides can be part of an integrated management strategy, but you should be aware that Phytophthora blight is already resistant to certain chemicals in some parts of the country. If you are thinking of using a fungicide, check with your local extension office to find out what chemicals are likely to be effective in your area, and rotate fungicides to slow the development of resistance.

Although Phytophthora blight is a serious vegetable disease, using the available management strategies described above can help you continue to produce healthy vegetables on your farm. If you think you might have Phytophthora blight or you have questions about managing this disease, please contact your local extension office for additional information and recommendations.

Amara Camp has just completed her Masters degree in Plant Pathology at Cornell University. She did her thesis research at the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station in Geneva, NY on Phytophthora blight.

If you don't have Phytophthora blight on your farm: * Never dump culled fruit or plants into your production fields * Know where your irrigation water comes from, and use uninfested water * Obtain compost from a trusted source

If you already have Phytophthora blight on your farm: * * * * * * * *

Promote good drainage and don't over-irrigate Grow bushing cucurbits, tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants on raised beds Plant tolerant sweet pepper varieties Rotate (watch your weeds!)

Dispose of culled fruit or infected plants in a sanitary landfill, or by burying Prevent movement of Phytophthora blight around your farm or into irrigation sources Rogue infected plants and harvest early from an infected field Use chemical fungicides only according to the label

Page 6

July 6, 2009

SMALL FARM QUARTERLY

COMMUNITY & WORLD

Farmer to Farmer Your farming peers may be your best teachers

By Mike Dennis Whether we like it or not or realize that it is happening, learning is going on constantly each day of our lives. Every time the newspaper, a magazine, book, or other written material is opened we learn something. If this information stays in the front of the database likely it is because the information is useful and will have a positive effect on our daily lives or in the future.

The other way we learn, and probably the most popular and useful is through our interactions with other people and our peers.

THE VALUE OF PEERS Red Webster (our Webster dictionary has a red cover) tells me that "peer" is a noun that means: "one that is of equal standing with another: EQUAL; esp (especially): one belonging to the same societal group esp. based on age, grade, or status."

Farmers belong to their own societal group and within this group there is a wide array of farm types, experience levels, management styles, and so on.

Without being too touchy feely or philosophical about it, the reason for this introduction is to remind you that a great source of answers to the questions we have as farmers can be answered from within our peer group if we just ask.

Yes, I know that there are fewer farms dotting the countryside today but with a little effort it does not take long to find those farmers and to develop a relationship with them. I have yet to meet a farmer who isn't willing to share some time talking with a peer. In some cases you may come upon folks who are part of a more organized peer group that gathers regularly to discuss issues related to their farm business.

Often I have the opportunity to participate in pasture walks or other informal meetings of farmers who graze livestock. Usually these meetings highlight the management and production practices of the host farmer. Participants will walk fields asking questions of the farmer and likewise the farmer will ask questions of the group. It is a great venue that caters to the novice and experienced grazier alike. This is a great example of an informal peer group setting.

DAIRY GRAZIERS GROUP Here in the Finger Lakes region of NY there is a group of dairy farmers that started a grazing discussion group that meets monthly throughout the growing season. This group started out

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small and now has many regular attendees from several counties. Each meeting takes place at a participating farm in the form of a pasture walk which is then followed by more discussion, fellowship, and refreshments.

Over the last several years the familiarity of the faces has become constant. The group has an extensive mailing list, and each month our farmer-coordinator sends out the relevant information for upcoming meetings. In addition to the who and where of the meeting we receive a description of the host farm and the issues or questions the farmer has for the group.

This lays the foundation for the initial dialogue and it continues in a direction guided by the group. The meeting is structured yet informal, and a great learning environment to be a part of whether novice or experienced. The key here is that it is farmerled and enhances farmer to farmer learning.

As a beef farmer I have attended many of these meetings. Our family operates a cow calf and finishing beef farm under intensive pasture management. The cow calf herd and finishing herd are maintained on different parts of the farm rotating to new paddock areas each day and in some cases two times per day.

THERE'S THE BEEF You might think that there would not be any relevant information for a beef farmer from those grazing lactating dairy animals. But I have learned through my own experience, from other pasture farmers, and from my dairy farming peers, that a growing and fattening beef animal requires pasture of the same caliber needed for a lactating dairy animal. So you see even us beef farmers can learn from the dairy guys and vice versa.

The economics in farming this season aren't the brightest in many cases, and farmers have renewed energy to cut costs in order to increase or maintain their bottom line. Grazing may be one way to do this. I am a grazing advocate but realize there are many ways to do things and each of us has our own way and management style.

Grazing has potential to reduce operational and fixed costs on a farm but can be quite a new concept. Look at this like you would any new enterprise. Explore and ask many questions about it then start small. Peers are a great place to start this process.

PEERS: A SUPPORT SYSTEM The point of my ramblings is for you to think outside of the box and to look to your peer group for some help doing this. They will have experiences to share and will help you navigate around unnecessary setbacks or frustrations, and offer encouragement when you need it.

Farmers make the best consumers as we rarely just go out and buy something without a thorough investigation, particularly on

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We Want To Hear From You We welcome letters to the editor - Please write to us! Or send a question and we’ll do our best to answer it. We’re also looking for beautiful, interesting and/or funny small farm photos to print.

Write or email Violet Stone, Cornell Small Farms Program, 135C Plant Science Building, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 jg16@cornell.edu

Beef cows, calves, and yearlings hard at work in the author's management-intensive grazing system, May 2009.

Photo by Julianne Dennis big purchases. Don't be hasty with a new enterprise on the farm, talk to your peers and you will be happy you did.

For more information on the grazing group described in this article please call 315-536-6747. If you can't find farmer peers in your region call your local Extension, Soil and Water District, or Natural resources Conservation District office.

Mike Dennis and his wife and family run a small pasture raised and finished direct market beef farm, under management intensive grazing, in Sennett, New York. Mike can be reached at (315) 253 4787 or shadypinefarm@localnet.com.

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July 6, 2009

BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

Cracking the Code A Guide to Deciphering Farmland Conservation Programs in New York

By Kate Rossiter Agriculture in the Northeast plays a crucial role in the region's economy and serves as a source for fresh, healthy foods and renewable energy. Well-managed farmland can also help protect water quality, provide wildlife habitat and sequester greenhouse gases.

New York farmers are the leading producers of more than 20 fruits, vegetables and dairy products-from milk to apples to sweet corn and maple syrup. Despite the importance of New York's farms, their future is threatened as farmers face economic challenges and poorly planned development sprawls out from urban areas onto some of the state's most productive farmland.

In order to help today's farmers and farmland owners conserve their land and remain viable, American Farmland Trust (AFT) has updated the popular New York Agricultural Landowner Guide. The guide helps farmers navigate public programs available to reduce taxes as well as steward and protect their land.

This revised edition also identifies programs available to help farmers generate renewable energy and enhance farm viability.

Sections of the guide include: * Tax Reduction and Exemption: Strategies for reducing the tax burden on agricultural landowners. * Farmland Protection: Techniques for keeping land in farming. * Environmental Management: Programs to help farmers protect soil, water and air resources. * Natural Resource Conservation: Options for conserving wetlands, wildlife habitat and natural areas. * Farm Viability: Programs helping to improve long-term farm profitability. * Environmental Markets and Energy: Opportunities to enhance farms and the environment.

Each section includes a brief description of key state and/or federal programs that provide resources, technical or financial assistance to New York landowners. The final section includes contact information for agencies and organizations that can help landowners achieve their agricultural and conservation goals.

A growing number of state and federal programs help farmers add value to agriculture, diversify income streams, and develop new farm products and marketing techniques. The 2009 guide

provides new information to landowners about funding opportunities available through the state's Grow New York program, including Agricultural Research and Development Grants, Farmland Viability Grants, and the promotional program, Pride of New York. Readers will also learn about loan programs through the Farm Service Agency, such as Beginning Farmers and Ranchers Loans.

Also new to the 2009 guide is information on programs now available to farmers interested in generating renewable energy as a means for reducing business costs and enhancing the environmental sustainability of their businesses. These programs offer financial incentives, rebates, or tax incentives.

Farmers and landowners can participate in federal programs such as the Biomass Crop Assistance Program or state programs through the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority. The 2009 guide also includes information about emerging markets for environmental services, such as offsetting carbon and greenhouse gas emissions.

The guide includes updated information on how farmers can reduce taxes, such as through the state's Agricultural Assessment program and the Farmers' School Tax Credit.

Farmland protection options are also described, including the New York State Farmland Protection Program, which provides grants to purchase permanent conservation easements on farmland. Other Farmland Protection options include Agriculture Districts, the USDA Federal Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program (FRPP), NYS Conservation Easement Tax Credit, and Federal Conservation Easement Tax Incentive.

Many landowners in New York are interested in implementing environmental management strategies on their land. The guide describes voluntary programs that offer assistance to farmers in achieving water quality and environmental goals on farm and forest lands. In addition to information on state programs, this section describes the new Federal Environmental Quality Incentive Program (EQIP) Organic Initiative, which dedicates EQIP resources to provide technical assistance and funding to farmers transitioning to organic or who already are certified organic.

Landowners also will learn about programs aimed at establishing riparian buffers, wetlands and wildlife habitat. Such programs include a cost-share agreement through the Federal Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP). CREP offers 10- and 15-year enrollment options for landowners interested in establishing vegetative buffers along stream banks.

American Farmland Trust is a national nonprofit organization founded in 1980 to protect our nation's strategic agricultural resources. AFT works to stop the loss of productive farmland and to promote farming practices that lead to a healthy environment.

AFT's New York office is located in Saratoga Springs with addi-

GRAZING

Grazing for Carbon Credits Carbon sequestration is hot topic at Northeast Pasture Consortium Conference

By Nancy Glazier The winter meeting season migrated into the early spring this year with the 2009 Northeast Pasture Consortium (NEPC) and Appalachian Grazing Conference held in early March in Morgantown, West Virginia. This is the second time I attended the NEPC. Last year it was held in conjunction with the Grasstravaganza in Binghamton.

The NEPC group comes from varied backgrounds - research, extension, production, but with one commonality - grazing. This meeting is a chance for the Northeast states to get together to see what exciting things are happening in pastures.

One hot topic at this year's consortium was Carbon Credits and Sequestration. Livestock operations are emitters of greenhouse gases (GHG). Plants sequester carbon dioxide (CO2), but this benefit may be offset by rumen fermentation (methane or CH4), CO2 respiration, as well as microbial activity during manure storage (CH4, CO2, nitrous oxide or N2O).

Microbial processes in the soil associated with cropping also release CO2 and N2O. Total emissions can be determined using a CO2 equivalent - CO2e where one pound of CH4 is equivalent to 23 lb of CO2 and one pound of N2O is equivalent to 296 lb CO2.

SIMULATING GHG EMISSIONS Management practices on the farm affect these emissions. Alan Rotz and others with the Agriculture Research Service, a branch of the USDA, have developed a research tool to simu-

Page 7

SMALL FARM QUARTERLY

late production systems on beef operations, crop farms and dairies. Feed and manure management can be manipulated in these simulations to try to look at the differences. Fuel consumption can also be examined.

The simulation in this study was set up to occur in central Pennsylvania on a confinement farm, a seasonal grazing dairy with winter confinement, and a completely outdoor dairy. Each scenario was run for an equivalent of 25 years. This tool, called the Integrated Farm System Tool simulates crop growth, herd performance, and nutrient flows of nitrogen, carbon and phosphorus. To improve the tool, additional components are continually being developed and added.

SYSTEM 1: CONFINEMENT In the first simulation in this study, a typical high producing confinement operation was used. A large-framed Holstein herd with 100 cows and 80 young stock on 250 acres were the numbers entered into the model. The cropping system comprised 75 acres of alfalfa, 50 of grass and 125 of corn. Manure was stored for up to 6 months with spreading occurring in the spring and fall.

The grass on this model confinement farm was fertilized with 80 lbs inorganic nitrogen fertilizer and 30% of the manure; corn was fertilized with 20 lbs of inorganic nitrogen and 70% of the manure. All field tillage consisted of chisel plowing field cultivation and planting. Target milk production was 22,000 lbs.

SYSTEM 2: WINTER CONFINEMENT, SUMMER GRAZING The system with winter confinement and sum-

There are numerous state and federal programs that provide resources, technical or financial assistance to New York landowners.

Photo by Jim Newton

Resource Spotlight American Farmland Trust Resources for the Northeast * New York Agricultural Landowner Guide * Conservation Options for Connecticut Farmland: A Guide for Landowners, Land Trusts and Municipalities * Farms for the Future: Massachusetts' Investments in Farmland Conservation * Guide to Local Planning for Agriculture in New York * Planning for Agriculture: A Guide for Connecticut Municipalities To order call AFT at (800) 370-4879 ext. 17.

Additional publications can be found on AFT's Publications Web page (www.farmland.org), and at AFT's Farmland Information Center, www.farmlandinfo.org. tional staff and consultants working in central and western New York. Since 1990, AFT has been a leader on farmland protection issues in New York by developing effective public education programs and advancing agriculture and land conservation policies at all levels of government.

The updated New York Agricultural Landowner Guide is scheduled to be released in July. Copies may be downloaded for free at AFT's Web site, www.farmland.org. If you would like pricing information for bulk copies, please contact Lynn Wilson at AFT's New York office, (518) 581-0078, or lwilson@farmland.org.

Kate Rossiter is Education and Outreach Coordinator with American Farmland Trust in Northampton, MA.

mer grazing utilized management-intensive grazing. The animals in this scenario were average-sized Holsteins; all cows and older heifers were grazed on 50 acres. Their diet was a high forage-to-grain diet. Target milk production was 18,700 lbs. They were wintered and fed in a free-stall barn. Other farm characteristics were similar to the first scenario.

SYSTEM 3. YEAR-ROUND OUTDOOR, GRASS-BASED The third system was a completely outdoor, grass-based dairy. All classes of livestock were grazed on 250 acres; the herd was a HolsteinJersey cross with a herd average of 13,200 lbs.

Since the mixed breed animal was smaller, the farm could support 120 cows and 96 heifers.

This simulation was also fed a high forage-tograin diet, with some supplemental feed purchased. This system was probably the most atypical for New York, but is more widely used in Pennsylvania.

RESULTS: PER COW VS. PER CWT The study showed that all dairies are net emitters of GHG, but management strongly affects the amounts. Based on the emissions per cow and replacement, the year-round outdoor system emitted the least GHG and the summer grazing herd was second. Grazing, whether seasonal or year-round, reduces or eliminates the need for manure storage which reduces GHG from that component of the equation.

The possibility is there to "tweak" inputs to the model to increase the benefits of grazing. One way may be to add grain supplementation from home-grown sources. Another possibility would be to use the same breed and frame-sized cow.

Some cows may have higher production with one of the other simulations, but it would decrease the model variables.

You can download the Integrated Farm Systems Model at: http://www.ars.usda.gov/Main/ docs.htm?docid=8519. A description of the model and a reference manual are also available.

What is important to note, emissions per hundredweight of milk produced showed the confinement operation emitted the least GHG. Milk production was higher for the confinement operation simulation; the all-grass system emits less GHG, but has a lower milk production.

Many other presentations from the Northeast Pasture Consortium and Appalachian Grazing conference are available at: www.umaine.edu/grazingguide. I encourage you to take a look and consider attending next year's get together in Vermont. Hope to see you there!

When carbon sequestration is added to the model and cropland is converted to pasture, once again the outdoor system emits the least GHG. However, after a time the soil's capacity to hold carbon diminishes and the benefits of grazing from the sequestration aspect diminish.

Nancy Glazier is Small Farms Support Specialist for the Northwest New York Dairy, Livestock and Field Crops Team of Cornell Cooperative Extension/PRO-DAIRY. You can reach her at 315-536-5123 or nig3@cornell.edu.

Page 8

COWS

July 6, 2009

SMALL FARM QUARTERLY

AND

CROPS

Cover Crop Demonstrations Two Cayuga County farmers try some new twists on an old idea.

By Brian Aldrich Several years ago, Cornell Cooperative Extension of Cayuga County received funding from the Great Lakes Basin Program for Soil Erosion and Sediment Control to experiment with several different methods of establishing cover crops. The definition of a cover crop I'll use here is a crop that is grown for fall/winter/early spring cover, but not allowed to grow to maturity.

I actually inherited this project from my predecessor, Shawn Bossard, who secured the funding. I am especially indebted to Ed Primrose and Don Waterman, on whose farms the demonstration fields were established. Ed and Don were extremely generous with their time and expertise, and I could not have done this project without them. They explained what did and did not work in their area on their soils, based on their years of experience. The methods used in the demonstration plots were chosen by Ed and Don based on what fit with their operations and what they wanted to experiment with.

Winter rye on January 4, 2007, Primrose Farm. (Planted 10-12-06) PRIMROSE FARM, FALL 2006 Ed is a model conservation farmer who stopped using his moldboard plow years ago.

To quote the man himself, Ed says, "I don't do anything conventionally." He runs his crop farm to feed several hundred head of beef using both zone-till and no-till systems. On occasion he plants winter rye for straw and sometimes triticale. He prefers drilling to broadcasting seed because he feels the latter is too unreliable.

The fall of 2006 was cold and wet, which made it hard enough to harvest, let alone find time to seed cover crops as well. On October 10-12, 2006 Ed used a no-till drill to seed winter rye (3 bu./ac.) on 40 acres that had previously been harvested for corn silage, and hence had very little cover. Due to the late seeding and a cold, wet fall, there was some question as to if this seeding would succeed.

However, the first half of the winter was relatively mild, with little snow and no hard freeze right up to the middle of January(!).

The result was fair germination, but spotty establishment with minimal top growth. After mid-January, temperatures dropped sharply, and real winter set in. Thus, we did not get the cover we had hoped for (See Photo No.1).

This field had one pass with the Gen-TillTM system (over triticale stubble), followed by surface application of liquid manure, then one pass with an off-set disk. (Photo taken 830-07) Equation. The predominant soil type in the field was a Palmyra gravelly loam, 6% slope, with a tolerable soil loss or "T" value of 3.0 tons/acre per year. In a corn-silage - soybean rotation, using a chisel plow for the corn and no-till for the beans, the calculated soil loss is 3.5 tons/acre per year, which is 0.5 tons above T. With a rye cover crop, the soil loss is reduced to 1.9 tons/acre, a savings of 1.6 tons, and 1.1 tons/acre below T. [Note: Ed does not normally use a chisel plow, this is just an example. Ed normally uses zone-till for his corn.] You can see what a difference a cover crop makes in reducing soil loss!

PRIMROSE FARM, FALL 2007 Ed has a liquid manure storage for his beef operation and wanted to experiment with new ways to apply it in summer, when there is less chance of runoff. In August 2007 a vendor demonstrated the Gen-TillTM system on 18 acres of triticale stubble. The Gen-TillTM roughs up the surface so that manure can infiltrate with minimal disturbance of the soil surface (See Photo No.2). Following surface application of manure, Ed made one pass with an off-set disk to level the field and control weeds, then seeded winter rye on Sept.14 with his no-till planter.

Unlike 2006, in 2007 we had an extremely warm and dry fall, and all winter grains made astonishing growth. By the end of October there was essentially 100% cover on the demonstration field (See Photo No.3).

Returning to part of the demonstration field from the previous year, after harvesting the soybeans, Ed seeded 5 acres to winter rye with his no-till drill on October 10. Due to the warm fall, this field also had excellent germination, even though it was planted after the optimum September date (which was unavoidable, due to the need to harvest the soybeans first). Soybean residue is known for being fragile and breaking up rapidly, not providing much winter cover. The addition of the rye cover means that this field had nearly continuous cover for over a year!

PRIMROSE FARM, 2008 In June 2008, Ed again drilled soybeans into rye stubble after harvesting the straw, but this

Winter cover crops are commonly killed by either plowing or with herbicides. Ed chose instead to harvest the rye the following May for straw. He feels this is a key selling point for cover crops, to be able to obtain a marketable or useful product to help recover the costs of seeding. After harvesting the straw, he planted soybeans in early June 2007, again using a no-till drill. Thus this field had some cover for the majority of the year. The soybeans got off to a slow start due to dry conditions. The final yield was 28 bu./acre.

To demonstrate the potential reduction in soil erosion from using a cover crop, Ed's crop consultant made the following calculations using the Revised Universal Soil Loss

time there was much better moisture than in 2007. The soybeans took right off and developed into a much better stand (see Photo No.4), producing an average yield of 39 bu./acre. What a difference a year makes! As with most agricultural practices that are dependent on the weather, cover crops work better in some years than others. You have to stick with them for several years to see results.

WATERMAN FARM, FALL 2006 Don Waterman runs a cash grain operation and shares equipment and labor with his two brothers, each of whom has their own operations nearby. Nonetheless, he is still constrained for labor during the fall, when he is not only harvesting corn and soybeans but also planting winter wheat. It is challenging to fit planting cover crops into this busy schedule, which makes it attractive to broadcast instead of drill, to save time. On the other hand, Don recognizes the chance of failure with broadcast seedings is greater than with drilling, especially as one gets into October, due to poor germination (less soil-seed contact).

In mid-October 2006 he found time to drill leftover winter wheat seed into soybean stubble on the steepest portions of a field, about 5 acres. While it didn't provide the late fall/early winter cover he had hoped for, the wheat cover was light enough the following spring that he was able to control it with a field cultivator, followed by no-till planting of corn. Soil conservationists are fond of saying that a little bit of cover goes a long way, and any cover is better than no cover. Every little bit helps to stop the flow of water over the surface and hold the soil in place.

WATERMAN FARM, FALL 2007 Don also expressed interest in legume cover crops for the nitrogen benefits, and in August 2007 he broadcast 50 pounds of clover seed onto 14 acres of wheat stubble. Glyphosate was sprayed to control weeds. Unfortunately there was little rain in August and September, and the seeding did not take on most of the

Soybeans drilled in June 2008 after taking rye for straw. (Photo taken 9-12-08) field. Photo No.5 was taken from one of the parts of the field where the seeding did take.

The weed control failed as well -- most herbicides are less effective when plants are not actively growing. So it is with summer seedings - sometimes you get the moisture you need, and sometimes you don't! Timing is key.

Don noted that rye broadcast after corn silage in September on one of his brother's fields nearby did quite well. He also reports that "The biggest problem in our area is wet soils."

He values the erosion control, nutrient retention, organic matter, soil tilth and nitrogen benefits of cover crops, summing this up as, "The more you work with nature, the better off you'll be."

CRYSTAL BALL: CLIMATE CHANGE AND COVER CROPS? Looking into my murky crystal ball, I wonder whether milder falls will eventually lengthen the window for seeding cover crops. If we eventually have cellulosic ethanol factories in our region, such that the entire corn plant is harvested from more of our acres, which in turn means less cover and less carbon returned to the soil, I wonder if interest in cover crops will increase as a way to offset those losses.

Maybe we will eventually see cost-share or carbon trading opportunities that provide incentives for cover crops as a way to store carbon in the soil. Soil scientists are still debating the feasibility of that. In the coming months we can expect to see legislation proposed for both renewable energy and combating global warming. It will be interesting to see if cover crops are included somewhere in those packages.

Clover that was broadcast into wheat stubble in August 2007, Waterman Farm. (Photo taken 10-29-07)

Brian Aldrich is an Agricultural Extension Educator with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Cayuga County. He can be reached at 315255-1183 or bsa9@cornell.edu.

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SMALL FARM QUARTERLY

NON-DAIRY LIVESTOCK

Marketing sheep and lambs

By Ulf Kintzel If you are a sheep farmer producing market lambs you can consider yourself fortunate. The demand on the domestic market is bigger than the supply. Our fiercest competitors in Australia and New Zealand have their own share of problems and their production is down as well. The US government has for the most part not subsidized or otherwise influenced lamb and mutton prices, which I consider a good thing. It has kept marginal producers out that would otherwise influence the market

price unfavorably. In addition, market prices for lambs have not only been high for many years now, they have also been quite stable.

When I moved in 2006 from New Jersey to upstate New York I had to find almost all new markets. In New Jersey I sold most of my lambs during the months of October through December at the local livestock auction in Hackettstown. Prices were usually good and I fetched most often an above average price. I had little reason to look for other markets.

This group of market lambs was entirely raised and finished on pasture.

Photos by Ulf Kintzel That changed when I moved to the Finger Lakes Area. Although there are a couple of sales barns in reasonable distance to me, it appeared that their main focus was on beef and pork. Only a few sheep seemed to be at times at the closest auction. That bears the risk that there is no good lamb buyer there at auction day and somebody snatches them away for a bargain - his or her bargain, not mine. So, I was keen to find other markets and explored a variety.

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CUSTOM BUTCHERED LAMB I run a website that lists my products. This website is also listed on two other websites: localharvest.org and eatwild.com. I have moderate success with my website. I do get customers through it but the growth is slow. Yet, you get very faithful customers this way, customers who return year after year.

I prefer to sell whole or half lambs instead of individual cuts. Individual cuts need to be USDA inspected and you need to keep an inventory which occupies freezer space. I do just a little of this to attract customers. On the other hand, custom butchered lambs can be processed by a state inspected butchering facility. There are more of them and I happen to have a real good one near me. These lambs are always pre-ordered and only occupy the freezer for a little while.

I price these lambs as follows: I start by determining what I want to net per lamb. Then I add my transportation costs and my processing cost to the price. That is the price for a whole lamb, custom butchered, vacuum wrapped, frozen and labeled. A half a lamb costs slightly more than 50 percent of the price for a whole lamb to encourage people to buy whole lambs.

For additional orders I offer 10 dollars off.

I had some customers still from New Jersey who initially came all the way out here to pick up a lamb. Most of these relationships faded over time with the exception of one. This one asked if I would deliver to New Jersey. I answered that I would if she finds me customers who buy a total of at least 10 lambs.

She did and I now have a buying club in New Jersey that I served twice in 2008. The orders are in for the first delivery in 2009. Thus, I hope that this evolves into a bigger and steady business in the future.

There are also ewes that need to be culled. I try to have as much different sausage made of them as I can. That always sells well. Ground and stew meat from grass-fed ewes is also a hit. Since the ewes ate only grass, legumes and herbs the meat is much milder yet distinguished in taste and does not remind people of mutton.

DISTRIBUTORS The bigger share of my market lambs is sold through distributors. One distributor is a pro-

ducer of sheep cheese and lamb meat herself.

She has a good market in New York City and was in need of more market lambs that are grass-fed. I supply some of these lambs that she needs.

In addition, I am fortunate to have met Stephen Winkler of Certified Natural New York (CNNY) in Rodman. He is the man who has brought me numerous customers. In order to be able to sell under his label I had to meet certain production and animal welfare standards. It included also a farm visit. Here is how he describes his business: "CNNY is a sustainable local food network of family farms, producing quality livestock that are transported by family run transportation companies, processed in family run slaughter plants, and distributed to high end restaurants and retailers throughout the North East. CNNY has brought together all animal types under strict certification protocols and quality standards. The program is built for the sustainability of N.Y. enterprises, communities, and farms."

BREEDING STOCK A market that I just started tapping is the one for breeding animals such as ewe lambs, yearling ewes and rams lambs. I started upgrading my flock from a Texel flock to a White Dorper flock. White Dorpers shed and there is no need for a shearer. Many people see that as a plus in times of low wool prices and a lack of sheep shearers. More importantly, Texels as well as White Dorpers are excellent breeds for a forage based sheep farm. This is important in times of high feed prices.

Moreover, grass-fed is the new organic. In fact, it goes beyond organic. Most of my customers care about the grass-fed part of my operation; very few ask if I am organic. I reach a number of my customers who buy breeding stock through my website. Another good way of advertising them is writing articles in various publications such as this one. A third option of advertising breeding rams and ewes is by paid advertisement in sheep farming publications and breeders listings.

Last but not least, I have a herding trial each year on the first Saturday in October. This trial is admission free, spectators are welcome. It is a German herding trial that reflects a shepherd's day in a miniature. A flock of 200 sheep is used. This trial, although fairly new in the area, has gotten a lot of attention. We always have more than 100 visitors and get some good free press in addition. In the end, that too is good for business.

Ulf Kintzel owns and manages White Clover Sheep Farm (www.whitecloversheepfarm.com) in Rushville, NY where he breeds grass-fed White Dorper sheep.

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NEW FARMERS

Meet The Greenhorns From the Director of an upcoming film about beginning farmers, an invitation to join forces with all the "scrappy, resourceful, adaptive young Americans" who are turning to farming in growing numbers.

By Severine von Tscharner Fleming Almost two years after its founding in a basement in Berkeley, California, The Greenhorns has matured from an idea for a recruitment film into a widespread national community. We are now happily rooted on my first commercial farm, Smithereen, on rented land in the Hudson Valley of New York.

In the autumn of 2007 we officially began seeking out mentors and characters for a film, traveling the country with a confident intuitive sense of an emerging movement of young farmers and a series of borrowed cameras and generous cinematographers. On the road for these 2 years we have found that the movement has emerged-scrappy, resourceful, adaptive young Americans have brought the products and the spirit of this movement into the sun, and we are proud to be the reporters of its successes and a hub for a much-needed centralized network.

This is America, and it takes all kinds. All over the country we have met enterprising, hopeful greenhorns: descendents of family dairies, punky inner-city gardeners, homesteaders, radical Christians, anarcho-activists, ex-suburbanites, graduates with biological science degrees, ex-teachers, ex-poets, ex-cowboys. The sons of traditional farmers, the daughters of migrant farm workers, the accidental agriculturalists and the deliberate career switchers all mark our maps.

In foothills, warehouses, back valleys, and vacant lots they are popping up as we reclaim human spaces in the broad lazerland of monoculture that has engulfed rural America.

Ranging around the country in my filmmaking, I have met hundreds of new and aspiring young farmers. I have found them a powerful, proud and wily sub-culture. I have found them to be charismatic icons of change, patriots of place, sensible and sensitive stewards of land and resources.

July 6, 2009

SMALL FARM QUARTERLY

They are the creators of a retrofit future, and just in time. We now have the political change.

We have reawakened our democratic will and discovered a dilation in the realms of possibility. We must take advantage of the moment.

Yes! We are farming! We are hopeful.

the structure of the Farm Bill, in the literacy of eaters, in the shape of commerce and land management. It will take the support of you all.

If you are thinking of farming, do!

If you cannot join us, connect with your stomachs and please buy and savor and share our products!

If your kid wants to farm, tell them its ok! Help them open a savings account or lend start-up capital to a young farmer in your town.

Please collaborate. Please facilitate. Please donate. Please join us or rally on your own to ensure the success of America's young farmers.

Severine von Tscharner Fleming is the Director of The Greenhorns, a nonprofit organization based in the Hudson Valley of New York whose mission is to support, promote and recruit young farmers in America. Find out more about the Greenhorns at www.thegreenhorns.net, or send an email to: farmer@thegreenhorns.net.

The produce of local agriculture is in hot demand with the most loyal of customers.

CSAs all have waiting lists, and healthy mothers determined to have healthy babies are fiercely devoted to nutrition and the farmers who provide it. Popular literature and sensibility is gravitating to our message of health for our selves, our soil, our social fabric. I have learned that it is possible for us to succeed, to prosper; meanwhile the market continues to grow!

Farming in America is simultaneously a privilege and a service. And no, it is not easy.

Young farmers in America face tremendous structural obstacles. They seek access to land, capital, education, and business training. They seek cultural support and open minded consumers. They need reasonable paths to acquiring mechanical equipment and other infrastructures of medium-scale agriculture. These are missing components of our culture and our laws, and they are deeply missed by young farmers who are forced to improvise and invent new institutions to serve their new needs and new marketplace.

The movement is for real. Its practitioners are skilled, savvy and ferocious. They are assets to their community and guarantors of our future.

They are shovel-ready, shovel-sharpened.

Relishers of flavor, recipients of the generosity of photosynthesis. Hellbent on recovering from the age of convenience. They are young farmers with young muscles wisely applying their lives to the problems at hand.

But it takes the applied passions of thousands, hundreds of thousands of courageous actions to repair a nation. It will take a radical shift in

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The Greenhorns are coming to a farm near you! Young farmers are on the rise, along with young "explorers" looking for hands-on experience on farms, like these Cornell students enrolled in the popular "Exploring the Small Farm Dream" class.

Resource Spotlight The Greenhorns -- support for young farmers The Greenhorns Blog includes lots of relevant events, job postings, land listings, banter and news for young farmers: www.thegreenhorns.wordpress.com.

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July 6, 2009

SMALL FARM QUARTERLY

Page 11

Taming the Wild Beach Plum With help from Northeast SARE, Cornell researchers are transforming this little fruit into a viable commercial crop.

By Violet Stone and Abha Gupta A PLUM WITH CHARACTER Described as tart and peppery with an overtone of raisin, the beach plum is a wild fruit crop with a lot of market potential. However, the beach plum was little known until Thomas Whitlow, associate professor in the Horticulture Department at Cornell University, obtained SARE funding to study the plum's potential as a commercial fruit.

Welcome to the Northeast SARE Spotlight!

With each issue we share news and information from the Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program, including examples of how SARE grant recipients are introducing new approaches to sustainable agriculture.

Northeast SARE Upcoming Grants & Deadlines Farmer Grants - Due Mid-December The goal of the Farmer Grant program is to develop, refine, and demonstrate new sustainable techniques and to explore innovative ideas developed by farmers across the region. Farmer grant projects should seek new knowledge that other farmers can use and should address questions that are directly linked to improved profits, better stewardship, and stronger rural communities. The maximum award is $10,000, and the average award is around $6,500.

Learn more: http://nesare.org/get/farmers/fgoverview/grant-description.html Partnership Grants - Due Mid-December The purpose of the Partnership Grant program is to support agricultural service providers who work directly with farmers to do on-farm demonstrations, research, marketing, and other projects that will add to our understanding of sustainable agriculture.

Sustainable agriculture is understood to be agriculture that is profitable, environmentally sound, and beneficial to the community. The maximum award is $10,000 and the average award is $9,550.

Learn more: http://nesare.org/get/partnership/pgoverview/grant-description.html Sustainable Community Grant - Proposals due Mid-December Sustainable Community Grants are for projects that strengthen the position of sustainable agriculture as it affects community economic development.

Communities and commercial farmers must benefit from these proposals, and the selection emphasis is on model projects that others can replicate. We also look for projects that are likely to bring about durable and positive institutional change and for projects that benefit more than one farm. Grants are capped at $25,000.

Learn more at: http://nesare.org/get/sustainablecommunity/sc-overview/grant-description.html.

"The beach plum is where the cranberry was in 1940," describes Whitlow. "Agricultural entrepreneurs have often had misconceptions about the plum, believing that it only grows in sandy soil and is an alternate year bearing crop." While the beach plum, which is native to the Northeast coastline, does grow naturally in excessively drained, nutrient-poor soils, it performs even more optimally in fertile soils. Whitlow and a Cornell graduate student, Richard Uva, set out to study the plum's ability to be cultivated under a range of conditions and to assess the market potential of this untapped new crop.

FARMERS TRIAL THE BEACH PLUM To start the project, Whitlow needed to recruit growers interested in trialing the beach plum. He teamed up with collaborators up and down the East Coast, who worked to distribute beach plum plants to more than 40 growers and cooperative extension researchers for production and evaluation. Researchers collected data on methods of propagation, site preparation, soil preparation, fertilizing, pruning, disease control, and yield. Growers awaited the beach plum's first significant harvest, which typically occurs 3-5 years after establishment.

The beach plum grows to the size of a plump cherry and can be red, purple, or blue in color.

a lot of consumer interest in value added beach plum products. The Beach Plum sparked similar enthusiasm during interviews with gourmet chefs and specialty food purveyors.

From their research, project collaborators concluded that the beach plum would most interest chefs, small processors, gourmet food retailers, and specialty produce wholesalers in metropolitan areas.

low in-put needs of the beach plum make it a sustainable crop for small farmers looking to diversify into value added products. Beach plum jams, jellies, and sauces are appearing on farms stand shelves and restaurant menus, and the market demand remains strong.

Cornell's Orchard now hosts one of the largest and most diverse stands of beach plum on the east coast. Whitlow is working to graft buds of the best producing trees to seedling rootstocks in order to propagate better cultivars that can in turn be sold to farmers.

As the wild Beach Plum evolves into an improved cultivar, this unusual fruit holds promise as a productive new crop for farmers in the Northeast.

For more information on the project, tips for growing and marketing the beach plum, and other resources, visit the website at www.beach plum.cornell.edu.

Cranberry and wild beach plum jams from the Chatham Jam A PLUM FOR THE and Jelly Shop, Massachusetts GOURMET EATER Meanwhile, as farmers awaited maturity of their beach plum crop, A NEW CROP FOR NEW MARKETS Whitlow and Uva had plenty of time to To date, the beach plum has proved begin exploring the crop's market Author Information: Violet Stone is the to be an excellent producer, even in potential. First, Uva organized severNY SARE outreach coordinator. She sub-optimal growing conditions. al "gourmet consumer" focus groups may be reached at 607-255-9227 or "Our research so far has borne out in the New York City area. In general, vws7@cornell.edu. our optimism about the potential for the feedback revealed that there was Abha Gupta grows organic vegetables this new industry." says Uva. The at Six Circles Farm in Lodi, NY and coordinates Edible Awareness, a farm education program for youth. She may be reached at ag348@cornell.edu.

Growers and researchers share information about beach plums, Coonamessett Farm, MA

Learn more about the Northeast SARE program by visiting www.nesare.org or by contacting Northeast SARE 655 Spear Street University of Vermont, Burlington VT 05405 Phone (802) 656-0471 Fax (802) 656-0500 E-mail: nesare@uvm.edu

Page 12

July 6, 2009

SMALL FARM QUARTERLY

Small Farm Quarterly

Youth Pages

The Youth Pages are written by and for young people. Many thanks to Cornell Cooperative Extension of Steuben County for contributing to this issue.

We believe there's a bright future for young farmers in the Northeast. Whether you live on a farm or only wish you did, we'd love to hear from you!

More information can be found about the Cornell Cooperative Extension 4-H Youth Development program at: http://blogs.cce.cornell.edu/nys4h/. Information specific to Steuben County, New York and the programs that these youth have described can be found at: www.putknowledgetowork.com

Go Green With Gardening

By Brett, Megan and Joel Rosko, Outsiders 4-H Club, Steuben County The love of gardening has been passed on in our family. We got it from our grandparents who own a farm in Bradford County, PA. Every summer we visit our grandparents and one of the first things we see is the huge garden growing next to the driveway. They live on a 1,000 acre farm, and we live on a 1.3 acre lot. But, we have found you don't need a large space to have a garden. It's what you do with the space you have.

Below are our own personal reflections about gardening.

sentations on garden tips and reminder for perfect fair exhibits.

Megan: This year there were some really weird seeds to choose from, so I am going to have a weird garden. I picked out radishes that look like parsnips, green beans that are purple and tomatoes that are red, green AND purple.

Brett: When I was only a year old, Mom would take me outside to the garden with toy garden tools and a bucket and taught me how to dig while she planted her garden. That was how all three of us started to learn about gardening.

Megan Rosko at the New York State Fair.

Gardening can be frustrating since some years are dry and other years it doesn't stop raining. We learn a lot from our spring meetings about dealing with insects and animals and different ways to control weeds.

Brett Rosko in his pumpkin patch.

Brett: One of my favorite projects is pumpkins. Al Mason is a master gardener in our county who comes to our meeting every year. Two years ago he gave us packets of Atlantic Giants. I learned a lot about picking blossoms and how to feed just a few on each vine. It was fun cutting a Jack-OLantern from a pumpkin I grew.

We share a plot that is divided into three sections. Each year we rotate the sections so the same things aren't planted in the same place. We have our favorites, but we usually try something different every year.

Joel Rosko growing tomatoes

Every spring, our county holds a garden meeting to kick off the new garden projects. Everyone gets to choose from a huge variety of flower and garden seeds and door prizes from local sponsors. Master gardeners and a local florist give pre-

Joel: Last year was probably my best learning garden. I used trellises for green beans to help keep them off the ground and trained gourds to grow up the stalks of corn like the Iroquois farming. It was kind of cool seeing a gourd hanging three feet off the ground.

Megan: One way to deal with weeds and pests is container gardening. My favorite thing to grow is tomatoes which are one of the easiest things to grow in a container. You can control watering and keep the plants safe from insects and weeds.

Joel: I hate weeding, so we put down a lot of grass mulch in between rows. It helps to retain moisture then we till it in at the end of the summer.

Gardens are a lot of work but eating is our reward.

Everything tastes better fresh. We usually eat everything as it ripens then take extras to the neighbors who don't have gardens. Also there is nothing more satisfying than including a state fair blue ribbon with your completed vegetable record.

Gardening definitely presents it rewards and challenges. It just comes naturally for us... farming is in our blood.

For information about gardening visit the 4-H Resource Directory: www.cerp.cornell.edu/4h/ or the Cornell Department of Horticulture's Garden Based Learning website http://blogs.cornell.edu/garden/

Hard Work Pays Off for Young Limousin Cattle Farmer

By Kristine Gessner, the Southern Tier Livestock Club, Steuben County

I have been raising and breeding Limousin beef cattle for five years. During the last two years I have also raised market steers, earning money to help pay for college in the future and to buy some more animals to build up my herd. I really enjoy working with, and showing my Limousin cattle.

Before I decided which breed to raise I had to do some research. Once my family decided upon Limousine cattle, we looked at some different farms around the area and we found a breeder that was very helpful in getting us started - giving us many tips on showing cattle, grooming and clipping our cows for show.

In my first year showing I showed a cow/ calf combination and two heifers. Then, in my second year, I showed a cow/calf combination that was from one of my first year heifers.

These two along with some of my other animals, gave me a total of six cattle that I took to the Steuben County Fair and then to the New York State Fair.

We went to the state fair with four black purebred Limousin heifers - named Reilly, Roz, Roxy and Dakota Janny. I had two heifers in a class so my dad took one in and I took the other.

I ended up taking first place with Roz in the one class. Then my dad took first place with Dakota Janny in his class. Then we each took division champions. So we each had to go back in and compete for Grand Champion Limousin Female along with about 8 to 10 other cows, besides ours. They were all very nice looking.

The judge had walked around for about five minutes, closely inspecting each animal. Then he strolled over and took the microphone. He commented on how nice they all were, and I remember his exact words, "I will go and pick your new Grand Champion Female now". He then walked past my dad, who was right in front of me and walked up to me and held out his hand and said to me, "Congratulations, you are our new Grand Champion" and shook my hand. I had gotten Grand Champion with Roz! I then got a huge banner that said Grand Champion Limousin Female 2006 New York State Fair. I couldn't stop smiling and still can't. I definitely didn't expect to get it; I just really enjoy working with, and showing my Limousin cattle. Winning this was very special to me, just like icing on a cake.

The 4-H show ended up turning out the same way that the open class show did - I won Grand Champion Limousin Female in the 4-H show as well. I had to pinch myself and still couldn't believe it. I then had to compete against the Grand Champion of the Scottish Highlanders and the Angus where the Angus ended up winning it overall. I wasn't upset, I was still so happy with what I had accomplished. That is a year I will never forget, as it was awesome!!!!

Each year since then, I have continued to enjoy raising my cattle and have grown in knowledge and experience. I have made many new friends and have shared many memories with them of our experiences both in and out of the show ring. I can't wait for this year's fairs to finally get here, except that school comes right afterwards.

For information about raising beef cows visit the 4-H

Kristine Gessner and her champion Limousin

Resource Directory: www.cerp.cornell.edu/4h or the Cornell Department of Animal Science 4-H Beef Project page: www.ansci.cornell.edu/4H/beef/index.html.

Need Info?

Subscribe to the Small Farms Update, a monthly email newsletter with announcements, upcoming events, resources, funding and farming opportunities and more. Send an email to smallfarmsprogram@cornell.edu. Please provide your name, farm name, postal address, and county.

July 6, 2009

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SMALL FARM QUARTERLY

Tractors - Two Views

By Kyle Frank and Allen Presher, 4-H members, Steuben County

We recently attended the 4-H Tractor and Machinery Operator's Program and found it to be a very rewarding experience.

Kyle: I had always been interested in tractors even from a very young age and was eager to work with them. But my parents wouldn't allow me until I learned safe operation and use. The course that I took provided just that. We learned all about safe operation and use and more importantly what not to do while using a tractor or other pieces of farm equipment. We also learned about trac-

tor parts, which is vital to tractor ownership.

We were brought to various farms to learn about the safe operation of farm equipment and I really enjoyed it.

Safety took up the major portion of the course work and for good reason. Many farmers and members of farming families are badly wounded or killed each year in accidents around machinery that could have easily been avoided. Some very tragic stories were shown and also how they could have easily been prevented, which put things into perspective for me. We were also brought to a tractor dealership and were taught how to drive everything from the skid-steers to the

Allen Presher receives instructions from his grandfather before starting out on the tractor.

Kyle Frank safely drives a tractor on his family's vineyard.

very large tractors. It was a great learning experience especially to see new equipment.

Before the program I had little or no knowledge of tractor operation and safety.

Now I would say I am fairly proficient with tractor work and help my dad out on occasion with vineyard work. This year I plan to do a lot more work with tractors and other farm machinery and I am confident that I can be safe.

Allen: I have been helping do chores on the dairy farm for several years. When the opportunity arose for me to take the tractor operators safety course my family thought it would be a good idea. What started last winter as classroom instruction evolved into state competition and lifelong knowledge.

The final written exam was fairly easy but the operators driving course was a little nerve racking. Everyone had to take turns negotiating a tractor and wagon around a

set course, back the wagon up within set markers without hitting the markers all within a certain amount of time. After passing the written exam and the driving course I received my tractor and machinery operation training certificate.

This past August I had the opportunity to compete in the NYS 4-H Tractor Operators Contest at Empire Farm Days in Seneca Falls. We took a written exam and had to identify parts on a tractor. Then came the driving test. I was nervous with everyone watching. I had a little trouble with backing the tractor and wagon up, but felt pretty good about how I had done. When everything was all said and done I came in 6th in the NYS 4-H Tractor competition.

For information about tractor safety visit the 4-H Resource Directory: www.cerp.cornell.edu/4h or NYS 4-H Tractor Safety website http://nystractorsafetycourse. pbworks.com/FrontPage.

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Page 14

SMALL FARM QUARTERLY

July 6, 2009

SMALL FARM SPOTLIGHT

On Warren Pond Farm This upstate NY farm offers visitors a glimpse of off-the-grid living

By Jill Swenson Sustainability is the new buzz word and the millennial mandate is to go green. Small farms are a good place to learn how. One farm in upstate New York now offers seasonal cottage rentals to those seeking to experience sustainable living at its best.

On Warren Pond Farm, halfway between Watkins Glen and Ithaca, NY, produces its own electricity from the sun, wind and water. This off-the-grid farm harvests renewable energy seasonally and doesn't fight against the forces of nature. It takes advantage of upstate New York seasons to generate sufficient electricity year round with solar panels, windmills and a waterwheel.

set me up with this bachelor goat farmer who I worried might be the Unabomber. Instead this self-educated man changed my life.

Now I'm a recovering academic who lives off the land with Sam. In the years since I joined him, Sam has added more solar panels and two windmills, and built himself a waterwheel that generates 3-phase electricity for the farm. Today there is enough power to run electric fence, lights, radio, a big screen TV, a DVD player, refrigerator, freezer, circulating pump, and a Lionel Train set, although not all of them at the same time.

GROWING OUR OWN We have raised our own food and sold fresh fruits, vegetables, edible herbs and flowers to local farmers markets and locally owned grocery stores, caterers and restaurants since 1998.

We've raised pigs, chickens, goats, Whitetail deer, European Red deer and registered American Elk. Three years ago Sam took delivery of his first two baby buffalo and bottle fed them himself. The following spring he acquired two more yearlings, a black bull and another cow. It takes three years before a buffalo can reproduce and seven years before it is considered an adult. Bison may live up to 40 years with an average lifespan of 25 years. They really seem to enjoy our nasty winter

The author is a "recovering academic" now growing all her own food, and living happily off the grid.

Photos courtesy of On Warren Pond Farm

The pond, pavilion, and trails provide quiet recreation for visitors.

Warren Pond Farm. We offer weekend, weekly or monthly rates and guests can fish for their supper and graze through the gardens for good wholesome food.

Nestled into a maple grove not far from the pond are our four private cottages. Each is 8' x 14' with a tin roof and covered front porch. Inside each cottage is either a queen size air mattress or bunk beds, a table and two chairs and an oil lamp. Outside there is a propane gas grill and picnic table.

On the southern end of the pond we have a covered pavilion with a fireplace and picnic tables. There is also a solar-powered "outhouse" with a porcelain flush toilet. The common area also has additional picnic tables, BBQ pits, smokers and grills, fishing and swimming docks, paddle boat, fishing boat and parking.

Greenways and trails run through 30 acres and offer berry picking, wildflowers, bird and wildlife identification.

FIELD OF DREAMS In a field of green dreams, Sam Warren built it. Recently he converted a 1961 Cub Cadet lawn tractor into a locomotive for train rides around the farm. Pulling three wagons with seats for two adults or four kids on each, this half hour train ride around more than 30 acres of panoramic vistas of nature makes dreams come true green.

If it isn't sunny, it's usually windy. If it isn't either sunny or windy, it's raining. For every season, there is a renewable energy source.

OFF THE GRID Fifteen years ago, Sam Warren was told by New York State Electric and Gas (NYSEG) that it would cost him tens of thousands of dollars to run power down to his homestead, which is more than 1,400 feet off the road. Instead, Sam figured out how to make his own electricity. By his account the money he didn't pay NYSEG more than covered the expense of building, adding on to, and maintaining an alternative energy system.

What guests really come to On Warren Pond Farm for is the peace and quiet. There is no cellular reception, no internet access, no cable, no telephone, no satellite or TV. We ask you to turn off all unnecessary electronic devices during your stay to unplug and experience unmediated reality.

Sam spent most of the 1980s hauling oversize and hazmat loads across America's highways, living in his 18 wheeler. He sadly recalls moving most of the old Smith-Corona factory works from Cortland, NY, to Mexico.

Not everyone can live off the land and live off-the-grid. But now you can find out what it is like with a stay on a small scale sustainable farm. The accommodations are rustic. You'll need to bring your own solar shower, camping gear, ice and cooler.

In 1994 Warren got off the road, sold his truck, took to the back acres of his parents' farm near the pond and built a cabin. He bought two solar panels and a couple of goats and settled down with his dog, Buddy.

You won't find any RVs or cramped campsites here. It is more like camping than staying in a luxury hotel. Vacationers find the experiences of being self-sufficient homesteaders memorable, valuable and fulfilling. Here you participate in the production of what you consume.

I met Sam Warren in 1997. I was a tenured college journalism professor living around the corner in a rented farm house. A single, overweight, workaholic suffering from fibromyalgia, I wasn't even 40 years old but my lifestyle was killing me. My neighbors

Sam now concentrates on raising American bison for breeding stock weather here.

Sam now concentrates on raising American bison for breeding stock. At one time more than 20 million bison roamed the continent but by the 1870s the mass slaughters left less than 1,000.

They used to kill an animal just for its tongue, considered a delicacy. Participating in the comeback of this keystone species and enduring American icon provides tremendous satisfaction.

Watching them use their tongues to untie Sam's bootlaces is sheer entertainment.

Sam and I live the good life. We live according to the seasons of the calendar, grow our own food, make our own heat, raise our own animals, make everything from scratch or scrap, eat like kings and live like royalty.

Sam Warren converted a 1961 Cub Cadet lawn tractor into this locomotive for train rides around the farm.

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As the agritourism market in the Finger Lakes region of New York continues to expand and market demand for sustainability efforts is up, On Warren Pond Farm offers the sustenance in sustainability.

Jill Swenson writes and farms at On Warren Pond Farm near Trumansburg, NY. You can find out more about the farm at www.onwarrenpondfarm.com. For booking information call 607387-9100 or email her at jilldswenson@yahoo.com.

July 6, 2009

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SMALL FARM QUARTERLY

BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

Dairy Profit Teams help farms bring management to the forefront Some dairy farmers are turning to teams of advisors in nutrition, crops, animal health, finances and more to make decisions about farm profitability.

A new Dairy Profit Team initiative in New York was inspired by successful farm management team projects in Pennsylvania, Vermont, and elsewhere.

By Rebecca Schuelke Staehr It took several meetings around the kitchen table before all the members of the Dairy Profit Team at Salty Acres Farm in Silver Springs, NY, understood the farm was not interested in increasing the milking herd in hopes of bringing in more cash.

Instead, the farm's owners, Alan and Trish Mason, and son Jonathan, wanted to explore the things they could do with their existing farm to make it better. Where could the farm save money? What are the opportunities to reduce labor? And, so on.

PROFIT TEAM IMPACTS Farms in Pennsylvania, where some teams have been in place for close to a decade, increased profits by $249 per cow and improved milk yields by 25 percent per farm after working with a Dairy Profit Team, according to the Pennsylvania Center for Dairy Excellence.

The NY Center for Dairy Excellence plans to take Dairy Profit Teams statewide, with approximately 40 new teams launched by summer 2009.

Bruce Dehm of Dehm Associates in Batavia, NY is a facilitator for Dairy Profit Teams in New York and Pennsylvania. He says, "There is no guarantee that a large farm is more profitable than a small farm. The difference is, can they control costs? A big difference between profitable farms and not-soprofitable farms is quality management. Farms need to work smarter to stay in business."

The NY Farm Viability Institute's grant funding provides stipends for the Dairy Profit Teams' consultants and the trained facilitator, who moderates each meeting and holds each team member accountable for meeting various between-meeting tasks. Stipends vary, but may be around $200 per meeting.

Grant funds are meant to jumpstart the profit teams, with the intention that farms will pick up the tab for consultants after they have seen the benefits of team meetings.

OUTSIDE THE COMFORT ZONE Starting a team can be uncomfortable, the Masons said, especially sharing the farm's financial information with the whole team.

"It raised tempers a little bit," Alan said of the early meetings. "Sometimes, it is hard to be told, 'you ought to be doing this.' Sometimes we wish people could come here and work for a week and see what it is really like."

BETTER, NOT BIGGER Once the realization sunk in, the Masons said, the Dairy Profit Team started identifying goals and strategies: culling some cows with high somatic cell counts, experimenting with sexed semen to increase births of heifers, using custom harvesting for some forages to reduce the strain on the farm's labor and avoid replacing aging equipment, and more.

But, he said, the team's advice and focus on the farm is beneficial. "The key advantage is getting all your key people and having them sit around the table."

Jonathan added, "Just getting everyone together is a benefit. You need input from all areas to make a sound business decision."

A Dairy Profit Team is a set of consultants, such as bankers, veterinarians, agronomists, nutritionists, Cooperative Extension educators, and others who serve as advisors to a farm's managers. At least one farmer referred to his team as "my farm's board of directors."

The farms consultants now work together on issues and seem more willing to come to the farm and address problems and ideas, the Masons said.

"With a Dairy Profit Team, you get different picAnd, at the end of the day, the farm owners are tures from different areas. Everyone can see still the decision makers. For example, having Editor's note: Salty Acres Farm is one of 15 farms participating in a pilot project to establish all the farm's crops custom planted and harvestthe big picture, not just the caption at the botPhoto by Rebecca Schuelke Staehr ed might seem like a good idea on paper, but tom," Jonathan said. "It helped me to consider Dairy Profit Teams in New York State. other parts of the business that I probably one of the things the Masons like about their should have been paying more attention to."

Salty Acres' Dairy Profit Team generally meets every other farm is being able to perform a variety of tasks, not just month. "I knew we had areas we could improve on. We are cows, or just fieldwork.

Salty Acres is one of 15 farms participating in a pilot project not the perfect farm," Alan said. His grandfather founded the to establish Dairy Profit Teams in New York State. Inspired farm in 1937. Today Salty Acres milks 70 cows and farms Like most of the farms in the New York pilot project, Salty by successes with Dairy Profit Teams in Pennsylvania, 188 acres, including rented land. Jonathan came onto the Acres plans to continue meeting as a Dairy Profit Team after Minnesota, Vermont and other states, the New York Farm farm fulltime in October 2007. One month later, the Masons the grant funding ends. Several farms said they would meet Viability Institute and New York Center for Dairy Excellence assembled a Dairy Profit Team. less frequently, perhaps quarterly. worked together to start teams in Wyoming, Madison and Jefferson counties. Local coordinators for the pilot Dairy At 22, Jonathan is younger than the average US dairy "This is a program to help agriculture help itself. It is not a Profit Teams are Cornell Cooperative Extension of Wyoming farmer, and considerations around bringing the next generahandout. It is about working together," Alan said. and Madison counties, Agricultural Development Corporation tion into the business factor into the Profit Team's work. of Jefferson County, Jefferson Community College and Additionally, the farm's goals include improvements to the For more information about Dairy Profit Teams: Genesee Community College. breeding program, crop quality, labor efficiency and cow Pennsylvania: (570) 575-0454, www.centerfordairyexcelcomfort. lence.org/index.php/team.html The farms are now nearing the end of the two-year startup New York: (315) 453-3823, www.nyfvi.org, click on "NY project. Each team established several specific goals. Some Dairy Profit Teams have piqued the interest of a diverse Center for Dairy Excellence" of the New York teams are working to increase profitability range of dairy operations. New York's pilot includes farms and milk yield per cow. Others are developing plans to transwith milking herds from 100 to 900 cows, grazing and conRebecca Schuelke Staehr is a communication specialist for fer farm ownership to the next generation. fined operations, and famers of all ages.

New York Farm Viability Institute, based in Syracuse, NY. For more information, visit www.nyfvi.org.

FOREST

AND

WOODLOT

Feral Swine Update In the last issue of Small Farms Quarterly we reported on the growth of feral swine populations in the Northeast region ("Stop the Spread of Feral Swine" by Wendy Baltzersen and Marie Kautz Baltzersen.) Since that time our Forest and Woodlot Editor Gary Goff (grg3@cornell.edu, Senior Extension Associate, Cornell Natural Resources Department) has compiled updated information for several states, via web searches and phone conversations with state wildlife department biologists. The information in BOLD CAPS is updated:

For more information visit: www.pgc.state.pa.us/pgc/cwp/browse.asp?a=458&bc=0&c=70172 www.wvdnr.gov/Hunting/WildBoar.shtm www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/news/2008/feralhogs.htm

Feral Hogs in the Northeast (as of April, 2009) State # Counties Est. Pop'n.

CT none MA none ME none MD none NH ~1 very few NJ 1 <100 NY ~6 unknown PA ~18 few thousand RI none VT none WV ~10 UNKNOWN 1. Russian boars have game status. Feral domestic hogs are undesirable.

Hunting Regs.

restricted restricted RESTRICTED restricted

restricted

Mgt. Goal undesirable undesirable undesirable undesirable eradicate eradicate eradicate eradicate undesirable undesirable VARIABLE1.

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July 6, 2009

SMALL FARM QUARTERLY

HORTICULTURE

The Winter Greens Garden Bringing in the green(s) all year 'round

By Judson Reid "If the small farm is going to make a living for you, you need to add in the winter." remarked Eliot Coleman, of Four Seasons Farm, Brooksville, Maine. Coleman, the keynote speaker at the 2009 annual NOFA Massachusetts winter meeting, was sharing how growing produce 12 months of the year is essential to his small farm income. Season extension with greenhouses or high tunnels is key to marketing produce year round.

Salad greens ready for harvest dense canopy to shade out weeds. A dense planting makes for smaller leaves, but we want to harvest at 'baby-leaf' stage.

Irrigation is much reduced compared to a spring or summer crop.

Some farmers overhead irrigate simply to establish the crop in early fall and then not again until spring. With the short days and low temperatures, very little moisture is lost from the system.

Even in March this red lettuce has the dark red color that makes it a welcome addition to a winter salad The key to winter production is protecting plants from extreme cold temperatures. This is achieved by using two layers of protection.

The first is the greenhouse or hoophouse to exclude the elements.

The second layer is row-cover over the raised beds.

Pac choy is one of the Asian greens that can be grown in high tunnels in the winter.

"The only crop people seem to think is worth protecting are tomatoes!" he continued. This was an accurate description of me, about 4 years ago. But now I've worked enough with season extension technology to see that cool season crops may in fact benefit the most from what we call 'high tunnels' or unheated hoop houses. Coleman pointed out "other crops can go slightly below freezing without damage....and we found out winter did wonderful things to all kinds of crops".

Off-season production of salad greens is a growing business in the Northeast. Year-round farmers markets are becoming established as well as more winter CSA's. This fits well with the eat-local movement and allows farmers to stabilize relationships with customers by selling product year-round.

With the goal of improving annual return per square foot of high tunnel, a group of Cornell faculty and extension educators are working on a project funded by the New York Farm Viability Institute (NYFVI). We want to identify the best crop systems to expand local production into the colder months, by measuring economic and labor inputs vs. returns. Many of our findings in New York tunnels confirm Coleman's comments.

Row-cover is an air and water permeable fabric that retains heat, yet allows some light penetration. Row-cover is classified by ounces per square yard. The heavier the fabric, the more heat it retains on cold nights. However, heavier fabrics also exclude more light. A mid-weight row cover runs 0.5-1.0 ounces per square yard, and is a good choice to allow light in while retaining some heat.

In our NYFVI project we found that during December and January we could leave the row-cover on for weeks at a time. We used a single layer and successfully over-wintered red lettuce, spinach, mustard and other greens. But, in the colder parts of NYS, farmers report using multiple layers of row cover during severe cold snaps. Using multiple layers of mid-weight fabric gives you more flexibility than a single heavy covering. Peeling back layers in the day lets in sunlight, which heats the soil. It is important to keep the row cover from touching the crop, as where there is contact, leaves will get frost damage. Note the hoops in the photograph of spinach.

Early establishment of the greens crops is a must. This means seeding in early fall, or even late summer. The last two weeks of September or the beginning of October is the best environmental 'window' to establish a canopy. One NY farmer told me he expects all growth to stop around Thanksgiving until the longer days of late January, so early growth is essential.

In our first year of NYFVI trials we transplanted our salad crops.

However, from now on we intend to direct seed. Seeding is quicker and lets us pack the plants closer together. This creates a

THE SYSTEM This project evaluated growing a variety of greens crops in unheated high tunnels. "Greens crops" refers to various leafy greens, often used in salad mixes. In high tunnels they are grown in the soil.

Spinach with hoops for row cover

Rt. 20, Sharon Springs, NY â&#x20AC;˘ (800) 887-1872 or (518) 284-2346 1175 Hoosick St. Troy, NY â&#x20AC;˘ (518) 279-9709

THE CROPS Coleman has experimented with many crops for cold season production, but has decided that crops grown as winter annuals do best. These crops will germinate late in summer and, with protection, grow slowly throughout the cold months, being ready to harvest throughout the winter and early spring. Some of these crops will likely be new to both farmers and consumers. They include greens such as claytonia, minutina and mache. "The crops are all salad crops because these are the ones that do well.' Other important crops are the varied asian greens such as tatsoi, mizuna, or daikana. Lettuce, spinach and beet greens balance out the exotic mixture to create fresh salads during the traditional 'off-season' for local produce.

An important point when working these crops is to harvest them young for baby leaf salad. This has several benefits: * Smaller plants are often more cold tolerant. * Cutting only the leaf leaves enough photosynthetic area in the stem to produce more cuttings later. * Baby leaves can be marketed as niche product with greater consumer appeal than full sized salad greens.

In cooperating New York high tunnels we have researched the above crops, in addition to kale. However, we find that the winter hardiness of kale is best suited to outdoor production. With row cover kale can be harvested from the field well into winter, so the hoop house is better suited for tender salad greens.

FUTURE WORK As Eliot Coleman said: "You can grow anything, but you need rules..." referring to economics. As part of our NYFVI project, we plan to collect data on the removal of a summer tomato planting in September to be replaced immediately by salad greens. Leaving part of our high tunnel in tomatoes, we can measure our potential economic loss or gain by establishing the winter crop. We will have our results after the snow flies!

Judson Reid is a Vegetable Specialist with the Cornell Vegetable Program. He can be reached at (315)536-5123 or jer11@cornell.edu.

July 6, 2009

COWS

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SMALL FARM QUARTERLY

CROPS

Dear Vicki Vetch Red clover vs clover-grass mix for a cover crop in winter grains By the Drinkwater Lab

Dear Vicki Vetch,

I usually frost-seed red clover into my winter grains. Should I be using a grass in combination with the red clover? Would this increase the benefits of the cover crop?

Growing clover in a mixture with a perennial grass, such as timothy or orchardgrass, can provide several potential benefits compared to a pure stand of clover. One potential benefit is that clover-grass mixes have a higher C:N ratio than a pure stand of clover, which may improve the timing of the N release to more closely match the following crop's needs.

Also, positive grass-clover interactions can increase total biomass production and improve N use efficiency. First, grasses tend to be better scavengers of soil N than clovers (see Figure 1). By drawing down soil N levels, grasses can stimulate higher rates of N fixation in clovers (see Figure 2).

Sincerely, Farmer C

Frost-seeded red clover germinating in between rows of winter wheat.

Dear Farmer C,

away with spring rains.

Thanks for the great question. We have actually been conducting some research on grain farms in the area to look at this.

While my cousin, red clover, may look a bit scruffy at times, she can also fix substantial amounts of nitrogen (N) and she has more endurance than I do. Frost-seeding red clover into winter grains is an excellent management option for several reasons: * It reduces tillage frequency because seeds are broadcast in early spring and work their way naturally into the soil through daily freeze and thaw cycles; * It provides continuous soil coverage because the clover is established and ready to take off after the winter grain is harvested; * It provides weed control for both the grain and the clover; and * The longer growth window allows clover to produce more biomass and fix more N compared to a cover crop established after the winter grain is harvested.

Figure 1. The shoot N was similar for a pure stand of red clover (Clover) or red clover grown with orchardgrass (Mix). The mixture recycled more soil N and the pure stand fixed more N. Plants were seeded in the spring and then sampled in the fall and again the following spring before plowdown.

One possible option to establish a grass-clover mix was mentioned by grain farmer John Myer. In the past, he has successfully planted timothy in the fall with the winter grain, and then added the clover by frost-seeding in the spring. This approach to establishing forages is described in the 1920 Handbook for Practical Farmers written by Hugh Findlay.

Findlay suggested attaching a broadcast seeder to the grain drill to spread the timothy seed in front of the drill, improving timothy seed coverage as the drill passes.

From a nitrogen management perspective, there are both benefits and limitations of frost-seeding clover. To maximize the N benefits, clover can be left to grow through one or more winters before being incorporated in the spring before a crop, such as corn, is planted. A one-year stand of clover can supply corn with the equivalent of around 100 lbs/ac of N. One challenge, however, with the use of pure stands of clover is that the N release following incorporation may not occur at a time when the corn crop needs it most. While the clover N in the roots and tougher stems decomposes more slowly, the tender, green leaves can decompose very quickly with a flush of N becoming available within 3 weeks after incorporation.

This early flush of N may be lost through leaching or gaseous losses before a corn crop has become established.

Figure 2. As N availability from either soil or recent compost or manure additions increases, legumes reduce their reliance on N fixation because supporting N-fixing bacteria and nodules is a costly proposition for the plant (B). Under high N availability, growing a legume with a grass can help maintain N fixation inputs because the grass will outcompete the legume for soil N (C).

In addition, some of the N fixed by the clover can be transferred to the grass. As fine clover roots naturally turn over during a growing season, some of this N is released back into the soil and can fertilize the neighboring grass.

From research we conducted across 15 grain farm fields in central New York, red clover-orchardgrass mixtures produced an average of 1.3 tons of dry matter, measured in the fall, compared to 1.0 tons produced by a pure stand of clover.

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Whether a clover-grass mix might be better than a pure stand of clover depends on your goals and level of soil fertility.

Grass-legume mixtures can provide the best of both worlds for a relatively fertile field because they can maintain N fixation inputs while also making certain that you don't loose the soil N that you have worked hard to develop (see Figure 2).

In addition, if you plan to apply modest amounts of manure or compost, a clover-grass mix could be a good strategy to increase plant uptake of N added through these amendments.

Large N additions in compost or manure applications can suppress N fixation. For this reason, additions should be based on balancing P and K needs of the following crop, rather than N needs (see the article on nutrient budgeting in this issue.

Establishing the clover-grass mixture as an intercrop with winter grains is not necessarily straightforward. Grasses do not establish with the same level of consistency when frost-seeded as red clover. Lighter grass seeds may not get worked into the soil as readily as red clover seeds and can be washed

Some of the N fixed by red clover can be transferred to the grass in a clover-grass mix.

Timothy generally will not interfere with the winter grain as it grows more slowly and the grain tends to outcompete timothy for available soil moisture and soil N. Orchardgrass has shown higher success with spring frost-seeding than timothy.

Clearly, more experimentation is needed to identify management options for establishing clover-grass mixes that achieve multiple outcomes while being easy to establish. I would like to encourage readers who are interested in conducting onfarm trials of clover-grass mixes in winter grains next year to contact my research team at the address below.

Sincerely, Vicki Vetch

Vicki Vetch intends to bring you the latest in cover crop and nutrient management information, so send in your questions.

She is ready! Vicki and her associates will tackle any question related to the role of cover crops in farming systems or cover crop management.

Questions can be sent to: dearvickivetch@cornell.edu, or to: Dear Vicki Vetch c/o the Drinkwater Laboratory, Cornell University, 134A Plant Science Bldg., Ithaca, NY 14853. We would like to thank farmers Thor Oeschner and John Myer for sharing their knowledge and experience for this column. We would also like to thank the farmers who allowed us to conduct research in their fields.

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July 6, 2009

SMALL FARM QUARTERLY

GRAZING

Graze NY Promoting the Green in Grass-based Agriculture

By Stacy Russell Fred Griffen, owner of High Lonesome Farm in the town of Cincinnatus in Cortland County, NY, is a living, working example of what Graze NY can do to support farmers interested in developing a successful grazing operation. When Fred wanted to start a purebred Angus cattle operation using a 100% grass-fed regime he turned to the Graze NY program for help. Graze NY is a collaborative effort between the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, County Soil and Water Conservation Districts, and Cornell Cooperative Extension.

PRESCRIBED GRAZING MANAGEMENT From the onset, the primary goal of the Graze NY program was to provide technical training, guidance, and when available, financial assistance to help farm families with the establishment of Prescribed Grazing Management (PGM) Systems. A PGM system utilizes multiple grazing pastures, also known as paddocks, which are alternately grazed and rested during the prescribed grazing period. The size and number of paddocks required is dependent on the level of management, the productivity of the pasture and the number of livestock.

Fred Giffen got help from the Graze-NY program to plan and develop a Prescribed Grazing Management system at High Lonesome Farm in Cortland County.

When Griffen's farm joined the program, Cortland County Soil and Water Conservation District (CCSWCD) staff made several farm visits to assess the available grazing acreage, examine water resources and topography, evaluate potential environmental risks, and sample for soil and forage quality. This information was utilized to develop a PGM plan uniquely suited to the specific needs of High Lonesome Farm.

RESULTS "SUPERB" "The plan was put into effect immediately, and the results have been superb," said Griffen. "This would not have happened without Graze NY. There simply isn't another resource this paradigm-specific that could accomplish these results as efficiently and effectively."

The Graze NY program has provided on-farm planning assistance and technical information to over 6700 farm families, watershed advocates, and consumers in the central NY region. Assistance varies from general planning to in-depth design work, based on the farm's needs. Over 1,200 PGM plans have been developed, with 725 presently initiated and many more that are in the process of implementation or awaiting funding. To accelerate the adoption of PGM and educate the public, Cornell Cooperative Extension regularly holds indoor workshops and outdoor pasture walks.

Dairy farmer Jason Tuning worked with Graze-NY to secure cost-share funding to implement his grazing system, which included improvements like this stream crossing, which now protects this Otselic River tributary.

GRAZING CHAMPIONS The Graze NY program began in Central NY in 1996 as the result of US Congressman James Walsh's participation in a grazing farm tour. At that event, Congressman Walsh learned first hand from farmers practicing PGM how grass-based agriculture provides a less expensive feed source than purchased feeds, reduces production costs, retains more farm profits, and reduces soil erosion.

Leaders in the field of PGM recognized that rotational grazing could be one option to combat rising production costs that were forcing many small family farms out of business.

Dairy producer Jason Tuning, also from Cincinnatus, is relatively new to rotational grazing. Tuning began working with CCSWCD through the Graze NY program this past year to develop a grazing plan for his farm. "Grazing has helped me stay in business," says Tuning, "the district secured cost-share funding that I needed to implement my grazing system. I am now able to utilize more of my small farm and lower my inputs from off the farm, which lowers my overall expenses and helps me to be more profitable with a small herd."

Since 1996, Congressman Walsh along with support from other NY representatives secured the federal funding needed to start the Graze NY program. With the retirement of Congressman Walsh in 2008, Congressman Michael Arcuri has championed continued sponsorship of the Graze NY program. Currently, Graze NY assistance is available in 10 central NY counties: Broome, Cayuga, Cortland, Madison, Oneida, Onondaga, Seneca, Tioga, Tompkins, and Wayne. With Representative Arcuri's help, the program plans to expand in 2009 to include four new counties: Chenango, Herkimer, Ontario and Otsego.

HELPING FARMERS & COMMUNITIES Graze NY program funding provides both direct and indirect benefits to farms. In general, the funding provides support for one staff person per county. This staff person provides technical assistance and works constantly to secure additional funding for participating farms and program implementation. They seek funding through grants and other programs to help defray the cost of system imple-

mentation, including: fencing, water systems, and laneway developments. These funds are important not only to the farmer receiving them, but also to the rural communities where the money is reinvested back into the local economy.

GRASS-FARMING BENEFITS The most important thing to remember about Graze NY is the farm families that benefit from the program. These farms maintain the rural character of our communities, provide quality local food for consumers and are a driving force in the economy of upstate NY. Grass-based agricultural systems help protect our environment by reducing herbicide and pesticide use and by maintaining permanent grass coverage, which reduces sediment and nutrient runoff.

Grass-based agriculture is good for the farmers, good for the environment, and good for the economy of upstate NY. If you are interested in learning more about the Graze NY program and live within a participating county please contact your local County Soil and Water Conservation District for more information or check us out on the web at www.grazeny.com.

Stacy Russell is the Natural Resource Program Specialist at the Cortland County Soil & Water Conservation District in Cortland, NY. She can be reach at 607-756-5991 or stacy.russell@ny.nacdnet.net

NON-DAIRY LIVESTOCK

Northeast Meats Wild West Wild West Elk Ranch partners with an innovative local foods delivery service, Chenango-Madison Bounty

By Margaret Wedge In March of 2001, when Cody and Cindy Mikalunas found out there were elk farms in New York State where they lived, Cody went wild. He had always loved the animals, according to Cindy, because they are so majestic and intriguing.

After investigating the animals themselves, talking to several elk ranchers, and doing weeks of research to find out what markets there are for elk and elk products, Cody and Cindy started out with four elk of their own.

Today the Mikalunas family runs a much larger farm, Wild West Elk Ranch, and a hunting preserve, Wild West Trophy Hunts, that offers elk, red stag, fallow deer, whitetail, buffalo and Russian boar.

NOT YOUR SANTA'S REINDEER But what do you do with an elk farm, besides hunting and teaching the frequent passing child (and adult, for that matter) that no, in fact, these are not the same animals that pull Santa's sleigh?

More than you might think. The Mikalunas family has built an entire way of life around these creatures. One of the most amazing aspects of the business is that the family is able to run the elk ranch and the hunting preserve and still work their "day job," which is landscaping.

"Once you have the fencing, barn, handling system, etc. built," Cindy says, "the elk are pretty low maintenance." The work the couple and their son do to keep the animals healthy under Ag and Markets regulations shows potential elk buyers and meat customers that they have a "clean" ranch, and that they care for their animals intensely.

When I asked Cindy what her favorite thing about elk ranching was, she drew me a little map. Their house sits in the middle of the paddocks that are home to their elk, and many mornings she wakes up to find them not far from her kitchen windows. She is able to watch them play, graze, ruminate, and do what elk do.

LIMITED MARKET FOR ELK MEAT Cody and Cindy's first initiative was to develop genetically superior breeding elk for sales to future elk ranchers. This plan has paid off, as they have sold elk to and helped start three other ranches in New York State. Their website boasts of the world-class genetics of their animals, and it is their preferred elk income source.

But there are other effective ways to market elk and elk products. The Mikalunas' have the trophy hunts; markets for velvet antler pills; supplies for crafters, Native American consumers, and other animal preserves; as well as offering an extremely nutritious meat.

Until about 18 months ago, the meat sold by the Mikalunas' was mainly purchased directly from the meat and gift shop located on their farm.

They had researched long distance ordering, but decided against shipping meat over any distance because of the need for dry ice, and for very specific mailing times.

As you can imagine, the ranch targeted business from neighbors, elk enthusiasts and interested passersby, but without massive advertising campaigns, their meat market didn't extend much beyond this. Traditional farmers' markets often seemed more trouble than they were worth, especially since many people are unfamiliar with elk meat.

Elk Farmer Cody Mikalunas, left, celebrates Chenango-Madison Bounty's first $100,000 in sales with members of the Bounty team: farmers Drew Piaschyk and Bob Huot; Rebecca Hargrave of Cornell Cooperative Extension; Bounty Coordinator Steve Holzbaur and USDA-NRCS / Central NY RC&D Coordinator Phil Metzger.

Photo by Frank Speziale/The Evening Sun "A lot of people just don't know the facts about elk meat," Cindy said, "it is much better for their health, nutrition wise, than any other red meat available. Elk meat has almost no fat in it...and the taste is fantastic too!"

CHENANGO-MADISON BOUNTY Then the Mikalunas' were put in touch with Chenango-Madison Bounty. Calling itself "The Farmers Market at Your Door," ChenangoMadison Bounty is a non-profit local delivery service that works with farmers and producers from Chenango and Madison Counties, plus several other New York Counties, to bring local foods to residents.

Bounty employees pick up the elk meat directly from the Mikalunas farm after processing, and take it directly into cold storage at Purdy and Son's in Sherburne, where Bounty packs all of its orders.

Cody and Cindy believe Chenango-Madison Bounty is a wonderful local program for getting fresh local products to consumers. It's community project that not only improves the quality of consumers' lives, but provides direct income for well-established local farms.

A $100,000 MILESTONE Chenango-Madison Bounty recently celebrated

its first $100,000 in local food sales. Out of that $100,000, a total of $77,000 was returned directly to participating farms and producers. The elk ranch got a piece of that, as well.

Perhaps more importantly for the Wild West Elk Ranch, though, is Bounty's assistance in promoting the farm's good name. If a county-funded program helps to support local farms through Bounty, others will learn about them through the advertising Bounty does.

For the Wild West Elk Ranch, this avenue will spread and grow the knowledge base on the benefits of and interest in elk farming, and Cody and Cindy Mikalunas, and their son, will be able to carry their passion and their way of life into the far-distant future.

For more information raising elk, feel free to contact Cindy Mikalunas at 607-847-6658 or visit www.wildwesttrophyhunts.com. For information on Chenango Madison Bounty, please visit www.chenangobounty.com.

Margaret Wedge is the Local Foods Access Coordinator at the Central New York RC&D in Norwich, New York. She can be reached at 607334-3231 x 4 or mbfwedge@gmail.com.

July 6, 2009

NEW FARMERS

Beginning Farmer 101 Reflections of an online course instructor

By Laura Biasillo In 2008 I was approached by the NY Beginning Farmer Project to see if I would be willing to become a co-instructor for their online beginning farmer course, Beginning Farming 101. This was partially due to my expressed interest in participating in trainings for new and beginning farmers. So without knowing too much about what I was getting myself in to, I accepted the offer. Boy, was I in for a wild ride.

The 2009 online class roster was originally set at 20 participants and two five week sessions. I would be co-teaching the first session. But the demand was so great for the class, and the waiting list got so long, that we ended up accepting 9 extra participants. These new farmers hailed from all over the Northeast, and all had the desire to start a new farm on land they already owned, or were looking to purchase.

The framework of the course was as follows: This was an online course which required participants to visit the course website at least once a week to check for new assignments, materials, or activities; post to forums with their questions; and participate in a bi-weekly online "connect" session, or interactive forum.

Participants were attracted to this course for several reasons: their non-proximity to a local

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SMALL FARM QUARTERLY

cooperative extension office, lack of time to visit agricultural resource agencies/organizations due to full-time employment, and/or their high comfort level in using the internet for information gathering.

Almost half of the participants had never taken an online course and I had never taught an online course. So we were both learning from each other. I learned that structuring an online course is totally different from face-to-face interactions. You are reliant on someone being able to interpret and turn around materials in a timely manner. (And while this had been expressed as an issue in the pilot run of this course, all the participants in this course did all the work we laid out, and then some).

Having all your interactions online can create some difficulties, especially if you are trying to assess why someone is unable to access the course website when you're having a conversation over email. Additionally, many participants only had a dial-up connection, and this created some difficulties in downloading materials and participating in the bi-weekly online forums.

But in general, being able to complete exercises and research on their own time was really appreciated by the participants. As many of them also had full-time jobs, a course taking place in the evening was not always conducive to their quality of life. Having something they

LOCAL FOODS & MARKETING

From Garlic to "Scape-a-Moli" These Finger Lakes farmers worked with the Northeast Center for Food Entrepreneurship's Food Venture Center to develop some innovative value-added products

By Kara Lynn Dunn When is drought a good thing?

could complete at odd times of the day, or sometimes at night, was very attractive. This also meant that as course instructors we were fielding emails on weekends and evenings.

In this five week period, most participants in the class did more work than they dreamed.

They crafted their farm goals, site selection for potential farm sites, and assessment of resources and skills. They poured their heart and soul into the process, often going through several printer cartridges in the process.

This in turn was very motivating to the instructors, as the students' excitement was infectious. We often got 40-plus emails each week from participants as they answered the weekly questions posted to the forums and completed their exercises. But this was just the beginning of the process for them. As they worked through the issues that all new farmers face (but some never intentionally deal with) we as instructors got to watch their small farm dreams unfold and become a reality.

During the course evaluation session, several participants noted that they would have liked more time to complete some of the activities, especially those focused on choosing an enterprise and developing a marketing plan. As instructors it is often a balancing act to give enough time to complete the assignments for each week, but not leave so much time between topics that we lose people along the way. We try and cram into 9 weeks what it should take years to learn.

Participants also requested additional online courses, especially in advanced areas of production. This is currently being pursued by the Small Farms Program at Cornell University,

Thank you Cornell Small Farms Program and NY Beginning Farmer Project for this Online Beginning Farmer Course!

Laura Biasillo is Agricultural Economic Development Specialist with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Broome County, in Binghamton, NY. She can be reached via telephone at (607) 584-5007 or via email at lw257@cornell.edu. For more information on when the next online beginning farmer course will run, or for more information on the course curriculum, visit www.nybeginningfarmers.org.

The brothers experimented at home, cooking the scapes into a creamy dip, and pickling them. In 2008, they took their recipes 30 miles northwest to the Food Venture Center at the NYS Agricultural Experiment Station in Geneva for help in commercializing their processes.

New York farmers may work with the Food Venture Center to develop value-added products at no cost, thanks to a grant from the New York Farm Viability Institute, a farmer-led nonprofit group that provides grant funding to applied research and outreach education projects.

Farmers in other states may be able to access to the Food Venture Center at little or no cost through other funding streams.

Six Circle Farms worked with food scientists at Cornell University to develop a shelf stable product using garlic scapes from their farms. The creamy dip is similar to guacamole.

The final product is "Rosie's Garlic Guacamole," named after the brothers' grandmother, who has enjoyed garlic since her youth in Rumania.

"It was bone dry here in 2004 and all of our crops failed except the hard-neck garlic," says younger brother Jacob.

"The name creates an opportunity to talk with people and to explain that it is not actually guacamole, but our own 'scape-amoli,'" Lael says.

After working on farms in Mexico and Guatemala, Lael, then 20, was inspired to start a farm on the idle land of his family's home in 2002. He and some friends planted vegetables, herbs, flowers, and the Music variety of cold-hardy garlic, and began a small CSA.

A co-packer packages Six Circles Farm's "scape-a-mole" and pickled scapes. The brothers sell fresh garlic and their value-added products at the Saugerties Garlic Festival in late September, at the Ithaca Farmers' Market, to restaurants, health food stores and coops in the Ithaca area, and online. They also sell garlic seed to other growers.

Sharing his brother's passion for sustainable agriculture, Jacob joined the farm in 2005. They plant, weed, and harvest their crops by hand. The rest of the family helps with planning and marketing.

Brothers Jacob and Lael Eisman hope growing direct markets for their garlic and value-added garlic products will allow them to turn their part-time venture into a fulltime farm business.

A bonus of working with the Food Venture Center was the opportunity to showcase their products at the Cornell Marketplace at Empire Farm Days in 2008.

"The Center welcomed us, and really worked to help us create a product that we liked and was food safe," says Jacob.

The brothers are planning to have a processing kitchen of their own someday. Lael says, "We see value-added products as a way to turn the farm into a full-time business."

"Our cheap pH meter indicated we were fine; the Center's equipment showed we were not. We are Certified Naturally Grown and wanted to use a natural acidifier, such as lemon or lime juice. We could not have produced a shelf-stable product that does not need to be refrigerated or frozen without the Center," Jacob adds.

In 2009, the Eismans will use a new pond-fed irrigation system to increase the size and poundage of their 5,000-lb. garlic crop and, Lael says, "We have a lot more recipes to try at the Food Venture Center."

The process from rough recipe to final process took approximately four months.

The brothers experimented at home, and in 2008 they took their recipes to the Food Venture Center at the NYS Agricultural Experiment Station in Geneva for help in commercializing their processes.

Beginning farmers can visit these resources on their own time and then craft specific questions to ask their local cooperative extension educators. Giving new farmers the ability to do their own research on site selection, resource evaluation and enterprise evaluation, on their own time, gives them ownership of the process.

They are then more likely to be invested in the enterprise idea they choose, and this makes the job of someone involved in agricultural enterprise development much more satisfying.

"We had primarily sold the garlic as bulbs and tossed the scapes (the top part of the plant) on the compost pile. We decided to find out what we could do with the scapes," Lael says.

When it points the way toward profitability, as it did for Lael and Jacob Eisman of Six Circles Farm, overlooking Seneca Lake in Lodi, NY.

"We considered ourselves successful at farming, but not profitable, and then the drought nearly wiped us out," Jacob says.

sponsor of the NY Beginning Farmer Project. If you have an interest in these please contact Erica Frenay at Cornell, at ejf5@cornell.edu.

This experience has certainly changed how I approach interacting with and educating new farmers. There is a whole group of new farmers who, for a multitude of reasons, can benefit from distance learning. The online Beginning Farmer Resource Center, which is used in the course, is invaluable for those comfortable using the internet to gather information. It is also accessible to anyone, whether or not you have enrolled in the on-line course, at www.nybeginningfarmers.org.

Food Venture Center Support Specialist Cheryl Leach says, "We were impressed with the diligence the Eisman brothers' applied to getting their formulation right. They made many trips to the lab with samples from their trial batches."

The Food Venture Center is a division of the Northeast Center for Food Entrepreneurship. To learn about working with the Center on value-added product development, visit www.nysaes.cornell.edu/necfe/index.html or call (315) 787-2273.

You can also visit Six Circles Farm online at www.gogogarlic.com.

Kara Lynn Dunn is a contributing writer for the New York Farm Viability Institute, a farmer-led nonprofit group that awards grants for projects to help farmers improve profitability. Visit www.nyfvi.org

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July 6, 2009

SMALL FARM QUARTERLY

URBAN AGRICULTURE

The Future of Urban Agriculture Will high-tech systems push out smaller-scale, community-oriented urban farms?

By Kathryn Werntz Meandering through the corridors of the design school here at my university last week, I marveled at the student architectural projects which proposed transformations big and small across sites in New York City. I stopped in my tracks at one hi-tech blueprint which suggested covering one of the few existing urban farms in "the city" with a LEED-certified high-rise. While I wish the student success in her career, I personally hoped her design would not be picked.

But then I caught myself up on my environmental pedestal and wondered, just how sustainable are our current urban farms? Would we be better served with hi-tech green residential buildings complete with vertical farms and edible roofs and terraces instead of the street-level urban farms and gardens that currently dot our neighborhoods? Will urban agriculture as we know it survive the coming green revolution?

Similar questions drove me to start a class project last semester that involved interviewing urban farmers from around the northeast USA and Canada and asking about their "sustainability." In the heart of harvest season, three farmers gave me their time and I am most humbled and thankful for their efforts.

An industry that produces, processes and markets food and fuel, largely in response to the daily demand of consumers within a town, city, or metropolis, on land and water dispersed throughout the urban and peri-urban area, applying intensive production methods, using and reusing natural resources and urban wastes, to yield a diversity of crops and livestock.

Urban agriculture has many potential benefits. With 80% of the population in the United States soon living in cities, urban agriculture could provide food and education to a great number of people. We need only to look to "developing" countries to see what they have achieved. For example, in Bangui, Central African Republic, essentially 100% of residents' leafy vegetables are grown in the city, and in Shanghai, China, 90% of residents' egg consumption is produced in the city.

While none of the farmers I spoke with had total numbers on their production, there exists some information for similar urban farms such as City Slicker in West Oakland, California. Last year, they grew 6,500 pounds of produce on less than one acre of urban land.

But for all its potential benefits, urban agriculture raises questions about competing water use, providing habitat for undesirable fauna and harboring pathogens. We must figure out how to compare these possible negatives to the positives.

As cities make efforts to become more sustainable, I worry about the future of our existing urban farms and smaller gardens. These places already provide food, community space, social structure, education and, well, nature, peace, love and happiness: What will we need to "prove" or defend about our current urban agricultural efforts in order to protect them?

How can we argue against "improving" half an acre of abundant biodiversity by building a 100-story green residential building on top of it? And should we argue against it? Do we need to accept the future understanding of food systems including Jetson-like skyscraper vertical farm production of food? Is that the most sustainable way to feed the city?

Phillip shows off some of the harvest

Photo by Darcy Kiefel

All of these farmers did say they'd like more knowledge and assistance in these environmental sustainability factors. For example, it was interesting that none of the farmers reported keeping records of their nutrient budgets.

For all of the difficulties surrounding finding "good help" on rural farms in the USA, urban farms don't seem to have enough weeds to keep up with the hands! In one case, when the city cut the budget for leaf collection, residents were glad to bag and the urban farm was glad to pick-up to use for compost and mulching. The farm had carbon and their neighbors could have carrots. As one farmer humbly told me, "this farm relies 100% on the community, especially for labor. It relies on the energy of others."

Of course, relying on free and energetic labor may pose an economic sustainability issue. Can these urban farms trying to provide healthy, affordable food survive in the face of the economy going green? Will their place in our urban landscape change? Do we want it to? If we do want to preserve them, how do we advocate for subsidies and policies that would protect them? Or do we need to face that perhaps one day in the not-too-far-off-future, our few urban farms will be seen as living museums of the way urban agriculture used to be?

I don't know about you, but I think there's something more than romanticism in thinking about us city mice being able to meander into a ground-floor, street level farm, finding all sorts of plant and animal treasures, running our fingers through the soil, and coming face to face with with the farmers who keep us alive.

East New York Farms! is an urban agriculture program that promotes local and regional sustainable agriculture and community-based economic development in the center of an urban environment in New York City. ENYF! runs a youth internship program, two half-acre community gardens, and a seasonal weekly farmers market. Today, the market is a thriving part of the community, with over 15,000 shoppers annually.

Photo by ENYF

Kathryn Werntz is a graduate student in the Education Department at Cornell University.

Resource Spotlight Urban Farms Urban farms are popping up in cities across the US and the globe. Here are just a few examples:

WHAT DO WE MEAN BY URBAN AGRICULTURE, ANYWAY? There are gazillions of ideas out there about what urban agriculture actually is. I like this definition from the United Nations Development Programme:

NYC East New York Farms! www.eastnewyorkfarms.org Added Value, South Brooklyn: www.addedvalue.org Joemi Regalado bringing karela to market.

Photo by Darcy Kiefel, Heifer International

Kathleen McTigue shows East NY Farms! interns Jason Thomas and Warren Ottey the frames inside a bee hive at the United Community Centers farm.

Photo by ENYF

WHAT ABOUT THAT "S" WORD? Now, while I'm always interested in considering the seventh generation's interests in our food production decisions today, I cringe at having to use the word sustainability. For my project, I broke down the concepts that I considered to be related to environmental, economic and social sustainability. In the environmental realm, I found that all three urban farmers used, to a great degree, the same long-term soil health strategies that would likely be implemented on a healthy large rural farm.-e.g. crop rotation, cover crops and crop diversity. In addition they all use companion planting strategies that are less common on larger farms.

Philadelphia Mill Creek Farm, www.millcreekurbanfarm.org West Oakland City Slicker, www.cityslickerfarms.org Milwaukee Growing Power, www.growingpower.org Birmingham Jones Valley Farm, www.jvuf.org Vertical farming information: www.verticalfarm.com

July 6, 2009

COWS

AND

SMALL FARM QUARTERLY

CROPS

Balancing Act Cornell's "Whole Farm Analysis Project" is helping dairy farmers - and researchers -- understand the impacts of nutrient management decisions

By Sara Zglobicki

Editor's note: In the Spring issue we began a series of articles about some of the small-scale dairy farmers working with researchers in Cornell's Nutrient Manage-ment Spear Program. The previous article introduced the Mass Nutrient Balance Project through the eyes of Marc Laribee, a dairy farmer in Lewis County, and his support team. Here we feature Dave Vincent and his team in the Whole Farm Analysis project. Both projects are efforts led by the Nutrient Management Spear Program in Cornell's Department of Animal Science.

"If a farmer's mass nutrient balance looks high when compared to other farms, they want to know how they can reduce it. They'll ask what they are doing differently from other farmers with lower nutrient balances but similar milk production levels."

Ristow and her team are hoping to address questions raised by the Mass Nutrient Balance Program with the new Whole Farm Analysis

team approach of the project. "I am confident that working with farmers from the beginning and asking for feedback on an on-going basis will help produce useful tools for farmers."

For instance, Dave Vincent is using a feed management tool, and with input from his nutritionist, Dave Kinney, they will be advising the research group on how the tool fits into a whole farm management toolkit.

Canner also values the experience as a way to strengthen his relationships with farmers, especially Vincent. "This provides me with an opportunity to work with Dave more closely. I'm learning a lot from how he does things."

"The tool lets farmers see how they measure up to their own goals. In the end, if you can't measure it, you can't manage it," says Kinney. He's been working with Vincent for four years to maintain or improve profitability with healthier cows and is excited to share lessons learned from the Whole Farm Analysis team at Vincent's with other farms. "As a farmer, having numbers show how you are doing is crucial to help you see where improvements may be possible."

Eric Bever and Mike Contessa, managers of Champlain Valley Agronomics, an independent crop consulting firm, are beginning their third year of work with Dave Vincent. In the past they helped establish a nutrient management plan for Vincent's participation in a USDA EQIP program.

"I'm hoping to save money on crop expenses and have as good or better crops," says Dave Vincent when asked why he chose to participate in the new Whole Farm Analysis (WFA) project. Dave runs a dairy with his brother Silas, milking 150 cows and growing corn, alfalfa, grass hay and oats due north of the Adirondack Mountains, about ten miles from the Canadian border in Malone, New York.

Through his participation in the MNB project, Dave became exposed to and interested in the Whole Farm Analysis project. "I am trying to gain more knowledge and am hoping to use what nutrients are available on my farm," he explains.

HOW DOES YOUR FARM COMPARE? "With the Mass Nutrient Balance project, farmers can see how their nutrient balances compare with their peers," explains Patty Ristow, extension associate with the Nutrient Management Spear Program (NMSP) and coordinator of the Whole Farm Analysis project.

Dave Vincent looks forward to the fruits of the Whole Farm Analysis project this fall, and is hopeful all parties will benefit from what is learned so "others can lower their crop inputs and still maximize yields by using nutrients they have on the farm."

Dave and Silas Vincent, brothers and co-owners of Vincent Farms LLC are collaborating with a dairy nutritionist, crop consultants, and Cornell extension personnel on the Whole Farm Analysis project, continuing the tradition of farming that's been in their family over a century.

Photo by Carl Tillinghast project.

Funding from the Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (NESARE) program is helping them to work with Vincent Farm, LLC and three other farms.

TEAM EFFORT "We are working as a team to identify and develop nutrient management tools to pinpoint what is driving farm mass nutrient balances and to assist farmers in identifying opportunities to improve nutrient efficiency. We are determining

GRAZING

Two Hot Topics for Graziers

By Mike Dennis Farmers, like other business owners, are always looking at new practices or ways of doing business, and evaluating whether or not that new practice will yield a positive return monetarily or otherwise. Last winter I learned more about two practices that may have relevance to the grass farmer.

GRAZING CORN Grazing corn seemed to be creating a buzz last fall in local demonstration plots and this winter at seed meetings. For those looking to harvest extra energy via grazing or mechanical harvest it is worth looking into. From the information that I have been able to digest it appears that this crop would fit nicely where a rotation is in order and perhaps you are looking for high energy forage for finishing or milking animals.

How can you evaluate the potential costs and returns of grazing corn? The partial budget is a nice tool to evaluate the monetary gain or

DOLLARS AND SENSE The goals of the Whole Farm Analysis project coincide well with Bever's goals as a consultant by "encouraging the use of organic nutrients in manure as valuable fertilizer when applied at the appropriate times and rates. As we learn more about nutrient availability and movement on the farm, we can manage nutrients better and that translates into dollars and cents for dairy farmers. There is potential to increase yields and quality without harming the environment."

Contessa shares Kinney and Tillinghast's hope that the project has a 'multiplier effect' and comments that what the team learns working with Vincent on this project "will give us another onfarm experience to bring to others."

MAKING THE MOST OF MANURE "I remember a time when nutrients were not expensive; now they are very dear," he says.

"We have to change with the times, and now it is economical to utilize on-farm resources. We have nutrients here, with cows on the farm; we should use the manure while trying to eliminate some fertilizer costs."

Dave Vincent participated in the Mass Nutrient Balance (MNB) project for three years. Each year, he received a report that showed the difference between the amount of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium imported onto the farm through feed, fertilizer and bedding purchases and the amount exported from the farm in milk, meat, crops, manure and compost.

Page 21

what data are needed, how those data could be collected, and how results could be presented most effectively to farmer, consultants and extension audiences," Ristow says.

loss that a new enterprise could potentially bring to a farm business. Disclaimer: Just because something may increase the bottom line doesn't mean it should be implemented.

Each individual must be comfortable with any business decision regardless of whether it can make money.

A partial budget looks at the new farm enterprise or only. Here are the basics. One column lists "Items that Increase Profit" and the second column lists "Items that Reduce Profit".

The Profit Increase column is further broken into "Added Income" and "Reduced Costs."

The Profit Reduction column is divided into "Reduced Income" and "Added Costs."

This is a simple but powerful way of analyzing the potential impacts of a new enterprise. List income and costs associated with the new enterprise in the appropriate box and you can quickly figure out potential profit or lack there of. There are many detailed resources online or via your local cooperative extension agent to help you with partial budgeting.

SUSTAINABLE PROFITS Carl Tillinghast, Executive Director of Cornell Cooperative Extension of Franklin County, arranged the initial team contacts. "I'm hoping our work can help farms establish more efficient use of nutrients on or brought onto their farms towards the growth of crops and make farmers more profitable in the long-run," said Tillinghast.

His colleague Stephen Canner, agronomy extension educator for St. Lawrence and Franklin Counties, is enthusiastic about the

So what about grazing corn? Plug items related to grazing corn into your partial budget grid and see what happens. Granted, it will be difficult to measure any gains related to the corn until you try it. Use estimates provided by your seed rep. If it the numbers work in your system try a little and measure the results and compare to your original analysis.

EVALUATING CATTLE DNA Evaluation of cattle DNA seems to be the buzz particularly in beef circles and appears to be an up and coming technology. At this time several companies have third party validated tests for certain traits of interest such as tenderness, yield grade, marbling, and some others. Can it be part of your selection program? Find out the cost and learn more from companies offering services and other farmers using the technology.

Grazing corn and DNA evaluation are two fairly hot topics in a lot of circles. Take the time to talk with others that utilize the practice, put the numbers to it, gut check it, and it a try if it makes sense. Look to seed companies for info on grazing corn and to farmers trying it in your area as well as industry literature and magazines. Cattle breed associations and the National Beef Cattle Evaluation Consortium are places to begin looking for DNA testing information.

For over a century, Vincent's family has cultivated not only crops for their cows, but also an intergenerational desire to farm while caring for the land. "We're interested in good stewardship," he says, "so the next generation has something to grow crops on."

If you farm in New York State and are interested in participating in the Mass Nutrient Balance project, contact Caroline Rasmussen at 607255-2875 or cnr2@cornell.edu. To learn more about the Whole Farm Nutrient Analysis project, contact Patty Ristow at 607-255-1723 or plr27@ cornell.edu. You can also check out a fact sheet on the Mass Nutrient Balance at http://nmsp.css.cornell.edu/publications/factsheets/factsheet25.pdf.

Sara Zglobicki is a recent graduate of Cornell University, and has gone on to study potatoes at the University of Idaho -- for real. She can be reached at zglo6626@vandals. uidaho.edu.

Mike Dennis and his wife and family run a small pasture raised and finished direct market beef farm, under management intensive grazing, in Central New York. Mike is also the Small Farm / Agronomy agent for Seneca County Cornell Cooperative Extension.

He can be reached at (315) 253-4787.

We Want To Hear From You We welcome letters to the editor Please write to us! Or send a question and weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll do our best to answer it. Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re also looking for beautiful, interesting and/or funny small farm photos to print.

Write or email Joannna Green, Cornell Small Farms Program, 135C Plant Science Building, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 jg16@cornell.edu

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July 6, 2009

SMALL FARM QUARTERLY

SMALL FARM SPOTLIGHT

Producer Finds Success in No-Till Planting

By Christopher C. Wager In 2007, William and Diane Mesler decided to get out of the beef business. They wanted to start a new venture of growing cash crops such as soybeans, corn and wheat, using a no-till production system.

In 2008, the Meslers approached the USDA Farm Service Agency for technical and financial assistance. Their goals were to develop a viable operation with increased crop acres and additional on-farm storage, and to be more competitive in the markets.

The Meslers used Farm Service Agency loan programs to get started with their new enterprise, and have now established one of the best no-till farm operations in Allegany County.

No-till farming, sometimes called zero tillage, is a cultivation technique in which the soil is disturbed only along the slit or hole into which seeds are planted. Conventional tillage controls weed growth by plowing and cultivating. No-till farming selectively uses herbicides to kill the weeds and the remains of the previous crop.

In no-till farming, 30 percent of the soil surface is covered with crop residue after planting. No-till is one of several primitive farming methods that have been revived as conservation measures in the 20th century.

In 2008, the Meslers planted soybeans, corn, and wheat, no-till, with good yields and the benefits of minimal erosion and retained topsoil. Corn yields were over 105 bushels per acre.

William Mesler (left) and author Chris Wager standing next to a field of no-till corn Photos by Douglas Donner Soybean yields were more than 32 bushels per acre, and wheat yields were over 36 bushels per acre.

This is excellent for our area, especially considering the fact that some of the fields were being converted from pasture to no-till cropland.

William says "Our operation benefits from no-till planting by decreasing the rate of soil erosion; a reduced need for equipment, fuel, fertilizer, and labor; and significantly less time required for tending crops."

The Meslers rent all of their 400 acres of cropland, and conserving the soil with the use of no-till planting makes for good land stewardship. There's also less soil compaction when the number of field passes are decreased.

There are a few challenges for Mesler. "Suitable seed depth and seed-to-soil contact are important factors to getting good crop

LOCAL FOODS & MARKETING

Choosing the Right Marketing Channels Cornell researchers offer new market analysis tool for small-scale vegetable and fruit producers

kets, even with the lowest prices. CSA was a distant second and offered the same or slightly higher prices as wholesale.

NET RETURNS Net returns focus on the price-cost differential for each channel.

Here, net returns are calculated as gross sales less marketing labor and travel costs (Table 1, column 3).

By Matthew N. LeRoux and Todd M. Schmit Growing demand for local foods is presenting new opportunities for small-scale agricultural producers. But understanding the relative costs and benefits of different local foods channels is important to maximize farm performance. Wholesale channels typically move larger quantities quickly, but usually at a lower price. Direct channels often have higher prices, but require more customer interaction.

Farmers are faced with the decision of whether to move larger volumes of produce through wholesalers at relatively lower prices or seek higher prices in direct markets and run the risk of lower sales and unsold leftovers. In addition, for many producers, lifestyle preferences weigh as much or more in decisionmaking than profitability.

This article summarizes the results of a case study involving four small-scale diversified fruit and vegetable producers in central New York. We compare the performance of several alternative marketing channels: * Wholesale, including restaurant, retail/grocery, and distributor * Community supported agriculture (CSA) * Farm stand (unstaffed) * U-pick (staffed) * Farmers' market For each of the four case study farms we collected data on marketing labor costs, travel costs, and sales during a typical peakseason week. We then developed a channel ranking system, which we used to weigh the factors of gross sales, net returns, labor requirements, and risk and lifestyle preferences across channels. This analysis provides some insight into the mix of marketing channels that might best suit a farm's objectives and preferences.

GROSS SALES To compare the volumes of multiple products moved by our case study farms through each channel, we evaluated their gross sales, i.e., price x quantity, through each channel.

Gross sales are reported in Table 1, column 2, as a ratio relative to farmers' markets sales, which is the channel with the lowest gross sales among our case study farms.

Not surprisingly, we found that wholesale channels had the largest gross sales, about 3.4 times as much as farmers' mar-

Waist high no-till soybeans. emergence when you are planting through residue," William explains. "Undisturbed soil can be harder to penetrate" In addition, in order to be more competitive in the market, the Meslers would like to have more grain bins to store his crops, which would allow them to market their large and small grains as the commodity prices fluctuate. Right now most of their crops are sold field-direct to local markets. If the prices for commodities are low they can't control this by storing them and waiting for the prices to rise.

In 2008 William did put one grain bin up. He hopes to add additional grain bins through a Farm Storage Facility Loan through FSA farm programs, or through a low interest direct operating loan with the Farm Service Agency (FSA).

For more information on USDA Farm Service Agency loans, contact your local FSA office or visit www.fsa.usda.gov.

Chris Wager is a Farm Loan Officer Trainee with USDA-Farm Service Agency in Bath, NY. IDENTIFYING YOUR MARKETING CHANNEL STRATEGY Choosing the appropriate marketing mix includes consideration of all of the factors discussed above, and the relative importance of each factor is farm-specific. To address this, we estimated final channel scores by assigning scaled rankings across channels for each factor and then averaging them across all factors.

The rankings are from 1 to 5, where 1 can be thought of as the 'best' and 5 as the 'worst' channel for that factor. Since some factors may be more important than others, we also compute weighted final scores based on weights assigned by the farmer.

The final results are shown in the last two columns of Table 1.

The lowest overall score is defined as the top performing channel; however, channels scoring low and close to each other provides some indication of preferred multi-channel strategies.

Expressed as a percentage of gross sales, CSA was shown to have the highest return, with 87 cents net return per dollar of sales, followed closely by the unstaffed farm stand. As expected, percentage net returns were lowest for the wholesale channel, at 58 cents per dollar of sales.

LABOR REQUIREMENTS While our participating farmers perceived that wholesale channels were more labor intensive than direct market channels, the data showed otherwise. Labor hours per sales dollar are reported in Table 1, column 4, as a ratio relative to the CSA channel, which we found to be the channel with the lowest labor requirement.

Labor requirements for the wholesale channels were about in the middle of all channels evaluated, while the farmers' market and staffed farm stand had the highest labor requirements over three times as high as CSA. RISKS AND LIFESTYLE PREFERENCES The two main reasons mentioned by our case study farmers for avoiding certain marketing channels were lifestyle preferences and stress. Wholesale channels created stress because of product consistency requirements, higher volume requirements, and risks of buyer rejection.

Direct channels were perceived as relatively low stress, but concerns over poor sales and low customer turnout were mentioned for all except the CSA. The risk rankings for our surveyed farmers are shown in Table 1, column 5.

Overall, the top performing channel was the CSA, including top rankings for net returns percent, labor requirements, and risk.

Wholesale channels ranked in the middle. The farmers' market had the lowest overall ranking, although not the least profitable.

That said, farmers' markets can still be a useful resource for farmers in terms of enhancing farm exposure and advertising for other channels utilized.

Changes in the rankings are evident when we assume differing weights across factors. In the example presented, more weight is placed on sales volume and less on perceived risks. In this case, wholesale improves its ranking, suggesting a strategy that incorporates both CSA and wholesale channels.

While the CSA appears to be the 'best' for these growers, optimizing sales of perishable crops requires the flexibility of combining different channels. For example, despite lower prices, a high volume wholesale channel may offer the benefit of increased efficiencies in harvest and reduced odds of spoiled or unsold product. Use of multiple channels can be an effective way to have a ready market for all of your produce.

Matthew N. LeRoux recently received the MPS degree from Cornell's Department of Applied and Managerial Economics, and Todd Schmidt is assistant professor of agribusiness management and agricultural marketing in the same department. For more information on using this kind of analysis to evaluate your own marketing options, contact Todd Schmidt at tms1@cornell.edu or 607-255-3015.

July 6, 2009

Page 23

SMALL FARM QUARTERLY

STEWARDSHIP & NATURE

Agricultural Environmental Management: Branching out to serve NY's vegetable, fruit and greenhouse growers

By Barbara Silvestri

What do apples, spinach and pansies have in common? New York's Agricultural Environmental Management Program (AEM) can help their growers care for the environment while raising a profitable crop! For the past 15 years, AEM has been supporting farmers statewide in their efforts to be stewards of our state's precious natural resources. This year, AEM expands to provide tools specific to fruit and vegetable growers, as well as greenhouses.

The new worksheets were refined with the help of farmers like Cindy Barber, co-owner of the Barber Family Farm in Middleburgh. "Working with the Schoharie County Soil and Water Conservation District to make the worksheets specific to fruit and vegetable farming helped us to realize the very different ways that field crop and dairy farmers operate," said Cindy. "Yet we all have the same objectives. By going through the worksheets we become more aware of the aspects of our farm that need attention, which has helped us prioritize environmental goals in our business plan."

At the heart of AEM's five-tiered framework is an array of Assessment Worksheets that assist farmers in identifying the ways that their farm is protecting the environment, as well as any concerns that might need to be addressed. Some concerns can be handled by making simple management changes. However, when the planning and implementation of conservation practices is needed, AEM is the first step toward acquiring technical assistance and cost share funding to help get the job done. A set of Core Assessment Worksheets are applicable to a variety of farm types, including topics such as Soil Management, Farmstead Water Supply, Petroleum Products Storage, as well as a new core worksheet to address Irrigation Water Management.

Over 12,000 farms state-wide have completed AEM assessments, including some of you reading this article! AEM's statewide managers are dedicated to being responsive to the

needs of participants, and when you say you need worksheets specific to your industry, we listen! Over time, AEM has incorporated specialized worksheets to serve the particular needs of viticulture and horse operations. This spring, we were proud to introduce six new worksheets: * Tree Fruit * Vegetables and Small Fruits * Greenhouse Maintenance * Greenhouse Pest Management * Greenhouse Fertilizer Storage & Handling * Irrigation Water Management The Tree Fruit Worksheet asks growers to consider how fertilizers are applied to their orchards, how pests are controlled, and how groundcover and pruning are managed. The Vegetable and Small Fruits Worksheet focuses in on cropping systems, cover crops, fertilizer application and pest management. These worksheets are used in combination with the appropriate core worksheets to give growers a thorough assessment of their orchard or farm's environmental stewardship accomplishments and needs.

Because of the unique nature of greenhouse operations, a set of three worksheets was developed to address pest control, fertilizer management and maintenance of greenhouse facilities. Maintaining a clean and healthy greenhouse environment benefits the larger environment along with the health of the plants being raised. Developed in consultation with Cornell Cooperative Extension, these worksheets zero in on the practices particular to greenhouse operations.

Irrigation can be an important management tool, particularly in areas with sandy or gravelly soils, and soils with limited water-holding capacity. The availability of water plays a crucial role in crop quality and quantity. However, to protect surface and groundwater resources from potential pollution, water application must be at rates that minimize the transport of

AEM now offers a set of Worksheets for fruit and vegetable growers and greenhouse operators, developed with help from farmers like Cindy Barber, coowner of the Barber Family Farm in Middleburgh. Here the sixth generation on the Barber farm picks strawberries for their farm market. From left to right are Jim and Cindy Barber's children, Ford and Grace, and their nephew Jacob Hooper who is also a co-owner of the farm.

Photo by Cindy Barber sediments, nutrients and chemicals. The Irrigation Worksheet can help you make the most effective use of irrigation water to promote a desired crop response, minimize soil erosion, reduce the leaching of plant nutrients and pesticides, while protecting surface and groundwater quality.

All of the "Grower" worksheets discussed above can be viewed on the 'AEM Page' under 'Technical Tools' at www.nyssoilandwater.org.

AEM is committed to working with farms of all types and sizes to assist in their efforts to farm cleaner and greener! To get started by documenting your stewardship through AEM, call your county Soil and Water Conservation District today to schedule a free, confidential AEM Risk Assessment for your farm. To learn more about AEM or to locate your Conservation District office, visit: www.nys-soilandwater.org.

Barbara Silvestri is the Information & Education Program Coordinator with the NYS Soil & Water Conservation Committee in Albany, NY. She can be reached at 518-4573738 or barb.silvestri@agmkt.state.ny.us.

HORTICULTURE

Cover Crops Case Studies: Iron Kettle Farm Brassicas beat the weeds

By Molly Shaw

age rape (10 lb/A) and Oilseed radish (20 lb/A).

This is the second in a series of articles describing the on-farm trials that were part of a Cover Crop Project coordinated by Molly Shaw, Fruit and Vegetable Specialist at Tioga County Cooperative Extension, meh39@cornell.edu, 607-687-4020.

After a slow start due to lack of moisture, the brassicas swamped the weeds that had gotten a toe-hold and provided a bright green point of interest on the October hay rides. They stayed green until after Christmas that year.

After 30 years of growing strawberries, Iron Kettle Farm has (1) lots of strawberry-growing expertise, and (2) root-rot problems in the soil.

And with strawberries, those root rots can spell disaster.

By early spring 2008, the brassicas were dead and stinky. That's right, by spring they smell like rotting cabbage-but after all, that's their job! When Darren plowed up the field it was mellow and easy to work.

This root-rot problem was the reason Skip Jackson and Darren Jensen of Iron Kettle Farm chose to plant mustards for their part of the Cover Crop Project, funded by Cornell Cooperative Extension and the NY Farm Viability Institute in 2007-2008.

"The plants had just melted away, with only holes where the roots were" he says. "They didn't leave much organic matter." That makes brassicas well suited for fields that need to warm up early and grow early spring crops, like the peas Iron Kettle grew.

Mustard crops are in the brassica family, along with broccoli, kale, canola and many others.

They produce glucosinolates, the natural compounds that give broccoli that distinct smell and give radishes their bite.

In 2008, two more brassicas were planted on August 15, Pasja forage brassica (7 lbs/A) and Dwarf Essex Rapeseed (9 lb/A). They both came up thick and were nearly weed-free.

When the plants rot they produce natural fumigants that can put a dent in the populations of harmful fungi and nematodes in the soil, especially if plowed down when they're still alive.

We wanted to see if we could get that fumigant effect to work on the Iron Kettle strawberry fields. In 2007, we chose two fields coming out of strawberries and two brassica cover crops to plant at the end of August, Bonar for-

Did the brassicas work to get rid of strawberry root rot diseases? The jury's still out on that one. Soil samples were taken to the greenhouse to grow strawberries and monitor their death.....but the plants stayed healthy!

Research is a finicky business, and we're hoping the second batch will show some differences between cover cropped and non-cover cropped fields.

But for weed control, those brassicas really

Bonar forage rape, mid-October 2007.

After a slow start due to lack of moisture, the brassicas swamped the weeds that had gotten a toe-hold and provided a bright green point of interest on the October hay rides. shine. And after all, weeds are the number one problem in strawberries. For a thick, lateseason cover they're unbeatable, especially preceding an early-spring crop. After trying four different mustards, Darren feels that they all work about equally well to control weeds, and since Dwarf Essex Rape is the cheapest of the bunch ($1.90/lb, $17/A), it would be his choice for next time.

Tips for making brassicas work on your farm: * Brassicas must be planted earlier than winter cereal cover crops to do well, not later than the first week of September. * They need some residual nitrogen to work with. If there isn't any from the previous crop, add about 30 lbs at planting. Really hungry plants will be stunted and unimpressive. * Where the mustards are seeded evenly, they do an excellent job of choking out weeds.

Seeding evenly can be a challenge because most vegetable farmers don't have a seed drill, but Darren seems to have mastered the art with his Vicon broadcast spin spreader. He goes over half of the field, checks the level of seed in the hopper, and makes adjustments

Iron Kettle farm has delighted u-pick customers with fresh strawberries for more than 20 years.

Photos by Molly Shaw accordingly. You have to be willing to make changes mid-stream. * Seeding rates are light (8-10 lbs/A broadcast, except for radish with larger seeds that can go up to 20 lbs) but seed price per pound is expensive ($2-5 per pound, depending on variety). Yet on a per acre basis, brassicas are economically comparable to a winter rye cover crop if you follow the correct seeding rate.

There is a whole chapter on using brassicas in the book Managing Cover Crops Profitably.

This is a publication of the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Extension Program (SARE), and is available on-line at: www.sare.org/publications/covercrops/covercrops.pdf.

Molly Shaw is a Fruit and Vegetable Specialist with the Cornell Cooperative Extension office in Tioga County, NY. She can be reached at (607) 687-4020 or meh39@cornell.edu.

Page 24

WOMEN

July 6, 2009

SMALL FARM QUARTERLY

IN

AGRICULTURE

Tools of the Trade No longer content with their brother's or husband's hand-me-downs, women involved in agriculture and outdoor activities are today demanding tools, clothing, and equipment designed specifically for their needs.

By Susan Neal Remember the days when women had to make do with tools and clothing designed for a man's body, when hand tools felt unwieldy and hunting apparel had zippers and waistlines in all the wrong places? Well those days are slowly coming to an end. The number of women involved in agriculture and in outdoor activities is steadily growing and numerous manufacturers and retailers are beginning to take notice. Some new companies are even being created to take advantage of this new "niche" market in the agriculture and outdoor industries.

In its 2007 Census of Agriculture the USDA reported that the number of female principal farm operators has increased almost 30% from 2002, from 237,819 to 306,209 women operators.

Many of today's agricultural women are as actively involved in the physical, daily operation of their farms and ranches as their male counterparts.

There are now more than 6 million women actively involved in shooting and hunting and according to the most recent survey conducted by the National Sporting Goods Association, the number of women involved in hunting alone has increased 75% and women now account for approximately 15% of the entire hunting and shooting marketplace.

While these numbers have been steadily growing over the years, nearly all tools and equipment have continued to be designed solely with men in mind. They have been made to fit the size of a man's hand; designed to be used by someone with great upper body strength; and tended to be long or tall in design. In the hands of quite differently proportioned women, such tools become ineffective, hard to use, and increase the risk of accident or injury.

Work clothes have also been tailored very specifically for the male physique, necessitating that women cut such garments down and alter them for their own use. But even then, bulky or ill-fitting apparel can pose a serious safety risk around farm equipment, livestock, or firearms. And poorly fitting garments are seldom comfortable to work in for long periods.

Modern farming and hunting women now expect most manufacturers to produce comparable products for their unique needs.

And who could deny them? Today's marketing statistics prove that women buy 81% of all products and services, they make 81% of all retail purchases, and women control 80% of all household spending. (Source: eWomenNetwork.com).

Many designers, manufacturers, and retailers are realizing that when your primary customer base is female, you better get on board and begin catering to their needs. The result is a greater selection of tools and clothing specifically designed for the unique dimensions and demands of women who are farmers, ranchers, and outdoor enthusiasts.

But are gender appropriate tools and clothing really so important for women who earn their living by farming or hunting?

Can't women just "cowgirl up" and continue to make do with what manufacturers have always produced for men?

Well, based on the statistics noted above, why should we? And as many of us have discovered after years of doing just that (making do), we know without a doubt that we can actually work faster, safer, more efficiently, and more enjoyably if we are comfortable and our tools are suited not only to our tasks but to us.

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Big game hunter Shelah Zmigrosky realized this truth in 2005 when she went searching for female hunting attire that would be serviceable for an upcoming safari. She was unable to find quality women's hunting apparel that was functional and comfortable. Realizing there must be other women hunters faced with the same dilemma, she created her Texas-based women's hunting apparel business, Foxy Huntress, which designs and produces high quality safari and hunting gear, with a woman's unique form and needs in mind.

In 2000, Janet Rickstrew and Mary Tatum, two do-it-yourselfers from Denver, CO launched Tomboy Tools Inc. which provides women with ergonomically designed hand, power, garden, and painting tools. Their goal is to empower women through education and an opportunity to operate their own independent businesses. Trained consultants host "tool parties" where Tomboy's high quality tools (many in signature pink) are sold to other female do-it-yourselfers in a fun and encouraging atmosphere.

And in 2008, Ann Adams and Liz Brensinger realized their dream of providing women with "high quality agricultural and garden tools designed to work with (not against) the bodies of women, thereby maximizing comfort, efficiency, productivity, and safety," when they founded Green Heron Tools. Their company is making the hard work of gardening and farming a little easier and less risky by providing women with female-oriented, ergonomically designed tools.

But don't think it is just the little things such as hammers and screwdrivers that matter to women. We like big tools, too.

Women account for 65% of U.S. car purchases and influence 80% of all car sales. So in 2004, Volvo announced the introduction of its YCC (Your Concept Car), a model designed exclusively by women, for women. It featured such girl-friendly options as exchangeable seat covers, computer notification when service is needed, and automatic doors that open on approach.

While such futuristic vehicles may be fun to think about, for many of us tractors are much more practical vehicles. In Julia Moskin's 2005 New York Times article, Women Find Their Place in the Field, Barry Nelson, a spokesperson for John Deere clearly indicated where our intentions lie: "Small tractors have become the fastest growing segment in the agricultural equipment industry. We have more women buying tractors than ever before."

A little surfing on the Internet now offers women a variety of sources from which to choose when they are in the market for tools, equipment, or clothing made specifically for them. And ladies, if you don't find exactly what you are looking for, why not take a page from the resourceful women noted above? Start your own girl-power company or petition your manufacturer of choice to create the items you need. For remember, you are a card-carrying member of one of the most powerful marketing demographics in our nation. And your voice matters.

Susan Neal writes and farms at Wiccaway Farm in Beaver Dams, NY. You can reach her at (607) 535-2135 or wiccawayfarm@ aol.com. Susan is always looking for interesting stories of agricultural women. If you know one - or are one, please contact her.

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We can work faster, safer, more efficiently, and more enjoyably if we are comfortable and our tools are suited not only to our tasks but to us.

Get Connected!

Find your local Cooperative Extension office CT: UConn Cooperative Extension 1-860-486-9228 ME: UME Cooperative Extension 1-800-287-0274 (in Maine) MA: UMass Cooperative Extension (413) 545-4800 NH: UNH Cooperative Extension 603-862-1520 NY: Cornell Cooperative Extension 607-255-2237 PA: Penn State Cooperative Extension 814-865-4028 RI: URI Cooperative Extension (401) 874-2900 VT: UVM Cooperative Extension 1-866-622-2990 (toll-free in VT)

Resource Spotlight Women's Tools, Clothing and Equipment Carhartt's Women's Work Wear www.carhartt.com; click on Women's e-Women Network www.eWomenNetwork.com: online network connecting and promoting women and their businesses.

Foxy Huntress, Designer Hunting Apparel 866-370-1343 www.foxyhuntress.com Green Heron Tools www.farmtoolsforwomen.com Tomboy Tools Inc. 866-260-1893 www.tomboytools.com