1 WINTER 2008
SMALL FARM QUARTERLY Good Living and Good Farming – Connecting People, Land, and Communities
Feature Articles Getting Started With Christmas Trees . .Page 8 Sheep Breeds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Page 14 Blind Cultivation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Page 17 Grasstravaganza 2008! . . . . . . . . . . . . .Page 18
Supplement to Country Folks
2 Page 2
January 7, 2008
SMALL FARM QUARTERLY
SMALL FARM QUARTERLY - WINTER 2008 TABLE OF CONTENTS SMALL FARM PROGRAM UPDATE Cornell Small Farms Program Update ........................................................Page 3
COWS AND CROPS Small Dairy Success Story, by Joan Sinclair Petzen ...................................Page 4 Blind Cultivation, by Ken Wise ...................................................................Page 17
BUSINESS MANAGEMENT Small Farms: Make Your Numbers Known .................................................Page 4 Carrot Project Seeks Input on Smal Farm Financing Needs by Dorothy Suput .........................................................................................Page 13 The 5 C’s of Credit, by David Leverett ........................................................Page 16
FOREST AND WOODLOT Our Woodlot Ownership Plans and Memories, By Barbara Wenke.........Page 13
GRAZING What Makes a Profitable Grazing Dairy? by Jim Grace .............................Page 6 Whole Farm Health, by Karen Hoffman Sullivan.........................................Page 18 Added Nutritional Value of Grass-fed Beef, by Thomas Gallagher ..........Page 22
STEWARDSHIP & NATURE Red-Tailed Hawks, by David Kline ................................................................Page 5 Agricultural Environmental Management -- Farming in Harmony with Stream Health, by Barbara Silvestri.....Page 23
MARKETING I Want to Leave a Market: Lydia Ratcliff, by Martha Herbert Izzi .............Page 19
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. 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 5 publication dates: July 9 and October 8, 2007; January 7 and April 7, 2008.
EDITORIAL TEAM: • Anu Rangarajan, Cornell Small Farms Program • Joanna Green, Cornell Small Farms Program • Brian Aldrich, Cayuga County CCE • Fay Benson, Cortland County CCE • Laura Biasillo, Broome County CCE • Celeste Carmichael, NYS 4-H Youth Development Program • Gary Goff, Cornell Natural Resources Department • Bill Henning, CCE-NWNY Dairy, Livestock, and Field Crops Team/PRO-DAIRY • Martha Herbert Izzi, Vermont Farmer • Sarah Johnston, NYS Department of Agriculture and Markets • Betsy Lamb, CCE Integrated Pest Management Program • Bernadette Logozar, Franklin County CCE • Sue Neal, New York Farmer • Rebecca Schuelke, NY Farm Viability Institute • John Thurgood, Delaware County CCE-NYC Watershed Agriculture Program
NEW FARMERS Passing on the Farm, by Edward Staehr......................................................Page 3 Finger Lakes Dexter Creamery, by Chanda Lindsay .................................Page 12
NON-DAIRY LIVESTOCK Livestock Processing Service by Rebecca Schuelke and Kathy Houvis ...Page 7 Choosing A Breed for a Pasture Based Sheep Farm, by Ulf Kintzell......Page 14 New Statewide Work Team Tackles Livestock Processing Issues, by Martha Goodsell ......................................................................................Page 24
WOMEN IN AGRICULTURE Living History, by Susan Neal.....................................................................Page 11
ORGANIC FARMING Getting Your Vitamins Starts with Variety and Growing Method, by Sarah Johnston..........................................................Page 10
FOR SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION CONTACT Tracy Crouse, Lee Publications, Inc., PO Box 121, Palatine Bridge, NY 13428 888-596-5329 subscriptions@leepub.com FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION CONTACT: Bruce Button, Lee Publications, Inc., 518-673-3237 bbutton@leepub.com SEND YOUR LETTERS AND STORIES TO: Joanna Green Cornell Small Farms Program 135 Plant Science Building, Cornell University Ithaca, NY, 14853 607-255-9227 jg16@cornell.edu 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:
HOME AND FAMILY Diet for Small Planet, by Susan Lang.........................................................Page 15
HORTICULTURE
Cornell Small Farms Program www.smallfarms.cornell.edu 607-255-9227
PRO-DAIRY/CCE-NWNY Dairy, Livestock, and Field Crops Team www.ansci.cornell.edu/prodairy 607-255-4285
Getting Started in Christmas Tree Production, by Elizabeth Lamb ...........Page 8
RESOURCE SPOTLIGHTS New Guide to High Tunnel Berry Production .............................................Page 9 Living History Museums ............................................................................Page 11 NESARE Farmer Grants .............................................................................Page 12 Economic Viability of Grazing Dairy Farms .............................................Page 17 Northeast Grasstravaganza 2008 ..............................................................Page 18
www.cce.cornell.edu www.cals.cornell.edu
Watershed Agricultural Council www.nycwatershed.org 607-865-7790
NYS 4-H Teen Program www.cce.cornell.edu/4h 607-255-0886
YOUTH PAGES A Wonderful Opportunity ...........................................................................Page 20 My First State Fair Experience ..................................................................Page 20 Livestock Judging ......................................................................................Page 21 New York State Maple Queen.....................................................................Page 21 Cover photo: Cross-bred piglets (50% Large Black, with Duroc, Yorkshire, Poland China, and Berkshire.) Photo by Bill Henning
ABOUT OUR ADS... 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. 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.
3 January 7, 2008
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SMALL FARM QUARTERLY
Cornell Small Farms Program Update MIKE BAKER NAMED INTERIM PROGRAM DIRECTOR NYS Beef Extension Specialist Mike Baker has been appointed as interim Directors of the Cornell Small Farms Program during Anu Rangarajan's six month sabbatical, which began in October. Mike is the in Cornell's Department of Animal Science, and a long time ally of the Small Farms Program. Since almost all of NY's beef farms are small, part time operations, Mike has a real appreciation for the importance of small farms in our state and we're very pleased to be working with him. THE NY SMALL FARM SUMMIT - FROM IDEAS TO ACTION Our 2006 Summit drew attention to key small farm opportunities in New York State. Based on these opportunities and recommended investments, we launched three new statewide Work Teams this fall to move forward in the areas of Local Markets, Livestock Processing and Grasslands Utilization. Each of these teams received a "Small Farms Grant" of $5,000 in October to pursue a statewide strategy in their respective issue area. A fourth statewide team - the NY Beginning Farmer Project - had already been organized and funded through other sources. Each of the four Work Teams is working to improve coordination among the agencies supporting NY small farms, and to identify priorities for additional funding and staffing to develop economically viable opportunities for small farms. The 2007 Small Farms Summit took place on November 29 with over 120 participants at four videoconference sites. Local discussions focused on providing input for the four Work Teams. We were also very pleased to be joined by Patrick Hooker, NYS Commissioner of Agriculture. Farmers at the four sites had an opportunity to voice questions, suggestions and concerns directly to Commissioner Hooker and to hear his thinking on important small farm issues and opportunities. NEW BEGINNING FARMER RESOURCES Our Beginning Farmer Project team recently published a new Guide to Farming in NYS, which has been extremely well received by farmers, educators, lenders and others in New York and beyond. Organized as series of 1-3-page fact sheets, the Guide provides comprehensive information on legal, financial,
marketing, regulatory, and other critical issues. It is available online at www.smallfarms.cornell.edu/pages/resources/ beginning/index.cfm. The team's new Beginning Farmer Website offers learning modules, decision aids, a personal profile for customized assistance, events calendar, links to helpful agencies, and an educator toolbox at http://beginningfarmers.cce.cornell.edu. In addition the team has also developed a new 9-week, online course titled Beginning Farmer 101. The class is facilitated by Extension educators using content from the new Beginning Farmer Website. It integrates several dynamic elements including discussion groups, quizzes, real-time Q&A, and active networking among peers. The online course will be offered publicly this Spring. SMALL FARM EDUCTION GRANTS We were also pleased to announce our 2007-8 grant awards for innovative small farm education. These grants are made available to Cornell Cooperative Extension educators with creative program ideas that specifically target local small farm businesses and the families who live and work on these farms. This year we received twenty proposals seeking a total of $83,715. Two teams from the Cornell Small Farm Task Group (including five small farm operators) reviewed the proposals. Eleven projects were funded for a total of $30,000. A list of funded projects and reports from previous projects can be found at www.smallfarms.cornell.edu/pages/projects/working/index.cfm. ORGANIC DAIRY INITIATIVE UPDATE Our NYS Organic Dairy Initiative launched a new website this fall at www.organic.cornell.edu/organicdairy/Initiative.html. The site includes the latest in organic dairy news, resources, FAQ's, production and marketing. The Organic Dairy Initiative is also working on a new consumer education project to help consumers identify where their milk is processed so that they can support New York farms and processing companies. The project is getting the word out that the first two digits of a code stamped on each milk carton traces the milk to the state in which it was processed. The processing codes can be found at: www.organic.cornell.edu/organicdairy/ConsumerEd.html.
Bill Henning Moving On It is with mixed emotions that we report that SFQ Editor Bill Henning is leaving Cornell Cooperative Extension and our Small Farm Quarterly editorial team. Bill was the founding father of SFQ back in 2003 and has been a regular contributor and editor since that time. Thankfully, Bill will continue to write for SFQ on his usual wide range of topics. We want to thank Bill for his outstanding service and dedication to small family farms in our region, and to congratulate him on his new position with the Animal Welfare Institute. He will be serving as Northeast Farm Advisor for AWI's Animal Welfare Approved certification program. To find out more, you can contact Bill at 585-728-5783 or bill@overthefencepost.com.
NEW FARMERS
Passing on the Farm NY FarmNet/ FarmLink consultants excel in facilitating farm transfers by Edward Staehr So far this year, over 50 farms are in the process of being transferred to the next generation through the efforts of NY FarmNet/ FarmLink consultants. Our consultants have a wide range of experience, and many have spent an entire career working with farm families. Consultants employ excellent facilitation skills to guide families through transferring both assets and management to the next generation.
While there are new legal tools to help accomplish one's transfer and estate planning goals, concentrating on family goals is an initial step to success. Families have varying objectives, and every farm transfer is different. NY FarmLink has guides for both the senior and the junior generation, which identify options for successful transfers. Since the goals of each generation can be different, the NY FarmLink consultants facilitate transfers by helping each generation communicate and learn how to have successful farm meetings to plan the future of the business.
How can I get Small Farm Quarterly? Country Folks subscribers automatically receive SFQ four times a year at no extra cost. Country Folks is delivered weekly for $35 per year. SFQ-only subscribers receive just the 4 issues of Country Folks that contain the SFQ insert for only $5 a year. Cooperative Extension Associations and other organizations can offer their members a subscription to SFQ as a member benefit! 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 - Spring 2008 copies need to be ordered by March 7. 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
NY FarmLink clients Rosemary and Brenda Hayes evaluating their vineyard. Photograph by Ed Staehr In some cases, a farm may have to make changes to improve profitability before a transfer can proceed. Financial consultants frequently help farm families evaluate options to improve the business. In the interim stages of the transfer, FarmLink consultants can help plan a gradual transfer of management responsibility to the junior generation, while helping the senior generation acclimate to their new role as a mentor. Once all members involved in the farm have a mutual understanding about how the farm will continue in the future, families are ready to contact an attorney, who will formalize a transfer. A competent and experienced attorney is a key final step in drafting a transfer plan that both generations find acceptable. An effective farm transfer agreement will address the issues of protecting assets, limiting liability, and estate planning. For more information about farm transfer, please look for the upcoming documentary to be aired on PBS, entitled NY FarmLink- A Bridge Across the Generations. This documentary celebrates the successes of NY FarmLink and its approach to achieving effective farm transfers. Three farm families tell their stories
of how NY FarmLink facilitated a farm transfer between two generations, and helped each generation through implementing decisions on their path to success.
Ed Staehr is the Communications Director for the NY FarmLink and NY FarmNet programs. He can be reached at (800) 547-3276 or aes6@cornell.edu. If you are in New York State and are interested in transferring your farm, you can contact the NY FarmLink program at (800) 547-3276.
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.
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COWS
SMALL FARM QUARTERLY
AND
CROPS
Small Dairy Success Story Sara and Jeremy Hatch prove that, with careful management, young farmers can get started in dairy farming today. by Joan Sinclair Petzen People say a young person can't get started in dairy farming today. Sara Hatch would disagree. Four months after graduating from college with her associates degree, Sara decided working on a large dairy was not her cup of tea. So she put together a business plan, borrowed some money for cows and start-up costs, rented a barn, and started farming on her own in 2001.
But according to Sara, "The bottom line is you have to make money and spend cautiously." A little over a year after getting started Sara gave birth to twin girls. She relied on her parents for help with the calves and child care. Sara's husband Jeremy owns a house near his parents' farm in Centerville five miles from where Sara's rented barn was. Children in tow,
a truck, they figure out how many more pounds of milk each cow will be required to make each day to pay for the purchase. If they are uncertain whether the added production can be achieved, they don't make the purchase. They also strive to keep the required production to support their farm and family low, between 30 and 35 pounds per cow per day. To keep their costs low the Hatches graze, concentrate on a solid breeding program, treat cows naturally, and try to grow and harvest high quality forage. They maximize the forage intake from their limited pasture acres by rotationally grazing. To capitalize on the cow's natural grazing behav-
Since then she has gotten married, had four children, moved the herd, and gone organic. Sara and her husband Jeremy manage risk by concentrating on maximizing the use of their on-farm assets and reducing out of pocket costs.
The community involvement is important to their success. It helps them get new ideas and allows them to share their experience with others as they did this summer when they hosted a pasture walk for others to learn more about organic production practices and pasture management. KEEPING COSTS DOWN During the start-up phase, Sara traded her own labor for the use of her parents' equipment to plant and harvest her crops. Grazing was a part of Sara's dairy farm business plan from the beginning. Another way she saved money was by living at home with her parents at first. These tactics along with strong milk prices allowed Sara to use her cash to pay down debt quite rapidly. Because Sara had been concentrating on managing her cows naturally and the organic milk price was much more stable, it only made sense for her to transition the dairy and start selling organic milk at the beginning of 2004.
Sara and Jeremy Hatch chose organic dairy farming because of price stability and the small dairy way of life it offered for raising their children, baby Rachel, twins Emily and Abigail, and brother Matthew. Photo by Joan Petzen Sara would make the trip back and forth to the farm. Sometimes, she would stay at her parents home on the farm for the children's sake. In 2004 after renovating a former chicken barn on Jeremy's parents' farm into a dairy barn, they moved the herd closer to their home. The move was critical to Sara being able to manage her dairy and be a stay-at-home Mom. At this point, expecting another child, they decided to down-size to 20 or fewer cows to Jeremy could do much of the work and still work for the town highway department. CAREFUL BUDGETING Budgeting is the key risk management tool Sara and Jeremy employ to mitigate risk. All decisions both at the farm and in the home are based on one principle: "Know how much you have coming in and don't spend any more." They carefully limit the use of credit. When considering a major purchase like a tractor or
Small Farms: Make Your Numbers Known
It’s important for all small farmers to stand up and be counted in the 2008 Census of Agriculture
She should know. Alvarez serves on the steering committee for the National Immigrant Farming Initiative which reports soaring numbers of immigrant and refugee beginning farmers. According to the Census of Agriculture, Latinos constitute the fastest growing sector of farmers in the United
When looking for items they will only use seasonally, like a grain drill or a corn picker, they keep their eyes open for a gently used one. They don't hurry into equipment purchases. They generally spend a year or more budgeting and researching the purchase to find the right piece at the right price. Controlling costs is just as important on the home front as it is in the business. Jeremy and Sara carefully scrutinize household purchases as well. They believe it is important to differentiate between "wants" and true needs. Therefore, they try to never buy anything on impulse. Whether it is a trip to the grocery store or a department store, the Hatch Family practices fiscal discipline by carefully planning to purchase only the things their family really needs.
To achieve these goals they are constantly asking questions of each other and their advisors. They believe that good ideas come from questioning the status quo. They credit their strong interpersonal communication skills with helping them to achieve their maximum profit potential.
BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
Greene County, NY farmer Maria Alvarez is urging small and immigrant farmers across the region to make their numbers known in the upcoming 2008 Census of Agriculture. “It is important for small farmers like me to be counted,” she says.
purchased a new tractor for moving bales and feeding the cows because it is important for this tool to be reliable.
Keeping operations simple helps to reduce mental strain and makes for a better life for their family. Their goals include being nearly debt free, having time to spend with their children each day, and being as productive as possible with the assets they have.
START-UP SUPPORT Sara admits she has had a little help along the way. With only a few sheep and her car as equity, she couldn't have borrowed the money to purchase her dairy herd without her parents as willing cosigners. A USDA-guaranteed loan for beginning farmers cut her interest rate by 4 percent below market rates and protected her lender, Farm Credit of Western New York, from the exposure of lending to a new farmer. With the loan proceeds she purchased a herd of 50 cows and 31 heifers and put aside $10,000 for unforeseen start-up costs. Friends and neighbors were another key source of help, like the gentleman from whom she and Jeremy purchased their first tractor. Sara told me, "He charged us no interest and let us pay whenever we had extra money." They continue to trade work and barter with neighbors.
January 7, 2008
States, increasing by 50% between 1997 and 2002. Alvarez says, “A better count in the 2007 Census of Agriculture will show public officials the important contributions we make. We need more programs directed toward beginning and immigrant farmers.” Many farmers hesitate to report data to the Census of Agriculture because of concerns over confidentiality, but lack of reporting results in misinformation about national trends. The Census data helps direct national
ior, they make certain the cows are on pasture during the "grey light" hours at each end of the day. They carefully select the sires they mate each cow with using artificial insemination to improve their herd. Because of strong family values, their labor goal is to make every job on the farm one that either of them can do alone. This allows them take turns with farm tasks and to raise their four children without relying on others for child care. In late 2006, their farm profits were great enough to allow Jeremy to leave his off-farm job and concentrate on producing crops for the dairy. SENSIBLE PURCHASES Since the move in 2004, they have acquired a complete line of farm equipment. Each purchase was planned carefully. They always look for a good deal but are not afraid to pay for things they use every day. For example, they
policy and funding decisions toward agricultural sectors demonstrating growing need. The Census of Agriculture website assures survey responses are absolutely confidential and used only for statistical purposes. The records are also protected from disclosure through the Freedom of Information Act. “I’ve met many leaders of the National Agricultural Statistics Service, the agency responsible for the agricultural census. I believe they are sincere and honest about confidentiality and the privacy of every farmers individual report,” says Alvarez. The Census of Agriculture is mailed to reach households around January 1st, 2008 and must be completed and returned by February 4, 2008. If you don’t get one in the mail, you can call for one at your state’s office of the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS.) They will have Spanish language forms on hand
GROW OR BUY FEED? One way they keep costs low is to grow as much of their feed themselves as possible if it makes financial sense. They constantly analyze whether it is more cost effective to grow their own inputs or purchase them from off the farm. Growing most of their own feed including grains is one way that they are able to keep costs low. Jeremy spends four to five weeks each year doing intensive crop production work each year. This last year they rented additional acres and grew their own corn grain to supplement their home grown forages. This allowed them to further reduce their farm expenses and increase their profits. In 2008, they plan to grow some small grains to further reduce their input purchases. Sara and Jeremy Hatch feel that after six years in the dairy business they are successful. By constantly paying attention to their financial situation and exposure, they are able to mitigate many of the risks associated with operating an organic dairy farm. Management, constantly measuring, monitoring, and making the necessary changes to improve their financial performance helps them keep risk in check.
Joan Sinclair Petzen is an agricultural educator with Cornell Cooperative Extension in Cattaraugus and Allegany Counties, NY. and will also have Spanish speaking persons available to help complete census forms if needed. The Census of Agriculture is taken every five years and is a complete count of U.S. farms and ranches and the people who operate them. “I encourage all small farmers of any ethnic group or race to fill out a 2007 Census of Agriculture report,” Alvarez stressed. The USDA website states, “For America’s farmers and ranchers, the Census of Agriculture is their voice, their future and their responsibility.” For more information about the National Immigrant Farming Initiative, visit the website at www.immigrantfarming.org or contact them at 607-865-8747.
Need Info? Visit the Cornell Small Farms Program online at www.smallfarms.cornell.edu.
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SMALL FARM QUARTERLY
STEWARDSHIP
AND
NATURE
has been described as similar to the squeal of a pig or steam escaping from a tea pot. To me it simply sounded like the familiar and wild call of the redtail.
Red-Tailed Hawks by David Kline In late September a pair of red-tailed hawks started building a nest 70-feet up in a black walnut tree in the middle of our lower pasture field. The pair worked at a leisurely pace through the golden days of autumn, a stick here and a twig there, and the nest began to take shape. By mid-November it was completed. The hawks must be an experienced older pair because the nest is well and securely placed in a four-pronged fork and it survived the early November storm that ravaged Wooster and flattened local corn fields. It was built for the long haul. From my vantage point the nest appears to be the size that would fill a wheel barrow with sticks. Measuring at least three feet in diameter at breast height, the black walnut towers to 90 feet or more and lumbermen have gazed upon it with desire for its value as veneer timber. Since the tree is in the open it is branchy. I could never see much sense in sacrificing a massive tree for a ten-foot saw log. Neither could my dad. So we left it in peace and harvested its annual crop of walnuts. The tree always yields more walnuts than we use and those are harvested by the fox squirrels. Located between the woods and creek, all winter squirrel tracks cross the 150 feet of meadow to the tree and then back to the woods like spokes leading from the hub of a wheel. Around the base of the tree cracked walnuts litter the ground like gravel. I understand the squirrels' fondness for the nuts because the meats are big and plumb and exceptionally sweet.
WE DO
When the hawks began work on the nest, I thought it a bit odd for redtails to be building a nest in the autumn, so I checked the literature. Bruce Perterjohn in his Birds of Ohio said that Lou Campbell reported a pair beginning nest construction as early as January 24. John K. Terres in Encyclopedia of North American Birds likewise says as early as January. Arthur Cleveland Bent in his Life Histories of North American Birds doesn't give an early nest building date, but he does say that red-tailed hawks "stake out their claim" late in February, a month before the eggs are laid. He was likely referring to New England, where spring is short and late, or absent. Frank and John Craighead say MidFebruary in their thorough study of raptors in southern Michigan, titled Hawks, Owls and Wildlife. Some scientists, just like historians, tend to go to their predecessors for facts instead of investigating on their own. In spite of what the experts said, our redtails did build in the fall when the weather was a lot more pleasant for home-building then it would have been in January. Plus interest rates were still low. All of the experts also write that red-tailed hawks are cautious during nest construction and will stay away from the site if humans are nearby. This pair was not shy at all. Our family camped one evening and into the next forenoon about three hundred feet downstream from the nest and the hawks continued with their nest-building while we watched. Now that the nest is finished, the pair is patiently waiting for March to lay their two eggs. Early the other morning, both were soaring over the farm and the one screamed its shrill cry, which
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Red-tailed hawks are common in this neighborhood and have nested on our farm before. But it was always in the woods and in oak trees that tenaciously cling to their heavy leaves until late fall. We were hardly aware they had nested until we heard the hesitant calls of the young in late summer. Here in the walnut tree they will be much more visible because walnuts leaf out late in the spring and shed foliage early in the fall. Besides, from the ridge in our woods the redtails' nest will almost be at eye level and should give us a good view during incubation, feeding and rearing of their young. Locally, redtails are still called "chicken hawks" for their supposed preference for domestic chicken. According to friends who have laying hens in an "egg mobile," redtails do like an occasional free-range chicken. Smart hawks. According to the Craigheads' study in Michigan, 60 percent of the red-tailed hawk's prey is the meadow mouse or vole. The rest ranges from cottontail rabbits to snakes. The talons of a redtail are formidable hunting objects, as I discovered one autumn. We have a V-top house sparrow trap that supplies needed protein for our barn cats to supplement their milk diet. Their were a few house sparrows in the trap that attracted a migrating Cooper's hawk, which pushed its way through the narrow V of wire. The hawk promptly caught and ate the cats' sparrows, but then was also trapped. A hunting redtail saw the Cooper's hawk and forced (I still can't understand how) its big body through the V-top meant for house sparrows. Once the redtail was inside it realized its mistake and dropped the idea of eating its cousin. Now it too was trapped. When I approached the hawks were waiting at opposite ends of the trap. I caught the fierce-eyed Cooper's hawk, which turned quite passive, and released it. The redtail however, was something else. It flipped over on its back and presented its sharp and powerful talons. I gingerly offered my foot and sacrificed a new Tingley boot. Then I pulled on my gloves and picked up the irritated hawk. It righted itself, gripped my arm with its free leg and sank its talons through the lined chore coat, flannel shirt, and deep into my wrist as easily as penetrating Swiss cheese. I endured the pain and carried the hawk, like a falconer, to the house for the family to see. Then I released my grasp and after a few moments, the hawk relaxed its grip on me and flew away devoid of its usual imperial hauteur.
David Kline farms and writes in Fredericksburg, Ohio. He is the author of two books, Great Possessions and Scratching the Woodchuck. He is also the editor of Farming Magazine (www.farmingmagazine.net) which is available for $18 per year from Farming Magazine, PO Box 85, Mt. Hope, OH 44660. For a free copy write to the above address.
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 Joannna Green, Cornell Small Farms Program, 135C Plant Science Building, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 jg16@cornell.edu
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January 7, 2008
SMALL FARM QUARTERLY
GRAZING
return on equity and a 9.69 point difference on return on assets. Net farm income per farm is not a good comparison to use as farm size affects it. Rates of return is a more accurate comparison
What Makes a Profitable Grazing Dairy? Cornell's Dairy Farm Business Summary program sheds light on factors affecting profitability of grazing farms By Jim Grace Dairy farmers in New York State have been participating in the Dairy Farm Business Summary Program for over 50 years. For the past eleven years, farms that identified themselves as practicing rotational grazing have been studied as a subset of all the farms participating in the Summary.
While the Top 30% purchased more forages, this may be one of the factors that allowed them to have a higher stocking rate, sell more milk per total crop base, and keep real estate investment lower, all factors that help improve profitability. LABOR AND CAPITAL EFFICIENCY This is another area that the Top 30% differ from the Lower 70%. On average they handle more cows per worker, sell more milk per worker, have less invested per cow and carry less debt per cow. The lower debt enabled them to have a lower interest cost per cow and per cwt of milk produced. Table 2. Labor and Capital Efficiency
Table 4. Four Measures of Profitability
Net farm income Net farm income per cow Labor and management income/operator/cow* Per cent rate of return on equity Per cent rate of return on assets *Labor and management income per operator is the return farm operators receive for their labor and management, without appreciation, used in their farm business. It is calculated by deducting a charge for any unpaid family labor and an opportunity cost of equity capital from net farm income. This amount is then divided by the average number of cows to arrive at labor and management per operator per cow. GRAZING PRACTICES At the same time that farm data is collected grazers are asked to fill out a survey about
Worker equivalent Cows/worker Pounds milk sold/worker Farm capital/cow Debt/cow
Last year 42 farms classified themselves as rotational grazers. For comparison purposes they were divided into two groups, based on labor and management income per operator per cow. The groups were the Top 30%, with twelve farms, and the Lower 70%, with 30 farms. The business characteristics are similar for the two groups. Slightly more than half were stanchion barns with pipelines and, with the exception of one farm in the Lower 70%, milked twice a day. One farm in the Top 30% and 5 in the Lower 70% consistently used BST. Both groups had slightly over 70% Holsteins in their herds with the remainder Jersey or mixed breeds. The tables presented here some of the key factors between the two groups. BUSINESS SIZE AND PRODUCTION FACTORS The Top 30% tend to have larger herds but have lower production per cow. Average cull rates are similar for both groups. The Top 30% have higher average corn silage yields per acre. However the forage dry matter harvested per cow was less, resulting in higher roughage purchases than the Lower 70%. For comparison, last year the 226 farms in the state summary harvested an average of 7.96 tons of dry matter per cow from 1.79 forage acres per cow. Table 1. Business Size and Production Factors
Top 30% 3.15 43 711,600 $7,020 $1,681
Lower 70% 2.66 33 567,588 $8,072 $2,296
Top 30% 1.88 $562 $3.41 26 $104 $.63 $.39 $.68 $460 $2,186 $8.92 $13.79 $14.21
Lower 70% 1.30 $768 $4.42 31 $37 $.21 $.54 $.43 $672 $2,616 $11.57 $18.10 $14.07
Top 30% $92,893 $685 $291 6.08 6.13
Lower 70% $16,800 $194 -$153 -7.20 -3.56
per cow per day was identical at 16 lbs. Surprisingly, this year farms in both groups that rotated after each milking or that had water in every paddock were not as profitable as those that rotated less often or had water outside the paddock. This was the opposite of other years and may be due to the fact that 2006 was wetter than normal in much of the region and drinking water was not an issue. When comparing the two groups as to seasonality of calving, the continuous group in the Top 30% had a higher profit than semi-seasonal or seasonal herds. In the lower 70% it was the opposite. The semi-seasonal and seasonal groups lost less than the continuous herds. The results indicate that controlling costs, as the Top 30% did, has a larger effect on profitability than various grazing practices. The
MILK PRODUCTION COSTS Cost control is an area that the Top 30 % excelled in. Average labor costs for the Top 30% is higher but that is a reflection of their being larger and having more paid family and hired labor. Their grain costs average $1.01 per cwt less than the Lower 70%. Due to less harvested forage the Top 30% purchased more roughage than the Lower 70%. On a per cow basis the Top 30% averaged total accrual costs of $430 less than the Lower 70%. Their average operating cost was $2.65 less per cwt and their total cost of milk production was $4.31 less per cwt. Their milk price exceeded their total cost while the Lower 70%'s total costs exceeded their milk price. Table 3. Milk Production Costs Farms Hired labor/cwt Grain & concentrate/cow Grain & concentrate/cwt Grain and concentrate as % of milk receipts Purchased roughages/cow Purchased roughage/cwt Vet and medicine/cwt Fertilizer and lime/cwt Machinery costs/cow Total accrual costs/cow Operating cost/cwt Total cost/cwt* Average milk price** PROFITABILITY In these four measures of profitability the Top 30% had a large advantage: a higher net income per farm and nearly $500 more net farm income per cow; a $444 difference in labor and management income per operator per cow; and over a 13 point difference in
Farms Number of farms Number of cows per farm Milk sold/cow Cull rate Hay crop, tons DM/acre Corn silage, tons/acre Harvested forage DM/cow, tons Feed acres land base* Stocking rate: Feed acres land base per cow Pounds of milk sold per acre* *Forage acres plus non tillable pasture
The average percent of forage that came from pasture was 65% for the Top 30% and 67% for the Lower 70%. Average pounds of grain fed
Farms
Farms
Comparison of the top 30% of grazing dairies with other grazing dairies suggests that controlling costs has a larger effect on profitability than specific grazing practices. Photo by Jim Grace shows Kevin and Lisa Engelbert's organic dairy in Nichols, NY.
$206/cow. Supplementing pasture with corn silage has consistently been linked to higher farm profit.
Top 30% 12 136 16,505 23% 2.15 19 4.5 318 2.34 7041
Lower 70% 30 87 17,398 25% 2.23 14.5 6 289 3.32 5218
their practices during the grazing season. This year 30 of the 42 grazers did so. This group was also divided into the Top 30%, nine farms, and Lower 70%, twenty one farms. The goal was to ascertain if there is a linkage between profitability and grazing practices. This year, as in most years, the farms that supplemented with corn silage had a higher profit than those that supplemented with other forages. The Top 30% averaged $433/cow versus $391/cow, or in the case of the Lower 70%, a smaller loss of, -$34/cow versus -
Milk cows graze brown-rib sorghum at StoRidge Farm in Cazenovia, NY. Photo by Troy Bishopp
focus needs to be on the major cost items and at the same time keeping the investment per cow low by maximizing the milk that can be generated by the pasture base. If you are interested in receiving a copy of this year's Intensive Grazing Farm's Summary or participate in the Dairy Farm Business Summary Program contact your local Cooperative Extension office.
Jim Grace is an extension educator at Cornell Cooperative Extension in Steuben County. He can be reached at jwg8@cornell.edu or 607664-2316.
7 January 7, 2008
SMALL FARM QUARTERLY
NON-DAIRY LIVESTOCK
Livestock Processing Service Connects Farmers, Processors to Raise Profits for Both by Rebecca Schuelke and Kathy Houvis A venture to bridge the communication gap between farmers who raise livestock and meat processors is reaping profits for both parties. Dan Gibson, who raises Angus beef cows in Ghent, near Albany, New York, plans to double his herd size next year, thanks to increased profits and better financial returns on his animals. Gibson and others around New York State are attributing this turnaround to the Northeast Livestock Processing Service Company, a farmer-run group that aims to improve conditions for both livestock farmers and meat processing facilities by serving as an intermediary. The Livestock Processing Service brings together farmers that raise meat for retail and freezer sales with processors who have agreed to killing and cutting standards.
The Northeast Livestock Processing Service was founded by the Hudson Mohawk Resource Conservation and Development Council, a nonprofit organization that promotes economic development and natural resource conservation in Albany, Columbia, Greene, Montgomery, Rensselaer and Schenectady counties. The RC&D council is a program of USDA Natural Resources Conservation Services. In 2005, the processing service became a limited liability corporation with a farmer board of directors. Seymour Vander Veen is a livestock farmer and president of the Northeast Livestock
Grazin' Angus Acres. "Kathleen ... ensures that my cuts are as requested, packaged attractively for my consumers and, on top of that, she's negotiated favorable rates for NELPSC clients as a result of the volume she can deliver to the processor. It's a huge time and money saving service for us." Now that he has a reliable processor, Gibson is direct marketing his grass fed Angus beef at farmer's markets, restaurants and local stores. Gibson said he plans to process 18 beefers this year, "but we'll do as many as 40 next year now that we know we have a solid set of processors to choose from combined with the flexibility offered by NELPSC." The Northeast Livestock Processing Service got its start with an idea from five livestock farmers who were frustrated with their processing experiences. Research suggested they were not alone: livestock farmers were angry that cutting directions were ignored, yields were low, costs were high and turnaround time was too long.
head for slaughter and processing, and 25 cents per head for slaughter only. Harris connects producers with one of eight processors who have agreed to work with the company. These processors provide scheduling preferences for clients of the processing company and some off-season discounts. The processors have also signed statements assuring producers that they are humane in livestock handling and slaughter and that their tracking procedures assure producers they are getting their own meat back. Harris does in-plant supervisions on the first jobs and conveys cutting instructions. She also offers advice to producers about the most appropriate cuts of meat for their animal and marketing ideas for processing depending on the time of year - roasts and stews in the fall, rib roasts around the holidays, steaks and grillready items in the summertime. The Processing Service Company's producer roster now includes growers of beef, pork, lamb, goat, veal, bison, ratites (ostrich, emu or ria), elk, farm-raised venison, rabbit and poultry. Producers reported in a June 2007 survey by the Hudson Mohawk RC&D that they were saving time and money and seeing improvements in quality and packaging. Seventy-one percent of clients said they were able to expand their business, and 29 percent saw an increase in their yields.
The Livestock Processing Company offers advice in marketing quality, efficiency and cost - to help decrease the stress and frustration for both producers and processors.
Producers reported they saved an average of 9 hours finding a processor, scheduling an appointment, conveying cutting instructions, arranging for pickup and resolving problems. Sixty-five percent paid less for processing. One farmer saved $125 in slaughter costs per head of cattle.
"It's an emotionally charged issue when things don't go well," said Kathleen Harris, coordinator for the Livestock Processing Service Company. "But having a third party involved really diffuses a lot of tension and solves problems before they get to be overwhelming."
The processing service company helps clients save money on transportation by co-mingled loads from different farms.
In late 2006, the Northeast Livestock Processing Company received a $72,000 grant from the New York Farm Viability Institute to help the company grow beyond its 41 livestock and 8 processing clients. The nonprofit, farmerled Farm Viability Institute directs and funds on-farm research to help farmers increase profits. "The Institute is interested in working with the Northeast Livestock Processing Service to help it become self-sustaining,'' said Tom Sleight, executive director of the Institute. ``We believe this service is an important part of addressing marketing infrastructure for a profitable New York livestock industry that can grow and flourish.''
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One-hundred percent of farmers said they experienced a shorter wait for a slaughter date and that their cutting instructions were followed 100 percent of the time, compared to 65 percent of the time before becoming a member.
The Northeast Livestock Processing Service Company is helping farmers get through the meatprocessing bottleneck to reach a growing customer base. Photo by Troy Bishopp Processing Service board. He is also chairperson of the Hudson Mohawk Resource Conservation and Development Council. The livestock industry in the Northeast is in a precarious position, Vander Veen said, in part because of the shrinking number of small-scale meat processors. Quality of service from some processors, including concerns that some processors do not return meat from the same animal the farmer brings in, has turned away some producers from livestock slaughter.
349 Roses Brook South Kortright, NY 13842 (607) 538-9464
Dairy Sanitations
See us for information on any of the above company lines.
"Rather than having to spend a lot of time chasing after processors, NELPSC does it for me," said Gibson, owner of
Meat processors were irked that cutting directions were not well-written, farmers did not understand the hand cutting technique and were expecting higher yields than could be delivered without the mechanized slaughter performed in the Midwest and elsewhere. Farmers asked for products, cuts and services the plant could not provide. "We had given up on ever having beef from our own cows," said Henry Eykelhoff, owner of Black Creek Farm in Cold Brook, NY. "We weren't even getting our own meat back." Since joining the processing service, the Eykelhoffs, who raise grass-fed Angus cattle on their 400-acre farm and process one or two animals per year, found a processor who gained back their trust. Farmers pay a $50 start-up fee and sign a oneyear contract to join the Processing Service Company. Each slaughter includes a per-head fee for facilitation. Beef cattle producers pay a $20 per head charge to the company for slaughter and processing services, and $3 per head for slaughter only. Poultry producers pay 50 cents per
Seventy-three percent of clients reported an increase in the quality of packaging, an important factor in marketing success. "What they're doing is good both for the farmer and the processor," Linda Eykelhoff said. Along with connecting small farmers to quality processors, the processing service company offers processors an expanded customer base, even during off-peak times. In March 2007, the Northeast Livestock Processing Service Company expanded its services to connect farmers to more profitable markets for live animals, carcasses and processed meats. The service company also will review clients' marketing methods, educational programs and technical information. Elizabeth Marks, coordinator of Hudson Mohawk RC&D, said the company's success has been in being flexible and responding to needs and opportunities. "The original thinking was that the company would exist on processing facilitation and wholesale ground beef sales, but they're now finding a large market for premium cuts of meat. Kathleen is finding the animals, making the connections and arranging for processing," she said. The board of directors is examining the company's next steps, possibly to include expanding the marketing component. For information about the Northeast Livestock Processing Company, call (518) 828-4385 extension 105.
Rebecca Schuelke is a Communications Specialist with New York Farm Viability Institute. She may be reached at (315) 4533823, Extension 103 or rschuelke@nyfvi.org. Kathy Houvis is a freelance writer in Locke, NY. This article first appeared in New York Farm Viability Institute's "News and Notes" and is reprinted with permission.
8 Page 8
January 7, 2008
SMALL FARM QUARTERLY
HORTICULTURE
Getting Started in Christmas Tree Production by Elizabeth Lamb Christmas tree production is often considered for land not suited for other plant and animal production or to add crop diversity to an existing farm. While Christmas trees can be profitable, financial returns can vary greatly. It is important to remember that, as for any other crop, it takes time, money and labor to produce a quality tree - and Christmas tree production is a long-term process. This article will cover some basic information on starting a Christmas tree farm. Additional, more indepth resources are provided in the Resource Spotlight. One of the best things a potential Christmas tree farmer can do - before digging the first planting hole - is talk to other local growers and go to regional Christmas tree growers association meetings. Most growers will help you avoid the mistakes they made - so you can make your own! DO YOUR HOMEWORK Record keeping is essential so you might as well set up a system before you start anything else. It will help you keep track of information you gather as you plan and will encourage you to keep the records you will find you need later. Create a business plan and gather information on costs of production and expected income. Compare plans based on wholesale, pre-cut, balled and burlapped, or choose and cut harvest methods. While it is difficult to estimate prices over the whole production period, pre-planning will keep you from making mistakes and allow you to adapt your plans as you go along. Check on local regulations. Tax laws vary with respect to what can be considered business expenses for Christmas tree farms. Some states have regulations on movement of plant materials to prevent the spread of invasive pests, which might affect your shipping plans or choice of species. SITE EVALUATION Some land is even too marginal for Christmas tree production. Trees stressed by a poor environment are more attractive to insect and disease pests, grow more slowly, and are unlikely to be high quality - none of which is going to help your bottom line. So before you choose where to put your trees, check the environment. Soil characteristics to consider include soil texture, soil fertility, soil pH and drainage. Soil texture whether you have sand or clay or loam, or all three- can be found on county soil survey maps. A soil test will tell you fertility and pH levels. Test the soil separately for each area of the farm that you think might be different from the others. Existing plants can tell you a lot about drainage - look for swamp grasses or rushes. Check the land after a heavy rain to see where water puddles the longest. Also check for differences in microclimates. While a warmer site might seem better, it may allow for earlier budbreak, which can result in frost and freeze damage. Consider those factors that interrupt air drainage and trap cold air around a site. Few Christmas tree farms have irrigation systems so avoid areas that will be too dry during droughts. Slopes are good for air drainage, but can you drive your tractor up them? And if you choose to sell your trees as 'choose and cut', will your customers be willing to walk up them? In the snow? Don't forget to consider where to place roadways when you are evaluating your site. Plan your layout for ease of spraying, mowing, and harvest - with the size of the trees at harvest in mind. And last - although it should perhaps be first - can your customers get to you? Consider access to your farm from nearby cities and towns. SELECTION OF SPECIES Most Christmas tree farms grow a variety of species because of differences in environment within the farm and because customers have a range of preferences. One of the challenges for growers is to predict preferences when styles and available species change.
Success is more likely if you choose species that are best adapted to your site and are least likely to be susceptible to diseases and insects. A high quality tree will sell, regardless of whatever the newest thing is. But consider trying some of the new species as you replant as they might work well for you. Table 1 lists some of the common species grown in the northeast with general comments on characteristics. Species can vary by seed source so your best bet is working with your seed source or nursery to find types best adapted to your site. In addition to the familiar species listed, others being considered for use as Christmas trees include Serbian spruce (Picea omorika), Nordmann fir (Abies nordmanniana), Grand fir (Abies grandis), Meyer Spruce (Picea meyeri) and Noble fir (Abies procera). SITE PREPARATION You may be faced with anything from bulldozing to
A newly planted field of firs with good early weed control. just opening planting holes, depending on the previous use of the land. While the intent is to use the least intrusive methods to avoid damage to your topsoil, you also need to match your site prep to your intended management methods. If all work will be manual, it may not be necessary to remove all the stumps and rocks that would stop a tractor in its tracks.
Photos by: Elizabeth Lamb
If you are on marginal soils, you need to avoid compaction and any practices that would further degrade the soil, or encourage soil erosion. Clay soils may require tillage to loosen the soil so the planting holes close around the roots. If your site has dense weed cover, especially woody plants, you may need to apply herbicides before clearing. (Cont. on next page)
Table 1: Characteristics of Christmas tree species Species
Culture
Disease insect tolerancey
Growth rate
Color
Fragrance
Twig stiffnessz
Needle retention
Other
Fraser fir
Avoid drought and poor soil aeration
Good
Medium
Very good
Good
Good
Very good
Abies fraseri Dark green, soft needles
Balsam fir
Cool, humid climates, somewhat acid soils, shallow rooted
Good
Medium
Very good
Very good
Fair
Very good
Abies balsamea Very fragrant
Concolor (white) fir
Tolerates dry thin soils, shade tolerant
Very good
Slow
Very good
Very good
Good
Very good
Abies concolor Citrus aroma, soft needles
Canaan fir
Deep well drained soils, acidic
Good
Medium
Very good
Very good
Poor
Good
Abies balsamea var phanerolepis
Douglas fir
Wide range environments
Good
Medium
Very good
Very good
Fair
Very good
Pseudotsuga menziesii
Colorado blue spruce
Tolerates high soil moisture, some shade
Good
Slow
Very good
Good
Very good
Good
Picea pungens Sharp needles, dries out quickly
White spruce
Tolerates high soil moisture, shade tolerant
Good
Slow
Very good
Poor
Very good
Poor
Picea glauca Called ‘Cat spruce’ for fragrance
Norway spruce
Full sun, rich well drained soil, shallow rooted
Good
Slow
Good
Good
Good
Poor
Picea abies
Eastern white pine
Avoid wet areas, susceptible to air pollution
Fair
Rapid
Good
Good
Fair
Very good
Pinus strobes Minimal fragrance
Scotch (Scots) pine
Wide adaptation
Poor
Rapid
Varies
Good
Very good
Very good
Pinus sylvestris Not recommended in some areas because of pest problems
Eastern red cedar
Tolerates drought and poor soil
Very good
Slow
Varies
Good
Poor
Poor
Juniperus virginiana Prickly, dries out quickly
x
x - General trends Soil moisture Pines do better on drier soils than firs or spruces Late frost Firs and spruces leaf out earlier than pines so are more susceptible to damage Fraser fir is more tolerant than other firs
Grand fir (Abies grandis) Meyer Spruce (Picea meyeri) Noble fir (Abies procera) (mostly in NW) Information from: Laurel Gailor, CCE Warren County Stephanie Mallozzi, CCE Dutchess County
y - This rating does not include damage by deer. Deer feeding can be significant on many Christmas tree species, especially true firs, Douglas fir and pines. z - Ability of branches to hold ornaments Other species being considered for use as Christmas trees” Serbian spruce (Picea omorika) Nordmann fir (Abies nordmanniana)
Growing Christmas Trees in North Carolina http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/nreos/forest/xmas/growing/ National Christmas Tree Association website http://www.christmastree.org/types.cfm#index Ohio Christmas Tree Producers’ Manual http://ohioline.osu.edu/b670/index.html
9 January 7, 2008
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SMALL FARM QUARTERLY
HORTICULTURE
Getting Started in Christmas Tree Production (Cont. from previous page) Any problems that can be eliminated before planting will save time and money in the long run. Site preparation is the prime time for soil improvement. The soil test that you had done back in Step 2 will now be invaluable for determining if you need to add nutrients. Don't add nutrients that leach easily, like nitrogen, as they may be gone before your plants can use them. However, lime for pH management and phosphorus are often added at this time. PLANTING Successful planting starts long before you order your seeds or plants. Will you grow your own transplants? How many trees do you need when you start? And how many trees per acre should you plant? In general, it is better to start small and 'grow into' your available space. And losses of 12% during the first year after planting are normal, so don't forget that in your calculations. Starting from seed to grow your own transplants is not as common as it once was. A transplant or liner ready for the field has grown 2-5 years closely spaced in a seed bed, and then an additional 0-3 years after transplanting to a nursery bed. Nursery stock is sold by age - two digits separated by a dash to tell you how many years in the seed bed and how many years in the nursery. Different species may have different types available for sale. Older transplants are usually more expensive, but also larger and quicker to harvest. But always check your plants on arrival as there can be differences in quality even within an age class. Some nurseries are now selling container-grown seedlings - which unlike the more common bare root seedlings, arrive in pots. As you would expect, they cost more than bare root plants but have better survival and faster early growth. They may be most appropriate for the slower growing species, if the resulting trees can bring in a premium price. The benefits of container-grown plants may lead you to believe that keeping transplant roots happy is essential to survival of your trees - and you would be right. Regardless of which types of liners you buy, you must keep the roots moist and cool at all times. Survival depends on the care of plants both before and after planting. Christmas trees in the Northeast are usually planted in the spring after danger of frost - the trees are dormant, and there is enough rain to keep the soil moist. You still need to find that happy medium between enough water and too much. However, overly wet soils can be damaged by equipment and leave air spaces around roots that can kill trees. Whether you choose hand or machine planting may depend on the characteristics of your site, the number of trees you are planting, and your available capital for equipment purchases. Although it may be tempting to put as many trees as possible in your field, appropriate spacing can help you make money. Consider the species you
are planting, the size of your trees at harvest, the size of your equipment, and the ease with which trees can be removed after cutting when you plan between and within row spacing. You are trying to give each tree the space it needs, with no crowding or shading that can affect quality. Even trees from the same nursery source may grow at different rates, so a field is not usually harvested all at the same time. This can present a problem in the future, especially if land area is an issue. Many growers interplant new trees where trees have been cut. While this does maximize the use of available land, consider the effects on soil management. Pest control can also be a problem, especially if a different species is used to interplant. MANAGEMENT Like most things in life, you get out what you put in. Using Integrated Pest Management (IPM) and Best Management Practices (BMPs) will help you produce quality trees while reducing unnecessary inputs. Integrated pest management is based on identifying the pests you have and knowing when they need to be controlled. That may depend on the number of insect pests, the stage of the disease, or the age of your trees. Scouting manuals can tell you what to look for, on which species and when or where. Management practices that keep your trees in vigorous growth can reduce their susceptibility to pests. Keeping records of what you find and how you controlled it can help with future planning and prevention. Weeds can be the most persistent pests in a Christmas tree farm. Weed competition can cause loss in quality and slow growth rates, particularly in young plantings. Tillage for weed control is not commonly used because of the potential for root damage. Mowing and herbicides are effective but you must know what you are trying to control to be successful. Weed species can change with management over time. Many growers are starting to use groundcover management, either using low growing weed species or overseeding with low growing grasses or clover. This can limit the growth of more damaging weeds, keep soils cool, reduce erosion losses, and even reduce disease and insect pressure. It does require some work, however. Fertilization and soil improvement should be based on soil tests. Tissue analyses, while more accurate, may be difficult to get if there are no standards for Christmas trees in your area. Application methods will depend on the site, number of trees and tree age. Consider the effects of the nitrogen source chosen on soil pH and the possibility of leaching. Starting about the third year in the field, trees are shaped. Early shaping is primarily aimed at creating a strong single leader. As the tree grows, it will be sheared to create the desired taper and encourage the development of lateral buds to
Clover groundcover for weed management. avoid that Charlie Brown Christmas tree look. Pruning may also be used to remove damaged branches or correct deformities. Trees that are about 2/3 as wide as they are tall are considered ideal. Different species may be sheared to different tapers based on their growth habit and what consumers prefer. Pines are sheared earlier than other Christmas tree species. Shearing can be done manually with a knife or with mechanical pruners. It takes a lot of work to make a tree look natural. HARVESTING While the basic method of harvest is the same, handling of the trees is determined by the method of marketing. Some growers may market in several different ways, or may change their marketing to match consumer demands. Knowing your market is essential to determine size of tree to harvest. If you are shipping trees, or selling them precut,
managing time of harvest with tree freshness is key. With choose and cut marketing, pruning off lower branches before harvest and cleaning up tall stumps and debris during the harvest period may be necessary. Shaking, baling and other services, as well as elements of agrotourism, add to the consumer experience of cutting their own tree. Selling boughs or making wreaths can be an additional source of income for choose and cut operations. Poor quality or overly large trees can be harvested for boughs. Producing Christmas trees can be rewarding, but it may also seem daunting with all the factors to consider and with the long production cycle. Advance planning can help you determine if growing Christmas trees is for you!
Elizabeth Lamb is the Coordinator of Ornamental IPM for the New York State Integrated Pest Management Program. She can be reached at 607 254-8800 or eml38@cornell.edu.
Resource Spotlight New Guide to High Tunnel Berry Production Northeast growers can capture more of the lucrative local market for fresh berries by growing brambles (raspberries and blackberries) in high tunnels, according to researchers at Cornell and Pennsylvania State Universities. These relatively low-cost, usually unheated, plastic-covered hoophouses can help growers fill late-spring and late-fall gaps in the market. Instead of mid-June, high-tunnel berries can be harvested in May. The field-grown season for brambles usually ends in early October. But growers using high tunnels continue to harvest berries through November. Other benefits of high tunnels include: * Berry yields from tunnels can be two to three times greater than field-grown, and the berries can be significantly larger. * Tunnel-grown berries also have longer shelf-life with reduced pesticide inputs. * Primocane-fruiting blackberries (those that set fruit on first-year growth) ripen where the growing season is otherwise too short. * Floricane-fruiting raspberries and blackberries (those that fruit on second-year growth) can overwinter in climates where they would otherwise be killed by cold temperatures. A new publication, High Tunnel Raspberries and Blackberries, spells out in detail how it's done. The 29-page guide is available online at www.fruit.cornell.edu/Berries. Or you can order print copies. (See details below.) Topics include: * Site selection * Tunnel types and construction * Choosing and establishing plants * In-ground and container plantings * Care and management * Season extension and harvesting * Budget for in-ground high tunnel raspberries If coupled with brambles grown in heated greenhouses, Northeast berry growers could produce brambles nearly year-round. An earlier publication, Greenhouse Raspberries, describes those growing practices. It is available online at www.fruit.cornell.edu/Berries/bramblehtml/ghrasp.html. Rising energy costs make greenhouse berries more expensive to grow. But these two practices could help shift market supply along the Atlantic seaboard to local sources instead of berries imported from other regions or hemispheres. To order hard copies of these publications, send a check payable to Cornell University for $10 for the high tunnel guide or $9.50 for the greenhouse guide to: Max Welcome, Dept. of Horticulture, 134A Plant Science Bldg., Cornell University, Ithaca NY 14853-5904.
Firs ready to cut.
The "Guide to High Tunnel Berry Production" is part of a new outreach and education initiative aimed at increasing profits for commercial berry growers. The initiative is funded by a two year grant from the New York Farm Viability Institute, a farmer-led nonprofit group that funds research projects to help farmers increase profits. The Institute helps to foster a New York agriculture system of diverse farm sizes, production practices, commodities, sectors and geographic regions.
10 Page 10
ORGANIC FARMING
Getting Your Vitamins Starts with Variety and Growing Method The September 2007 report "Still No Free Lunch" by Brian Halweil sheds light on the impact of farming practices on the nutrient content of foods by Sarah Johnston What most people know about vitamins and minerals in foods comes from the label required by federal law on packages of processed and/or prepared foods. We don't carry home a label with purchases of fresh fruits and veggies. Perhaps that is one reason why the public hasn't noticed that increases in crop yields over the years have come at the cost of decreases in vitamin and mineral content per serving of most fruits, vegetables and grains. In a report titled, "Still No Free Lunch", published on line by the Organic Center, author Brian Halweil describes the literature relevant to this issue. The report looks at trends in breeding crops and vegetables and what we know to date about the impacts of production methods on crop quality when measured in terms of vitamin and mineral content, including comparisons of organic and conventional growing methods. INCREASING YIELDS; DECLINING NUTRIENT CONTENT In 2004, researchers at the Biochemical Institute of the University of Texas in Austin published a review of 50 years of changes in the USDA's food composition data for 43 garden crops, focusing on 13 nutrients. They found declines in median concentrations of six nutrients from the 1950s to 1999, including protein, calcium, phosphorus, iron, riboflavin and vitamin C (see Table 1.) No nutrients increased, however, the vitamins thiamin and niacin barely changed. The study was published in the Journal of American College of Nutrition.
January 7, 2008
SMALL FARM QUARTERLY
minerals they tracked for soft white wheat, but not for hard red wheat. (Their study is in press.) A team of U.S. Department of Agriculture researchers compared 14 varieties of hard red wheat introduced from the 1870's to 2000 and found that yields per acre increased by about 1% each year, while the micronutrients iron, zinc and selenium declined by .16 to .38 percent each year (see Figure 1.) The study was published in the Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture, 2006.
ability of phytochemicals in plants, as well as concentrations of vitamins and minerals. "Still No Free Lunch" reviews several studies - showing that higher levels of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and phytochemicals are often found in organically grown crops. These studies also help shed light on the specific production factors that may be responsible for these higher levels. Production factors known or believed to impact vitamin content include: * Soil type. Heavier, clay soils tend to yield more vitamin content than sandy soils. * Season. Dry weather concentrates more vitamins than wet. * Irrigation practices. Heavy irrigation is like too much rain. * Type of soil fertility, especially the form of nitrogen used. * How quickly the crop is grown. Faster-growing varieties tend to accumulate fewer nutrients. In addition, density of planting is used to achieve gains in yield, usually accompanied by increasing the major crop components nitrogen, phos-
trends. The research report will be peer-reviewed and published over the next 12 months. In the debate about the value of organically produced crops, phytochemicals have come under particular scrutiny because of taste surveys and other claims that organic fruits and vegetables taste better and/or provide health benefits. Tomato varieties that score highest in flavor tests have high levels of several phytochemicals. Research has shown that treating plants with pesticides reduces the plant's ability to produce phytochemicals either by directly disrupting plant physiology or by reducing the factors that encourage plants to produce these compounds. There are studies that indicate higher levels of phytochemicals in organic tomatoes, according to researchers at UC Davis. They indicate that flavonoid content in tomatoes seems to be related to available nitrogen, with more flavonoids produced by the plant where there is less available nitrogen, including less nitrogen from compost. EFFECTS OF SOIL FERTILITY PRACTICES Some practices that are organic, but not exclusively so, appear to assist with plant accumulation of vitamins and minerals. Using animal manures, compost and cover crops instead of synthetic fertilizers generally results in a lower, steadier supply of nitrogen throughout the growing season The less concentrated fertility associated with nutrients bound in carbonaceous sources appears to contribute to overall plant health as well as providing nitrogen to the plants in the later part of the season.
Most of the focus has been on increasing the content of gluten, a form of protein that makes the grain more conducive to baking. Breeders point to the differences in the hard red wheat results of the two teams as a hopeful sign that mineral content and yield increases are not necessarily mutually exclusive.
PHYTOCHEMICALS More elusive crop quality characteristics, such as taste, have been thought to be subjective and have not been rigorously studied Trends in Vitamin and Mineral Content in 43 Garden Crops, USDA data, 1955-1999. From "Still No Free Lunch". Original until recently. Plant chemicals source -Davis, Epp & Riordan, J AM Coll Nutr, 2004; 23:669. that have been associated with taste, including flavonoids and other phytochemicals, also phorus and potassium. However, the mechaappear to play important roles as antioxidants in nisms responsible for actual differences in crop cells. Levels of these nutrients, as well as many quality are far from understood. vitamins, appear to be higher fruits and vegetables that are allowed to ripen on WHAT ABOUT ORGANIC? the tree or vine. A side by side comparison of wheat grown organically and conventionally at Washington With the heightened search to State University found that the organic crops had understand how the body fights higher concentrations of copper, magnesium, cancer and aging, some of manganese, phosphorus and zinc, while calcium these plant substances have and iron were slightly lower (see Table 2.) In long gained in status and are now term experiments at Rodale Institute, organic considered nutraceuticals. The oats where manure was used were higher in calnutraceutical industry manufaccium than were either the organic legume nutritures its products by concentratent system, which was the lowest in calcium, or ing or synthesizing specific plant the conventionally managed crop. chemicals for use as therapeutic food supplements. Consequently, more attention is being paid to both amount and variability of these substances in Declining Zinc Content of Hard Red Wheat Varieties Grown plants.
Anhydrous nitrogen, on the other hand, produces a burst of growth when applied, but dissipates before the crop has finished growing. Nitrogen in this form seems to make the plant produce larger cells. There is some thought that larger cells in high nitrogen systems have thinner cell walls that can be more permeable to viruses. Another factor at play may be that generally higher levels of organic matter may stimulate healthier root growth. According to researcher Walter Goldstein at the Michael Fields Agricultural Institute in Wisconsin, conventionally grown corn had a higher percentage of diseased roots - 26 percent - than did organically grown corn, where up to 15 percent of roots were found to be diseased. BOTTOM LINE? BROADEN THE DEBATE ABOUT FOOD QUALITY According to "Still No Free Lunch," the majority of American diets are deficient when it comes to vitamin E, magnesium and calcium. More than 40% of diets are deficient in vitamin A; 25% are deficient in vitamin C and small percentages - 5% or less - of diets are only minimally deficient in 11 of the other vitamins and minerals most frequently tracked.
Between 1873 and 2000. From "Still No Free Lunch". Original source -- David Garvin, J Sci Fd Ag, 2006, 86:2213-2220. In 2005, a British team published a review of studies and half a century of data for British fruits and vegetables, and found that average concentrations of minerals have decreased significantly from the 1930's and 1980's. P. J. White and M.R. Broadley published their findings in the Journal of Horticultural Science & Biotechnology.
In addition to varietal differences, growing methods appear to play a significant role in the amount and vari-
Mean Mineral Content of wheat grown in organic and conventional systems. From "Still No Free Lunch." Original source Kevin Murphy, Washington State University
Plant breeders have largely focused on increases in yield and total harvested nutrients (See Figure 2.) The studies reviewed clearly indicate that as breeders have sought to increase yields, vitamin and mineral content has been reduced. For example, broccoli head size appears to be inversely correlated with calcium and magnesium content, according to findings by researchers at the U.S. Vegetable Laboratory. They compared 43 cultivars and found that the smaller the head of broccoli, the higher the mineral concentration by weight. Breeding advances have resulted in the doubling or tripling of yields in grains. A comparison of 63 historical and modern soft white wheat varieties indicates that selection for increased protein by plant breeders has contributed to decreased mineral nutrient content in modern wheat cultivars. The Washington State researchers found declines in mineral concentration for all eight
Yields of Assorted Crops Grown in the U.S. 1961-2000. From "Still No Free Lunch", Original source -- UN Food and Agriculture Organization
Society's views of food quality parameters have been changing, as the medical profession increases our understanding of disease, health and nutrition. The complexity of factors that come into play has made it difficult to study and understand how much particular production methods used by organic growers may be contributing to what appears to be a fairly clear, but inconsistent trend of higher levels of vitamins, minerals, antioxidant and other phytochemical levels in organic foods.
In the European Union, the European Commission has been funding research that will shed light on the relationship between crop management practices and nutrient content. Dr. Carlo Leifert is the leader of the Quality Low Input Food project, a rigorous and carefully designed 4-year project to compare organic and conventional methods in England.
Perhaps most important, though, is that the debate about organic food quality is helping to spur a serious look at how society measures food quality. "Still No Free Lunch" puts a few more key arguments on the table for the reader's consideration. This report, which can be found in its entirety at www.organic-center.org, is well worth everyone's consideration.
According to Leifert, preliminary results indicate that organically produced crops and organic milk contain more beneficial compounds, such as vitamins and antioxidants, than their conventionally grown counterparts. The research team is now focusing on identification of the agricultural practices likely to be responsible for these
Sarah Johnston is working for the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets as their new Organic Agriculture Specialist. She can be reached at (518) 457-4531, via email at sarah.johnston@agmkt.state.ny.us or by mail at 10B Airline Drive, Albany, NY 12235.
11 January 7, 2008
WOMEN
IN
SMALL FARM QUARTERLY
AGRICULTURE
Living History Dedicated women help make rural history come alive at three of the region's most prominent living history museums by Susan Neal While our nation and culture are still young by some standards, American historians have been making great strides since the 1930's to preserve and interpret aspects of American life that might otherwise be lost to time. Not surprisingly, farming has been a predominant theme in preservation, and in the establishment of living history museums, underscoring agriculture's importance to our society. The Northeast has a long history of settlement and agricultural activity, so naturally the region offers many wonderful living history museums from which to choose. They are quite varied as to their collections, interpretations, and purposes. But at all of them, you will find dedicated women working in paid and volunteer positions, making these places come alive for us every day. THE FARMERS' MUSEUM The Farmers' Museum, located in historic Cooperstown, NY, was established in 1943 as a rural life museum that recreates a mid-nineteenth century rural village and working farmstead. Its impressive collection of relocated, historic buildings include a blacksmith shop, tavern, pharmacy, general store, print shop, church and schoolhouse in the Crossroads Village, and barns, animal sheds, a smoke house, and a historic farmhouse on the Lippitt Farmstead. Actual crops, such as historically important hops, are grown on the farm and a number of heritage livestock breeds, including Devon cattle, Dominique chickens, and Narragansett turkeys, are also raised. During the summer months, the museum recreates a 1910 country fair, complete with a handcrafted carousel. Numerous programs and special events are offered at the museum throughout the year and its collection of artifacts now number more than 23,000 items. Barbara Fischer is the Senior Director for Human Resources at The Farmers' Museum. She was raised on a 200 acre Holstein dairy farm not far from the site. Her father, an agriculture graduate of Cornell University, often hosted graduate students on the family farm. During the summer, with the farm overseen by these hard-working scholars, Barbara's family took an annual three-week vacation and explored -- of all things -- museums across the country.
Barbara notes, "There was once a time when being a farm kid was a great source of pride. Our parents were landowners and businesspeople who served as community leaders." She regrets the loss of this sense of pride among rural families and recognizes society's attitudes toward farming have changed considerably since the 1950's. But she sees in the museum staff and volunteers with whom she works many of the same qualities that were once fostered by hardworking farm families...small town pride, appreciation for family, and satisfaction in a job well done. She and her fellow employees recognize that they are not only saving collections of interesting artifacts, they are preserving our ancestor's traditions and values, and offering future generations a tantalizing taste of our forefathers' way of life before it is lost forever. THE BILLINGS FARM MUSEUM In Woodstock, Vermont the Billings Farm Museum offers us a different perspective on preserving farm history. Built in 1871 by Frederick Billings, the farm is still located on its original property. Mr. Billings was an early environmentalist and he intended that the farm serve as a model of responsible steward-
Susan explains that the museum uses oxen and Percheron horses for wagon and sleigh rides and plowing demonstrations. Southdown sheep, a breed that was once raised on the original farm, now produce wool for education events. And chickens contribute eggs for many historically accurate dishes prepared in the 1890's farmhouse kitchen. She estimates that at least half of the museum's staff and volunteers are women, and that most have a rich background in agriculture or education. Together they pool their collective skills and talents and serve as interpreters, gardeners, farm hands, and Jills-Of-All-Trades as they share their love of history and farming with visitors. HANCOCK SHAKER VILLAGE Offering yet another unique view of agricultural history is the Hancock Shaker Village in Pittsfield, MA. This unique agriculturallybased, utopian community was founded in 1783 by a group of devoted Shakers. Their City of Peace, as the community was named, was a model of efficient and industrious rural, spiritual life. The agricultural crafts and industries practiced by the Shakers included woodworking, basketry, broom making, milling, medicinal herb gardening, and dairy production. The community maintained a working dairy farm right up to the 1950's. Shaker brothers and sisters considered all work a form of prayer, and they undertook their daily farming activities with a sense of profound humility and joy.
Shaker ideals.Today the Hancock Shaker Village is proud to showcase the incredibly talented workmanship of its original residents through the museum's collection of twenty historic structures and numerous artifacts. Tours are offered daily during the visiting season and special events are held throughout the year. In addition to educating visitors about the Shakers and their beliefs, the museum also actively promotes sustainable agriculture, a concept which many modern farmers are just developing an appreciation for, but which the Shakers practiced faithfully on a daily basis. The museum engages in valuable seed saving projects, raising and preserving important species of heritage and heirloom vegetables and herbs. Many of the plants produced by the museum's working gardens are used by local restaurants, as are eggs that are produced by the museum's chickens. And as the original Shaker farmers did, the Village's dedicated staff and volunteers continue to produce hops and cider for local brewing and pressing operations. Every living history museum offers a unique perspective of our ancestor's lives and their incredible bond to the land. These are sites that should not just be visited, but experienced. So enjoy the rich educational opportunities that our region has to offer. And be sure to thank the women and men you encounter at such sites for their tremendous dedication in helping to preserve our Nation's farming history.
Author Susan Neal farms and writes at Wiccaway Farm in Beaver Dams, NY, and is a contact person for the NY Women in Agriculture Network. She can be reached at 607-535-2135 or wiccawayfarm@aol.com. (607) 535-2135 or wiccawayfarm@aol.com. Anni Davenport of the Family Farm Store, Spencer, NY, can be reached at (607) 5897866. Carol Clemens or Heather Ridge Farms and Farm Store, Preston Hollow, NY, can be reached at (518) 239-6045.
Ellen Spear is President and CEO of Hancock Shaker Village. The reverence she feels for this living history site is clearly evident in her passionate descriptions of the Village and its original inhabitants. She has come to believe Threshing Machine Exhibit-Billings Farm that the site Photographer: Susan Neal offers a calming, almost magical, quality, a spiritual ship in both farming and forestry. He was also balm that is experienced (and a keen innovator, and appreciated the sought) by many who visit. advances that the Industrial Revolution was beginning to realize. Spear notes that "many people seem to be looking for By 1890, the original 270 acre farm had solutions to the pressures grown to 1000 acres, and was a model dairy posed by life in the 21st cenoperation or "showcase farm," tury. The Shakers understood utilizing and promoting all the how to find peace and joy in modern farming innovations living a simple, principled life." and technologies of the day. These timeless values are The Billings Farm also provery important to Ellen perduced some of the top Jersey Shaker Woodworking Techniques-Hancock Shaker Museum sonally, and she enjoys helpcattle in the country, and Photographer: Susan Neal ing others discover these today the farm is still a true working farm, dedicated to Resource Spotlight breeding championship-caliber dairy cattle. The milk produced Living History Museums by the farm is utilized by local Vermont cheese companies For a listing of living history museums across the country: The Association for such as Cabot Creamery and Living History, Farm and Agricultural Museums www.alhfam.org Click on Grafton Village Cheese Company. "Resources" and "Museum Links." For more information about the sites men-
Barbara Fischer and Devon Photographer: Barbara Fischer/NY Farmer's Museum
When Barbara headed off to the Albany Business College to get her degree, her father sold the farm and took a position at The Farmers' Museum. Several years later, Barbara followed in the footsteps of her late father and also applied for a position at the museum. She has been with the organization for 15 years now and enjoys combining her love and knowledge of farming and history with her keen business experience.
seven years. She is quick to point out that the museum hosts more than twenty special events and activities throughout the year, and that because it is still a working dairy farm, remains open throughout much of the winter, unlike many other living history museums which typically close for the slow season.
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Historic structures on the site include the dairy barn (visitors may watch the afternoon milking every day at 3:30pm), horse barns, a milk room, and the old farmhouse. The museum's extensive artifact collections and multi-media exhibits are on display throughout several connected, nineteenth-century barns. And in addition to the Jerseys, the farm is also home to a number of other historically important breeds. Susan Plump has served as Public Relations Coordinator at the Billings Farm for the last
tioned in this article, such as dates and hours of operation, and a listing of special events, contact: New York Farmer's Museum Cooperstown, NY Phone: 888-547-1450 www.farmersmuseum.org Billings Farm Museum Woodstock, VT Phone: 800-457-2355 www.billingsfarm.org
Hancock Shaker Village Pittsfield, MA Phone: 800-817-1137 www.hancockshakervillage.org
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January 7, 2008
NEW FARMERS
Finger Lakes Dexter Creamery A SARE Farmer Grant helped beginning farmer Rose Marie Belforti launch a unique cheese-making venture By Chanda Lindsay Rose Marie Belforti and her husband, Tim Wallbridge, dreamed about having a small farm in the country. In 1999, this dream became a reality when they purchased a farm house and 12 acres in Ledyard, NY. Their original thoughts were to have a large garden and possibly a few animals. Never did they think that they would soon be undertaking a cheese making venture! After building a barn and laying out a pasture, they purchased a very small herd of Irish Dexter cattle and started milking them. Today,
resource". Rose discovered kefir when researching alternative foods because of long term food allergies. Prior to the Finger Lakes Dexter Creamery, kefir grains had never been used in commercial cheese production. Rose and Tim applied for a producer grant from the USDA Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program in 2005 and received funding for the project in July of 2006. They worked with Cornell Small Farms Program, Cornell Cooperative Extension of Cayuga County and NY FarmNet to develop their proposal.
Setting up a dairy was a challenge for someone who was not raised in the dairy life. Rose and Tim worked extremely closely with the NYS Ag and Market inspectors to adhere to regulations at every step. As Rose says, "It is better to get it right the first time than to have to go back and do it again!" Along the way, there were all kinds of set backs, delays, and failures in cheese production. Because the process is so new and different, there was no template to follow and no recipe to consult. One relatively unique management practice is that Rose and Tim keep the calves with their moms for as long as they can. That means less milk and less cheese. However, they feel the sacrifice is important, not only for the welfare of the animals, but because they want to promote a new model for harvesting milk. According to Rose, "Cows are the ones who make the milk, and we want to respect them, and give them a quality life for as long as they have been genetically designed to calve and produce milk." Since Dexter cattle are still rare but in growing demand on small niche farms seeking a versatile animal, the calves are typically sold to people who are starting their own Dexter herds. Rose prefers to sell to people who are committed to keeping the breed in existence. As far as the future goes, it takes a long time to become a cheese maker. "The more I learn, the less I feel I know", says Rose.
Finger Lakes Dexter Creamery developed their unique kefir cheese with help from a SARE grant. Skilled cheese production not only demands expertise in the science of culturing, acidification, coagulation and ripening, but also requires dedication to technique. Although Rose is just getting started, she looks forward to many years of hand-crafting kefir cheese, perfecting her recipe and raising quality Dexter cattle. To see a step by step documentation of the creation of Rose's Kefir cheese, visit the SARE final report at: www.sare.org/reporting/report_viewer.asp?pn =FNE06-595&ry=2006&rf=1. To learn more about Finger Lakes Dexter Creamery, visit their website: www.kefircheese.com
Chanda Lindsay is an Extension Resource Educator with Cayuga County Cooperative Extension in Auburn, NY. She can be reached at 315-255-1183 or cl43@cornell.edu.
Dexters produce rich, creamy milk excellent for cheese, and their small size makes them suitable for limited acreage. the farm is producing and marketing a unique, semi-soft raw milk cheese cultured with kefir grains. How did they get there? The Cayuga County Local Foods/Local Markets Discussion Group paid a visit to the farm in June to get some insight and ideas. The family developed a vision of what kind of farm they wanted. They researched various breeds of cattle and finally settled on Dexters. Originally from Ireland, Dexter Cattle were popular on small diversified farms of the 19th and early 20th centuries for their multi-purpose attributes as milk, meat and draft animals. Dexters were appealing to Rose and Tim because they produce rich, creamy milk excellent for cheese, and their small size makes them suitable for limited acreage. Rose believes very strongly in wholesome, healthy milk produced with a minimum of inputs and a low environmental impact.
The new creamery building. Kefir grains are a type of living, beneficial, microbial bacteria. They have been used for centuries by traditional peoples to culture milk and are renowned for contributing to health and longevity. According to Rose, "Kefir grains propagate naturally when immersed in milk, making them an ideal, sustainable natural
Their plan was to scale up a home recipe to a commercial process for Kefir cheese using authentic living Kefir grains. In cooperation with the Cornell University Food Processing and Development Laboratory, they set out to establish a standard for the new Kefir cheese. The result was an authentic kefir cheese made with raw milk, containing full cream and aged for 60 days or more. The process of transforming a home cheese recipe into a certified commercial product proved time and energy consuming. It had all begun when Rose started producing too much cheese for her family's consumption and started looking into other possible outlets. She began talking with NY State milk inspectors about the rules and regulations for setting up a cheese making operation. As Rose and Tim started designing the dairy and researching the cheese-making process, it was clear that they needed help getting started. Upon reading the instructions for the SARE grant, Rose discovered the requirements fit with their desire to produce something that would both promote sustainable farming and provide a model for other farmers. According to Rose, the most important element to consider when seeking a grant is how closely it matches your objectives. "Each grant has very specific ideas on what kind of projects it wants to fund, and if your project does not fit, it may be a waste of time to apply," she says. Another tip is to make sure that you read all the instructions carefully and provide complete and concise responses. Developing a business plan was critical to helping Rose and Tim prepare for writing the grant. Defining their goals and projected costs for the proposal helped them to provide realistic and sensible plans that they felt confident living up to.
Tim with Dexter baby and mom.
Photos by Rose Marie Belforti
Resource Spotlight NESARE Farmer Grants For over thirty years, USDA's Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) Program has been a critical resource for agricultural innovators across the nation. The Northeast SARE program, or NESARE, has several grant programs designed for farmers, researchers and educators. The goal of NESARE's Farmer Grant Program is to develop, refine, and demonstrate new sustainable techniques and to explore innovative ideas developed by farmers across the region. To apply, you must be a farmer in the Northeast SARE region, which includes Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia, and Washington, D.C. To be eligible for a farmer grant you need not be farming full time, but your operation should have an established crop or animal product that you sell on a regular basis. Nonprofit farms may apply, but the primary activity of the farm must be to produce and sell food under the kinds of economic constraints that affect commercial growers. Many community-supported farms qualify, but farms where the primary mission is educational normally do not. The deadline for 2008 Farmer Grant applications is past, but it is not too late to begin planning for a 2009 application. A useful guide to developing a Farmer Grant application, with examples and explanations of what makes a strong proposal, is NESARE's 44-page booklet: How to Write a SARE Farmer Grant Application. It can be ordered by contacting the NESARE office at 802-656-0471 or nesare@uvm.edu. It is also available online at www.uvm.edu/~nesare/07Farmerguide.pdf. To learn more about past Farmer projects, you may view the national project database. This database allows you to sort by grant type, region, interest area, and a variety of other criteria. The national database and much more is available at www.uvm.edu/~nesare.
13 January 7, 2008
FOREST
AND
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SMALL FARM QUARTERLY
WOODLOT
Our Woodlot Ownership Plans and Memories by Barbara Wenke Greetings from Western New York. My husband Tim and I are the proud owners of a 50-acre tree farm in Western New York. We have been creating our own management plan for our diversity of tree growth and land uses for the past few years. Having purchased the property from my great aunt 6 years ago, we have been busy. We had been doing some minor land management on our property for a few years but our recent participation in Cornell University's Master Forest Owners/COVERTS workshop at the Arrnot Forest facility really strengthened our land commitment. We spent a long weekend of intense but enjoyable training with other land owners who want to maintain sustainable management in their woodlands and help others do the same. The various seminars included hiking through the woods identifying and measuring trees for timber value and a visit to a good-sized sawmill where we watched logs being milled to various lumber dimensions. As MFO volunteers we share our knowledge with other woodlot owners about how they can establish their own goals and commitments to their land. We have rescued a few new and old friends and neighbors from the uninvited logger who knocks on their door with an offer too good to refuse. Too often forest owners come to realize that they do not fully understand the value of their property and timber and have no management plan and goals. We have joined the New York Forest Owners Association and are currently pursuing being certified by the American Forest Foundation Tree Farm Association through our NYS DEC forester. Our old timber plot hosts a variety of trees. We have Sugar Maple, Red and White Oak, Cherry, Hickory, Birch, Cucumber, Tulip, Osage Orange, Hemlock and Ash. We are getting pretty good at tree identification even when there are no leaves to see their characteristics. The management plan that we have decided upon is to maintain a small, but continued profit from the harvest and sale of timber and firewood as well leaving the nut trees for
wildlife and old snags for aesthetics purposes. Currently, we log for timber and firewood every year and through this we had to develop some unique timber pulling apparatuses to get the timber down some very steep grades. We have found that replanting our trees in fiber pots is a successful technique as we can group these containers close together and water them during the drier periods. We also keep them behind fencing where the deer and rabbits in February can't browse down the oaks to nubs. We had to establish a deer management plan with knowledge that when they herd up in the winter they can wipe out a whole year's work in a few days. We actually enjoy the planting season! We order seedlings from various sources as well as soil and containers to plant them. We recruit the help of volunteers to accomplish planting 3000+ trees in one weekend. After the trees sit in containers for several growing seasons we move them out to the sectional plots we have set aside for their final planting in the woods or old fields. In the spring we tap the Sugar Maples and gather a few hundred of gallons of sap that we boil down to maple syrup to enjoy throughout the year and give as gifts to friends and family. We would do a bigger harvest but we have a large creek that roars during the spring thaw which is between us and the sugarbush. We have a future plan to run sap lines across the creek to a central container. Our current system is a primitive setup where we still boil with wood over large stainless steel pans setting above the roaring fire. The wafts of the sweet smell of sap turning to syrup is truly wonderful. It is a favorite scent of spring. In our spare time we also raise bees and have done so for the past few years with varying degrees of success. We enjoy bottling our honey in the early and late summer and have quite a following of buyers who enjoy this organic product. The property has been lightly logged on the back 25 acres. The front 25 acres once had grapes, followed by corn in the seventies. That section of the forest is now in various stages of reforest succession. Tim and I faithfully plant a few thousand trees every year and I keep track of our work through MS Excel
BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
Carrot Project Seeks Input on Small Farm Financing Needs by Dorothy Suput The Carrot Project is asking farmers to participate in a survey to better understand the
financing gaps confronting them. The Carrot Project and more than 25 organizations are reaching out to farmers across New England and New York asking them to respond to the
A starkly beautiful day at the author's 50-acre tree farm in Evans, New York. Photo by Barbara Wenke spreadsheets and a program I created using Visual Basic where we log in the species and growth data. We spend winter evenings planning for the coming year's planting and timber harvesting.
I could fast forward to fifty years in the future, I hope that the next generation of landowners will see that the strategies and plans we developed here have improved rather than impaired this property.
We have looked into establishing agricultural crops in the understory with hopes of growing mushrooms and ginseng, but we need to examine the logistics of turning this into a secondary income generator.
To learn more about Cornell University's Master Forest Owners/COVERTS Volunteer Program at the Arrnot Forest facility, visit the website at www.cornellmfo.info and the New York Forest Owners Association website at www.nyfoa.org.
In between enjoying our woodlot we have made capital improvements to our barns and home. We are putting up a greenhouse this spring to do some early nursery plantings so we won't have to rely on ordering seedlings. If survey because there is little information on the roles of debt and financing gaps as they affect smaller farms. Responses will help address financing gaps for beginning farmers, farmers transitioning to more ecologically friendly practices, farmers looking to expand their businesses, and farmers working to maintain the viability of their farms. It is estimated that twenty percent of farmers can't find the financing needed to run their businesses. They need the money to repair a roof, add a greenhouse, or purchase farmland.
Barbara Wenke is a NY Master Forest Owner Volunteer in Evans, NY. She may be reached at 716-549-3986 or wenkeb123@hotmail.com.
Farmers can't find the necessary financing because they live in an area without agricultural lending expertise, don't have sufficient property to secure financing, have a non-traditional business plan, or are simply looking for too small an amount. The Carrot Project is working to create small farm financing solutions to address financing gaps confronting small and midsized ecofriendly and financially viable farm enterprises by making loans and guarantees available and exploring equity solutions. The Carrot Project's model pulls together and takes advantage of the intersection of smaller farmers' financing needs, limited access to lenders, and sources of appropriate capital to both increase the amount of financing available to farmers and increase their access to financing.
BURKHOLDER BARNS Horse Barn 10x16’ 4 Stall Calf Hutch
Matthew Burkholder Auburn, NY 315-255-3083
PORTABLE LIVESTOCK & POULTRY HOUSING
For more information about the farmer survey or to complete the survey, please go to www.thecarrotproject.org and click on "FARMER SURVEY." If you have questions, please contact farmersurvey@thecarrotproject.org or call 617-6669637.
Dorothy Suput is the Executive Director of the Carrot Project. She may be reached at dsuput@thecarrotproject.org or by calling 617-910-8499.
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NON-DAIRY LIVESTOCK
Choosing A Breed for a Pasture Based Sheep Farm What's best for one farm is not necessarily best for another by Ulf Kintzell In 1995 I settled in New Jersey and started White Clover Sheep Farm. In New Jersey there is a shortage of large flocks and of commercial sheep. Thus, I bought any small number of sheep of many different breeds in the area that was available for a reasonable price and bred all ewes to Texel rams. This turned out to be a great learning experience.
January 7, 2008
SMALL FARM QUARTERLY
of uniformity. Some of the Polypays were huge but produced just one lamb year after year. Some of the Polypays clearly took after Finnsheep. They produced triplets and quadruplets and then lacked milk and body substance to raise these lambs. The Polypays that produced the best were those that took after Dorset sheep. The lambing percentage was high, at about 2 lambs per ewe, and the lambs finished nicely on
first class. The lambs can be sold at a lighter weight (the so-called hot house lambs) as well as high weights. Texels are known for producing lean carcasses: Getting a Texel too fat is rarely a concern. However, there are downsides to raising Texels. Texels are heat sensitive, suffer particularly when it is humid, and must be offered shade. Another undesirable trait is the difficulty during lambing. Due to their broad head and shoulders it is not uncommon for a ewe to need help delivering her lambs. Last but not least, if you need sheep with strong flocking behavior don't go with Texels. Some of them do not care whether or not the flock moves on. They just stand still. In the past years I raised mainly Texel and Texel percentage ewes. These sheep seemed to be the best compromise for my pasture-based farm and the market lambs I wanted to produce. In 2005 I purchased two White Dorper rams. My first half-blood ewes lambed this year and I retained my first three-quarter White Dorper ewe lambs this year. WHITE DORPERS My White Dorper percentage ewes have outperformed my Texel and Texel percentage ewes in most areas. This is, in my opinion, not due to a crossing effect, but rather it is due to the breed traits of White Dorper sheep. White Dorpers thrive on pasture and also utilize shrubs and bushes better than other breeds. In fact, at times they seem like goats when you see them lined up along a hedgerow eating leaves.
Finishing on grass and legumes is the single most important trait for a breed of sheep in a pasture based farming system. All Photos by Ulf Kintzel HAMPSHIRES My Hampshire Sheep came from a commercial flock. They performed well on pasture and were fairly docile sheep, though some with a percentage of Suffolk blood in them were livelier. Their lambing percentage was well above average, reaching about 1.8 lambs per ewe. The lambs managed to get their nutrition from pasture. The biggest disadvantage was that these lambs didn't finish at a weight between 80 and 90 pounds, the weight that I desired. The bone to meat ratio was too high and the fat cover was not at the desired level. Secondly, the ewes were bigger than a medium sized ewe, which I feel is too high-input when it comes to maintenance. POLYPAYS The Polypays also performed well on pasture. Their biggest disadvantage was a lack
pasture at the weight I desired. For a short while I produced female lambs for reproduction using a Dorset ram from a commercial farm. These sheep performed well, yet I parted with them when I received a good offer. TEXELS The Texel sheep is not a sheep with outstanding mothering ability, nor high fertility. However, this can be helped by strongly selecting for both. I achieved a lambing percentage of 2 lambs per ewe with good mothering and milking ability after selecting for it for several years. Texels have a number of things going for them. They produce very meaty lambs, with outstanding prime cuts such as the loin chops and the leg of lamb. Furthermore, Texels are very docile. Both ewes and lambs perform well on pasture. They do need a lot to eat but the pasture does not have to be
very few universal truths. You will need to evaluate what works for you. That is the beauty of entrepreneurship.
Ulf Kintzel owns and manages White Clover Sheep Farm in Hushville, NY. Info at: www.whitecloversheepfarm.com
Dorpers are also quite heat tolerant. But be aware, White Dorpers are lively when handled, a fact I found out quickly when I de-wormed them for the first time in my chute. Another down side can be the fact that this breed tends to get too fat quickly when heavily grain fed, a problem I don't have since they are all finished on pasture. There is no problem with them getting too fat when they weigh less than 100 pounds. As of this writing I have market lambs that well exceed 100 pounds. Whether these lambs will be too fat remains to be seen. NO BREED IS PERFECT Generally speaking, there is no perfect breed. Choosing a breed means making compromises. However, you get to choose the breed and therefore the compromises you are willing to accept. If these compromises affect the bottom line, you might want to search for a different breed or try to compensate with a terminal sire. Other undesirable traits such as too lively, heat sensitivity or lambing problems depend more on the sheep farmer's nature and whether or not he or she can tolerate the trait. Undesirable traits can also be dealt with by using certain operating systems, such as frequently checking the ewes during lambing season helps avoiding lamb losses, or offering shade in every paddock limits the influence of hot weather.
Both Texel (left) and White Dorper (right) are breeds that are very suitable to be raised on pasture.
Texel sheep are very docile and often allow humans to approach
These undesirable traits do not necessarily affect the bottom line. What is true and desirable for one farm does not need to be true and desirable for the next. There are
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FAMILY
Diet for Small Planet The most land-efficient diet may include some dairy and meat, Cornell researchers report
A low-fat vegetarian diet is very efficient in terms of how much land is needed to support it. But adding some dairy products and a limited amount of meat may actually increase this efficiency, Cornell researchers suggest. This deduction stems from the findings of their new study, which concludes that if everyone in New York State followed a low-fat vegetarian diet, the state could directly support almost 50 percent more people, or about 32 percent of its population, agriculturally. With today's highmeat, high-dairy diet, the state is able to support directly only 22 percent of its population, say the researchers. The study, published in the journal Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems, is the first to examine the land requirements of complete diets. Using only foods that can be produced in New York State, the researchers compared 42 diets with the same number of calories and a core of grains, fruits, vegetables and dairy products, but with varying amounts of meat (from none to 13.4 ounces daily) and fat (from 20 to 45 percent of calories) to determine each diet's "agricultural land footprint." They found a fivefold difference between the two extremes. "A person following a low-fat vegetarian diet, for example, will need less than half (0.44) an acre per person per year to produce their food," said Christian Peters, a Cornell postdoctoral associate in crop and soil sciences
and lead author of the research. "A high-fat diet with a lot of meat, on the other hand, needs 2.11 acres." "Surprisingly, however, a vegetarian diet is not necessarily the most efficient in terms of land use," said Peters. The reason is that fruits, vegetables and grains must be grown on high-quality cropland, he explained. Meat and dairy products from ruminant animals are supported by lower quality, but more widely available, land that can support pasture and hay. A large pool of such land is available in New York State because for sustainable use, most farmland requires a crop rotation with such perennial crops as pasture and hay. Thus, although vegetarian diets in New York State may require less land per person, they use more high-valued land. "It appears that while meat increases land-use requirements, diets including modest amounts of meat can feed more people than some higher fat vegetarian diets," said Peters. "The key to conserving land and other resources with our diets is to limit the amount of meat we eat and for farmers to rely more on grazing and forages to feed their livestock," said Jennifer Wilkins, senior extension associate in nutritional sciences who specializes in the connection between local food systems and health and co-authored the study with Gary Fick, Cornell professor of crop and soil sciences. "Consumers need to be aware that foods differ not only in their nutrient content but in the amount of resources required to
Even though a moderate-fat plant-based diet with a little meat and dairy (red footprint) uses more land than the all-vegetarian diet (far left footprint), it feeds more people (is more efficient) because it uses more pasture land, which is widely available. Illustration by Steve Rokitka, Cornell University Communications produce, process, package and transport them." According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the average American ate approximately 5.8 ounces of meat and eggs a day in 2005. "In order to reach the efficiency in land use of moderate-fat, vegetarian diets, our study sug-
gests that New Yorkers would need to limit their annual meat and egg intake to about 2 cooked ounces a day," Peters said.
The research was supported in part by the National Research Initiative of the USDA Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service. This article first appeared in the Oct. 4, 2007 issue of the Cornell Chronicle.
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January 7, 2008
BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
The 5 C's of Credit: How to Get a Bank to Say Yes to Your Loan Request by David Leverett Perhaps you love animals. Perhaps you love working outdoors. Perhaps you feel deeply connected to the land. Perhaps you believe in producing the best food possible for the world we live in today. Whatever the reason, my job is to review requests from people interested in starting or expanding an agricultural business. I'd like to tell you what it takes to get a banker like me to say yes to your business proposal. When I am asked to lend money to a farm business I think of the five Cs of credit: Character, Capacity, Capital, Collateral and Conditions. Let me tell you a bit about each. CHARACTER The kind of person you are and the values you use when doing business are critically important to a lender when making a loan decision. Lenders want to do business with customers who are responsible and honest. Character is measured by credit reports and letters of reference from people with whom you have done business. Past experience is a very good indicator of future performance. CAPACITY How much money you can earn through your hard work and your ability to pay the necessary bills is your capacity. Lenders want to make loans to people with a business plan that is realistic. The business will need to create enough income to pay operating expenses, repay loans, and provide a satisfying living for the borrower. Additionally, the business would need to generate enough income to provide for future growth and savings to insure against the inevitable down times that happen in the agricultural industry.
Lenders judge the capacity of existing businesses by examining tax returns from several years. These contain important information about income and expenses for the business. Most farm operators follow their own established production patterns. Some farmers keep their expenses low by having modest production goals; others may generate a large income but spend a great deal of that income achieving high production. We look closely at these patterns, which can vary greatly, for indicators of future success. If you are a first time borrower it is harder to prove the future success of your farm business. Setting production goals and making budgets that are realistic is the best first step. CAPITAL Simply put, capital is what you are worth -in dollars, of course. Add together everything you have of value, your assets, and subtract everything you owe, your debts, to find your net worth. Lenders want customers to have a strong reason to succeed. People with nothing to lose don't work as hard as people with everything to lose. If you have invested heavily in your business you are going to want it to succeed. COLLATERAL Collateral is what you own that you can pledge to the lending institution as a way to pay off the loan if you are unable to make scheduled payments as planned. In a perfect world loans would always be paid using the repayment schedule initially agreed to by the borrower and lender. This is the way bankers like it to be, but unfortunately, this doesn't always happen.
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Typical loan documents at NBT Bank, NA. Think of collateral as a back-up plan. The lender knows the loan can be repaid because the borrower can sell the items listed as collateral in order to pay off the loan. Having collateral reduces the risk to the lending institution when deciding to make the loan. CONDITION Condition, unlike the other Cs of credit, is not controlled by the borrower. Business conditions in the agricultural industry can swing wildly from year to year. Although the borrower has no control over the conditions that exist, the lender must take into consideration trends in the current economy before deciding to make a loan. In addition to these five Cs there is one other characteristic I appreciate in loan applicants, accuracy in record keeping. Those who keep up-to-date production and financial records are able to make decisions about their businesses based on proven facts and trends. This critical skill is often overlooked but not difficult to achieve. Financial information can be kept in a simple ledger book or on a computer using accounting software. An applicant should prepare a loan plan and a financial state-
Photo by David Leverett ment for the business. Financial statements are a summary of the applicant's assets and liabilities (debts). I hope these five Cs of credit will help you understand better how lenders make decisions about giving agricultural loans. Lending institutions are eager to make loans to applicants who demonstrate integrity, have well-defined goals, keep accurate records that substantiate their plan and are ready to work hard to bring their goals to reality. Perhaps one of those future agricultural businesses is yours. A resource available to both first-time and existing farmers in New York State is NY FarmNet. This agency consults with farmers on topics such as budgeting, conflict resolution, estate planning, and much more. Their services are free. They can be reached at 1-800-547-3276 or on the web at www.nyfarmnet.org.
David Leverett is an Assistant Vice President in the Agriculture Lending Department of the Norwich branch of NBT Bank, NA. He can be reached at (607) 3376152 or via email at dleverett@nbtbank.com.
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Blind Cultivation More growers are trying this alternative early-season weed control for corn by Ken Wise Cultivation has been used for thousands of years to reduce weed competition with row crops. It is only recently that we have had herbicides to control weeds. Due to concerns for the environment and costs of herbicides, cultivation is slowly starting to be used again by field crop producers. All organic corn producers use cultivation. Interest in revisiting this weed management practice is also increasing among conventional corn producers. TIMING IS EVERYTHING! Timing early-season weed control is a very important aspect of maintaining good corn yields. Weeds and crops compete for limited resources. If weed control is delayed until after the V4 (fourth leaf) stage of corn growth, yields start to drop dramatically. The question most field crop producers ask is, "How do you control earlyseason weeds with cultivation?"
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isn't done by closing your eyes while driving the tractor(!); rather, "blind" refers to the fact that cultivation is done before the weed seedlings can be seen, when they are at their smallest and most vulnerable size. Blind cultivation uses certain kinds of cultivators to disrupt the top one-half to one inch of soil, uprooting and exposing the newly sprouting weed seedlings to desiccation. Scouting your fields is a requirement to know when weeds are in the "white root stage," that is, the stage where the seed begins to sprout and the seedling hypocotyl is elongating. Blind cultivation works best when it is hot and the sun is hitting the surface of the field. The goal of this method is to kill weeds when they are most sensitive to disturbance. Normally a blind cultivation occurs one week after planting, and is repeated when the corn is two to three inches tall, depending on the cultivator being used. Planning is essential if you want to use blind cultivation as a means to control annual weeds. One aspect to consider is what kind of cultivation tool will best fit your farming situation. Rotary hoe, flex-tine weeder, and spike tooth harrows are some of the mechanical weeders being used to control early-season annual weeds in field corn. THE ROTARY HOE The rotary hoe is a common mechanical weed control tool used for blind cultivation. This is a high-speed tool that plucks tiny weeds from the soil. Spider wheels with
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The key feature of "blind cultivation" is to kill germinated weed seedlings while they are very small, before they break the surface. Sketch by Brian Aldrich
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turned at a 45-degree angle so that the corner runs forward. Make sure that the weeds are in the white root stage. While this works best as a pre-emergence control, it can be used post-emergence in corn that is up to seven inches tall. Weeds are most effectively controlled when the weather is sunny and warm. Stones can be a problem for a spiketooth harrow. Rocks can damage the teeth and/or get caught between teeth, and can rip out rows of corn if not watched carefully. By using blind cultivation, a producer can reduce or eliminate the use of herbicides on the farm. If blind cultivation is combined with row cultivation later in the growing season, the use of herbicides may not be needed. By using blind cultivation early in the season, and just a post-emergent application of herbicides later in the season (as needed), a producer can reduce the use of herbicides on the farm.
Ken Wise is the Eastern NYS IPM Educator in the area of Livestock and Field Crop Production at Cornell University. He can be reached at (518) 434-1690 or klw24@cornell.edu.
FLEX-TINE WEEDER Flex-tine weeders are becoming common for early-season broadcast weed control. This tool has multiple round or angle-iron framing members Resource Spotlight that hold round or flat spring Economic Viability of steel teeth that run about a half-inch deep into the soil, Grazing Dairy Farms vibrating and moving around obstructions. This tool can be A new report from Michigan State University entitled used pre-emergence or postEconomic Viability of Grazing Dairy Farms shows that emergence when annual low-capital, managed grazing dairy production offers a weeds are in the white root viable management option for small- and medium-sized stage. Do not let weeds farms and beginning farmers. Findings include the following: green-up because the root system will become too deep * Grazing dairies require less capital investment per cow for the tines to uproot them. than confinement operations, and often have higher returns to assets and equity. A flex-tine weeder can be used on corn up to seven inches tall without much crop damage. While the rotary hoe is best for breaking up soil crusting, the flex-tine weeder also does a good job of crustbusting if the tines are at a 45to 80-degree angle. One advantage to flex-tine weeders is that a stony field does little or no damage to the tines. A disadvantage is that the aggressive action can damage emerged corn if you are not careful. As the angle of the flex-tines increases, they become more aggressive, increasing the soil disturbance and the possibility of damage to the corn crop. SPIKE-TOOTH HARROW The spike-tooth harrow has also been used for blind cultivation and can be effective. The harrow has horizontal bars that hold square metal rods about eight inches long,
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The rotary hoe is very effective at uprooting and killing weeds. It can penetrate the soil one to two inches deep without damaging the crop. Increase your seeding rate by two percent per weeding pass to compensate for possible damage. In addition to its role in weed management, a rotary hoe is very effective at breaking up and aerating crusted soil conditions. The rotary hoe should not be used after corn height exceeds six to seven inches. Do not expect to kill green weeds because their root systems have become too deep. Soil with stones can damage and get stuck between the rotary hoe fingers.
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curved teeth rotate around a straight staff. Alternate wheels are offset for maximum soil contact. A rotary hoe can be used for weed control pre-emergent or post-emergent (before or after weeds emerge). But the fingers on the hoe are very aggressive and can damage the emerged corn if cultivation is not performed correctly.
* Grazing dairies have greater net income per cow and per hundred weight of milk than confinement dairies. A grazing dairy can provide a livable family income on a scale that can be operated and managed primarily by farm family labor. * With reduced costs, lower capital investments and viable net incomes, grazing dairies may present more accessible start-up opportunities for beginning farmers. * Opportunities exist for differentiated, niche, or valueadded products to add to profitability, but do not appear necessary to achieve satisfactory net incomes. * Socially and economically, rural communities with relatively large numbers of medium-sized farms tend to score better in various measures of well-being than do communities with small numbers of larger scale farms. These measures include, for example, lower poverty and unemployment rates, and greater civic engagement. * Dairy operations that rely more heavily on managed perennial pastures can provide enhanced ecosystem services, including reduced soil erosion, reduced phosphorus losses, and increased soil carbon sequestration potential. * Some states are working to address the decline of their state's dairy farms and foster scale diversity through long-term planning, industry diversification, strategic financial assistance, and individualized technical assistance. The entire report is available online at: www.mottgroup.msu.edu/Portals/mottgroup/downloads/R eportForWebsite-Grazing%20Dairy%20Farms.pdf
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GRAZING
Whole Farm Health Dr. Ann Wells advocates the use of well-managed pasture to keep animals healthy and reduce their stress level by Karen Hoffman Sullivan We all know somebody, or some group, that has fit the clichĂŠ, "can't see the forest for the trees". It's easy to get caught up in the little details of a problem or project, and not see the big picture, the long term goal, or even the whole farm. There are a lot of farmers who are caught up in the day to day details of managing the land, the animals, the equipment, and the checkbook. Unfortunately, they don't seem to ever take the time to step back and think about it all as an integrated system. But decisions that are made with respect to one aspect of the farm have an impact on other areas of the farm as well. You may have heard the term "holistic" in relation to decision making or management, and many farms have benefited from using a formalized holistic approach.
Take time to study the plants in your pastures, and carefully observe what your animals are choosing to eat. Photo by Bill Henning
In July, we hosted Dr. Ann Wells for a series of four "whole farm health" pasture walks in a period of two days. Dr. Wells is a veterinarian from Arkansas, and she advocates the use of well-managed pasture to keep animals healthy and reduce their stress level. However, her approach to animal health is about more than just pasture. It is about looking at the whole farm, from the soils and plants to the animals and the people, and is a good place to start if you want to try applying some holistic principles. Ann's approach is pretty simple, and involves walking the farm, knowing and considering some of the history of the land, and looking at the animals. By walking the farm, you can look at what kinds of plants are growing in your pastures. Knowing what kinds of fertilization, tillage, or chemicals that have been applied can help to pinpoint opportunities to improve the health of the soils and plants, leading to better health of the animals. Observing your animals from a distance provides many behavioral clues as to their health status. Watching them in the pasture and seeing how they respond to you is indicative of certain health parameters. STUDY YOUR PASTURES Some plants, which are commonly thought of
as weeds, can indicate either good or poor health of the pastures. If they are plants that animals will eat, you may not want to try to eliminate them just because you think they are weeds. They may have a benefit to the animals, such as medicinal or nutritional properties, which the animals become aware of through trial and error and biofeedback mechanisms. Thus, it helps to really look at what is growing, and determine whether or not the animals are grazing those plants. There may be some plants that really are not desirable, and which may be a problem to eliminate without plowing or spraying. In deciding what to do, consider other aspects such as how your decision will affect the longer term health of the pasture and the soils. For example, instead of treating the symptom by spraying the weeds, consider that the real cause of the problem may be low fertility, and choose the option that has the best result for the pasture plants you want to keep. KNOW YOUR FARM'S HISTORY The history of what you or a predecessor on the farm has done with the land can also help you assess the health of the farm. Soil health - high organic matter, appropriate pH, and biological activity from bacteria, insects, and earthworms -- is affected by the previous treatment of the land. Thus, if you know your pastures had been plowed extensively or received little to no fertilization in the past, you can predict that the soil health may be low. If chemical treatments such as herbicides have been used frequently, there may be little biological activity in the soil to help the plants take up nutrients. If soil health is low, it may be difficult for desirable grasses, legumes, and forbs to grow on that land, or to be of high nutritional quality for your animals. Thus, if your plant health is low, look to the previous treatment of the soil, and determine how to improve that aspect of the farm. OBSERVE YOUR ANIMALS Grazing animals will exhibit certain behaviors while in a pasture and undisturbed by people. If we watch them from a distance, we can sometimes observe behaviors that may indicate a health problem. Recognizing the differences between normal herd or flock behavior and when something is not quite right can be beneficial to both the animal and your health management practices. For example, if one cow is standing or lying down away from the rest of the herd, she may not be feeling well. Taking note of which animal she is, and taking a closer look at her when you can, may help you to determine if treatment is necessary long before she really shows clinical signs of illness. Observing how your animals relate and respond to you when you visit them in the pasture can also be helpful in determining their overall health. If they are curious, and approach you with ears up and forward, heads
Resource Spotlight Don't Miss the Northeast Grasstravaganza 2008! Grazing never looked or tasted so good The Northeast Grasstravaganza is returning to Binghamton, New York on March 28th & 29th, 2008. This upbeat and energizing conference at the Holiday Inn Arena is intended for a region-wide audience of farmers, consumers and agriculture professionals. Participants can expect to hear an outstanding selection of nationally known speakers including: * Kathy Voth -- Colorado-based consultant and owner of Livestock for Landscapes, a business that teaches using animals for weed control, local food production, fire prevention and improving biodiversity; Research Associate with Utah State University's BEHAVE Program; and Stockman Grass Farmer contributor. * Kevin Fulton -- Nebraska beef farmer who custom grazes and grass-finishes over 1000 head on 2,300 acres of native prairie grass and cropland. * Janet McNally -- Minnesota sheep producer and owner of Tamarack Lamb and Wool Co. She is nationally known for practical small ruminant grazing production and profit strategies. Janet is also a regular columnist for the GRAZE magazine. * David Smith -- Maryland based grazier, marketer and president of the American Pastured Poultry Producers Association. His 67 acre multi-generational family farm has been in operation since the 1700's. David has a wealth of knowledge about on-farm marketing and working with the media. * Dan Barber -- Chef/owner, Blue Hill & Blue Hill at Stone Barns and Creative Director of the Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture in Pocantico Hills, NY. Dan has been featured in the New Yorker, Gourmet Magazine, CBS Sunday Morning, New York Times, House and Garden, Martha Stewart Living, Breathe, and named as "the next generation" of great chefs for Bon Appetit's 10th annual restaurant issue. * Shannon Hayes - Mohawk Valley farmer and author of The Farmer and the Grill and The Grassfed Gourmet Cookbook * Dr. Darrell Emmick -- USDA/NRCS NYS Grassland Specialist * Kim Seeley -- grass-based dairyman and President of the Board of the Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture. Practical workshops are planned that span every topic from pasturing strategies, grass finishing, marketing to restaurants and schools, soil health and holistic planning, and how to get started with a grazing operation. A highlight of the Grasstravaganza will be the New York State Grown Grass-Fed Meats trade show. For more details visit the Small Farms Program website at: http://www.smallfarms.cornell.edu/pages/events/index.cfm or call the CNY RC&D office at (607) 3343231 Ext. 4
All Photos by Troy Bishopp
The 2008 Northeast Grasstravaganza is organized and sponsored by the Central NY RC&D Project Inc.; NYS Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative; The Cornell Small Farms Program; Upper Susquehanna Coalition; Soil and Water Conservation Districts of Onondaga, Cayuga, Madison, and Chenango Counties; Cornell Cooperative Extension of Cayuga County; Cornell Department of Animal Science; USDA/NRCS; Rural Health Network of South CNY; Cornerstone Farm Ventures; Creekside Meadows Farm; and High Lonesome Farm. held high, and energy in their step, you can bet they are healthy. However, if there are animals who do not respond to your presence, it should be a flag for you that they may have a health issue. Take a closer look at those animals to try to determine why they have little or no interest in your presence. In both distant and close-up observations, determining the cause of the abnormal behaviors is important. It is your opportunity to think through what the animal may have done, not done, or encountered that would cause it to behave differently from the rest of the group. Asking yourself questions about where the animals have been, any environmental or feed changes they've encountered, or previous health issues they have had can give you clues as to what the current health problem may be caused by and how to help them improve.
Health is more than just the animals - it's the whole picture! Photo by Karen Hoffman Sullivan
January 7, 2008
Take into consideration any other stress that may have affected the animal, because stress can also cause immune system problems. This thought process is where the integration of your observations can really have a positive impact on your decisions. "Whole farm health," therefore, is taking the time to step back and really look at your farm and figure out where the weak link is. Being aware of subtle changes in all the factors that influence health, from the soil to the plant to the animals, including stress, can help you to diagnose and treat problems early. Over time it will become second nature to look and think holistically, and your animals will remain healthy and happy most of the time.
Karen Hoffman-Sullivan is the Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative Coordinator and Animal Scientist with USDA-NRCS in Norwich, NY.
19 January 7, 2008
MARKETING
I Want to Leave a Market A conversation with small farm champion Lydia Ratcliff by Martha Herbert Izzi She sits on her tractor on her good days tethered to an oxygen tank and sets out to mow the fields. She'll need 10,000 bales of hay over the winter to feed her goats, sheep, cows, and veal calves. What hay she doesn't need she will sell as part of several income streams needed to keep her farm going. She won't give it up despite the effort that it takes just to get on the rig. It is through sheer will and feistiness that this Vermont farmer, seventy-four year old Lydia Ratcliff, gets through the days to work the farm and the phones.
To those who know her she is a farmer and an eccentric, strong-willed, some would say, dictatorial leader. She is also a teacher who will share her encyclopedic knowledge of husbandry, genetics, philosophy, writing or anything else one may want to know or even not want to know. She has no trouble telling someone where they failed...and what they might do
"I'm the manager, which means selling and helping the bookkeeper collect funds. I'm the coach... I'm involved with the farmers from the beginning. How they grow. What they grow." Ratclifff has someone go out to visit each farmer, to check their breeding and feeding programs in an effort to maintain consistent quality. Maintaining quality, she says, "is very difficult for small producers." She points out that "we sell all sizes of young lambs plus mutton depending on what the customer wants." The farmer gets $5.50 a pound (carcass weight) minus the marketing fee for prime young lambs, well above the auction prices.
The phone and fax are her financial lifelines. In addition to farming, Ratcliff manages Fancy Meats From Vermont, a product marketing group which sells the custom meats, eggs and cheese from about thirty small farmers. Their products, and often their farm names, are on the menus many of top-of-the-line restaurants in New York and Boston.
to succeed. She is also a writer who once worked as a researcher for Time Magazine. Later she spent thirteen years partnered with Sylvia Porter whose Money Book was published in 1975 and sold millions of copies.
FANCY MEATS FROM VERMONT Fancy Meats From Vermont is currently generating about $400,000 a year in sales, with a volume and return that is optimal to balance producers sales. Ratcliff's philosophy in terms of running the organization is to "Keep it small, lean, sharp manageable, personal, and customized." To that she adds, "We have never failed to pay any producers. We have no debts. We have low overhead. And the customer is always right."
With the money she made from that effort she came to Vermont, bought an 1820 farm house and built a twelve sided, almost-round barn. Although she began her life as a pig farmer, she quickly diversified, and thinks every small farmer should do the same. Apart from the fact that Ratcliff spent two weeks early on in a Massachusetts slaughter house learning the craft, she is largely self-
Ratcliff is known to some of the nation's most acclaimed chefs. And if there is any language barrier, she will speak to them in fluent French or Italian, an undoubted asset for a class of chefs who don't expect to work with bi-lingual farmers. But chefs know that Lydia Ratcliff is no ordinary producer. Over the many years since she became her own marketing and sales agent, they've seen this woman matter-of-factly carry whole meat carcasses into their kitchens on her delivery rounds through the city. Today, a paid driver makes twenty to thirty weekly deliveries in New York City and Boston for Fancy Meats From Vermont.
slaughterhouse is that he must complete three forms just to kill one cow and twelve forms in the course of a day's work. Ratcliff says there is a "rumor floating around that we might see a shift in the inspection process from the Federal level to the States," and she hopes it is true. It might help reduce costs and perhaps some of the documentation process. "Our state inspectors are more realistic, more attuned to our problems and they have ways of appraising big and small dangers." "We are being strangled by dubious regulations," she says, citing one which requires that "eggs and meat can't be in the same processing room. They cannot even be in the same cooler together... There is no one in New York City who is doing any curing or smoking, because they have been regulated out of business by people who have never made a sausage. People are scared of sausage. People are being forced to abandon a major part of their cuisine, or they are making them illegally... I cannot imagine that there isn't some constructive approach to work with cultural and culinary traditions." The other potentially crippling issue is the everdecreasing number of slaughterhouses. She and her producers are trucking and hauling animals as far away as Goffstown, NH and Altamont, NY. It is not surprising that she laments her age and says "I would be a lobbyist in another life and would concentrate on promoting intelligent deregulation."
The "almost-round" barn at Ratcliff's Lovejoy Brook Farm.
Lydia Ratcliff heading off to mow. Photos by Martha Herbert Izzi
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Some of Ratcliff's 75 breeding ewes. taught. She rails against the "office-bound professors of Agriculture who don't know what it takes to keep a farm afloat or to make it economically." She never married nor has any children so she did most, if not all, of the hard work and "got accustomed to the leanness and poverty that went with it."
To be sure, Ratcliff is an unusual woman with an unusual background. Foremost in her mind is to establish a marketing model for small farm survival, and for the most part hers is a success story.
She says that everyone who is in farming should do the same thing, "and also have an outside job." Among other things, she edited professional papers for faculty and researchers at the Harvard Medical School for many years, often in the wee hours, to supplement her farm income.
When she moved to Vermont and began farming her 125 acres in the mid- seventies she chose to return to her own back yard, New York City, for her market and went to the people with whom she had something in common. Good fresh, locally grown food. Those were the days when that phrase was largely unfamiliar to most of us, but one that she espoused. She takes some credit for the years that she doggedly worked to connect farmers with consumers with fresh products at fair prices.
LOW OVERHEAD The conversation turns to the specifics of the business. It begins with introductions to the four people who help Ratcliff operate her farm. Two of them are trainees who live on the farm. When she speaks of low-overhead she means it. We are in her living room. "This is the office." It is a card table piled with papers, a phone and the ubiquitous oxygen apparatus.
"I deal with individual chefs about individual lambs and I know which lamb went to which chef. We sell lambs, pigs, goats, rabbits, veal, eggs and sheep's milk cheese as well as goat milk cheese. I get a 6% commission and no charge for the management." WHAT CHEFS WANT Ratcliff will go to great lengths to please a chef and even though it might not be profitable, it will reap rewards the next time she calls to get an order. Some chefs want specialties such as offal brains, innards, calf head, heart, lungs and cheek. "Cheek is one of the most succulent parts of a pig, veal or beef," she says. She says that pigs have really taken off. "When I started out in pigs some thirty years ago, I learned that they were hard to handle, that we had a high mortality rate in babies. They eat an enormous amount and I was feeding them for six to eight months. The alternative is to sell young suckling pigs for the same price as baby lambs. A fifty pound suckling pig dresses at thirty pounds at six weeks. So why not get them off farm before they cost you? It's the same for baby lambs, we make mom do most of the work and then ship them at ten weeks versus ten months."
As for the small farmer, she says, "We need cash. I would like to have a dime for every program to help small farmers... Some form of direct subsidy is necessary. Only pennies get to the farmer when what they need is $1,000 to $5,000 a year to keep afloat. Farmers are feeding people, they are the land stewards, keeping land open and free from becoming overgrown." They are a boon to the tourist industry as well. REWARDS OF FARMING As our discussion winds down Lydia Ratcliff speaks to what makes her want to continue. What makes anyone choose a lifestyle that demands so much, for comparatively little financial return? She has to be smart and take advantage of any and all income possibilities. She rents rooms, she has local customers, she sells Maremma puppies at $400 a dog. But for Ratcliff, "the benefits of small farms don't get counted" in a purely economic calculation. "Being your own boss, land stewardship, attending to the soil, the benefits to children who have their own jobs on the farm, animals, an opportunity to work with parents" are huge motivators.
As for grass-fed meat, Ratcliff says, "the chefs think they want it until they order it once. Then they don't like it. I'm a firm believer in giving grain to our animals for our market. Grass feeding produces a darker color which chefs see as a sign of older age. Grass-fed animals are tougher, redder, with little or no fat. Most people prefer meat which is marbled." Ratcliff's producers don't pasture lambs. They are grain and hay fed in small areas where they move around freely but don't run up and down pastures where they will gain muscle and become tough. "Chefs want melt-in-your mouth baby lamb, with a fat cover from grain and corn which results in light colored, tender meat with a delicate flavor." We move on to the challenges of keeping the business going in an era of savage competition in the restaurant industry, spiraling gas prices, and a litany of agricultural rules and regulations. "The top five per cent of restaurants will charge what they want," she says, "but the vast middle are struggling and most are lowering prices to compete." LIVESTOCK PROCESSING CHALLENGES Ironically the rules covering slaughtering and processing are becoming stricter and more prohibitive just as the demand for fresh, locally grown products is skyrocketing. A stunning example reported by the operator of one
Lydia Ratcliff in her "office" And she has heroes. "The inventors of the land trusts and intentional communities... Dan Barber, a New York chef whose heart and soul has been to buy local, to know and support small farms... Robert Rodale, a legend in the organic farming movement... E.F. Schumacher and the Schumacher Institute in the Berkshires who wrote and lived by the creed that Small Is Beautiful." And so does Lydia Ratcliff.
Martha Herbert Izzi raises Tunis Sheep and Alpine Goats on Bel Lana Farm in Shrewsbury, Vermont. She can be reached at 802-492-3346 or mhizzi@yahoo.com. For further information please contact: Lydia Ratcliff, Lovejoy Brook Farm, Chester Vermont 05143. Phone/Fax 802875-3159.
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January 7, 2008
SMALL FARM QUARTERLY
Small Farm Quarterly
Youth Pages
The Youth Pages are written by and for young people. Many thanks to the 4-H Teens from Suffolk County who contributed 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!
Get your article published by sending it to: SFQ Youth Pages c/0 Celeste Carmichael 4-H Youth Development Program Specialist CCE State 4-H Youth Development Office 340 Roberts Hall Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 607-255-4799 • cjc17@cornell.edu
A Wonderful Opportunity By Robyn Zeolla, Age 13, Suffolk County My name is Robyn and I live in Suffolk County, on Long Island. My town, Middle Island, is a pretty typical suburban town. We have large, crowded schools, department stores, and discount warehouse stores all within a 10 mile radius of my house. Yet, I live on an acre of land where I am frequently visited by deer, raccoon and opossum. Three years ago, I discovered a great program at the Cornell Cooperative Extension Suffolk County Farm in Yaphank, which is only five miles from my house. The program is called "4-H Livestock Animal Showmanship" and is available to kids ages 8 - 19. This program has provided me with the opportunity to work with animals and learn things that I never would have thought were possible while living in Suburbia. My first two years in the program, I worked with dairy goats. I learned how to clip and trim them, bathe them, trim their hooves, ears, etc. I also learned how to take their temperature, de-worm them and tattoo them. We learned proper health and nutrition for the animals and also how to "show" them in competition. My second year working with dairy goats, I was able to take what I learned to the New York State Fair in Syracuse. This was truly an incredible experience. At the
fair, I got to meet other kids from all over New York State, many of whom live on farms and breed and raise their own livestock. I learned a lot by talking with them. Most were more than willing to lend advice to novices like me. The New York State Fair also presented me and other kids from Suffolk County with the opportunity to enter optional competitions such as Goat Fitting, Goat Bowl (like a jeopardy game) and Goat Products and Knowledge. Here, we learned how to work together as a team. We won a few ribbons, but more importantly, we gained knowledge about our animals and made good friends by working together and learning teamwork. This past summer, I was able to compete again at the New York State Fair. This year I chose to work with Meat Goats, providing me with even more knowledge. Now, I've even seen goats and sheep being born. As a 13 year old girl from suburbia, I feel so fortunate to have had all these opportunities and experiences. I've gained confidence in competing, working with teammates, and have learned how to have fun and learn by observing other events. These experiences have helped me to decide that I would definitely like a career working with animals. For more information about raising goats, visit http://www.ansci.cornell.edu/4H/goats/ .
Robyn Zeolla showing her goat.
My First State Fair Experience By Jhara Tumm, Age 17, Suffolk County My name is Jhara Tumm and I am a new member of the 4H program. While growing up, I always wanted to become involved in working with animals. I started joining some of the animal camps offered by the Suffolk County Farm and fell in love with them. As I got older, I realized that I wanted to become a Veterinarian. However, once I found out how much school I needed to receive my license, I decided that I wanted to be a Veterinary Technician. Ever since then, I have been doing everything possible to get as much hands-on experiences with animals as I can. My most recent hands-on experiences were shadowing Veterinarians at animal hospitals, participating in a local
Jhara Tumm with her goat
4-H Veterinary Medicine Career Exploration Program. Since I live in a condominium, my only chance to experience a farm has been at the Suffolk County Farm in Yaphank.
a judge. By the time the County fair came, I felt well prepared due to the information I had learned in a time span of ten weeks.
I first became a 4-H member during the summer by joining the ten week showmanship program. After the tenth week, we had the opportunity to participate in a small fair at our farm. We then had the option to continue on to the New York State fair.
I also competed in the New York State fair in Syracuse and did really well, considering the other competitors had these kinds of animals in their backyards. The whole experience was extremely helpful to me since I desire a career working with all kinds of animals as a Veterinary Technician. I had a lot of fun and would definitely recommend it to anyone who loves animals and wants to learn more about them.
During the program, I was able to choose between two animals to work with. One choice was a lamb; the other was a baby goat, or kid. I chose to work with a kid and named her Tia. She was one of a set of twins. I was taught how to socialize her, groom her, and how to show her in a ring with
Jhara Tumm showing her goat
For more information about Veterinary Science, visit http://www.ansci.cornell.edu/4H/vetsci/ .
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SMALL FARM QUARTERLY
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Livestock Judging By Kristen Tangen, Suffolk County I have spent my last 6 summers at the Suffolk County 4-H Farm learning and doing things that most kids on Long Island will never get the chance to do. I work with livestock. Not only do I learn about animal care, but I show these animals. Although working with and showing cattle have been amazing, my most memorable experience has to be competing in Livestock Judging. In the summer of 2006 I was persuaded to try for the New York State Livestock Judging Team. At the time I said "yes," I don't think I truly understood how much work it was going to be. I spent my free time during summer studying l to prepare for the competition at the end of August. I had to learn everything from note taking to proper term use, what the "perfect" animal should look like, and how to give oral reasons. My most challenging endeavor was building my vocabulary. I had a tendency to use simple terms rather than judging terms and phrases, so I usually ran out of ways to describe the animal. It was frustrating: I could usually look at an animal and see that it was better than the others, but I couldn't find a way to put it into words. I struggled when I gave oral reasons. I would get nervous, and I would forget everything I had tried to memorize. It was tough to act calm, collected, and confident when I didn't feel that way at all. I put a lot of effort into studying for the competition and it paid off. I, along with three other 4-Hers from across the state, qualified for the New York State team and traveled to the National Competition in Louisville, Kentucky. I was surprised I made the team; I knew that there was still a lot I didn't know about judging. I had my work cut out for me! Through the course of the trip I continued to pick up more tips on judging from my coach and teammates. Looking back, I don't think I stopped learning at any point on the trip. It was hard to balance judging practice and school work between the competitions. I always had school work to do while I was away. One weekend I had to study for the ACTs as well as compete in a beef cattle judging contest. After making it through that weekend, I knew I was capable of balancing my work and managing my time. November seemed to come so fast that it was unreal. Even though I was excited to spend a week with my new friends, I couldn't help but think about the massive amounts of school work I would have to make up. Once the trip got stared, those thoughts were pushed out of my mind. All I did was eat, sleep, and breathe judging. Come the day of
Kristin Tangen with the New York State Livestock Judging Team
competition, I didn't think I could hold anymore information if I tried. When the competition was over I remember feeling so relieved, but sad at the same time. I had worked hard to get there and I had such a great time, I didn't want it to end. Being a member of the New York State Livestock Judging Team was, to say the least, awesome! I walked away with great friends and memories, as well as knowledge that will last a life time. I learned about Livestock Judging, and also about myself. I am more confident and not afraid to get up in front of a group of people to give a speech. I realized that I am a very driven person when I have a goal ahead of me. I proved to myself that I was successful at balancing heavy loads of work. If I put time and effort into something I want, I can get it even when it seems out of reach. I also know that in the end even if I don't reach my goal, I walk away from the experience with a great accomplishment. I can thank 4-H and my County Livestock Program for providing me with the opportunities that have helped me grow and be better prepared for the future. For livestock judging information, visit http://www.ansci.cornell.edu/4H/
New York State Maple Queen By Lacey Pitman, Age 17, Suffolk County Many little girls dream of becoming princesses or queens, but this only happens to a few. When I was little, I often dreamt of how neat it would be to wear a crown, a sash and a beautiful dress. Now at the age of seventeen, my little dream has come true. On May 19, 2007 I was crowned New York State Maple Queen, in Croghan, New York. It took me a couple of days to realize that I was representing the entire state as Maple Queen. I could have never wished for this in a million years and I am so happy that I was given this title. Before I became the New York State Maple Queen, I represented the Chenango Area as their Maple Queen. To be a Maple Queen I had to know all the maple facts. And believe me, I know them all. Since I was five, I have had the opportunity to help my family make maple syrup . I am the fourth generation in my family to make syrup. Being a part of the sugar making processes is a family tradition, and making maple syrup is a great way to be with family and to build memories. At 7 years old, my first job in the maple syrup industry was gathering the sap buckets. I used five gallon buckets and, believe me, they were heavy! As I got older, I started splitting the firewood and packaging maple
syrup into cans and bottles. Then, at the age of 14, my mother and father taught me how to drain off the maple syrup and place it in a filter. Now at the age of 17, I am a tremendous help to my family in the process of making maple syrup. When dreaming of becoming a queen or a princess, most people think that there is not a lot of work involved, but there is. As the New York State Maple Queen I have participated in numerous parades, fairs and other events. It is a lot of work but I have fun doing it. The one thing I like about being the New York State Maple Queen is meeting new people and seeing new places. I wouldn't trade it for anything. Becoming a Queen is something that all little girls wish for. A sash and gown would mean a lot to most girls. To me, though, it is not about wearing the crown or the sash, it's about the representation that you hold and the knowledge you give out. I consider it a great honor to represent New York State as its Maple Queen. For more about maple production in New York, visit http://www.nysmaple.com/
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GRAZING
Added Nutritional Value of Grass-fed Beef National Grass-fed Beef Conference examines evidence of health benefits by Thomas Gallagher I was fortunate enough last winter to free up some time in my schedule to attend the National Grass-fed Beef Conference held in Harrisburg PA, February 28-March 2. With so many producers trying to make label claims such as grass fed, natural, organic, humanely raised, born and raised in the USA, and even predator friendly, this conference was very timely. As a livestock specialist with Cooperative Extension, I was very interested in the presentations on various production practices. Managing perennial pastures for finishing, animal genetics for effective use of pastures, grass-fed protocols and production benchmarks for northeast grass-fed beef farms were just a few of the 34 topics presented by speakers from as far away as Santa Rosa Argentina. I enjoyed and learned a lot from all of the presenters, but what really caught my attention were two speakers on the claim that grass-fed beef is healthier and more nutritious. AN EVOLUTIONARY PERSPECTIVE The first speaker on this topic was Dr. Lauren Cordain, with Colorado State University's Department of Health and Exercise Science. Dr. Cordain's presentation began with a discussion on the evolution of grass-fed beef in the diet starting with the Auroch breed of cattle over 11,000 years ago. To this day European cattle breeds maintain a lineage that reflects a genetic mixture of local wild Aurochs. Throughout most of recorded history, cattle were typically fed by providing them with free access to pastures, grassland and rangelands. It is only in the past 150-200 years that animal husbandry practices have substantially changed. The period of the industrial revolution saw the greatest changes in animal agriculture. The steam engine was invented, which allowed us to ship grains and cattle across the country. This started the feedlot concept of feeding cattle. Before 1885, cattle were raised on grass and slaughtered at 4-5 years of age. After 1885, the science of fattening cattle in feedlots made it possible to finish a steer in 24 months, the product from which exhibited "marbling" - something pasture fed cattle rarely displayed.
Modern feedlot operations involving as many as 100,000 cattle emerged in the 1950's and have developed to the point where a 30% body fat steer can be ready for slaughter at 15 months of age. Almost 99% of all beef consumed in the US is now produced from feedlot cattle, which has led to muscle tissue with low protein and omega-3 fatty acid content, as well as high total fat, absolute saturated fatty acid content, omega-6 fatty acid and an elevated omega-6/omega-3 fatty acid ratio. Grass-fed beef, on the other hand, has been shown to elevate levels of longchain polyunsaturated fatty acids and contain elevated concentrations of betacarotene and alpha tocopherol as well as higher concentrations of omega-3 fatty acids and conjugated linoleic acid, all substances reported to have favorable effects on human health. Dr. Cordain went on in her discussion to compare the nutritional characteristics of grass-fed beef to feedlot beef (see Table 1) and how those differences could affect human health and diseases such as coronary heart disease, hypertension, type 2 diabetes, arthritis, autoimmune diseases and cancer.
Throughout most of recorded history, cattle were typically raised on forages, with little or no grain. Photo by Troy Bishopp. reviewed the importance these specific nutrients have with regard to human health. The specific nutrients that have been found to be at elevated levels in grass-fed beef are beta-carotene and alpha tocopherol, Omega-3 fatty acids and conjugated linoleic acid (CLA). All of these nutrients have shown favorable affects on human health. Beta-Carotene is a fat-soluble antioxidant, which belongs to a family of natural chemicals known as Carotenes or Carotenoids. Carotenes produce the orange yellow color found in fruits and vegetables and is converted to Vitamin A
Table 1. Potential nutritional differences between feedlot and grass fed beef Nutrient omega-3 fatty acids omega-6 fatty acids omega-6/ omega-3 ratio Long chain fatty acids (both omega-3 and omega-6) Fat content Saturated fatty acids P/S Ratio Conjugated linoleic acid Vitamin E Vitamin C Beta carotene Protein content NUTRITIONAL DIFFERENCES The next speaker in the program was Dr. Cynthia Daley from California State University Chico. Dr. Daley's presentation summarized information currently available to support the enhanced nutrient claim for grass-fed meat products, and
Grass-fed beef has been shown to elevate levels of several nutrients reported to have favorable effects on human health. Photo by Bill Henning shows mixed breed beef herd of Ros and Gail Parks in Seneca Falls,NY.
Grass Higher Lower Lower Higher
Feed Lot Lower Higher Higher Lower
Lower Lower Higher Higher Higher Higher Higher Higher
Higher Higher Lower Lower Lower Lower Lower Lower
by the body. Vitamin A is a critical fat-soluble vitamin that is important for normal vision, bone growth, reproduction, cell division and cell differentiation. Vitamin E is also a fat-soluble vitamin that exists in eight different forms with powerful antioxidant activity, the most active being alpha-tocopherol. Antioxidants protect cells against the effects of free radicals that may contribute to the development of chronic diseases such as cancer and cardiovascular disease. There are two essential fatty acids in human nutrition: alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), an omega-3 fatty acid, and linoletic acid (LA), an omega-6 fatty acid. Both serve as precursors to other important compounds to the body. A healthy diet should consist of one to four times more omega-6 fatty acids than omega-3 fatty acids, yet the typical American diet is 11 to 30 times more omega-6 to omega -3.
Conjugated linoleic Acid (CLA) is a group of polyunsaturated fatty acids found in meat and milk that have shown significant health benefits to humans. Research has shown that grass-fed beef is higher in vitamin A, Vitamin E, CLA and Omega3. However, as percent body fat in the beef animal decreases, so does the concentration of these important lipids. Research is currently being done to address grass-finishing practices and attaining an acceptable degree of fatness. Some of this research may lead us all the way to the genetics that were part of the Auroch breed mentioned earlier. POTENTIAL HEALTH BENEFITS Both Dr. Cordain and Dr. Daley have cited research that grass-fed beef contains elevated levels of nutrients that could possibly have a positive impact on a person's health as compared to grain fed beef. The question remains that these differences may have little or no physiological relevance because the total amount is small compared to daily-recommended intakes (RDI). That being said, many of the current health problems and chronic diseases that afflict the American public result from extreme consumption of refined sugars, grains, vegetable oils, fatty meats and dairy products. Human health and wellbeing could potentially be impacted by including more lean, grass-fed beef in our diet at the expense of fatty, feedlot produced meats, refined sugar, grains, vegetable oils, fatty meats and dairy products. Consumers are very concerned about food safety, health and nutrition when purchasing beef products. A locally grown grass-fed beef product of the correct genetics and fed properly could address all of their concerns. I am currently working on a grass-fed research project in Albany County funded by a USDA SARE grant. By the end of next year, I hope to have an answer to that all-important question: Can we raise grass-fed beef locally with our current genetics and generate a profit for the producers and meet the needs of consumers?
Tom Gallagher is the Agriculture & Horticulture Issue Leader with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Albany County. He can be reached at 518-765-3500 or tjg3@cornell.edu
23 January 7, 2008
STEWARDSHIP & NATURE
Agricultural Environmental Management Farming in harmony with stream health
Streams also link farms to the rest of the watershed. Your farm's interaction with streams is one of its most immediate opportunities to benefit the environment or to cause pollution risks. Our continuing series on New York State's Agricultural Environmental Management (AEM) Program focuses this quarter on the Stream and Floodplain Management Worksheet. This worksheet will walk you through a quick assessment of your stream's health and help identify potential risk factors. The best part is that there are cost-sharing programs that offer incentives to farmers to improve stream corridors. These opportunities are available to farms of all types and sizes. WHAT IS A HEALTHY STREAM? A stream is a complex ecosystem in which physical, biological and chemical processes interact. Streams naturally change course over time as they meander across the landscape. Some stream bank erosion and changes in channel are
increase crop yields by providing habitat for beneficial insects, and maintaining stable streambanks can help you reduce the risk of losing valuable cropland to streambank erosion. Water quality can be protected by ensuring that there is adequate vegetation between the stream and crop fields or pastures to filter farm runoff before it reaches the stream. Proper timing of nutrient application in floodplains can also reduce the risk of nutrients being washed downstream by floodwaters.
By Barbara Silvestri Is there a stream or brook that runs through your farm? Traditionally farms have been located near water sources to meet farm needs. Even as times change, healthy streams provide multiple benefits to farms. Streams enrich the soil with seasonal flooding, provide fish and wildlife habitat, and enhance scenic beauty and land values.
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receive financial incentives to voluntarily enroll environmentally sensitive cropland or pastureland in contracts for a period of 10 to 15 years. Financial incentives for CREP participants include an annual rental payment as well as partial reimbursement for the establishment of streamside vegetation and the cost of livestock exclusion when needed. If you farm in New York and would like to schedule a free, confidential AEM Risk Assessment for your farm, including the Stream and Floodplain Management
normal in a healthy stream as it gradually changes its course. However, active down cutting and excessive lateral cutting are signs of an unstable stream channel. Periodic flooding and "bankfull flow," when the stream channel is full without overflowing, are healthy stream functions. They maintain channel shape and function, such as sediment transport, and sustain physical habitat for plants and animals. Thriving streamside vegetation is one of the most important elements of a healthy stream ecosystem. Stream protection increases with the width and complexity of the woody vegetation along the streambanks. Ideally, natural vegetation should extend at least one channel width on each side. This not only helps stabilize the streambanks, but also provides excellent habitat for wildlife. Trees shading the stream channel cool the water and provide leaf litter and woody debris, improving fish habitat. Tree roots help stabilize streambanks by holding soil in place during periods of high flow. Streamside vegetation can also
Cattle drink from an alternate water supply. Fencing keeps cows out of a stream, which eliminates manure deposition and enhances streamside vegetation. Alternate water supplies can also improve herd health and farm bio-security. Photo by Barbara Silvestri Nutrient inputs from farms, households and businesses can compound in the watershed and cause pollution concerns downstream. Reducing the risk of nutrient runoff from farm fields is one way farmers are doing their part and helping maintain the status of agriculture as a preferred land use for water quality protection. Conducting an AEM Risk Assessment can give you an accurate picture of how your farm operation is interacting with streams and whether improvements are needed to benefit the farm and the environment. The AEM program is designed to assist you in environmental stewardship while protecting your bottom line, and stream management doesn't have to break the bank. Often stream health can be improved by simple management changes such as preventing livestock access to streams, which has the added benefit of improving herd health and adding to the bio-security of the farm. For more expensive needs, such as fencing and alternate water supplies, there are cost-share programs that can help. COST-SHARE PROGRAMS One funding opportunity is the New York State Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP). Made possible through a partnership between the State and US Departments of Agriculture, this program provides incentives to landowners who create vegetative buffers along streams. Through CREP, farmers establish three zones, trees next to the stream, then shrubs and finally grasses.
Periodic flooding is a healthy stream function. Photo courtesy of NY CREP Program
Signup for CREP is continuous and there is no competitive process to obtain the funding. Participants who are eligible
Worksheet, contact your County Soil and Water Conservation District. To learn more about AEM, view the Worksheets (including the Stream and Floodplain Management Worksheet), or to locate your Conservation District office, visit: www.nys-soilandwater.org. Check the next issue for more information on how AEM is helping over 11,000 farm families statewide farm cleaner and greener, and how you can put AEM to work on your farm.
Barbara Silvestri is the Information & Education Program Coordinator with the NYS Soil & Water Conservation Committee in Albany, NY. She can be reached at 518-457-3738 or barb.silvestri@agmkt.state.ny.us.
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NON-DAIRY LIVESTOCK
New Statewide Work Team Tackles Livestock Processing Issues Email listserve provides open forum for discussion among farmers, regulators, researchers, and educators By Martha Goodsell Thanks to a mini-grant from the Cornell Small Farms Program, New York State now has a statewide Livestock Processing Issues (LPI) Work Team. The LPI Work Team includes farmers, Cornell Extension faculty, NGO and agency representatives. The goals and activities of this Work Team are geared to helping livestock farmers and small processors deal with livestock processing issues. The LPI work team will focus on several objectives: 1) to improve communication and understanding among livestock farmers, small scale processors, and regulatory agencies; 2) to publicize current livestock processing resources available and assemble resources as needed; and 3) to identify current challenges in livestock processing, address possible solutions and opportunities for NYS farmers and processors, and create a statewide work plan for action. The Work Team with input from stakeholders will examine issues, come to a consensus on the major regulatory barriers facing small scale livestock and dairy farmers and create a plan of action to improve processing infrastructures and regulations for NY livestock farmers.
"Working with legislators and rule makers to address regulatory concerns from a small farm perspective has the potential to improve the effectiveness of small NY farmers and processors and reduce some of the regulatory and infrastructure barriers we face in livestock processing," says Stanton. As a first step in meeting its objectives, team members have created an email list serve, LivestockProcessing-L, for communication among interested livestock farmers, small scale processors, extension staff, and agency representatives in New York and bordering states. (See Resource Spotlight.)
To join this list, contact the list moderators, Tatiana Stanton at TLS7@cornell.edu or Martha Goodsell at deerfarm6@frontiernet.net, asking to be put on the list and indicating the email address you want to send and receive list messages from. Another option is to send an email to LivestockProcessing-L-request@cornell.edu leaving the subject line blank. The body of the
The list is open to members of bordering states in part to find out how they deal with similar issues and situations within their respective states. If you are interested in keeping abreast of slaughter and processing issues and want a chance to share your own views, we urge you to join LivestockProcessing-L.
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For more information please call.
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message should be a single word: JOIN. Send this message in plain text - no formatting - and remember to send it from the e-mail address where you want to receive and send messages posted to the e-list.
Martha Goodsell is a deer farmer in Candor, NY and a member of the new statewide Livestock Processing Issues Work Team.
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LivestockProcessing-L will serve as a forum for: 1) sharing processing resources, 2) discussing barriers to effective processing and potential solutions, 3) publicizing regional efforts to improve or expand slaughter and processing facilities, and 4) sharing news and Action Alerts pertaining to livestock slaughter and small scale processing of animal products.
"Across the state we have seen various starts and stutters when attempting to address the processing challenges that small scale livestock and dairy farmers face," says Work Team member Dr. Tatiana Stanton of Cornell's Animal Science Department. "The development • Do you know there is still one milk market that is of a single state-wide plan family owned and would like to buy your milk? should create efficiency and increase strength in addressing • The following are benefits that could be yours. the challenges." The Work Team will collaborate with the United States Department of Agriculture Food Safety and Inspection System (USDA FSIS), New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets (NYSDAM), the NY Legislative Committee on Agriculture, chaired by William Magee, the NYS Senate Committee on Agriculture, chaired by Catherine Young, and others.
January 7, 2008
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