FNE Using invasive Eurasian milfoil as an organic soil amendment: Effect on yield of tomato crop

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1 New York FNE Using invasive Eurasian milfoil as an organic soil amendment: Effect on yield of tomato crop Ian Ater, Fledging Crow Vegetables, Keeseville NY Eurasian milfoil is an invasive aquatic species that outcompetes native vegetation and forms dense mats on lake bottoms in a way that degrades water quality. But dried milfoil has high calcium levels, a carbon to nitrogen ratio of 15:1, and adds organic matter to the soil. The farmer will conduct trials to see if this invasive will increase tomato yield and foliar nutrients as compared to controls. Outreach will be through a fact sheet, inclusion in a curriculum, and farmer-to-farmer conference sessions. $6,697 FNE High-tunnel bed and trellised crops sprayer Andrew Fellenz, Fellenz Family Farm, Phelps NY As the use of high tunnels expands, so does the variety of crops grown in them, and these plants can be trellised when very tall or very low to the ground, all in the same enclosure. Because of this variety, spraying protectants and foliar feeds can be difficult to do accurately, and there is no multi-crop sprayer commercially available. The farmer will construct, test, and modify as needed a boom sprayer to see whether there are gains in efficiency, precision, and application at label rates. Outreach will be via field days, winter grower meetings, and conferences. $14,906 FNE Bedding material comparison in a composting barn Sarah Ficken, New Moon Farms, Munnsville NY Composted bedded pack barns address issues of nutrient management, cow comfort, and manure storage, but the cost of sawdust and shaving bedding is an obstacle to adoption. Peanut hulls and shredded paper are two readily available bedding sources that have characteristics suited to composting. The farmer will compare these alternatives to standard sawdust and shavings for biological activity, cow preference, and pack temperature, and outreach will be through a field day, hosted tours, and a video. $11,081 FNE Best cultural practices for microgreens production: A quantitative and seasonal analysis Allan Gandalman, Main Street Farms, Homer NY

2 Microgreens--small, nutritious sprouted plants, often brassicas are potentially a high-value crop, but quantitative production data is lacking. The farmer will compare a selection of microgreen varieties for yield, performance under different temperature conditions, and the need for supplemental heat. He will also develop a varietal succession guide and budgeting tools. Outreach will be through an on-farm workshop, the farm website, Facebook, and extension. $7,710 FNE Cold climate grapes determining an appropriate training system for improved yield Richard Lamoy, Hid-In-Pines Vineyard, Morrisonville NY This project builds on three previous awards, and will investigate which training systems may be best suited to raise yields and quality in grapes grown in the cold Northeast. Using white and red varieties of varying hardiness, the farmer will test four different training systems and the impact of single and double canopies. Outreach will be through on-site gatherings, extension, and print and online summaries. $14,935 FNE The use of insect netting on existing bird netting support systems to exclude spotted wing drosophila from a mature small-scale commercial highbush blueberry planting Dale Ila Riggs, The Berry Patch of Stone Wall Hill Farm, LLC, Stephentown NY Spotted wing drosophila (SWD) is an invasive fruit fly that lays its eggs in unripe fruit, resulting in maggot contamination; in 2012, SWD caused losses of 80 to 100 percent of fall raspberries and 30 to 50 percent of blueberries. Small-scale trials with insect netting have shown promise for excluding this pest, and the farmer will adapt existing bird netting support systems to support large sections of insect netting, track the steps and costs involved, measure berry marketability, and evaluate SWD infestation levels. Outreach will be through grower meetings, conferences, extension, and the agricultural media. $11,820 ONE No-tilling grazing brassicas into existing pastures: Remediation of sward and soil health for pastures Fay Benson, Cornell Cooperative Extension, Cortland NY There is a decline in nutrient density of the grazing sward from September to the end of the grazing season caused by the change in fiber content and secondary plant metabolites of grasses. The project manager will introduce no-till brassica seed into the grazing sward to increase forage quality and help farmers extend the grazing season and finish livestock before winter. The project will also address pasture hardpan by using bio-drill brassicas, which have been shown to improve water retention, mineral availability, and nutrient cycling. Outreach will be through pasture walks, conferences, and the web.

3 $14,470 ONE Creating resources to increase collaborative marketing impacts for direct marketers Laura Biasillo, Cornell Cooperative Extension, Broome County, Binghamton NY Collaborative marketing offers direct marketers access to new markets, but no literature or data exists about what business structure might work best or how to forecast and evaluate collaborative marketing relationships. The project manager will work with direct marketers interested in or currently pursuing collaborative marketing to create and test new resources, and she will also create an online and print resource center dedicated to collaborative marketing. Case studies will illustrate concepts and describe collaborating farmers and their experiences. Outreach will be through the agricultural media, presentations at conferences, and a summit conference during the last phase of the project. $13,810 ONE Enhancing on-farm decision making and building community among Adirondack farmers Curt Gervich, SUNY Plattsburgh, Plattsburgh NY Without a structured approach to planning and decision making, farm management can be hasty, haphazard, and arbitrary; indeed, in many cases of farm closure, farmers tend to blame the complexities of farming rather than discrete dilemmas with clear solutions. The project manager will build a team of students and professors from SUNY Plattsburgh who will train farmers in Essex and Clinton counties to adopt Structured Decision Making, a planning and decision tool for making complex choices about farm management. $14,910 ONE Farm-To-Glass classroom Sarah Gordon, Carey Institute for Global Good, Rensselaerville NY In 2012, Governor Cuomo created a farm brewery license for brewers who purchase 20 percent of their hops and 40 percent of other ingredients from New York State; this ramps up to a 90 percent domestic ingredient requirement by However, New York hops and malting grain supplies are so meager that they could easily be consumed by a single microbrewery. The project manager will work with farmers interested in expanding into hops and malts by covering key topics like soil selection, fertilizer, varieties, seed sources, pest control, harvesting, drying, storage, buyer relations, and other subjects. Outreach will be via recorded webinars archived on line, supporting print materials, and a report. $14,981 ONE Expanding the use of brassica cover crops in onion production Christine Hoepting, Cornell Cooperative Extension Vegetable Program, Albion NY

4 Use of brassica cover crops following the harvest of early bulb onions has become a common practice in Michigan research has shown these cover crops result in improved stand, allowing growers to reduce their seeding rate by 10 percent or more. Other benefits include increased yield, drainage, nutrient cycling, and suppression of weeds and soil-borne diseases. The project manager will work with New York onion growers to adopt brassica cover crops so they can reap these benefits; outreach will be via in-depth case-studies, replicated research trials, a field demonstration, formal presentations, and a newsletter article. $14,932 ONE Increasing late winter and early spring sales for market gardeners through season extension and improved storage options Monika Roth, Cornell Cooperative Extension Tompkins County, Ithaca, NY Year-round farmers markets and increased demand for local produce offer marketing opportunities to growers, but there is a shortage of infrastructure primarily hoop houses and cold storage to take advantage of this demand. The project manager will assess producer capacity and identify the potential to expand winter and early spring sales, as well as evaluate the crops, volume, and demand for storage. Outreach will be through the agricultural press, existing farmer education efforts, and the web. $12,497 ONE Developing tools to improve communication between farmers and farmworkers around fruit farm practices James O'Connell, Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ulster County, Kingston NY Successful management of fruit and vegetable farms requires effective communication between farmers and laborers, and many New York farms rely on Spanish-speaking migrant labor. The project manager will develop and field-test language-appropriate videos and guides that will focus on key production tasks, improve two-way communication, and offer a higher and more consistent level of training in a way that benefits both workers and farmers; he will also include tools that will be accessible to workers with low or no literacy in any language. Outreach will be through online videos, winter meetings, fruit schools, summer field meetings, newsletters, fact sheets, and a webinar. $14,986 ONE Advancing living mulch in plasticulture vegetables Judson Reid, Cornell University, Penn Yan NY This project will evaluate and demonstrate living mulch between rows of plastic-mulched vegetables to see if replacing bare row middles with living mulch will reduce herbicides and labor while also improving harvest conditions on vegetable farms. The project manager will build on past research by working with farmers on a technique involving winter grains and

5 clover sown in spring; participants will measure weed biomass, percent living mulch ground cover, yield, and nutrient levels. Outreach will be through farm field days, demonstrations, winter meetings and conferences, and through videos and resources posted on line. $15,000 LNE Winter triticale or rye as double crop to protect the environment and increase yield Quirine Ketterings, Cornell University, Ithaca NY Overwintering cover crops can conserve soil, improve soil health, capture end-of-season N, and supply N for the following crop, but farmers are more likely to plant these crops if there is a direct return in the spring. Building on recent farm trials, the project manager will add eight new farms to the trial group and educate farmers about conducting on-farm research and the management of rotations with winter cereals as cover and double crops. As a result, 15 participating farmers will add 40 acres under double crops, reduce N fertilizer use by 40 lbs. per acre, and increase season forage yield by two tons of dry matter per acre. In addition, 60 percent of all corn growers will learn about double cropping and 20 percent will indicate an interest in double crops in the future. $143,822 LNE Integrated Phytophthora blight management in vegetable crops with enhanced soil health from cover crops, reduced tillage, and brassica biofumigation Justin O'Dea, Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ulster County, Kingston NY Phytophthora blight (PB) threatens vegetable crops in the Northeast, annually damaging 33 to 40 percent of all vegetable crops grown. The project manager will refine integrated management strategies that combat soil-borne diseases like PB through integrated soil health enhancement that will include but not be limited to biofumigation and reduced tillage. Research will be conducted through a plot-scale study and six growers battling PB will be targeted for inclusion in research and demonstration trials. As a result, 40 vegetable growers across three regions of New York will adopt an integrated soil-borne disease management approach that includes biofumigation with brassica cover crops and reduced tillage on at least five acres per farm, recovering $1000 to $4000 per acre in crop value per year otherwise lost to diseases like PB. $156,119 ENE IPM for greenhouse vegetable producers Elizabeth Lamb, New York State Integrated Pest Management, Cornell University, Ithaca NY Greenhouse and high-tunnel vegetable production is increasing in New York, and extension educators have expressed interest in helping greenhouse producers solve their pest management problems and increase their use of integrated pest management (IPM). The project manager will use a hands-on workshop on IPM for greenhouse/high-tunnel vegetable production, followed by continuing support and training to equip extension educators with the

6 knowledge and skills needed to provide programming to growers and develop IPM plans through one-on-one interaction. As a result, 20 educators will co-train with growers in greenhouse vegetable IPM, 10 will conduct educational programming for 150 growers, 8 will create an IPM plan with a grower and then demonstrate it for 160 growers, and 30 growers will increase IPM in their vegetable greenhouses. $156,666