Knowing when to start first cutting haycrop can be a challenge. Harvest can not be tied to a particular calendar date but instead is dependent on heat and soil moisture. Alfalfa height has proven to be the best indicator of alfalfa and grass quality in the field and can give producers a heads up as to when to harvest.

To give producers some idea of when to start harvesting first cutting, the CNY Dairy, Livestock and Field Crops Team staff measures alfalfa height on over 55 fields across the eight counties. Those locations were chosen to reflect the diversity of heat, elevation, and soil moisture found in our area.

Integrated Parasite Management for Goats & Sheep Workshop - Herkimer

September 28, 2021
Herkimer, NY

Includes FAMACHA Training/Certification and How to do Fecal Egg ID/Counting

Laying Out a Grazing System: A Program for Veterans

October 1, 2021
Eaton, NY

Free for any Active-Duty Military and Veterans residing in New York State are eligible to attend; non-veterans will be allowed on a space available basis; registration will be capped at 20 attendees.

Annie's Project: Risk Management for Farm Women

November 1, 2021
November 4, 2021
November 8, 2021
November 11, 2021
November 15, 2021
November 18, 2021
November 29, 2021
December 2, 2021
December 6, 2021
December 9, 2021
December 13, 2021
December 16, 2021

Zoom,

Are you a woman engaged in farming in NYS? Would you like to learn and network with other farm women, and learn how to strengthen your farming operation? Join Cornell Cooperative Extensions of Allegany, Broome, Oneida, Steuben, and Seneca counties, along with the Central NY Dairy, Livestock & Field Crops team, for our first virtual Annie's Project this winter! 

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Updated Meeting Guidelines

Effective June 1, 2021, the size limit for outdoor field meetings (including open-air, well ventilated barns) may be held up to 500 participants.

Effective June 11, 2021, the size limit for indoor meetings may be held up to 250 participants.  If the indoor event is held at a business, the business may implement other requirements for participants in accordance with NYS and CDC guidelines, which may include requiring proof of vaccination, separate individuals and designate part of the establishment based on vaccination status, and require masks/social distance for all patrons or just those unvaccinated.

For both types of meetings, masks are only required for unvaccinated attendees and they also need to maintain 6' social distance during the event.  Vaccination status is based on self-reporting.  Masks and hand sanitizer will be available for participants.  The NYS, CDC, and Cornell University guidelines will be monitored and we will adjust meeting guidance accordingly.

Dairy Producer Considerations When Dealing with High Grain Prices

by David R. Balbian, CCE Area Dairy Management Specialist

We have been here before. Back in mid-July of 2012, corn got up over $8.00/bu @ the Chicago Board of trade. As I write this corn is approaching $7.00/bu. Soybeans got up to the mid $17/bu. range in late August of 2012. Again, as I write this soybeans are in the mid-$15 range. Your cows do not care what these prices are. Major knee jerk cutbacks on grain feeding that shorts the cows on their nutritional requirements will only make a bad situation worse. Saving $1.00 on grain and losing $1.50 or $2.00 is bad business. The long-term impacts on reproduction will have lingering effects. Low production cannot be turned around until a new lactation begins. So, what to do? Although they will not be possible for everyone to implement, here are some tips and ideas to consider:

Farmland Protection Implementation Grants Program

$52.5 MILLION AVAILABLE TO PROTECT NEW YORK FARMLAND
 
State Dedicates Highest Level of Funding Ever to Protect Valuable and At-Risk Farmland 

Each of New York's 10 Regions Will Be Allocated $5 Million for Conservation Easement Projects 

Eligibility Opportunities Expanded to Agroforestry, Equine, and Wine Sectors
Round 18 FPIG continues New York State's commitment to provide financial assistance to locally led farmland protection efforts. The Farmland Protection Implementation Grants Program provides financial assistance to counties, municipalities, soil and water conservation districts, and land trusts to enable them to implement farmland protection activities consistent with local agricultural and farmland protection plans. The most frequently funded activity is the purchase of agricultural conservation easements on individual farms. However, the program may also award funding to enable other implementation activities, such as amendments to local laws affecting agriculture, option agreements, and covering the transaction costs of donated agricultural conservation easements.

All farmland protection project applications must be submitted electronically through the New York State Grants Gateway. More information regarding the Grants Gateway can be found here.

Municipalities, counties, Soil and Water Conservation Districts, and land trusts are eligible to apply for grants of up to $2 million each to help offset the costs of individual conservation easement projects that protect viable agricultural land from being converted to non-agricultural use.
 
Eligibility criteria for the program have been adjusted to include the agroforestry, equine, and wine sectors, reflecting New York's diverse agricultural industry.  In addition, other closely aligned State goals have been integrated into the eligibility criteria to allow multiple objectives for certain projects, including food security, climate resiliency, and source water protection.  Another first for the program, an incentive payment is now available to participating landowners whose project specifically incorporates climate resiliency or source water protection. Soil health assessments are also now an eligible project cost.
 
There is no application deadline and applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until available funds have been awarded to eligible projects. 
 
This funding opportunity continues the state's commitment to provide financial and technical assistance for farmland protection on a predictable two-year cycle and builds on the recent additions of the successful FPIG Dairy Transitions Farmland Protection Initiative and the FPIG Farm Operations in Transition Farmland Protection Initiative.