In the News: Small Farms Intern Featured in Extension Out Loud Podcast

March 13, 2023/Stephen Stresow

In the latest episode of “Extension Out Loud,” a podcast by Cornell Cooperative Extension, one of the Cornell Small Farms Program’s interns, Stephen Stresow, shared his expertise about selecting, sowing, and saving seeds by helping listeners navigate the multitude of terms on seed packets and catalogs.  

After a hiatus in 2022, this was the first episode of the year and added to past explorations of the impact that Cornell Cooperative Extension has on the daily lives of New Yorkers. 

When choosing what variety to grow, Stresow recommended one guiding principle “Right plant, right place.” Each variety has characteristics that make it unique. However, being able to harness those traits will depend on both personal and inherent plant factors. Stephen first walks through figuring out your goals for a crop, e.g., yield, color, novelty, and then how to choose a variety that aligns with those goals and will perform well at your location. 

There are also tools to make this process easier and share tips and tricks with gardeners across the state. The Cornell Vegetable Varieties for Gardeners website crowdsources gardeners’ ratings on yield, taste, and growing difficulty for varieties grown across the state, which helps create the annual New York Selected List of Varieties for Gardeners.

Read more about the “Extension Out Loud” episode, including various listening options, transcripts, and show notes on CALS News.

Stephen Stresow

Stephen is a junior in CALS studying Plant Sciences with a concentration in Organic Agriculture and minors in Soil Science and Crop Management. He managed a vegetable garden as a Master Gardener in high school and has now scaled up that passion to sustainable vegetable production on small-scale farms. He is interested in improving agroecological practices and making them more accessible to farmers with the overarching goal of creating a more resilient food system. After a primarily virtual semester, Stephen is excited to get his hands dirty at the Research Farm this summer!
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