Posts by Anna Birn
Changes made by the COVID-19 pandemic have benefited at least two facets of our ecosystem: community supported agriculture, and pollinators. It feels hard to remember a time when the news was full of things unrelated to COVID-19, a time when the things we talked about had nothing to do with a global pandemic. Constant…
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Through the COVID-19 pandemic, farming hasn’t stopped and neither has the work of our Farm Ops project. Due to current restrictions to in-person workshops, Farm Ops is offering virtual workshops through February 2021. These workshops have been adapted from our typical hands-on trainings, providing learning and engagement opportunities while participants complete the workshops remotely. Participants…
Read MoreWe are excited to announce that our “Guide to Direct Marketing Livestock and Poultry” has undergone an extensive update. The guide, first published in 2010, provides useful information on how to legally sell meat and poultry in New York State. This resource provides guidance on everything from meat certifications to butchering cuts and everything in…
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We are excited to announce the release of a new Harvest to Market Guide for producers interested in growing specialty mushrooms. This resource is the product of a cooperative effort conducted by the Cornell Small Farms Program, Cornell Cooperative Extension, consultant growers, and other supporting organizations. This guidebook is meant to serve as a companion…
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Sweeping problems under the rug usually leads to larger problems in the future, unless of course, the problem is weeds and the rug is tarps. Tarping fields as a weed management strategy is an integral part of many organic and reduced tillage operations. Cornell Small Farms Program director, Anu Rangarajan, and Reduced Tillage project coordinator,…
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On November 10th, Cornell University was awarded the C. Peter Magrath Community Engagement Scholarship Award for its ongoing work with farmworkers in New York State. This award, complete with a $20,000 grant, was delivered at the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities’ (APLU) annual meeting in San Diego. President Martha Pollack accepted the award, highlighting the…
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The craft beverage industry is a regionally important economic driver in New York State. The 400 craft brewers in the state had an overall impact of $5.4 billion in 2018, with those numbers expected to continue increasing in the future. To support this growing industry, Cornell University has opened the Cornell Craft Beverage Institute in…
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Connecting growers to new markets is a key part of the Cornell Cooperative Extension (CCE) mission to bring economic vitality and social well being to New York State. One of these markets is the Taste New York program, which features locally grown and made products including everything from maple syrup and fresh apples to local…
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A changing climate is expected to change the seasonality of crops, largely affecting farmers’ production patterns and yearly cycles. This impact on crops also includes maple syrup production, according to a new study from Dartmouth College. Maple syrup production is especially dependent on temperature, and even in the best conditions has a very short seasonal…
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In an ecosystem, diversity means stability. When assessing the health of a natural space, one looks for diversity of species, diversity of ages within those species, balance between living and non living resources, and diversity between plant and animals. More and more research points to diversity in agricultural landscapes as a tool to create productive…
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