Posts by Tara Hammonds

Bio-Integrated Fly Farming – Excerpt

By Tara Hammonds / April 4, 2016

Permaculture designer and farmer Shawn Jadrnicek is a master at engaging free forces of nature to create sustainable food production systems. Jadrnicek’s groundbreaking insights go beyond the philosophical foundation of permaculture to create hardworking, energy-saving farm-scale designs. The following is an excerpt from his new book The Bio-Integrated Farm (March 2016) and is printed with…

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Dairy Grazing Apprenticeship

By Tara Hammonds / April 4, 2016

by Ellen Fagan New York State is the third leading producer of dairy products in the United States. However, if its dairy industry continues to follow the trend it’s on, it might not be for long. Dairy farms have been disappearing from New York’s landscape for decades. From 1998 to 2007, NY lost over 2,000…

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Donate Your Extra Harvest to the Hungry…With Help

By Tara Hammonds / April 4, 2016

Reduce food waste and feed those in need with the help of gleaning groups and other food rescue programs. by Elizabeth Burrichter Nearly 40 percent of food produced in America goes to waste, and an overwhelming majority of that food ends up in landfills. This number is hard to swallow not only for the environmental…

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Using the Scale of Permanence as a Tool for Land Evaluation

By Tara Hammonds / April 4, 2016

by Steve Gabriel Whether looking for land to purchase for farming or planning the use of an existing property you own, the task of understanding and taking advantage of the unique environmental qualities your site has to offer can be daunting. As with any ecosystem, the ecology of a farm is complex, and takes time…

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Binghamton Farm Share: Supporting Local Farms and Communities

By Tara Hammonds / April 4, 2016

by Kate Miller-Corcoran Community Supported Agriculture or CSAs are important in connecting consumers to farmers.  CSA members invest in a farm for an entire season, pledging support in return for a weekly box of produce harvested directly from the land they are investing in.  These shares are picked up at a specific location, giving people…

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Forest Succession and Management

By Tara Hammonds / April 4, 2016

by Peter Smallidge The succession of plant communities is a process that has drawn attention from woodlot owners, ecologists and foresters for decades.  Succession deals with communities or groupings of various plant species in the same vicinity.  Succession was one of the earliest ecological processes studied.  The simple definition is the predictably and orderly progression…

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Get Your Equipment Ready for Spring Calving

By Tara Hammonds / April 4, 2016

by Rich Taber Late winter and early springtime are the times to get your beef cattle and your calving equipment ready for spring calving. With our relatively harsh winters, I prefer to have our cows calve no earlier than April, and better to start in May. That way you can avoid the worst of any…

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A Vermont Farmer's Last Resort

By Tara Hammonds / April 4, 2016

by Julianne Lovergine This farmer worked his way across the country and back, finally landing in Vermont. From Massachusetts, to California, to Tennessee, this farmer worked his way across the country and back, finally landing in Vermont. “I missed the seasons in New England,” he says. Together, Sam Burr and his wife Eugenie Doyle searched…

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Sheep Pasture: White Clover

By Tara Hammonds / April 4, 2016

by Ulf Kintzel As announced in my last column about orchard grass as my preferred grass species in my sheep pasture, this issue I will talk about my preference for legumes. In my view, having legumes in your pasture is essential for a sustainable pasture-based sheep operation. It reduces the need for nitrogen fertilizer greatly…

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Learn to Use High Tunnels to Extend Your Growing Season

By Tara Hammonds / January 18, 2016

Season Extension with High Tunnels (BF 220) Know Before You Grow an online course through the Northeast Beginning Farmer Project Tues. March 22 – April 19, 2016, with webinars every Tuesday evening from 7:00-8:30pm. http://www.nebeginningfarmers.org/online-courses/all-courses/season-extension-with-high-tunnels-bf-220/ Adding weeks to either end of your growing season can mean attaining a premium for having products available well before…

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