Farm Field Day Events in New York

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September Continues with NOFA-NY’s Farm Field Day Series

September 13 is a lucky day for anyone in or around Dutchess and Tompkins counties interested in farm field day activities from the Northeast Organic Farming Association of New York (NOFA-NY). Walk-ins are welcome, but pre-registration is strongly encouraged, and fees are $15/individual, $25/two or more people from same farm. In addition, NOFA-NY is assisting with the September 11 full-day Field Day at Lakeview Organic Grain with separate registration. Details are as follows:

• Farm Field Day Monday, September 11,  full day: Jan-Hendrik Cropp, an innovative German organic vegetable farmer working on organic no-till and minimal tillage systems, will give a field day presentation at Klaas and Mary-Howell Martens’ Lakeview Organic Grain in Penn Yan, NY. A morning session on using crimped cover crops for “no-till organic” will be held from 10am to noon in a field where the Martens rolled rye in May, planting soybeans directly into it. Lunch will be held from 12 to 1 in the Martens farm shop. In the afternoon, there will be a discussion of research and research needs in organic no-till, mulching, planting technology and equipment with representatives from Cornell University, Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture and the Rodale Institute. A light dinner will be available before Jan-Hendrik gives a twilight presentation on organic no-till/mulch till, more specifically geared to small and mid-size vegetable presentation. Lunch and dinner sponsored by Lakeview Organic Grain. Please RSVP to Lakeview if you intend to attend either lunch or dinner: 315-531-1038. A $20.00/person donation is recommended to off-set Jan-Hendrik’s expenses. Location is: Lakeview Organic Grain, 119 Hamilton Place, Penn Yan, NY (Yates County).
• Farm Field Day Wednesday, September 13, 5-6:30 pm: Best Management Practices for High Tunnel Nutrition and Soil Health. Soil tests, foliar tests, foliar feeds, fertigation, managing for yield, and long-term soil health in a high tunnel isn’t a simple process. It can have a lot of components and require a fair amount of analysis. During this field day, long-time grower Leon Vehaba will share some of his tips, tricks and lessons learned. The Cornell Vegetable Program partnering with NOFA-NY in a New York Farm Viability Institute funded project have been working to identify long-term soil health and fertility best management practices. They will share what has been learned at the Poughkeepsie Farm Project and at other farms across the state in a conversation focused on development of best management practices. Location is Poughkeepsie Farm Project, 51 Vassar Farm Lane, Poughkeepsie, NY 12603 (Dutchess County).
• Farm Field Day Wednesday, September 13, 6-8 pm: Equipment Tutorial for Small Farmers. This field day is perfect for new or growing farms looking to purchase equipment that’s right both financially and logistically. Making mechanized equipment purchases can be daunting, so this hands-on evening will look at and present various different types of equipment to determine what appropriate for the size and needs of each operation. Facilitated by Groundswell Center for Local Food & Farming and taught by experienced farmers and a mechanic, this Field Day will help decision making regarding buying new or used, parts and maintenance, size and condition, and some of the precautions needed to make realistic choices. This event is produced by NOFA-NY and Groundswell Center for Local Food & Farming with support from the USDA-Risk Management Agency. Location is: Remembrance Farm, 6294 Searsburg Rd., Trumansburg, NY 14886 (Tompkins County).

Online registration for September 13 events is here: https://bit.ly/2qkSwsJ. For further information, visit https://bit.ly/2q9qnto or call (585) 271-1979. NOFA-NY’s On-Farm Field Days continue through October 13.