Happenings March 2023

March 2023

Farmers, Millers, Bakers and Maltsters Gather for 9th Annual Hudson Valley Grain School

Let It Rain - by Cynthia Crossen

Bee Pollination

Summer Gets the Last Laugh

2023 What's Bugging You - First Friday Schedule

Horse Owners - Are you Ready for Spring?

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Farmers, Millers, Bakers and Maltsters Gather for 9th Annual Hudson Valley Grain School

More than 75 farmers, millers, bakers, maltsters, distillers, brewers, and cooks gathered at Tilly Foster Farm on February 7^th, 2023 for a day of presentations and discussion on processing grains for baking and brewing. The event this year was held at the historic Tilly Foster Farm site in Brewster, NY.

Expert speakers for this year’s Grain School included Andrew Ross, Oregon State University, who explained how various types of grain mills make flour and the resulting flour characteristics. Nigel Tudor of Weatherbury Farm discussed de-hulling and rolling spelt, emmer, einkorn, oats, and buckwheat. Harmonie Bettenhausen, Director of Hartwick Craft Food & Beverage, presented the grain malting process, how it changes grain characteristics, and how those qualities contribute to baked goods and beverages. Additional presentations discussed marketing strategies for grains new to the marketplace and growing dry beans in New York. Updates from University of Vermont and Glynwood on capturing value from cereal rye were featured throughout the day.

Over the last several years the local grain economy in the Hudson Valley has grown, including small-scale mills, breweries, and distilleries. Local farmers are growing more food grains as a result. Cornell Cooperative Extension is working to facilitate this agricultural and economic development.

The event was organized by CCE Ulster, CCE Capital Area Agricultural and Horticultural Program, CCE Putnam, and Glynwood Center for Regional Food and Farming.

We can’t wait for next year!

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Let It Rain

By Cynthia Crossen

Droughts like last summer’s will become more common as the earth’s climate changes, but so will periods of more frequent and intense precipitation. That’s why, despite having spent a lot of 2022 praying for more rain, I’m thinking of making a rain garden.

Rain gardens are small depressions that take water pouring off your roof or other impermeable surfaces and, with the help of elementary engineering, deep-rooted native plants and the right kind of soil, filters stormwater before it flows into your ground water, carrying who knows how many pollutants.

The scientific name for this is a bioretention area, and although I suspect that humans have been making rain gardens since the dawn of time, Wikipedia dates them to a 1990 housing subdivision in Baltimore. Whatever their origin, they’re a good reminder that we gardeners should be thinking about where the water on our property is ending up–and in what condition.

Even more than other gardens, rain gardens won’t work if they’re not in the right place. The Groundwater.org website, offers a comprehensive list of factors to consider when planning your site (stay away from utilities and building foundations!).

I’m lucky to have a natural depression in my yard, but I’ll have to build a channel for the roof runoff to get there. Rain gardens can be any size or shape, but the soil must have good drainage. You can test your drainage using a “perc test”--instructions for this, and other useful tips, are here at Rutgers University, Stormwater Management . And by the way, mosquitos are not a problem in properly built rain gardens; mosquitos need eight to ten days of standing water to hatch eggs.

The most labor-intensive part of making a rain garden is digging a hole six to eight inches deep, with a larger dip in the middle, then adding sand or other porous material to improve drainage if needed. My garden will be in mostly shade, which will guide my choice of plants–I want native perennials and shrubs (trees are riskier) that can tolerate brief periods of standing water but can also handle some dry spells. This list from the Raingarden Alliance will give you some guidance–as you see, there are lots of possibilities. Also like other gardens, rain gardens need some babying the first year or two. But the reward is a beautiful garden that will improve the quality of everyone’s water and attract pollinators, butterflies and birds.

Image by Jason Johnson - Iowa NRCS, Public Domain via Flickr

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Bee Pollination

Pollination

The most valuable thing we get from honeybees is pollinated crops.

Economic Value of Pollination

The bee-plant relationship is necessary for our food supply and for our ecosystems. Honey bees are the “workhorses” that make it possible to produce good yields of many foods, including fruits, vegetables, nuts, coffee, and even meat and dairy (which depend on bees to pollinate livestock feed crops like alfalfa). Many pollinators are important contributors, and honey bees have several traits that make them well-suited for the job of crop pollination. They can be managed and moved in large numbers from crop to crop by beekeepers. They are generalists who visit many types of blooms and they are considered by growers to be the best “bang for your buck” for pollination. Pollination often provides more revenue for beekeepers than honey production. However, the most valuable thing we get from honey bees is pollinated crops.

Are there enough bees for pollination?

Honeybee pollination demand is growing faster than honeybee colony numbers are increasing. Farmers rent bees for pollination of many foods - everything from almonds to coriander, sunflowers, stone fruits, coffee, beans, berries, citrus, oil crops like canola, and many more. Bees also pollinate to ensure seed production for farmers and gardeners. The alfalfa that meat and dairy animals eat, flowers for pollinator mixes, and vegetable gardens all start from seeds.

https://beehealthcollective.org/pollination

Image by Mark Stebnicki via Pexels

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Summer Get's the Last Laugh

Last year’s drought was the worst in our region since the 1960s. In some parts of Putnam County, we went eight weeks without substantial rain. Even though we are no longer parched according to the U.S. Drought Monitor, the damage done to plants last summer and fall will show up this spring.

What does that mean for your landscape? Often, broad-leaved and needle bearing evergreens seem to “give up the ghost” in spring, just as other plants begin to leaf out. This is especially common for newly planted evergreens, those that were already struggling, or those in shallow soils. Here in Putnam County, with our many exposed rock ledges and glacial soils, finding deep pockets of soil is a challenge. We can’t see what is going on underground. Even established trees sometimes run out of room to grow. Droughts can uncover these hidden challenges.

Each spring in our diagnostic laboratory we receive a dozen calls from homeowners whose arborvitae, spruce, or rhododendron have suddenly turned brown just as the weather warms. Salt-damage, winter-injury, and sunscald are easy for homeowners to understand. Last year’s drought is harder to believe. Summer gets the last laugh.

As plants go into the winter in drought, their “reservoirs” are not full. Even though they do go dormant, they continue to lose moisture through their tissues. This is especially true of evergreens. Retaining their leaves is an adaptation that gives them a photosynthetic edge, but those green leaves are also a liability. Winter winds whip water out of the exposed leaves and needles. This can cause visible winter-burn, and exacerbate stress caused by the summer drought. The already depleted “reservoir” of water in plant tissues is drawn down to the point where the plant can no longer survive. The cold weather delays symptoms. This is like keeping lettuce in the fridge—it stays fresh for a while—place that same lettuce on the counter and it quickly wilts.

If your evergreens start to look brown this May, think back to last summer’s drought. Read more about delayed drought damage as well as protecting plants from winter injury. Keep the buckets and hoses at the ready.

Image by Elizabeth Bush, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Bugwood.org

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2023 What's Bugging You - First Friday Schedule

Join NYS Integrated Pest Management, Live, on the first Friday of every month from Noon to 12:30 EST on Zoom.

• March 3: Carpenter ants | Carpenter bees
• April 7: Avoiding wildlife at home | Slug/snail management
• May 5: Spotted lanternfly update | Stinging insect ID
• June 2: Common Garden insects | Poison ivy management
• July 7: Pest of home berry plants | Spiders in the home
• August 4: Groundhog management | Bat exclusion
• September 1: Right plant, right place | Transplanting trees/shrubs
• October 6: Jumping worms | Roof gutter pests
• November 3: Winter Garden prep | Tick check reminder
• December 1: Houseplant IPM | Firewood pests

Register for upcoming sessions.

“What’s Bugging You First Friday” events are in Spanish this year. Individuals interested in these events can find more information on this website, and can register using this form.

Image by NY State IPM Program at Cornell University via Flickr

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Horse Owners - Are you ready for Spring?

By Helene McKernan, Retired Penn State Extension Educator

After the long winter months, equine facilities need a spring check-up to inspect barn maintenance, tack, facilities, pastures, and fencing.

Horse Owners - Are you Ready for Spring?

Each spring, one should go through the ritual of preparing pastures, horses, and equipment for the prospect of riding and enjoyment during warmer weather. The first job to tackle is checking the perimeter fence line of the pastures. In fall, horses may be confined to a smaller paddock (or what horsemen call a sacrifice area) to prevent destruction of pasture forages during periods of unstable footing caused by thawing and freezing. This keeps pastures from being destroyed by horses chopping up the sod while trying to find that last tasty green morsel that might survive the non-growing season.

Fencing

If electric fencing is utilized, one often "un-hooks" the electric fencing in the fall to reduce maintenance and increase abilities within the sacrifice areas. During hunting season, the deer are constantly running through and breaking the fence wire and winter storms bring down trees and branches that cause the fence to not work properly. Therefore, in the spring, before one can "re-hook" up the electricity to the fencing, it will require walking the line and checking the fence posts for stability, removing any branches, or fallen trees, and repairing any breaks in the wire. About one week later, repeat the process so that deer and other wildlife have time to re-learn about the fence perimeters. Other types of fencing also require maintenance and should be checked accordingly.

Grazing

Often, horses are not returned to grazing in pastures until May 1 (depending upon your growing season). This enables the pasture grasses a chance to get a firm growth start and a time for horses to acclimate to a diet of rich grass feed. All winter long in the sacrifice area, the horses have been eating dried forage, hay, and grain supplements. The horse's digestive system needs to be slowly introduced to this new rich grass feed. During the month of April, limit the time the horses have eating grass until they can safely graze for longer periods of time. One can begin by allowing the horses ten or fifteen minutes of hand grazing for a few days. The controlled grazing is increased by five-to-fifteen-minute increments for the next two weeks. By the second week of April, one can turn the horses out for free grazing for about one hour at a time. Each day, increase that time by increments of fifteen minutes or so. Then by the beginning of May, horses' digestive systems will be acclimated to at least four- or five-hour periods of grazing time. The limited grazing in April also allows the forages to establish without constant stress. Allowing the forage this "jump-start" will contribute to providing a more established and productive pasture in the following summer months.

Horse Health

Spring is also the time for many to have the annual veterinary visit for inoculations and yearly examination. This may include the Coggins testing that is often required for participation in horse shows and other horse events. It is recommended to vaccinate/inoculate horses for Tetanus, Equine Encephalomyelitis (Eastern & Western), West Nile Virus, and Rabies. There is other "risk-based" inoculations available, such as Influenza, Rhinopneumonitis, Potomac Horse Fever and Strangles, and every horse owner needs to consult with their veterinarian and decide what inoculations are best and needed for their horse and in their region. For more information on spring vaccinations, read Spring Vaccines for Your Horse.

With warmer days during spring and summer, it is more likely that a daily search of the horse will find ticks attached and feeding on the host horse. Ticks are prevalent in most areas and tend to be more abundant in fall and spring months when they are searching for a host. Ticks can be found year-round, but are often more common in warmer weather. Checking and/or brushing the coat of the horse will assist in quicker shedding and will assist in finding other types of parasitic or skin conditions.

Farrier visits should be year-round every six to eight weeks. Often horses that are heavily ridden are shod. When they are not ridden as much in the winter, owners tend to remove the shoes and let the horses go barefoot. With the prospect of resuming riding in the spring, shoes will need to be placed back on the horse. Schedule a visit from your farrier to enable him to have ample time to fit your horse's needs into his schedule. Remember that everyone else in the spring will also want to retain the farrier for the same purpose!

Other Tasks

Some final jobs include spring barn cleaning and checking equipment. Sweep out hay waste that has collected during the winter; remove cobwebs, dead insects, dirt and dust. Check barn walls for repairs. Spring is a good time to clean and condition the saddle and bridles checking for weak leather, buckles and snaps and cleansing saddle pads, horse blankets and any other equipment that could use a good scrubbing.

Image by Uschi via Pixabay

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Last updated March 1, 2023