Geneva, NY – New York Certified Organic (NYCO), a group of grain and dairy farmers that has been meeting together since 1994 to increase their practical knowledge and expertise with the organic production of crops and milk, will celebrate its 20th anniversary with a series of three Winter 2014 programs.
The popularity of the NYCO winter meetings, starting at 10am sharp at the NYS Agricultural Experiment Station Jordan Hall in Geneva, has grown from a gathering of six organic grain producers in the Martens Farms farmhouse kitchen in Penn Yan to the auditorium with more than 100 farmers attending at the Cornell NYS Agricultural Experiment Station at Geneva.There is no cost to attend the meetings. Participants are asked to bring a dish to pass at the potluck lunch.
The 20th anniversary series of 10am-3pm meetings will be held:
January 14: Barley and Buckwheat: Old Crops, New Interest; info on growing malting barley, what brewers want with Farmhouse Malt, using buckwheat in a double cropping system to control weeds, increase yield with Thor Oeschner, NOFA-NY NYC Farm-to-Bakery Team Farmer Advisor; and a producer panel.
February 11: Weed Management, GPS-guided cultivators, Young Farmer start-up, Adjusting Seed Cleaners, and
March 11: Getting More Forage into Your Cows Takes a Whole Farm Solution with Tom Kilcer sharing the latest research on wide swath haylage harvesting to capture plant nutrients for milk production and high quality cover crops forage production, and rapid dry down methods for harvesting red clover.
Group facilitator A. Fay Benson, an organic dairy specialist with Cornell Cooperative Extension, says the meetings are farmer-designed for open discussions in addition to expert presentations.
'These meetings not only increase our knowledge and help us find markets, but provide invaluable support and camaraderie among the organic community,' says NYCO founding member, Lakeview Organic Grains mill owner and organic grower Mary-Howell Martens of Penn Yan.
NYCO has received support funding from the New York Farm Viability Institute (NYFVI). InstituteManaging Director David Grusenmeyer notes, 'The organic initiatives funded by the Institute have responded to producer identified needs for technical, marketing, and business development resources. We commend New York Certified Organic for its success story of 20 years and wish them 20 more.'
For more information, contact Benson at 607-753-5213, afb3@cornell.edu.
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