Crop Production

Nutrient Management in Corn Production

The following Cornell University agronomy fact sheets were developed during a 2009 SARE grant to help farmers and educators better evaluate nutrient cycling in corn production, thereby equipping them with information to make improved whole-farm management decisions: Illinois Soil Nitrogen Test for Corn, fact sheet 36 Fine-Tuning Nitrogen Use on Corn, fact sheet 63 Adaptive […]

High Tunnel Winter Cropping Systems

A 40-minute presentation by Lewis Jett, West Virginia Extension Service, on the use of high tunnels for winter crop production. Download separate audio and slideshow files:Download audio (MP3, 15MB) Download slideshow (PDF, 10MB)

Vegetable Bedding Plants Pest Management

This University of Massachusetts web page has information on integrated pest management (IPM) and organic controls, two practical ways to effectively manage pests on vegetable bedding plants. Vegetable bedding plants are commonly grown in the Northeast as part of the spring sales mix. Although vegetable bedding plants may only be in the greenhouse for a […]

New Online Tool Helps Farmers Make Cover Crop Decisions

The Northeast Cover Crops Council (NECCC) recently released an online tool designed to support farm decision-making around cover crops. The Cover Crop Decision Support Tool is available at no cost at: http://covercrop.tools/. It includes a Cover Crop Explorer that provides in-depth information on more than 35 cover crop species. It also has a Species Selector […]

Northeast Cover Crop Decision Support Tool

The Northeast Cover Crops Council (NECCC) has created an online tool designed to support farm decision-making around cover crops. The tool includes a Cover Crop Explorer that provides in-depth information on more than 35 cover crop species. It also has a Species Selector that assists users in selecting individual cover crops based on plant hardiness […]

Crediting Cover Crops and Soil Organic Matter in a Variable Rate Nitrogen Fertilizer Prescription

Crop growth depends on available nitrogen (N) in the soil, much of which comes from mineralization of soil organic matter and other organic residues, such as cover crops. The amount of mineralized N available to a crop depends on several biological and environmental factors such as temperature, moisture, soil texture, the total quantity of organic […]

Cover Cropping on Vegetable Farms in Northern New England

This bulletin, authored by Heather Darby and her staff at the University of Vermont Extension Crops and Soils Team, provides basic information on cover crop strategies for vegetable farms based in northern New England. It addresses cover crop benefits and challenges; cover crop selection, seeding option planting dates, termination options; and additional resources. The bulletin […]

Small-scale Vegetable Operation Explores Solutions to Farming on Marginal Soils

How do small-scale farmers in rural and urban locations farm successfully on marginal soils? Jennifer Wilhelm of Fat Peach Farm in Madbury, NH conducted a Farmer Grant project to find out. Wilhelm had established no-till permanent raised beds on her one-acre mixed vegetable operation and her project investigated weed suppression, soil health and production potential […]

New technology for improving nitrogen management in corn

A multi-state Research and Education project, led by Cornell University’s Aaron Ristow and Harold Van Es, aimed to enhance nitrogen (N) management in corn acreage by calibrating a new tool, Adapt-N, and educating farmers about nutrient management. Adapt-N is a cloud-based computer tool that provides precise N fertilizer recommendations that account for seasonal weather conditions […]

Northeast pollinator conservation planning short courses

Because native bees are significant contributors to crop pollination, their integration into farm systems—through conservation or restoration of natural and semi-natural areas, as well as the protection of nest sites and prudent insecticide use—is essential to agricultural production over the long-term. Led by pollinator program co-director Eric Mader, the national environmental non-profit, The Xerces Society, […]

Cornell team digs into cover crops as livestock feed

Cornell University agronomist Quirine Ketterings conducted her Northeast SARE Research and Education project to better understand the incorporation of winter cereal cover crops— triticale, winter rye and wheat—into silage corn rotations. This double crop system enables farmers to provide both corn and cover crops as livestock feed. Because growing cover crops as dairy forages means […]

RI student studies production and marketing potential of amaranth

Amaranth is a traditional leaf vegetable in over 50 countries, yet little research exists on growing this crop in temperate climates like the Northeast U.S. University of Rhode Island student Sarah Schweig saw the potential that this crop might hold for farmers looking to diversity their farms in our densely populated, ethnically diverse region. Therefore, […]

Pollinator buffers improve poultry farm sustainability & neighbor relations

Like many farms across the region, Hill Farms, Inc. in Houston, Delaware has seen in increase in residential development surrounding their farm. Because maintaining positive neighbor relations is important to this poultry operation, owner Tina Hill conducted a Northeast SARE Farmer Grant project to install a mixed vegetative buffer adjacent their poultry houses. Tina was […]

Minimizing the risks of Vibrio bacteria in farm-raised oysters grown in intertidal elements of the Delaware Bay

New Jersey’s oyster farms are concentrated on the extensive intertidal sand flats of the lower Delaware Bay where they are exposed twice daily during low tide. Previous studies from the Pacific Northwest indicate that intertidal exposure accelerates the proliferation of Vibrios, increasing the risk to human health.

Powering Your Farm Off-the-Grid

Is it possible to operate a farm off-the-grid, and what are the challenges and opportunities? Raymond Luhrman will take you on a virtual tour of Fox Creek Farm and describe how his family operates their 350 member  Community Supported Agriculture operation from electricity produced right on site. This webinar is part of the New Generation Energy Webinar Series, partially funded by the Northeast SARE's New York Professional Development Program.

Testing the use of spent brewery grain in three mushroom species

What is the effect of spent brewery grain in the production process of three mushroom species? 

Log-Based Shiitake Cultivation

A 57-page guide to producing these gourmet mushrooms.

Adapt-N Training Manual

Adapt-N is an online tool that helps precisely manage nitrogen (N) inputs for grain, silage, and sweet corn production. It can provide automatic daily updates of each field’s N status and recommendations, based on real-time weather influences, and can be used with any device with internet access.