Though retired, Penn State Extension Specialist Tom McCarty is still the go-to guy for solving water problems involving pesticides and other potentially dangerous potables. A case in point, chronicled by a Penn State magazine, showed how McCarty successfully solved the plight of a woman who was bein...

The New York State Assembly on May 13 was considering A.1792A, sponsored by Queens County Assemblywoman Catherine Nolan, which would impose factory style labor mandates on family farms. From New York Farm Bureau’s perspective, a vote in support of the so-called “farm worker fair labor practices act”...

New York State Assemblyman Joseph M. Giglio (R,C,I-Gowanda) on May 13 expressed his opposition to the “Farmworkers Fair Labor Practices Act,” a New York City-sponsored bill that would essentially doom upstate farms and agriculture. Giglio cited the unnecessary and negative repercussions of the bill,...

New York State Assemblyman David DiPietro (R,C-East Aurora) criticized a proposal by New York City liberals to regulate the farm industry right out of New York State. “These downstate Assembly members are seeking to regulate farming right out of New York,” DiPietro said. “These members don’t come fr...

by Jay Girvin, Esq., Girvin & Ferlazzo. P.C., Albany, New York Q. Under what circumstances may my private property be taken by eminent domain? The power of “eminent domain” is the right of the state to take private property for public use upon the payment of just compensation to the owner. Some peop...

Twenty-six Greenwich FFA members traveled to the 88th New York State FFA Convention in Albion, NY. Members joined 1,300 other FFA members from across the state to compete in Career Development Events(CDEs), receive their Empire Degree, Proficiency and Breed Awards, win scholarships, participate in w...

Once again an increase in membership in the Producers’ Cooperation of Dolgeville was applauded at the 2013 annual meeting. “Currently we are 85 members strong, representing Montgomery, Fulton, Herkimer, Schoharie, Otsego, Madison and Delaware counties,” stated Co-op President Byron Walrath. Walrath ...

“Making silage is like making wine. An excellent winemaker cannot make fine wine from bad grapes. And a bad winemaker will certainly make bad wine from good grapes.” That was the opening gambit and theme setter from presenter Robert Fry, DVM, at a breakout session at Pennsylvania’s 2013 Dairy Summit...

Hay can be damaged by rain, snow, wind, and ice if it is stored outside during the fall and winter. Round bales, on average, will lose up to one fourth of its nutrients when stored outside. If the bale was stored properly or inside, this can be reduced to only 10 to 15 percent. How do you stack or s...

“Alfalfa height has been found to be an efficient and reliable indicator for spring’s first cutting,” reported Cornell Cooperative Extension Regional Field Crop Specialist Kevin Ganoe. Ganoe, who is with the Central New York Dairy & Field Crops Team, spoke to a large audience of crop farmers about t...

The Pennsylvania Beef Council partnered with Marcho Farms, Souderton and the beef checkoff, through the Northeast Beef Promotion Initiative (NEBPI), to host an educational veal tour on Tuesday, April 9. Two chef instructors and 18 students from the JNA Institute of Culinary Arts, Philadelphia, atten...

The January issue of Consumers Report featured an article summarizing the findings of a group of investigators from the magazine who conducted a representative sampling of pork products from several sources to determine their level of bacterial contamination. It is recognized that while the animal i...

Several recognized dairy nutritionists and producers recently shared feeding information at on-farm meetings held at Central NY farms. Andrew Kross of Indian Camp Farm, Earlville, was one of those producers. The farm’s current statistics average about 86 pounds per cow per day, with 4.1 percent fat ...

Growing up in a non-farming suburb of Boston, Matt Cannon, owner of Cannon Cattle Ranch in Pittstown, NY, admits, “I was supposed to go to Yale and become a lawyer.” Summer jobs as a teenager, first at a chicken farm, and second at a dairy farm in Lowville, NY, sparked a passion for the farming life...

A legend of sorts has passed away. On April 14, Leonard Heath, 67, of Waterville, NY went to the big tractor pull in the sky. Tractor pull fans will remember Leonard as the big guy with the whistling, flying 1086 who won almost every pull he entered. Leonard was born Jan. 9, 1946 in Utica, NY, a son...