Cornell University Cooperative Extension of Onondaga County

Master Gardeners / After-School Program at Ed Smith School

jet235 — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 19:05:38 +0000

The after-school program at Ed Smith School will be starting at the end of February and running through the beginning of May. Several of our Master Gardeners will be working with the students on topics including Birds, Composting, Seed Starting, Beetlemania, “Three Sisters Model,” Trees and Plants, and House Plants. This program is offered in conjunction with the “Say Yes to Education” Program.

Master Gardeners / CNY In Bloom Home and Garden Show

jet235 — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 19:04:07 +0000

The Onondaga County Master Gardeners will be participating in CNY in Bloom Home and Garden Show at the SRC Arena and Events Center at Onondaga Community College from Thursday, March 1^st through Sunday, March 4^th. Our Master Gardeners Volunteers will be at Booth #51 on the first floor, educating the public about composting and answering any landscaping, lawn, and gardening questions. Two of our Master Gardener Volunteers will be doing a presentation entitled “The Good, the Bad, the Bugly” on Saturday morning.

Show hours are Thursday, 5:00 p.m to 8 p.m.; Friday, 11:00 a.m. to 8 p.m; Saturday, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Sunday 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Parking is free.

2012 Vegetable Production, Pest Management & Marketing Meeting

jet235 — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 18:56:57 +0000

Monday, March 12, 2012
12:30 – 4:30 pm
Martha Eddy Room, Art & Home Center, NYS Fairgrounds, Syracuse*

Free for enrollees in the Cornell Vegetable Program; $10 for others
(Enroll at the meeting for free admission!)
Pre-register: Lorene Nans at 315-424-9485 or lmn66@cornell.edu

~ 2 pesticide DEC credits, and CCA credits will be available

To pre-register contact Lorene Nans at 315-424-9485 or lmn66@cornell.edu

*Directions: The Art & Home Center is south of the Center of Progress Bldg. at the NYS Fairgrounds. Park in front of the building. From State Fair Blvd. head onto the Fairgrounds and to the east. Cornell Cooperative Extension provides equal program & employment opportunities.

To read more about this event, please click here.

Office Closed 1/13/12 due to inclement weather.

jet235 — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 14:03:41 +0000

Due to inclement weather our office will be closed Friday, January 13, 2012.

Our office will be closed on January 16, 2012 in observation of Martin Luther King Day and will reopen January 17, 2011 at 8:30am.

Spring Paper Clover Dates Announced

jet235 — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 20:11:09 +0000

The spring 4-H Tractor Supply Company/Del’s Paper Clover promotion will be May 2-13, 2012!

This fall, 4-H in-store participation of the Paper Clover fundraiser helped to make it the most successful in its history.

Update on 2011 Fall Paper Clover Funds

Funds from the fall TSC/Del’s Paper Clover campaign are or have been sent to your state 4-H office or foundation.

Help Us Ensure There are Future Paper Clover Fundraisers

We’ve asked your state offices to share a brief survey about the last Paper Clover event to help us plan for future fundraisers and to gather feedback to share with TSC.

To read more about the Spring Paper Clover please click here.

Community Ecological Design Training rescheduled for Spring 2012

kmb337 — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 21:56:30 +0000

The Finger Lakes Permaculture Institute, in collaboration with the Alchemical Nursery and Cornell Cooperative Extension of Onondaga County, will be holding their third regional, permaculture-based training in Syracuse this spring. The Community Training in Ecological Design course gives gardeners, home owners, and anyone interested in urban or rural sustainable living, the tools to get started on a wide range of projects to improve food production, conserve resources, and save money. Students—as part of their coursework‐‐ apply these skills to a design project focusing on their own backyards, community green spaces, farms, or forests.

Participants begin with a full two-day weekend class on February 4th & 5th, continuing on for 9 weeks on Wednesday evenings from 6:00 – 8:30pm, and finishing with a hands-on participatory day at the Rahma Edible Forest Garden on Saturday April 14th.

Tuition for the class is a sliding scale of $200 – $400, with some scholarships available. If you have any questions, or wish to register, visit www.fingerlakespermaculture.org or contact Steve Gabriel or Michael Burns at info@fingerlakespermaculture.org or (607) 527-0607.

About the Finger Lakes Permaculture Institute

The Finger Lakes Permaculture Institute (FLPCI) was formed in 2005 in response to a growing interest in the region for sustainable design, green work skills, and permaculture education. Locally, FLPCI has offered a spring workshop on mushroom cultivation, a summer apprenticeship, and a two-week Permaculture Design Certification course. Our Permaculture Design Certification course reflects the most common method for learning the full curriculum of design principles and methods as recognized by most permaculture institutions.

About Cornell Cooperative Extension of Onondaga County

The Cornell University Cooperative Extension educational system enables people to improve their lives and communities through partnerships that put experience and research knowledge to work. CCE Onondaga provides education to the public on topics including nutrition, the environment, and agriculture. More information can be found at www.extendonondaga.org.

About The Alchemical Nursery

The Alchemical Nursery is a community benefits organization committed to the development of regenerative lifestyles and landscapes utilizing the principles and ethics of Permaculture, the Intentional Communities movement, Ecovillage living, and Mutual Aid activity. By providing educational resources, dialogue space, networking tools, and project development we are growing together towards cultural transformation, right livelihood, and equilibrium between local human society and our global ecological community. More information can be found at www.alchemicalnursery.org.

Master Gardener Series: Turning Over An Old Leaf

jet235 — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 19:29:26 +0000

Turning Over An Old Leaf – Recycle Yard Waste and Kitchen Cast-Offs By Composting

By Doreen Todorov Contributing writer

Green Central New York – November December 20121 – The Post-Standard/Syracuse.Com/Green

To read more on this article from Green Central New York – The Post Standard, September/October 2011, please click here.

Cornell Cooperative Extension Introduces Farm Disaster Preparation Certificate Program

jet235 — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 18:16:14 +0000

Cornell Cooperative Extension Introduces Farm Disaster Preparation Certificate Program

6-hour training for farm owners provides certificate leading to insurance credit or discount

Farm Disaster Preparation Certificate

Pilot workshop: Friday, December 2, 2011

9:00 AM – 3:30 PM

Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ontario County

480 North Main Street, Canandaigua, NY 14424

Canandaigua, NY – Recent events in rural New York have proven that we cannot predict when or how a catastrophe may befall a family farm. From vehicle accidents to collapsed barns, and from severe floods to criminal activity, many farms are in a vulnerable position regarding disaster preparedness and would be slow to recover from a natural or human-induced disaster.

Cornell Cooperative Extension has developed a new training program for farm owners to increase their resilience to small and large disasters. The Farm Disaster Preparation Certificate program will help farm owners plan for and manage disasters that may someday occur on their operations. This program will focus on pre-disaster education, preparedness, and mitigation steps farm owners can take regarding farm equipment safety on the road, fire or structure collapse, storm and wind damage, criminal activity, farm chemical risks, and biosecurity.

By special arrangement with several farm insurance carriers, farms that complete the Farm Disaster Preparation Certificate training will receive a dated certificate to provide to their insurer as a condition of eligibility for receiving a credit or discount toward the farm’s annual insurance premium. The value of the credit or discount will vary according to individual policies and policyholder circumstances.

The first class available to farm owners will be held on Friday, December 2, 2011 at Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ontario County in Canandaigua, NY. This pilot class will cover the complete curriculum, and participants will be expected to provide feedback to instructors to refine the delivery and structure of the class. During 2012, several additional Farm Disaster Preparation Certificate courses will be held throughout Upstate New York.

The Farm Disaster Preparation Certificate is directed to all sizes of farms and all types of products. Dairy and livestock farms are especially encouraged to participate in the program due to their additional concerns regarding animal agriculture.

Pilot class fee: $25.00 per person includes lunch, handouts, and complete Farm Disaster Preparation Certificate training. The person representing a farm should be the insurance policyholder; other key farm personnel are welcome.

Space in the pilot class is limited. Pre-registration is required by November 29, 2011 by calling Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ontario County at (585) 394-3977 x427 or e-mail Nancy Anderson with your full contact information to nea8@cornell.edu. This certificate class will be repeated in other areas of Upstate New York in 2012.

For more information, please see the web page: Farm Disaster Preparation Certificate

Please direct questions about the Farm Disaster Preparation Certificate program to Jim Ochterski, 585-394-3977 x402 or jao14@cornell.edu or Jackson Wright, 585-394-3977 x403 | jbw243@cornell.edu.

NOFA-NY Winter Conference 2012

jet235 — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 15:27:35 +0000

NOFA – NY Winter Conference 2012 – The Cooperative Economy

Read more about the conference or to register, please click here.

To view the full look of the 2012 NOFA-NY Conference Brochure, please click here.

NYSEG/RG&E Rebates for Farmers

jet235 — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 14:03:35 +0000

Earn a cash rebate and help reduce energy costs on your farm!

WANT TO LEARN MORE? Call EnSave, our program coordinator, at 1.800.732.1399 or e-mail johnm@ensave.com to get started today. Please click here to read more about the cash rebate.