Dairy Princess Grew Up on Port Leyden Dairy Farm

Another story on the new New York State Dairy Princess.

Check it out at https://www.watertowndailytimes.com/news04/newly-crowned-state-dairy-princess-grew-up-on-port-leyden-farm-20190221 this link.

Lewis County Teen Named New York State Dairy Princess

The 2019-2020 New York State Dairy Princess Court includes New York State 1^st Alternate Dairy Princess Morgan Hungerford (left) from Delaware County, New York State Dairy Princess Reegan Domagala (center) from Lewis County, and Alyssa Roorda (right) from Chemung County.

Reegan Domagala from Lewis County was crowned the 2019-20 New York State Dairy Princess Feb. 19 at the Holiday Inn in Salina, outside Syracuse.

Having served as the Lewis County Dairy Princess since spring of 2018, Domagala will devote an additional year to promoting milk and dairy products with American Dairy Association North East.

As state princess, she receives a $1,200 scholarship and will serve as a dairy industry ambassador and spokesperson, working with the American Dairy Association North East to represent dairy farmers at a variety of special events, including county dairy princess pageants, farmer meetings, fairs, and school visits. 

She will also play an integral role in the training and mentoring of new county dairy princesses.

Alyssa Roorda from Chemung County was named first Alternate State Princess, and Morgan Hungerford from Delaware County was selected as second Alternate State Princess. They receive a $700 scholarship and $600 scholarship, respectively. Both young women will assist the New York State Dairy Princess with training, appearances and other duties.

Twenty-two county dairy princesses competed in the state pageant, which included a personal interview, impromptu questions, a prepared adult speech, a product knowledge exam, writing skills test, and informal interaction with others. Judges evaluated the contestants on their communication skills, knowledge of the dairy industry, poise and personality.

Pageant judges were: Judi Dixon, International Sales, Dot Foods; Katherine Brosnan, New York Beef Industry Council, Director of Industry Relations & Consumer Promotions; and Holly Pullis, Hollywood Enterprises & Roedale Farm. 

Sponsored by the American Dairy Association North East, the 56^th annual coronation completed the yearlong reign of Hailey Pipher of Elmira, Chemung County.

American Dairy Association North East is the local affiliate of the National Dairy Council® and the regional consolidation of three promotion organizations including the American Dairy Association and Dairy Council, Inc., Mid-Atlantic Dairy Association and Pennsylvania Dairy Promotion Program.

Man Dies From Injuries Suffered in Accident at Marks Farm

Sad story out of Lowville and more proof that farming is dangerous.

Go to http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/news04/marks-farms-worker-dies-from-injuries-suffered-in-farm-accident-20171120 to check it out.

Glenfield Goat Dairy Wins $10,000

Cool story from the Watertown Daily Times.

Check it out at http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/news04/glenfield-goat-dairy-wins-10000-through-national-farm-bureau-program-20171110

Ag Trivia Night Set for April 1

Go to http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/news04/third-annual-lewis-county-ag-trivia-event-set-next-week-20170323 to check out the story.

Farmers, Officials To Discuss Milk Pricing Concerns

Meeting next week on dairy issues, including low milk prices.

Go to http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/news04/farmers-officials-to-discuss-milk-pricing-concerns-in-lowville-20170106 this link to check out a story about the meeting.

Lewis County Farm Hosts Hunting Excursions for Wounded Veterans

Check out this story from the Watertown Daily Times at http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/news04/lewis-county-farm-hosts-hunting-excursions-for-wounded-veterans-20161114 this link.

Lowville Graduate Named National FFA Officer

Go to http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/news04/lowville-academy-graduate-selected-as-national-ffa-officer-20161025 to see the story about Ashley Willits.

Lady LeWinDa Milkzalot Celebrates Graduation

LeWinDa Milkzalot

Well, Lady LeWinDa Milkzalot at the Lowville Producers Dairy Cooperative in Lowville, Lewis County, is getting ready for graduation season donning her mortarboard and tassels.

The famed Holstein often wears different garb for the particular season. In summer, she has been seen with big sunglasses on and in the winter, she shivers even while bundled up in a scarf and socks on her ears.


From its website, the cooperative began in 1936 and has been in business for 75 years. It has about 175 member/owner farms who produced in excess of 310 million pounds of milk in 2011; the equivalent of 36 million gallons of milk.

The cooperative's website states Lowville Producers is the largest dairy cooperative in Lewis County with more than 65 percent of the milk produced in Lewis County handled through it.

Maple Weekends Coming Up in March, April

From Empire Farm & Dairy magazine:

A bucket in Lewis County for collecting sap to make maple syrup

By DEBRA J. GROOM
Empire Farm & Dairy
 
It’s the sweetest time of the year — maple sugaring time.
 
As soon as the weather is perfect, those warmer days of 40 degrees or so and cool nights down in the upper 20s, the sap will begin oozing out of maple trees all over New York state. Maple producers will collect it, boil it down and make that delicious, ooey, gooey maple syrup that everyone wait for this time of year.
 

Also during March, many producers across the state will open for tours, sales and even some pancake breakfasts during the two Maple Weekends. This year, because of the early Easter holiday, the two weekends are not consecutive.  
 
So, remember to head out to visit your local maple syrup producer during Maple Weekends from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. March 19 and 20 and April 2 and 3.
 
Go to http://www.mapleweekend.com/locations.php to find a maple producer near you.
 
Lewis County is the largest producer of maple syrup in New York state. New York state ranks second in the country behind Vermont in maple syrup production. Maine comes in third.
 

New York maple products at the State Fair

New York producers are coming off a record season in 2015, when 601,000 gallons of syrup were made. The record production was astonishing because 2015 almost ended up being the season that wasn’t.
 
As of early March 2015, temperatures were still too cold for the sap to begin running.
 
“If this horrible winter weather doesn’t shape up fast, the wonderful sweetness of Maple Weekends could be in jeopardy. To date, it’s been too cold and too snowy for most maple syrup producers to get into the woods and tap their trees. And even if they could tap, it’s been too cold for the sap to run,” wrote one maple blogger on March 7.
 
“Right now, some of the producers are getting things together and getting things ready,” Michele Ledoux, executive director of Cornell Cooperative Extension of Lewis County — the state’s largest maple producing county, said last year. “They are all waiting for the weather to break,” she said.
 
Luckily, once the weather cooperated and the sap began to flow, the maple producers were busy, busy, busy making syrup.
 
In 2014, New York producers made 546,000 gallons, down slightly from the 571,000 gallons in 2013. A total of 360,000 gallons were made in 2012.

Marks Farm Adding Manure System That Removes Water

Check out this story out of the North Country http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/news04/marks-farms-to-add-manure-system-that-removes-water-reduces-spreading-need-20160112?utm_source=v2T2ks&utm_medium=redirect&utm_campaign=wdt.me&utm_content=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com

Croghan-Based Maple Minis Offer Unique Way to Enjoy Maple

Great story by colleague Steve Virkler.

Go to http://www.journalandrepublican.com/news04/croghan-based-maple-minis-offer-unique-way-to-enjoy-maple-20151122?utm_content=buffercf33d&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer to check out the story.

Draft Horse Pull Sunday in Lewis County

There will be a draft horse pull at noon Sunday, behind the Copenhagen Fire Hall, 9950 Main St. 

There will be two weight classes: lightweight class up to 1,700 pounds and heavyweight class over 1,700 pounds. 

Parking is behind the fire hall and on Washington Street.

Bus Rides Available for Maple Weekend Events in Lewis County

News from the Lewis County Maple Producers:

It will be easier to get around during Maple Weekend events in Lewis County this year.

Lewis County Maple Producers Association and Cornell Cooperative Extension are sponsoring rider fares aboard Lewis County Public Transportation buses that will take visitors to Maple Weekend sites March 21-22 and 28-29. 

Bus schedules will be posted at the American Maple Museum in Croghan and at the five participating sugarhouses. The handicapped-accessible buses will start at the American Maple Museum in Croghan, and leave the museum about every 30 minutes.

Buckets at a Lewis County sugarbush

Two buses will travel the North Loop from the museum to Swiss’er Sweet Maple in Castorland and Pierce’s Sugar Spigot and Moser’s Maple in Croghan. The North Loop buses will begin at 9:40 a.m. and 10:10 a.m., and are scheduled to run throughout the day.

Another bus will travel the Long Pond Road Loop from the museum to the Oswegatchie Educational Center both weekends and to Yancey’s Sugarbush in the Belfort area of Croghan March 28-29. The Long Pond Road Loop bus begins at 9:20 a.m. and runs throughout the day.

Pancake breakfasts and maple coffee will be available for purchase at the museum each Maple Weekend day from 7 a.m. to noon. The museum will be open 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. complete with three floors of exhibits (accessible by elevator) showcasing a collection of sugaring artifacts from across the United States and Canada.

At the sugarhouses, visitors will see different types of maple operations from buckets to the most modern equipment. There will be syrup and maple confections tasting, products for purchase, and walk-it-yourself or guided tours. Some producers may be demonstrating how they make sugarcakes, maple cream or hard candy.

New York State Agriculture Commissioner Richard Ball will be at Moser’s Maple for a tree tapping ceremony at the sixth-generation maple farm at 11 a.m. Saturday, March 21. Visitors will see sap ladders that raise sap 18 feet in height and carry it overhead to the collection tank.

Pierce’s Sugar Spigot is a Maple Weekend sweet treats wonderland with everything from maple syrup, sugarcakes, maple cream to maple butter, lollipops and hard candy, maple-coated peanuts, maple cotton candy and snocones. Karen and Carl Pierce operate the business with three generations of family with more than 40 years of maple experience. They built their sugar shanty in 2004.

Swiss’er Sweet Maple is a Zehr family tradition more than 100 years old. Jason and Barbara Zehr, named NYS Young Sugar Makers in 1999, manage 1,500 taps of their own and process syrup from another 2,000 taps managed by other sugarmakers. They package confections individually, in gift baskets, and as wedding favors and custom-branded corporate gifts. Their latest specialty product is maple walnut cream cheese.

The Oswegatchie Education Center will open its Maple History Trail on Maple Weekends for hands-on activities including using deer antlers to move hot rocks used by Native Americans to heat sap, wearing a yoke to carry sap buckets, and measuring trees to know which are ready to tap. The Center is operated by NYS FFA Leadership Training Inc. as a youth camp and year-round retreat and educational center for all ages.

Yancey’s Sugarbush, established in 1844, will be open only on March 28-29. The operation is beloved for maintaining maple traditions, collecting sap in buckets and drawing it to the sugarhouse by horse-drawn wagon or sled. Some original maples are still on the property. Jane and Haskell Yancey are in their 33rd season of making syrup and maple confections. Haskell says, ‘People tell us they enjoy the way we make syrup with the wood-fired evaporators, maple aroma and quiet family atmosphere that lets you hear the jingle of the horses bringing the sap in.’

Moser’s Mapleridge Farm in Copenhagen will be open for visitors March 21 and March 28. This family operation since 1981 uses buckets on more than 5,000 taps. Visitors can try snowshoes and gathering sap here. There will be syrup, sugar shapes, granulated sugar and maple cream for purchase. Aspiring sugarmakers can purchase equipment here.

Maple Weekend enthusiasts can also drive themselves or follow the Lewis County Maple Trail on ‘The Adirondacks Tug Hill Region. Our backyard. Your Adventure.’ App to sugarhouses in the county. The app is available for download at http://www.adirondackstughill.com/index.php/mobile-apps.

Maple Weekend hours of availability are posted at www.mapleweekend.com or contact the Lewis County Chamber of Commerce at 376-2213, 800-724-0242.

Program on Research Results Set for Feb. 27 in Chazy

From the North Country Agricultural Development Program:

North Country farmers will hear the results of on-farm research funded by the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program at 1 p.m. Friday, Feb. 27 at the Miner Institute in Chazy.

Registration is not required to attend.

The afternoon program is expected to have presentations on:
 
** The Juneberry ‘superfruit’ nursery established with Northern New York Agricultural Development Program funding at the Willsboro Research Farm,
** The latest corn grain variety trials results,
** An update on the Northern New York corn and soybean disease survey and database results which has identifying emerging and potentially new challenges for regional crop producers,
** How evaluating alfalfa-grass crops before and after harvest can improve forage quality,
** Mastitis-causing pathogens that are becoming more prevalent in NY dairy herds,
** Parasite management strategies for sheep and goat producers, and
** Update on how the long-term Northern New York Agricultural Development Program funding that successfully developed a biocontrol for managing alfalfa snout beetle is paying off with extension of the protocol to manage pests in other agricultural systems in Northern New York and statewide.

The Northern New York Agricultural Development Program is a farmer-driven research and technical assistance program serving all sectors of the agricultural industry, from dairy and crops to livestock, maple and horticultural production, in Jefferson, Lewis, St. Lawrence, Franklin, Clinton and Essex  counties.

Learn more and find research reports posted online at www.nnyagdev.org.

New Lewis County Maple Trail App Leads to Sweet 2015 Maple Weekend Sites

News from Northern New York:

People with a love for maple will have an easier time finding it in Lewis County this year.

Anyone with a smartphone or tablet can download the new Lewis County Maple Trail app, which is part of the mobile app titled "Adirondacks Tug Hill Region Our Backyard, Your Adventure."

The Adirondacks Tug Hill Region Our Backyard, Your Adventure app is available in winter and summer editions with cultural and history sites as well as outdoor recreation, ATMs, Wi-Fi locations, and camping opportunities. Trail options also include routes for driving, hiking, ATV and horseback riding, snowshoeing and snowmobiling. 

People who already have downloaded the winter or summer Adirondacks Tug Hill app will have the maple app included.

The Lewis County Maple Trail is the latest addition to the app. Five sugarhouses -- Moser's Maple in Croghan; Moser's Mapleridge Farm in Copenhagen; Oswegatchie Educational Center in Croghan; Swiss'er Sweet Maple in Castorland; and Yancey's Sugarbush in Croghan -- and the American Maple Museum are participating.

The sites will offer tastings and tours during Maple Weekend March 21 and 22 and March 28 and 29. The American Maple Museum in Croghan will serve Maple Weekends pancake breakfasts. Check the app or link at www.mapleweekend.com for days and hours of availability.

The maple app, developed by the Lewis County Maple Producers Association and Lewis County Planning Department, also works without cell phone reception to lead visitors to the Lewis County Maple Producers Association member sites.  

The Lewis County Maple Trail is the latest addition to the instant info available by app for activities, shopping options, restaurants and accommodations in Lewis County.

Waypoint and GPS features enhance usability of the new app. Learn more at www.adirondackstughill.com/index.php/mobile-apps or contact the Lewis County Chamber of Commerce at 376-2213, 800-724-0242.

Meetings Focus on Northern New York Farm Successes

News from the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program:

North County farmers who want to learn more about the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program's latest projects should come to meetings Jan. 30 in Watertown and Feb. 27 in Chazy.

The research report sessions begin at 1 p.m. at the Ramada Inn in Watertown and at Miner Institute in Chazy. Registration is not required to attend.

The Northern New York Agricultural Development Program is a farmer-driven research and technical assistance program serving all sectors of the agricultural industry, from dairy and crops to livestock, maple and horticultural production, in Jefferson, Lewis, St. Lawrence, Clinton, Essex and Franklin counties.

"The Northern New York Agricultural Development Program is noted for producing real-world, practical results, and the 2014 project reports live up to that expectation," says program Co-Chair Jon Greenwood, a dairy producer in St. Lawrence County.

"Northern New York Agricultural Development Program small grants connect North Country farmers with faculty, researchers, and specialists with Cornell University, Cornell Cooperative Extension, the State University of New York, W.H. Miner Agricultural Research Institute, and other expertise to address critical needs and emerging opportunities," says program Co-Chair Joe Giroux, a Clinton County dairyman.

Reports at the meetings will cover:

** Emerging corn and soybean diseases
** The identification of mastitis-causing pathogens
** Corn grain variety trials under Northern New York growing conditions
** Evaluating alfalfa-grass mixes for dairy and livestock forage
** Production practices for the Juneberry superfruit
** Health management for sheep and goats, and
** How the inexpensive biocontrol developed with long-term program funding to beat back the highly-destructive alfalfa snout beetle now holds promise for helping fruit and vegetable growers statewide.

One of the acclaimed Northern New York Agricultural Development Program successes came through long-term funding that provided the time needed for Cornell University researchers to develop an inexpensive, biocontrol treatment that substantially reduced the impact of the highly-destructive alfalfa snout beetle. 

The concept of using native nematodes that destroy the larvae of the beetle is now being applied in trials to reduce other types of pests in strawberry crops in Northern New York, in apple and grape crops elsewhere in the state, and at the Battle Island Golf Course outside Fulton, NY.

As time allows, the meeting may also make note of recent program projects focused on winter forage crops production for the dairy and livestock industries; enhancing agricultural environmental stewardship through tile drainage, nutrient recycling, and on-farm water quality; adapting to climate change; enhancing market opportunities for North Country beef producers; and season extension for fruit and vegetable growers.

Complete research reports are posted on the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program website at www.nnyagdev.org <http://www.nnyagdev.org> . For more details on the annual meetings, call 376-5270.

According to the 2012 Census of Agriculture, 4,365 farms in Northern New York manage more than 1.1 million acres of farmland with a hired labor payroll of more than $67.2 million. Those numbers represent a gain of 97 farms, 64,487 acres, and $15 million in payroll since the 2007 census.
 

Cow in Lewis County Tests Positive for Rabies

A cow in the town of Denmark in Lewis County has tested positive for rabies, according to officials with the Lewis County Public Health Department.

The department was notified Dec. 31. Four people had come in contact with the cow and they all have received rabies post-exposure treatment.

One additional cow that came into contact with the cow with rabies has been placed in a six-month quarantine.

In 2014, New York state reported five cattle, one sheep and one horse with rabies. Lewis County had one other cow with rabies in the last five years.

Tug Hill Vineyards in Lewis County Receives Funding

From Sens. Schumer and Gillibrand:

A total of $62,924 is being awarded to Tug Hill Vineyards in Lewis County to increase wine production at the facility. 

The federal funding was allocated through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Rural Business Enterprise Grant Program and will be used to purchase essential equipment needed to efficiently increase wine production at Tug Hill Vineyards.

Schumer

“This is federal funding is great news for Lewis County and Tug Hill Vineyards,” said Sen. Charles Schumer. “This funding will provide Tug Hill the funds needed to help them to expand and provide more consumers with their quality products. Making sure we support our agricultural businesses in Upstate New York will always be a priority of mine.”

 “New York’s world-class vineyards produce some of the finest grapes, grown by hard-working farm families,” said Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee who wrote to USDA in support of Tug Hill’s project. 

Gillibrand

“This investment in the Tug Hill Vineyard will help ensure they get the resources they need to expand their business with the purchase of critical equipment. This will help bring their products to market and continue to drive economic growth in their region.”

“Increasing the diversity of agricultural production and adding value to the crops grown in Lewis County are key components of economic development. The economic impacts associated with Tug Hill Vineyards’ growth and success impacts all of Lewis County,” said Larry Dolhof, president of the  Lewis County Development Corp. “The Vineyard is directly responsible for an increase in local employment, retail sales of wine and berries, and tourism related to the wine industry and the vineyards special events capacity.”

“We are so pleased to receive this funding to support the expansion of Tug Hill Vineyards,” said Sue Maring, owner of Tug Hill Vineyards. “We look forward to procuring state of the art equipment necessary for increased wine production.”

Tug Hill Vineyards was established in 2007 and consists of 20 acres of grapevines on a 40-acre  estate. Tug Hill Vineyards produces red and golden raspberries as well as blueberries in addition to grapes. They also produce a variety of wines both dry and sweet.

USDA Rural Business Enterprise Grants are available to towns, State agencies, tribes and non-profits. They are used to support development of rural small businesses, distance learning networks and adult job training education programs. The RBEG program’s grants finance and facilitate development of small and emerging rural businesses to grow the economy.