From the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program
The 2017 North Country Crop Congresses will feature updates on research projects funded by the farmer-driven Northern New York Agricultural Development Program.
The program provides small grants for on-farm research and technical assistance projects in Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties.
The Crop Congresses Feb. 1 in Chazy and Feb. 2 in Canton will include presentations on Northern New York Development Program-funded research evaluating ways to manage the crop pests corn rootworm, alfalfa snout beetle and western bean cutworm, and on field trials with forage sorghum.
The Feb. 1 Crop Congress at the Burke Education and Research Center at Miner Institute in Chazy will also include an update on Northern New York Agricultural Development Program-funded tile drainage research by Miner Institute, and other Miner Institute research updates.
This event is free to attend. Pre-registration is encouraged by calling (518) 846-7121 ext. 117.
The Feb. 2 Crop Congress at the Best Western University Inn, 90 E. Main St. in Canton, will also include a presentation on Northern New York Agricultural Development Program-funded field trials of late summer-planted oats as a forage option.
Weed control management, neonicotinoid seed treatment restrictions, and crop insurance presentations are also on the agenda. There is a fee to attend this event; call (315) 788-8450 or (315) 854-1218.
More than 100 regional farmers serve on the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program committee that identifies and prioritizes research and technical assistance projects for attention in the six northernmost counties of New York state.
Project leaders receiving funding from the farmer-driven Northern New York Agricultural Development Program in 2016 included Cornell University and State University of New York faculty, and personnel with Cornell Cooperative Extension; the Cornell Willsboro Research Farm, Willsboro, Essex County; W. H. Miner Agricultural Research Institute, Chazy, Clinton County; and Uihlein Maple Research Forest, Lake Placid, NY.
Funding for the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program is supported by the New York State and administered by the state Department of Agriculture and Markets. Project results are posted online at the following link www.nnyagdev.org
Showing posts with label alfalfa snout beetle. Show all posts
Showing posts with label alfalfa snout beetle. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 25, 2017
Wednesday, March 2, 2016
Lab Seeks Farmers to Order or Apply Worms to Fight Alfalfa Snout Beetle
From the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program:
The Shields Lab at Cornell University is asking farmers interested in ordering or applying the biocontrol nematodes (worms) proven successful for limiting the highly destructive alfalfa snout beetle to contact the Lab.
The lab can be reached at (607) 591-1493. Farmers should call before April 29 if they are planning to apply the nematodes before July 1.
The Shields Lab is also interested in talking with anyone interested in rearing the biocontrol nematodes as a business enterprise.
Farmers have the option to purchase a shipment of the biocontrol nematodes from the Shields Lab or to request assistance in rearing the nematodes themselves.
The cost to purchase the biocontrol nematodes from the Shields Lab is $26 per acre. Growers using their own labor to rear the biocontrol nematodes may reduce the cost to about $15 per acre.
Applications must be made by Sept. 1. The April 29 ordering date from the Lab includes the opportunity for a 10 percent discount for delivery for application by June 15. A 10 percent discount will be provided to participants paying upon delivery.
The Shields Lab recommends applying the nematodes to alfalfa fields in the seeding or first production year for best economic impact.
The Shields Lab plans to discontinue its rearing of the nematodes by 2021.
"Alfalfa snout beetle will remain a potential threat as long as alfalfa is grown in the region, so we are also very interested in assisting anyone interested in rearing these biocontrol nematodes as a business enterprise so this control agent remains available to Northern New York farmers after 2021," sadi Cornell entomologist Elson Shields.
With long-term funding by the farmer-driven Northern New York Agricultural Development Program, Shields and Cornell University Research Support Specialist Tony Testa developed a complete understanding of the life cycle of alfalfa snout beetle and created the science-based, field-tested protocol for using a combination of two species of native New York nematodes to control the beetle.
Their guide to rearing and applying the biocontrol nematodes is online at www.nnyagdev.org
Thursday, March 12, 2015
New Alfalfa from Cornell University Combats Pests
This information is from Cornell University:
Dairy
and other livestock farmers in the northern U.S. have three new alfalfa
options this growing season – all pioneered by Cornell University
researchers as a way to combat devastating pests, increase yields and
improve forage quality.
Developed by Donald Viands, a professor of plant breeding and genetics in the School of Integrative Plant Science at Cornell University, along with senior research associate Julie Hansen, and research support specialist Jamie Crawford, these new varieties were grown in Cornell greenhouses and tested for resistance in farm fields across the state.
“The broader implications on agriculture revolve mostly around livestock producers, especially in the dairy industry, being able to economically produce forage for feed,” Viands said. “Higher forage yield and quality, combined with multiple disease and insect resistances, enable forage to be produced more economically, thus enhancing economic vitality of livestock operations.”
The first variety, SW 9558SBR, provides resistance to the alfalfa snout beetle, which can cripple root systems. Viands said this project was a collaborative effort among plant scientists Elson Shields and Tony Testa in the Department of Entomology at Cornell, extension educators and farmers.
In trials, researchers have found this variety provides a half-ton increase in yield per acre.
The developers said seed companies are interested in selling SW 9558SBR to combat the snout beetle following a dramatic increase in the insect’s population over the past decade. The alfalfa snout beetle, currently confined to northern New York state, has the ability to spread to surrounding states and Canada.
“It’s easy to overlook this problem,” said Hansen. “Beetles burrow in hay bales and if only one insect gets transported, populations can grow rapidly.”
A second new alfalfa variety, SW 315LH, combats the potato leafhopper – an insect Hansen called “the most furious pest on alfalfa in all of North America.” The pest does not overwinter but arrives each year from the south carried by early spring thunderstorms. While the insect is found throughout the central and northern United States, Hansen said SW 315LH is the first potato leafhopper-resistant variety of alfalfa that is well-adapted for New York.
The third variety, SW 215CR, is geared to bolstering New York’s alfalfa cultivation and is the culmination of a project spearheaded by the late Royse Murphy, professor emeritus of plant breeding. This “creeping rooted” variety helps alfalfa grow in adverse conditions because its root system swells and grows laterally.
“Creeping rooted is not really a new trait, but Murphy successfully bred it into Northeast conditions,” said Viands. “This variety will be effective in New York state and surrounding states, building pasture longevity.”
All varieties are available to farmers through the New York-based seed company Seedway, with limited availability of SW 315LH and SW 215CR this spring. Seeds are available to farmers throughout the northern United States and may be made available to Canadian farmers in the future.
Hansen said the team has had early feedback indicating both higher yields and healthier plants.
“The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences is unique for doing this type of work,” said Viands. “Through collaboration with researchers, extension educators and farmers, we can help advance the land-grant mission throughout the state.”
These varieties have been ongoing, collaborative projects for years and are funded primarily by Federal Hatch Funds through the Cornell University Agriculture Experiment Station as well as the Northern New York Agriculture Development Program and New York Farm Viability Institute.
 |
| Alfalfa snout beetle |
Developed by Donald Viands, a professor of plant breeding and genetics in the School of Integrative Plant Science at Cornell University, along with senior research associate Julie Hansen, and research support specialist Jamie Crawford, these new varieties were grown in Cornell greenhouses and tested for resistance in farm fields across the state.
“The broader implications on agriculture revolve mostly around livestock producers, especially in the dairy industry, being able to economically produce forage for feed,” Viands said. “Higher forage yield and quality, combined with multiple disease and insect resistances, enable forage to be produced more economically, thus enhancing economic vitality of livestock operations.”
The first variety, SW 9558SBR, provides resistance to the alfalfa snout beetle, which can cripple root systems. Viands said this project was a collaborative effort among plant scientists Elson Shields and Tony Testa in the Department of Entomology at Cornell, extension educators and farmers.
In trials, researchers have found this variety provides a half-ton increase in yield per acre.
The developers said seed companies are interested in selling SW 9558SBR to combat the snout beetle following a dramatic increase in the insect’s population over the past decade. The alfalfa snout beetle, currently confined to northern New York state, has the ability to spread to surrounding states and Canada.
“It’s easy to overlook this problem,” said Hansen. “Beetles burrow in hay bales and if only one insect gets transported, populations can grow rapidly.”
A second new alfalfa variety, SW 315LH, combats the potato leafhopper – an insect Hansen called “the most furious pest on alfalfa in all of North America.” The pest does not overwinter but arrives each year from the south carried by early spring thunderstorms. While the insect is found throughout the central and northern United States, Hansen said SW 315LH is the first potato leafhopper-resistant variety of alfalfa that is well-adapted for New York.
The third variety, SW 215CR, is geared to bolstering New York’s alfalfa cultivation and is the culmination of a project spearheaded by the late Royse Murphy, professor emeritus of plant breeding. This “creeping rooted” variety helps alfalfa grow in adverse conditions because its root system swells and grows laterally.
“Creeping rooted is not really a new trait, but Murphy successfully bred it into Northeast conditions,” said Viands. “This variety will be effective in New York state and surrounding states, building pasture longevity.”
All varieties are available to farmers through the New York-based seed company Seedway, with limited availability of SW 315LH and SW 215CR this spring. Seeds are available to farmers throughout the northern United States and may be made available to Canadian farmers in the future.
Hansen said the team has had early feedback indicating both higher yields and healthier plants.
“The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences is unique for doing this type of work,” said Viands. “Through collaboration with researchers, extension educators and farmers, we can help advance the land-grant mission throughout the state.”
These varieties have been ongoing, collaborative projects for years and are funded primarily by Federal Hatch Funds through the Cornell University Agriculture Experiment Station as well as the Northern New York Agriculture Development Program and New York Farm Viability Institute.
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