Xerces Society is holding an online short course intended for NRCS staff, Soil and Water Conservation staff, Extension Educators, farmers and other agricultural professionals in the northeastern region of the US. This course is free to attend, but registration is required. Click here to register.

Presenters are Stephanie Frischie, Agronomist & Native Plant Materials Specialist; Jennifer Hopwood, Senior Pollinator Conservation Specialist – Midwest; and Kelly Gill, Senior Pollinator Conservation Specialist – Northeast/Mid-Atlantic, and guest presenter Kyle Wickings, Associate Professor of Entomology at Cornell University, for this online course about soil animals and their role in governing microbial processes in agricultural soils.

Participants will learn about common soil invertebrates, their ecology and roles in soil health, scouting methods, and management strategies to increase beneficial soil animal populations.

In Dr. Wicking’s talk, he will review the primary pathways by which soil animals influence crop residue decomposition and organic matter cycling, first discussing recent research on the different ways invertebrates interact with microbial processes in soil. Second, he will talk about the impact of agricultural management practices on invertebrates and the processes they drive. Next, we’ll discuss how invasive earthworms muddy the concept of soil health. Lastly, we’ll explore how even plant-feeding insect pests can impact carbon and nitrogen cycling in soil.

Join Trail Works wildflower expert Mark DeCracker to hike a National Natural Landmark with a sphagnum bog and floating bog cradled between Wayne County drumlins.

Trail loop is 2 miles.

Dress for the weather with appropriate footwear for wet and muddy conditions.

For more information call Mark DeCracker 315-573-8170.

SUNDAY AT 1:30 PM – 3:30 PM

Wildflower Walk at Zurich Bog

3909 Arcadia Zurich Norris Rd, Lyons, NY 14489-9020, United States
For more information visit https://fb.me/e/1dZJBqqU6

With Population Spreading in New York City Area, Department Asks Public to Destroy or Use Control Measures to Treat Spotted Lanternfly
Encourages Residents to Report New Sightings The New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets (AGM) is asking for the public’s help in combatting the Spotted Lanternfly (SLF), an invasive pest from Asia.  First found in New York State on Staten Island in August 2020, the population has now been observed in all NYC boroughs.  SLF (see photo below) is a destructive pest that feeds on more than 70 plant species, including tree-of-heaven, and plants and crops that are critical to New York’s agricultural economy, such as grapevine, apple trees, and hops.

State Agriculture Commissioner Richard A. Ball said, “The Department has been working diligently to mitigate the impacts of this destructive pest, which can weaken plants and have a devastating impact on agriculture.  Despite intensive surveys and the implementation of targeted management plans, AGM has continued to find SLF around the New York City area.  We are once again asking for residents’ help, this time with spotted lanternfly control measures, particularly in this area.  Outside of NYC, we’re asking for the public to continue to be vigilant and report any sightings to help slow the spread of this invasive.”

New York City Region

NYS AGM has been receiving increased reports of SLF in the five boroughs of New York City since early this month.  While inspectors continue to survey and respond to these reports, AGM is asking residents to destroy SLF adults. Later in the fall the public can help further by scraping off and destroying SLF egg masses. The public can also reach out to Cornell University’s Integrated Pest Management Program (IPM) to learn about control measures or a certified pesticide applicator for treatment options to help combat SLF. Because NYSAGM is aware of the population spread, it is asking NYC residents to forgo reporting sightings of SLF at this time.  In addition to reaching out to Cornell, AGM encourages the public to thoroughly inspect vehicles, luggage and gear, and all outdoor items for egg masses and adult SLF before leaving the New York City region.

While these insects can jump and fly short distances, they spread primarily through human activity. SLF can lay their eggs on any number of surfaces, such as vehicles, stone, rusty metal, outdoor furniture, and firewood. Adult SLF can hitch rides in vehicles, on any outdoor item, or cling to clothing or hats, and be easily transported into and throughout New York.

Residents can also help by allowing surveyors access to properties where SLF may be present.  Surveyors will be uniformed and will always provide identification.

Upstate New York

SLF has also been detected in several isolated areas upstate, including Ithaca, New York; however, that population is relatively small and scheduled for treatment.

For residents living outside of New York City, AGM urges New Yorkers to report sightings of the SLF, using the web reporting tool found here: https://survey123.arcgis.com/share/a08d60f6522043f5bd04229e00acdd63

Reporting in Upstate New York is critical, helping inspectors identify any newly impacted areas.

Brian Eshenaur, Sr. Extension Associate at Cornell University’s NYS Integrated Pest Management Program, said, “In New York, we’re particularly concerned about the impact Spotted Lanternfly could have on our grape and wine industries. Our NYS Integrated Pest Management Program has been working with our colleagues in Pennsylvania over the past few years to learn from their experience and prepare our growers for this insect advance.  We are currently scouting vineyards and have NYS appropriate management options available for producers and tips for residents as well.”

In February of this year, the State also launched an innovative effort to combat the spread of SLF in New York State. A new online interface allows volunteer members of the public to assist in surveying for SLF in a specific area, or grid of land, and tracking associated data. The program encourages broader surveying for SLF and increased public awareness of this invasive pest.

The State is holding a series of training webinars to educate volunteers on how to identify SLF and tree-of-heaven, a plant that SLF commonly feeds on. Each training webinar will focus on a different life stage of SLF based on the time of year that stage would be most likely found during survey.  Currently, the training focuses on identifying adult SLF. The training will also cover how to use iMapInvasives, how to sign up for a grid and track data, and details about land access. The next webinar will be held on October 27, from 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. More information about the program, including upcoming webinars, can be found at https://www.nyimapinvasives.org/slf.

Spotted Lanternfly Devastating to New York Agriculture

SLF feeding can stress plants, making them vulnerable to disease and attacks from other insects. SLF also excretes large amounts of sticky “honeydew,” which attracts sooty molds that interfere with plant photosynthesis, negatively affecting the growth and fruit yield of plants, devastating agriculture and impacting forest health.

The estimated total economic impact of invasive insects in the US exceeds $70 billion per year, and if not contained, the SLF could have an impact to NYS of at least $300 million annually, mainly to the grape and wine industry.

SLF also has the potential to significantly hinder quality of life and recreational activities due to the honeydew and the swarms of insects it attracts.

First discovered in Pennsylvania in 2014, SLF has since been found in New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware, West Virginia and Virginia. Given the proximity to the Pennsylvania and New Jersey infestations, New York State is at high risk for infestation.

Since 2017, AGM, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, New York State Department of Transportation, and New York State Thruway Authority have taken an aggressive approach to keeping SLF from establishing in New York State, conducting surveys of high-risk areas across the State; inspecting nursery stock, stone shipments, and commercial transports from quarantine areas; and launching a comprehensive education and outreach campaign to enlist the public’s help in reporting SLF.

Identifying SLF

Adult SLF are active from July to December. They are approximately one inch long and half an inch wide at rest, with eye-catching wings. Adults begin laying eggs in September. Signs of an SLF infestation may include:

  • Sap oozing or weeping from open wounds on tree trunks, which appear wet and give off fermented odors.
  • One-inch-long egg masses that are brownish-gray, waxy and mud-like when new. Old egg masses are brown and scaly.
  • Massive honeydew build-up under plants, sometimes with black sooty mold developing.

For more information on Spotted Lanternfly, visit https://agriculture.ny.gov/spottedlanternfly.

 

Findings can help production nurseries, forest managers make decisions to protect their inventories

Reprinted with permission from Morning Ag Clips


UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Short-term, heaving feeding by adult spotted lanternflies on young maple trees inhibits photosynthesis, potentially impairing the tree’s growth by up to 50 percent, according to a new study by Penn State scientists. According to the researchers, the findings can help production nurseries and forest managers make management decisions to protect their inventories.

“Spotted lanternfly will feed on important ornamental and forest trees such as silver and red maple, which are used to make products and are abundant across urban, suburban and rural landscapes throughout Pennsylvania,” said Kelli Hoover, professor of entomology in the College of Agricultural Sciences, who added that Pennsylvania’s forest products industry has a total economic impact of $36 billion.This planthopper, which originated in Asia, was found for the first time in the U.S. in Berks County in 2014 and since has spread to 45 Pennsylvania counties and surrounding states. The pest uses its piercing-sucking mouthparts to feed on sap from more than 100 plant species, with a strong preference for tree-of-heaven — also an invasive species — and wild and cultivated grapes.

“While the spotted lanternfly likely co-evolved with its preferred host, tree-of-heaven, in its native range, the effects on the health and physiology of tree hosts native to the U.S. have not been investigated,” Hoover said.

The scientists began their two-year study in 2019 in a common garden area in Blandon. They collected spotted lanternflies at two ages: adults and fourth instar nymphs, the last stage of development before adulthood. The researchers then placed the insects in different “densities” — or number of insects per plant — on silver maple, red maple, black walnut and tree-of-heaven saplings. During the first year, they looked at how feeding pressure on a single branch affected tree physiology. In the second year of the study, when the trees were more established, the team investigated the effect of nymph and adult feeding using whole-tree enclosures. The scientists defined heavy feeding as when the number of pests blanketed the tree.

“This process produces the nonstructural carbohydrates that trees need to grow and produce flowers or fruit,” Hoover said. “When plants are under stress, they use a variety of strategies to defend themselves; they may shift rates of photosynthesis and alter the allocation of carbon and nitrogen resources to growth or induced plant defenses.”

The team’s findings, recently published in Frontiers of Insect Science, show that adult spotted lanternfly feeding does thwart photosynthesis, thereby stunting the growth of young saplings. However, there was variation depending on tree species, pest density and time post-infestation.

The researchers found that nymphs on a single branch of red maple or silver maple at different densities had no significant effects on gas exchange

In contrast, 40 adults confined to a single branch of red or silver maple rapidly suppressed photosynthesis and reduced nitrogen concentration in leaves. Soluble sugars in branch wood were reduced in the fall for silver maple and in the following spring for red maple. (Read more here) New Tab

The Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) reminds residents that with warming temperatures and dry conditions, residential brush burning is prohibited March 16 through May 14 across New York State.

Due to the lack of snow cover over much of the state and with rising temperatures forecasted for the coming weeks, conditions for wildfires could be heightened.

“While many people associate wildfires with the western United States, the early start of spring weather, dry conditions, and lack of snow pack increase the risk for wildfires in New York,” DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos said. “New York prohibits residential burning during the high-risk fire season to reduce wildfires and protect people, property, and natural resources. The ban has been extremely effective in reducing the number of wildfires, and we’re encouraging New Yorkers to put safety first.”

Currently, fire conditions in most of the state are low risk.

New York first enacted strict restrictions on open burning in 2009 to help prevent wildfires and reduce air pollution. The regulations allow residential brush fires in towns with fewer than 20,000 residents during most of the year, but prohibit such burning in spring when most wildfires occur.

In the seven-year period since the ban was established, the average number of spring fires per year decreased by 35.5 percent, from 2,925 in 2009 to 1,886 in 2016.

Campfires using charcoal or untreated wood are allowed, but people should never leave such fires unattended and must extinguish them. Burning garbage or leaves is prohibited year-round.

More information here

Agriculture Environmental Steward of 2017

Congratulations to Wayne County Agricultural Economic Development Specialist and Retired Farmer Ora Rothfuss from North Rose the recipient of the 2017 Wayne County Agriculture Environmental Stewardship award Awarding stewardship effort from across the agriculture communities.

Ora has supported agriculture through his personal and professional work, serving as a land steward caring for his family farm in Macedon and after retiring from farming working with the community to promote agriculture business by advising and offering outreach to the community. He has been an active participant in the Wayne County Farm Bureau and Wayne County Water Quality Committee, has acted as a liaison for Right to Farm Laws, assisted the Water Quality Coordinating Committee for over ten years and implemented a merger between the Wayne County Ag Advisory Committee and Ag Economic Development Board.

Ora continues to work to improve their Agricultural District Program—bringing in new and innovative ways of utilizing low-interest loan programs for Ag industry development and for the betterment of the local farming

Over the past several years, the District has awarded an Agricultural Environmental Stewardship award to a member of the agricultural support community that goes above and beyond to continue to provide services and manage environmental issues, aid in dealing with the difficult years and lend a hand to other farms, and strengthen the Agricultural community.

 

May 9th Preparedness Planning Workshops: Creating Watershed Resiliency in Your Community

A series of free workshops are being held at the Elks Lodge in Wolcott, NY to help homeowners, board members, municipal staff and anyone else who is interested to learn about easy ways to prepare for an uncertain future within their community.

Register now by clicking this link:
 https://goo.gl/forms/8hMbRLQkUdW7JfJu1
Or register by phone: Kathy Forrest, (315)443-1131

When: May 9th, 2019, 6pm – 8:30pm
6:00pm: Hot hors d’oeuvres and registration
6:30-8:30pm: Programs

Where: Wolcott Elks Lodge
6161 W Port Bay Rd
Wolcott, NY 14590

May 9th, 6pm – 8:30pm
Jayme Thomann, Genessee/Finger Lakes Regional Planning Council
Land Use Tools for Stormwater and Floodplain Management

Who Should Attend:
Homeowners, municipal board members, business owners, elected officials, and municipal staff.

This work is supported by an agreement with New York Sea Grant, funds provided by the Environmental Protection Fund under the authority of the New York Ocean and Great Lakes Ecosystem Conservation Act.

 

 

The first of several free fishing days in New York State for 2017 will take place next weekend on Saturday, February 18 and Sunday, February 19.

During these designated days, New York residents and non-residents are permitted to fish for free without a fishing license.

Anglers are reminded that fishing regulations remain in effect during these days.

Free fishing days are the perfect opportunity for both beginning anglers that want to learn more about fishing and also those interested in getting back into the sport. Of New York’s 7,500 lakes and ponds and 70,000 miles of rivers and streams, exceptional fishing opportunities aren’t far away!

Additional free fishing days slated for 2017 include:

June 24-25th
September 23 (National Hunting and Fishing Day)
November 11 (Veterans Day)

Those new to ice fishing are encouraged to download the Introduction to Ice Fishing chapter of DEC’s new I FISH NY Beginners’ Guide to Freshwater Fishing for information on how to get started with ice fishing. Additional information, including tips on ice fishing safety and a list of waters open to ice fishing, can be found at DEC’s ice fishing web page.

For Governor Cuomo’s press release on the upcoming Free Ice Fishing Weekend visit https://www.governor.ny.gov/news/governor-cuomo-announces-free-fishing-days-new-york

Press Release: June 6, 2019

NY Seagrant

Lake Ontario Inundation Mapping Tools Now Available from New York Sea Grant: Tutorial Webinar Planned for June 20

Newark, N.Y.; June 6, 2019. New York Sea Grant, with funding from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), has developed new interactive inundation mapping tools to help property owners along Lake Ontario and its embayments enhance flooding preparedness.

The tools are posted at https://protect2.fireeye.com/url?k=d22862f1-8e10c593-d22a9bc4-000babd9f75c-7977e1b7e4b2309e&u=https://seagrant.sunysb.edu/articles/r/12972 with a tutorial to assist users. A free, 45-minute training webinar is scheduled for June 20th at 1 p.m.; register at https://cornell.zoom.us/meeting/register/250965bd69e1e22e7c24e00bf0acd2b8.

The online mapping tools provide users with a parcel-level view of areas that could experience flooding along Lake Ontario and its embayments based on predetermined water levels and digital elevation data. Wayne and Monroe County stakeholders beta-tested the new tools. The future scenarios used in the mapping tools are not water levels currently projected, but potential lake levels offered for planning purposes only.

“These new mapping tools will allow users to visualize inundation information for individual parcels of interest using the predetermined water levels. That information can be used by individual property owners as well as communities to enhance flood preparedness and planning going forward,” said project leader and New York Sea Grant Coastal Community Development Specialist Mary Austerman, Newark, N.Y.

Use of the mapping tools has been designed to assist planning, e.g., location and triage of accessory structures and belongings during high water, to inform community-level preparedness planning, and to help identify areas that warrant in-depth analyses, enhanced flood response, or policy development to enhance flood resilience.

Austerman and Jessica Kuonen, a Coastal Community Development Assistant with New York Sea Grant, are the developers of the Lake Ontario Inundation Map Package and Lake Ontario Inundation WebMap tools. These new mapping tools were developed as part of a larger project creating a Coastal Resiliency Index, due out later this year. A similar mapping tool for Lake Erie is being explored. For more information, contact Mary Austerman, New York Sea Grant, 315-331-8415 x121, mp357@cornell.edu.

For additional information on New York Sea Grant’s Great Lakes Coastal Communities extension efforts, visit https://protect2.fireeye.com/url?k=d28b6aaa-8eb3cdc8-d289939f-000babd9f75c-d42de83103875b27&u=http://www.nyseagrant.org/ccd. To learn more about New York Sea Grant Extension as a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration cooperative program of Cornell University and the State University of New York, visit https://protect2.fireeye.com/url?k=c6863400-9abe9362-c684cd35-000babd9f75c-3c09bd9ada5a4e99&u=http://www.nyseagrant.org/.

MEDIA CONTACTS:
. Mary Austerman, New York Sea Grant, 315-331-8415 x121, mp357@cornell.edu
. Publicist Kara Lynn Dunn, 315-465-7578, karalynn@gisco.net

https://protect2.fireeye.com/url?k=586fc42d-0457634f-586d3d18-000babd9f75c-b3de3852ea766f4f&u=https://seagrant.sunysb.edu/articles/r/12973

With NYS on PAUSE, Huckleberry Swamp, located in North Rose, is offering a self guided activity walk to celebrate Earth Day.

From April 22nd -April 25th the public is invited to take a walk along the boardwalk trail at Huckleberry Swamp and view fun facts along your walk.

Earth Day has been celebrated every April 22nd since 1970. The main aim of Earth Day is to raise awareness of the impacts that our actions as mankind have on our environment and earth as a whole . Take the day to learn more about the environment we live. Think about the actions everyone can take to make it better.  Make Earth Day, every day. 

Huckleberry Swamp is located at 9190 Catchpole Road, North Rose, NY 14516

The Huckleberry Swamp volunteers invite guests to bring a hand-painted rock and participate in the  “Take A Rock-Leave A Rock”.  Scattered around the area are hand-painted rocks with inspirational messages, The public is invited to take a rock leave one of your own for the next person. Add a little joy to anyone that may need a lift. Visitors can also participate in fun scavenger hunts.

Can you find these items?  Click the photos for larger view and printing. (images open in a separate tab)

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For more information about Huckleberry Swamp and to see other activities and events, please visit www.ofofinc.org

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