Contributed by Farm Hub Farmscape Ecology Coordinator Anne Bloomfield

I’m standing in a hayfield in May. Listening. Turning my head into the wind, I close my eyes and try to make out a distant song. Then, as if on cue, there it is. One day earlier than last year. It’s the song of the Bobolink, a grassland bird with a warbling, mechanical, almost otherworldly song and striking, contrasting black and white plumage with a prominent blond nape. A small bird at the center of some big discussions. On their wintering grounds in South America, where they are considered crop pests, Bobolinks die from pesticide exposure. On their breeding grounds here in the Hudson Valley, they frequently place their nests in hayfields, often during the ideal time for harvesting hay, baleage and straw used for both livestock and crop production needs. As stewards of the land, how can we balance our responsibility to provide suitable habitat to wildlife with our commitment to feed our communities?

In the 19th century, The Hudson Valley was a landscape dominated by open agricultural areas comprised largely of an extensive grass-based, low-technology farming system. Today, the landscape looks quite different, and Bobolinks are declining across our region in large part due to increased development, reforestation and more intensive management of hayfields and pastures. 

The goals of wildlife conservation and crop production are often seen as at odds with one another. In order for both sides to be successful we must be sensitive to one another’s goals. Restricting activities in hayfields for the duration of the Bobolink breeding season might be impractical for most farmers. And at the same time, more intensive mowing isn’t a suitable match for grassland birds. A strategy that works involves biologists and farmers at the table together, generating solutions that work for all involved. New management techniques developed by researchers and incentive programs for farmers hold promise as solutions that work for both wildlife and farmers.

During the 2017 season at the Hudson Valley Farm Hub, we took steps to manage areas of the farm with grassland birds in mind. Our intention with these practices is to create examples of beneficial habitats and management practices that can serve as inspiration to other farmers.

First, most of our hayfields at the Farm Hub have been strategically placed in historically flood-prone areas with the goals of preventing erosion as well as providing habitat for wildlife. Second, in 2018 we plan to try alternative mowing strategies in some of our hayfields. For example, in a recent study, researchers in our region demonstrated that performing a first cut of hay before June and waiting 65 days before the second cut allows Bobolinks to successfully fledge young from hayfields (Perlut et al 2011).

In addition, there are hayfields on the farm that will only receive cuts after late July, when most Bobolinks have fledged. In these areas, the hayfields contain a suitable mix of grasses such as timothy and perennial rye as well as flowering broad-leaved plants such as clover. There is a downside to this strategy. Delayed mowing results in a product that is less nutritious to dairy cows and not as nutrient-rich for building soil health. For the Farm Hub, because we do not currently manage livestock, a late cutting of a hayfield is quite suitable. The cut material is used as mulch in our vegetable operation to suppress weeds and regulate soil moisture. This eventually breaks down to build better soil health. The use of hay and straw is a valuable tool in reduced tillage systems.

Finally, in partnership with the Hawthorne Valley Farmscape Ecology Program and the Xerces Society, the Farm Hub is hosting Native Meadow Trials. The overall objective of these trials is to understand what seed mixes and management regimes can produce good herbaceous habitat for insects and birds. Any seed mixes that perform well at the small scale may be seeded into some of the flood-prone areas as larger-scale test habitat for beneficial insects and grassland birds.

Upon returning to the same hayfield later in the 2017 season, I discover that the Bobolinks have moved on. The fields are silent, the air is still and empty. Across the creek in the clover I continue my monitoring efforts. As I raise my binoculars, I hear a familiar bink bink bink. When I look up, I see a male Bobolink fluttering around. Upon closer inspection, he’s caught the attention of a female perched down in the clover. It is in these moments that I know that there is hope for the future and space for the hard conversations to happen. We should never give up on striving for the things we believe in, whether it be feeding our communities or protecting wildlife. When we give ourselves the time and space to work together, we have the ability to generate solutions to complex issues.

Standing in the clover field, I am comforted in knowing that when I turn my head into the wind, and close my eyes I will again hear the same song of the Bobolinks return.

References:
Perlut, N.G., A.M. Strong, and T. J. Alexander. 2011. A model for integrating wildlife science and agri-environmental policy in the conservation of declining species.The Journal of Wildlife Management 75:1657-1663.

What’s happening at the Hudson Valley Farm Hub? Now in its fourth season, the Farm Hub is growing up in more ways than one, with a range of activities geared towards our vision for a resilient food system. 

Cultivos de cobertura are essential agricultural tools for increasing biological activity and water retention in the soil, mitigating erosion, controlling pests, and increasing overall farm diversity. Cover crops also provide an alternative to chemical inputs. As part of an initiative to test the effectiveness of different cover crops, the Farm Hub is planting a variety, including sweet clover, rye, vetch, and Japanese millet. In the vegetable fields, select cover crops are being planted on a rotating schedule with crops such as potatoes and broccoli.

This year the Farm Hub’s ProFarmer Program welcomed five new trainees. Since arriving in April, the five new trainees have been immersed in Farm Hub vegetable production and tractor training while becoming acclimated to Farm Hub operations. ProFarmers are have also been visiting farms and attending workshops around the region. The first of these field trips took place on a Saturday in May, when ProFarmers and field staff attended a Community Farm Day at Soul Fire Farm in Petersburg, NY, volunteering in the fields and sharing a potluck meal. Soul Fire is an educational farm focused on training and empowering Black, Latinx, and Indigenous growers and youth.

In June, ProFarmers attended a certificate training with Cornell Cooperative Extension on the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) and Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs), and in July they traveled to Pennsylvania for the Rodale Institute’s Field Day. Rodale’s is the longest-running U.S. trial pairing organic with conventional agriculture in a side-by-side comparison. This trial is expected to go on for more than two decades and will monitor factors such as soil health and environmental impact.

Last fall, the Farm Hub planted Kernza, a perennial grain that promises significant ecological benefits. This 20-acre trial is taking place at the Farm Hub in partnership with a Kansas-based organization, The Land Institute. Representatives from The Land Institute visited the Farm Hub in May and June to evaluate the Kernza’s growth and analyze factors that might impact yield. The first harvest of Kernza will take place in mid-August.

The Farm Hub’s Native American Seed Sanctuary, a project run in partnership with the St. Regis Mohawk/Akwesasne Tribe of northern New York and the Hudson Valley Seedshed, is now in its second year. Farm crew members, Profarmers, and friends of the Farm Hub hand-planted Native American varieties of beans, Buffalo Creek squash, and Mohwak Red Bread corn in May. The seeds from the harvest of these crops will be returned to the St. Regis Mohawk tribe in northern New York this fall.

The Farm Hub is continuing its partnership with the Programa de Ecología del Agro-Paisaje de Hawthorne Valley and its collaborators. These efforts are aimed at answering two related questions:

• What impact are the Farm Hub’s activities having on its soil and adjacent waters?
• How can on-farm habitat management enhance both the abundance of agriculturally beneficial creatures and the conservation of biodiversity?

Water quality is being addressed through the work of SUNY New Paltz Professor Shafiul Chowdhury. Professor Chowdhury and his students are monitoring surface water conditions on and around the Farm Hub’s fields. By comparing results to historical data, this team will explore how recent changes in land management at the Farm Hub may be influencing the water quality of the Esopus Creek.

The study of habitat management involves both on-site and off-site work. In partnership with the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation and the Hawthorne Valley Farmscape Ecology Program, trial plots have been established at the Farm Hub to test wildflower seed mixes intended to stabilize soil and improve habitat for beneficial insects. Field Technician Anne Bloomfield is following bird communities as the Farm Hub’s field management evolves. Simultaneously, plantings on four additional farms in the region are illuminating the ways in which habitat management influences in-crop insect communities.

Through these activities, the team hopes to document the importance of under-valued habitats, suggest new approaches that can be tested at the Farm Hub, and eventually share ideas with other growers. For more information about the Farm Hub’s research trials, click aquí. 

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Ecological farming methods such as the use of cover crops can provide habitat for beneficial insects and birds while restoring soil health. The Hudson Valley Farm Hub is working with the Programa de Ecología del Agro-Paisaje de Hawthorne Valley y la Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation on two multi-year trials—the Native Meadow Trial and the Wet Meadow Trial—in an effort to study the effects of creating meadows in formerly tilled fields that are prone to erosion.

The Native Meadow Trial is situated on three one-and-a-half-acre plots of recently tilled and weed-free soil. At two of the sites, seed mixes were planted in varying proportions of grasses to wildflowers, while a third control site was left fallow for comparison. The Wet Meadow Trial is taking place in a partially vegetated wetland corridor. Here, a seed mix of native wetland varieties such as New England Aster, Riverbank Wild Rye, and Joe Pye Weed.

Seeding land that is prone to erosion can produce a variety of benefits, especially if the plants are perennials such as native grasses and wildflowers. These plants develop a permanent root system, anchoring them in place and preventing them from being blown away by winds or washed away during extreme weather events.

Wildflower and grass meadows also provide habitats for beneficial insects and grassland birds.

More broadly, the presence of meadows can enhance the relationship between cropland and the surrounding environment and improve agriculture production.

Over the course of the trials, the research team will record management actions such as mowing, and will periodically measure the conditions of the soil. Plants will be evaluated to see which species thrive and which struggle in certain conditions, and the presence of insects will be monitored to determine which seed mix attracts the most pollinators and pest predators.

Avian activity will also be looked at by the team. With proper management, larger grow outs of these native meadows can create the proper structure for nesting by grassland breeding birds whose numbers are in decline. These include the Eastern Meadowlark, Bobolink, and Grasshopper Sparrow. In addition, a planted native meadow can provide habitat to birds during migration and a winter home for protected species such as Northern Harrier and Short-eared Owl.

For the latest report on the Native Meadow Trial click aquí.