AWARDS SELECTION PROCEDURES
Nominees are continually submitted throughout the year from the Conservation District, NRCS,
FSA, and Cooperative Extension, as well as, from County farmers and other individuals.
Nominees are then reviewed by the Rensselaer County Soil and Water Conservation District,
which is the Hub of Conservation in the County, and the award recipients are selected.
AWARD RECIPIENTS
2013 Service to Agriculture & Conservation Award:
Tom Walsh
2013 Service to Agriculture & Conservation Award:
Marilene Hammond
2013 Agriculture Conservation Communication Award:
Questar III
2013 Special Conservation Farmer Recognition Award:
Cannon Cattle Ranch Matt and Peggy Cannon
2013 Conservation Farm of the Year:
Evergreen Farm David and Leslie Green
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The Rensselaer County Conservation District is pleased to present Matt and Peggy Cannon of Cannon Cattle Ranch with the 2013 Special Conservation Farmer Recognition Award.
Cannon Cattle Ranch is a 115 cow dairy operation that was started up in 1979 in the Town of Pittstown.
Matt and Peggy have worked with the Conservation District and the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) on a number of conservation programs and projects within the Tomhannock Reservoir watershed.
They have installed complete Rotational Grazing Systems on their pastures; strip cropping and no-till on their croplands, along with a manure storage pit, barnyard roofs, and roof water management at the farmstead.
The Cannon’s used the NRCS Tomhannock Watershed Protection Program, the NRCS Environmental Quality Incentive Program, and the State Agricultural Environmental Management Program to help install the projects.
This past year Matt and Peggy completed a large wildlife targeted wetland project through the WRP- Wetland Reserve Program. Matt decided that the best use for some of his wet crop and pasture fields was for wildlife. He entered the fields into a permanent easement, dedicated to wildlife and wetland protection. Matt completed his own wetland restoration work including excavating 10 pothole ponds, level ditches, and installing wood duck boxes.
Matt and Peggy enjoyed improving their farm for wildlife and helped encourage their neighbor to participate in the program. Peggy is an avid bird enthusiast and photographer as is evident by her fifty plus bird feeders at the farm house garden. The new potholes have attracted waterfowl and other wildlife to the wetland areas which has resulted in increased photo opportunities.
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The 2013 Conservation Farm of the Year Award to David and Leslie Green of Evergreen Farm for their continued efforts to being true stewards of the land.
Evergreen Farm is being honored for being true caretakers of the land. Established in 1848, Evergreen Farm has a rich history with David’s great, great, grandfather purchasing the farm located in the Town of Petersburg. David is the fifth generation to operate the Evergreen Farm.
Evergreen Farm has been a constant District cooperator with conservation plans since 1951! David has worked with the Conservation District and Natural Resources Conservation Service applying conservation on his lands.
Working with the Agriculture Stewardship Association the farm was able to secure a New York State Farmland Protection Easement on the priority farmland.
With the farm located just off of the Hoosic River, Evergreen Farm needed to address CAFO concerns from manure and manure runoff. David worked with Eric and Nick and obtained the important NRCS and State Program funding.
In 2013 David completed a major roof water management project by covering the open heifer yard on the farm. In 2012 the farm installed a 6 month, 2 million gallon manure storage for the 325 plus cow operation.
David is currently working with the District in saving his prime farm soils from washing away by installing several river bank protection projects. They are scheduled for completion this summer.
