Contributed by Gary Bergstrom, Plant Pathology and Plant-Microbe Biology
Cornell University and its Integrated Field Crops, Soils, and Pest Management Program Work Team will present the 34th consecutive, annual Small Grains Management Field Day on Thursday, June 8 at the Fleur De Lis Brew Works (https://www.fleurdelisbrewworks.com/ ) in Seneca Falls, NY. The idea for the field day originated at a Wheat Management Workshop held on Cornell’s Ithaca campus on December 14, 1988. This was a gathering of about 30 invited individuals with expertise in wheat production and extension in New York state. Cornell faculty members William Cox and Gary Bergstrom gave presentations at the workshop. The principal speaker, on ‘Wheat Health Strategies’, was Dr. R. James Cook of USDA-ARS at Washington State University in Pullman, WA. Dr. Cook was in the process of writing a book on wheat health management and he wanted to incorporate wheat health strategies of relevance in the northeastern U.S. Therefore, the bulk of the workshop was an open discussion about wheat health management. The book, Wheat Health Management by R. James Cook and Roger J. Veseth, was published by APS Press in 1991 as the first in a series of crop health management books. The book remains a classic reference and nearly 7,000 copies have been sold.
An important outcome of the December 1988 workshop was a resolution to organize annual field days on small grains management to feature Cornell research and to enhance connections among the small grains production community in New York. The inaugural Small Grains Management Field Day (SGMFD) was held on June 2, 1989, at Cornell’s Musgrave Research Farm in Aurora, NY where most subsequent field days were also held. The precedent was followed to hold the field day on the first Thursday of June when winter grain varieties were typically headed out and flowering. Small plot and large field experiments examining agronomic practices, cultivars, and fungicide treatments were available for viewing by attendees. Staples of the annual programs were updates by Professor Mark Sorrells on grain varieties and seed availability, by Professor Bill Cox on crop growth and development and management, and by Professor Gary Bergstrom on disease occurrence and management. Other presenters from within and beyond Cornell were featured in given years. Each year, extension educators shared their observations from around the state. All attendees were given an opportunity to provide specific updates; growers always valued projections on demand and prices by grain buyers at the field day. The field day was held virtually via Zoom in 2020 and 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The stage is now set for our historic 34th SGMFD in Seneca Falls on June 8, and we hope you can attend. Field crops extension educator, Dr. Michael Stanyard, will review the small grains growing season to date. Dr. Sorrells will discuss his wheat and barley variety trials on view at Poormon Farms (owner Jeff Trout), immediately adjacent to Fleur De Lis Brew Works (owners the Partee Family). Dr. Judy Kolkman will her discuss her research on resistance to scald disease in winter malting barley. Cornell’s new faculty member, Professor Vipan Kumar, will discuss his plans for small grains weed management research and extension in New York. Dr. Bergstrom will provide an update on diseases and management. Special guest speaker, Laura Smalley of the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets, will discuss the process and benefits of ‘New York Grown and Certified’ in grain value chains. Various updates from attendees will round out the program and, following the program, the Partee Family invites attendees to tour the brewery and sample craft beers made from grain grown and malted in New York. Special thanks are extended to Jenn Thomas-Murphy who helped to plan and execute this and many other field days over the past 9 years, and who will leave Cornell for a new position in July.
NYS DEC pesticide applicator and NE Certified Crop Advisor credits will be offered as well as an opportunity to network with other attendees after the event at Fleur De Lis Brew Works. Pre-register (free) today on the Cornell Field Crops website!
