Random Upcoming Events

June 4 – Bike Safety Rodeo, Weis Parking Lot, 1471 Martin Street, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.  (State College)

June 4 – Bellefonte Children’s Fair, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. (Bellefonte)

June 4 – Trash to Treasure Sale, Hills Plaza, South Atherton, 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. (State College)

June 11 - Centre County Bees Monthly Meeting, 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. (Bellefonte). More info.

June 17 – 19 – Central Pennsylvania Rodeo, Huntingdon County Fairgrounds

June 18 – Camper vs. Wild: Ancient Fire, demonstration at Bald Eagle State Park, 7 p.m.  (Howard)

June 22 – Master Gardener Native Plant Garden Tours, Clearwater Conservancy, 7 – 8 p.m.

June 22 – New Farmer Potato – Pest Management - 6:30 p.m. - PSU Cooperative Extension (Bath, Northampton County)

June 25 – Summer’s Best Music Fest (State College)

June 30, July 28, Aug. 25 – Pasture School, 2 p.m. – 5 p.m. – PSU Cooperative Extension (Bangor, Northampton County)

July 14-17 — Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts.

July 20 – Master Gardener Native Plant Garden Tours, Clearwater Conservancy, 7 – 8 p.m.

August 17 - Master Gardener Native Plant Garden Tours, Clearwater Conservancy, 7 – 8 p.m.

Sept. 5  -   The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission is offering Fish for Free Days on Memorial Day and Labor Day, Sept. 5. Fish for Free Days allow anyone (resident or non-resident) to legally fish for Pennsylvania’s most popular fish without a fishing license.  This is a great opportunity to head outdoors on Memorial and Labor Day and enjoy Pennsylvania fishing with family and friends.

September 21 – Master Gardener Native Plant Garden Tours, Clearwater Conservancy, 7 – 8 p.m.

***More PSU Cooperative Extension events listings here.***

News from PA Women's Ag Network

June 3 – 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. – PA-Women’s Agricultural Network Annual Tour of Rodale Institute (Kutztown, Lehigh County), featuring Transitioning to Organic and Edible Ginger Production. More Information.  —  Online Registration.

2010 Annual Report of Pennsylvania Women’s Agricultural Network – PDF Here. Lots of good info.

November 7 – 8 –  Annual PA-WAgN Conference – “Tell Your Story” – (Save the date)

PASA Farm-Based Education Programs through December

(PASA adds more events from time to time, but these are the ones on their schedule for now, and will go in this post and also at the “Area Events” page for future reference.)

July 19 – Woodlot Pork: Raising Pigs in their Natural Environment, Forks Farm, Orangeville, Columbia County

July 21 – Diversifying the Family Farm with NOFA-NY’s Famrer of the Year, Engelbert Farms, Nichols NY

July 23 – Innovations in Energy & Organic Farming, Fox Haven Farm, Frederick MD

July 28 – Exotic Mushrooms from PA Fields & Forests, Quiet Creek Herb Farm, Jefferson County

August 3 – Mid-Season Business Management: Am I Having a Good Year and Where Do I Go From Here? Stratton’s Wynnor Farm, Chester County

August 11 – Reaching Out from the Farm: Education & the Raw Milk Dairy, Bookamer Family Farm, Crawford County

August 22 – Hands-on Specialized Equipment for Vegetable Production, The Seed Farm, Lehigh County

August 26 – Niche Farming in Diverse Times: The Role of Kunekune Pigs on a New Livestock Farm, Black Valley Farm, Bedford County

August 31 – On-farm Poultry Processing, Poultry Man LLC, Union County

September 8 – Simplifying Sheep: Handling, Grazing & Health Concerns – Owens Farm, Northumberland County

September 10 – Plant Yer Own Patch! An Introduction  to American Ginseng Forest Farming, Shaver’s Creek Environmental Center, Huntingdon County

September 13 – Late Season Care for Bees: A Hands-on Workshop for Intermediate Beekeepers, Two Gander Farm, Berks County

September 28 – Briars to Bovines: Reclaiming Abandoned Farmland, Provident Farms, Tioga County

October 5 – Soils & The New Farmer: Building a Solid Foundation for Your Farm, McCormick Farm, Cambria County

October 14 – 15 – Home Cheesemaking for Beginners, Quiet Creek Herb Farm, Jefferson Co.

October 17 – Innovative Farmers: Finding Creative Solutions to Common Problems, Sunnyside Farm, York County

November 9 – 10 – Intermediate Cheesemaking, Stone Meadow Farm, Centre County

November 14 – Hands-On Beef Butchery, Jamison Farm, Westmoreland County

December 3 – Exploring Farm Land Leasing: A Workshop for Farmers & Landowners, Chester County Economic Development Center Office, Chester County

December 8 – Community Supported Agriculture 101: Planning & Incorporating a CSA Program Into Your Operation, Clinton County Cooperative Extension Offices, Clinton County.

News from PASA

PASA‘s Farm Start Map is up and running. Hit the road!

June 1 - IPM for the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug Workshop - CANCELLED due to low registration. If you have an interest in seeing the event rescheduled, please contact Rebecca at 814.349.9856 x 20.

June 11 – Art on the Farm (Boiling Springs, Cumberland County) – A celebration of local farm fresh art and food. More information and registration.

June 21 – Beginning Farmer Round Table and Farm Tour of One-Woman Farm (Richland Township, Allegheny County). More information and registration.

June 22 – Sustainable Cropping Systems Research Tour – (9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at  Russel Larson Ag Research Center, Pennsylvania Furnace) Come see the diverse crop rotations that utilize no-till, legumes, cover crops, & green manures! Learn about ecological and innovative strategies designed to reduce off-farm inputs and minimize environmental impacts!

• Registration $10.00, RSVP  by Friday, June 17, 2011
• More information
• Event Summary
• Event Agenda
• Register

June 28 – Specialty Wheats: Are Ancient and Heritage Grains Right for Your Farm? (Avella, Washington County) More information and registration.

June 28 – Pasture Walk and Organic Farm Tour at Andrew Batdorf Farm & Hollow Brook Dairy (McVeytown, Mifflin County). More information and registration.

June 30 – Managing Soils, Weeds and Pests in Organic Cropping Systems (Pennsylvania Furnace, Centre County). More information and registration.

July 20 – Deadline for Glynwood Harvest Awards nominations. Categories include: The Farmer Award; Award for Connecting Communities, Farmers, and Food; Wave of the Future Award; Good Food Entrepreneur Award. More information and nomination forms.

Bridge Fuel to Nowhere

Excellent rebuttal of Marcellus industry claims by Adrian Kuzminski,  Moderator, Sustainable Otsego, Cooperstown, NY – (Remarks at the National Press Club, Newsmaker Press Conference, Washington, DC on May 24, 2011)

My name is Adrian Kuzminski. I’m the Moderator of Sustainable Otsego, an advocacy group in the Cooperstown, NY, area. We have played a key role in the growing grassroots resistance to fracking for natural gas in the  Marcellus shale region. As part of this effort, we have brought together a collection of documents, “Frack Facts,” which covers most aspects of gas extraction from leases to pollution problems to effects on economics and property values. This collection, periodically updated and expanded, currently has hundreds of items running to over 2000 pages.

This document was originally undertaken at the request of Congressman Michael Arcuri in 2008. Earlier versions of it were submitted to the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation and to the EPA during their recent public comment periods on gas drilling. Copies are available here today. My remarks are based on the findings presented in these documents. Our conclusion is that the practice of fracking for natural gas should NOT be allowed to go forward.

Let me go through the major pro-industry arguments one by one, and point out why they fail:

1. “We have an insatiable appetite for energy and need to find replacement resources for oil.”

Natural gas is not a replacement resource for oil; it is an extension of oil, with all its problems. It is a polluting fossil fuel apparently as bad if not worse than oil and coal. The methane gas which escapes during the full cycle of production and distribution ends up polluting groundwater locally, and compounding the greenhouse effect globally. A recent Duke university study of drilling in PA and NYS show methane frequently migrating thousands of feet to contaminate drinking water. Methane is a worse greenhouse gas than CO2 by many orders of magnitude.

Robert Howarth’s recent research at Cornell – based on data from the state-of-the-art Russian gas system — shows unacceptable levels of methane emissions from wellheads, compressors, and distribution lines. There is nothing “clean” about natural
gas; it’s just another fossil fuel.