Lake Ontario Fruit Program Enrollment

Program Areas

  • Food Safety
  • Variety Evaluation
  • Market Development
  • Pest Management
  • Cultural Practices

Enrollment Benefits

  • Telephone / Email Consultations
  • Fruit Newsletter?
  • Direct Mailings
  • Educational Meetings & Conferences
  • In-Field Educational Opportunities
  • On-Farm Research Trials

Enrollee Login

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  • Issues of Fruit Newletters
  • Helpful Diagnostic Tool:
      What's wrong with my crop?

Navigating Solar Lease Agreements and the Solar Development Process: A Program for NY Farmers and Rural Landowners




Event Details

Date

October 26, 2021

Time

9:30am to ? (varies by county)

Location

Varies by County

Host

Lake Ontario Fruit Program

CCE County Associations (contact your local CCE office to register)



You have the opportunity to lease your farmland to a solar energy company! It sounds like a sweet deal, and you are interested, but you are not sure just how it works...  

 

Join your local participating county CCE association on October 26 at an in-person meeting for farmers and rural landowners to get answers to your solar leasing questions. This program will feature several live webinars presented by industry experts to help you navigate the solar development process, make informed decisions, and negotiate solar lease agreements.

 

Schedule

Webinar 1 (9:30-11:30)

9:30-10:15am: Understanding the Solar Development Process and What Solar Companies are Looking For.  Presented by Loren Pruskowski, Owner, Ecolegacy Values.  Loren is also the general contractor installing a solar array on his Guilderland, New York farm.

10:15-11:00am: Understanding Solar Lease Agreements and Tips for Negotiating a Contract. Presented by Scott Kurkoski, Assistant Managing Partner, Levene, Gouldin & Thompson, LLP. Scott got his start representing landowners in the fracking industry and has spent years assisting farmers and rural landowners in negotiating contracts with Solar companies.

11:00-11:30am: Q&A with Morning Presenters

Break (11:30-12:30)

11:30am-12:30pm: The program for this time will vary by county.

Webinar 2 (12:30-1:30)

12:30-1:30pm: How Municipal Regulations Affect Solar Development Opportunities at the Local Level. Presented by Jeffrey Kehoe, NYS Department of Ag and Markets. Learn how local communities can best prepare for managing the huge influx of solar company demand for land.

Local Program (1:30-?)

The afternoon program will vary by county office.

 

webinar agenda (PDF; 551KB)

 

 

Location Options for Lake Ontario Fruit Program Enrollees

 

 

Wayne County CCE Program

Wayne County CCE is now offering the program online only. Email Mark Wiltberger at mw883@cornell.edu and he will set you up with the Zoom link. The program is here:

http://ccewayne.org/events/2021/10/26/navigating-solar-lease-agreements-for-farmers-and-rural-landownser

 

 

Other Options for Attending

This program is a collaboration between county CCE associations and the statewide Cornell Farm Business Management group. You are welcome to attend another county CCE association that is conducting the program. In addition, some CCE associations will provide a virtual option for attendees that would like to participate in the meeting from a remote location.

 

Listed below are some counties near the LOF region with a link to their event information and registration page and whether they are offering a virtual option for attendees:

 

Genesee County CCE Program

http://genesee.cce.cornell.edu/events/2021/10/26/navigating-solar-lease-agreements-and-the-solar-development-process

Virtual Option: No

 

Erie County CCE Program

http://erie.cce.cornell.edu/events/2021/10/26/solar-lease-meeting

Virtual Option: Yes

 

Ontario County CCE Program

http://cceontario.org/events/2021/10/26/navigating-solar-lease-agreements

Virtual Option: Yes

 

Cayuga County CCE Program

https://blogs.cornell.edu/ccecayuga/calendar_event/navigating-solar-lease-agreements-and-the-solar-development-process-a-program-for-ny-farmers-and-rural-landowners/

Virtual Option: Yes

 

 

 

You can register for the program through the following participating CCE County Offices: Albany, Broome, Cayuga, Columbia, Cortland, Delaware, Dutchess, Erie, Essex, Fulton, Genesee, Greene, Herkimer, Madison, Montgomery, Onondaga, Ontario, Otsego, Renssalear, Saratoga, Schoharie, Senaca, St Lawrence, Suffolk, Tioga, Tompkins, Ulster, Washington, Wayne, Wyoming, Yates.  Don't know the website address for your county office?  Go to: https://cals.cornell.edu/cornell-cooperative-extension/local-offices.



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Apples

Apricots

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Asian Pears

Blueberries

Blueberries

Cherries

Cherries

Currants

Currants

Gooseberries

Gooseberries

Nectarines

Nectarines

Peaches

Peaches

Pears

Pears

Plums

Plums

Raspberries / Blackberries

Raspberries / Blackberries

Strawberries

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Unusual Fruit

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Upcoming Events

Tree Fruit & Small Fruit Twilight Meetings

Event Offers DEC Credits

April 24, 2025 : Tree Fruit & Small Fruit Twilight Meetings 1 of 4
Hilton, NY

Join specialists Janet Van Zoeren, Anya Stansell, and Anna Wallis for a conversation about fruit and berry phenology and pest management, at a new location each month.


May 29, 2025 : Tree Fruit & Small Fruit Twilight Meetings 2 of 4
Holley, NY

Join specialists Janet Van Zoeren, Anya Stansell, and Anna Wallis for a conversation about fruit and berry phenology and pest management, at a new location each month.


June 26, 2025 : Tree Fruit & Small Fruit Twilight Meetings 3 of 4
Ithica, NY

Join specialists Anya Stansell and Anna Wallis for a conversation about fruit and berry phenology and pest management, at a new location each month. This meeting will include Spanish Interpretation. Este mes en Español También.


July 31, 2025 : Tree Fruit & Small Fruit Twilight Meetings 4 of 4
Webster, NY

Join specialists Janet Van Zoeren, Anya Stansell, and Anna Wallis for a conversation about fruit and berry phenology and pest management, at a new location each month.

2025 Cornell In-Depth Fruit School Recordings

April 8, 2025
July 31, 2025
: Recording Available for 2025 Cornell In-Depth Fruit School

Access to the 2025 Cornell In-Depth Fruit School recordings are now available for purchase. 

3rd Annual Western NY Fruit Growers Tour, Featuring Wayne County

July 31, 2025

We are excited to announce the 3rd annual Western New York Fruit Grower Tour, the premier fruit tour of the northeast brought to you by Cornell Cooperative Extension's Lake Ontario Fruit Program and Lake Ontario Ag Consulting, LLC! Located in Wayne County, this orchard field day will highlight new and existing products, chemistries, practices, technologies & equipment that shape the orchard industry today. The Western NY Fruit Grower Tour will again combine two past orchard tour events, the LOF Summer Fruit Tour and the Wayne County Fruit Grower Tour, giving industry members the opportunity to conveniently showcase their product offerings to ONE unified group at ONE time and place! 

Stay tuned for more info as we get into the summer!

Announcements

3rd Annual Western NY Fruit Growers Tour, July 31

We are excited to announce the 3rd annual Western New York Fruit Grower Tour, the premier fruit tour of the northeast brought to you by Cornell Cooperative Extension's Lake Ontario Fruit Program and Lake Ontario Ag Consulting, LLC! Located in Wayne County, this orchard field day will highlight new and existing products, chemistries, practices, technologies & equipment that shape the orchard industry today. The Western NY Fruit Grower Tour will again combine two past orchard tour events, the LOF Summer Fruit Tour and the Wayne County Fruit Grower Tour, giving industry members the opportunity to conveniently showcase their product offerings to ONE unified group at ONE time and place!

Stat tunes for more info as we get into the summer!

2025 Cornell Winter Fruit Webinar Recordings

Recordings now available on the NYIPM YouTube Channel 2025 Cornell Winter Webinar playlist https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ccj8IT-8eI&list=PLoNb8lODb49u16HwAqx7Y_TS5S3vdkrON

SPARC Survey

Interested in strengthening pome fruit resilience to climate? Check out what 22 scientists from six states are joining forces to accomplish. Learn more and help support this effort by taking a quick survey at https://lof.cce.cornell.edu/submission.php?id=948&crumb=crops|crops|apples|crop*38

Save the Date! - Scroll down for Upcoming Events

Have you missed a meeting recently? Scroll down for available recordings or pdf links or visits our YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/c/LakeOntarioFruitProgram

2025 Events:



29 May - Tree Fruit and Berry Twilight Meeting 2 of 4 - Hurd Orchards - 6:45 DEC Sign-In; 7-8:30PM

26 Jun - Tree Fruit and Berry Twilight Meeting 3 of 4 - Cornell Orchards - 6:45 DEC Sign-In; 7-8:30PM

31 Jul - Tree Fruit and Berry Twilight Meeting 4 of 4 - Schutts Apple Mill - 6:45 DEC Sign-In; 7-8:30PM

31 Jul - 3rd Annual Western NY Fruit Growers Tour - Featuring Wayne County - Stay tuned for more info!


Webinar Recordings & Additional Meeting Materials

Check out the recordings of some recent webinars and/or conference materials from in person events: Recordings and Playlists are available at https://www.youtube.com/c/LakeOntarioFruitProgram


Recording of Precision Apple Cropload MANagement PACMAN technologies at the 2nd Annual WNY Fruit Grower Tour. https://youtu.be/yE6thvf4z0E

2024 Virtual Orchard Meetup Series - Water Wisdom: 






2024 Winter Fruit Webinars playlist on the NYS IPM Program YouTube Channel


PACMAN Details and Resources, Meeting Recording Links below:




Business Updates



Scaffolds podcast

Many of you probably read Art Agnello's statewide tree fruit updates and recommendations newsletter, "Scaffolds". Dr. Monique Rivera is bringing it back, but in a new audio version. Episode one was recorded this week, and is now available for free online at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/scaffolds


NYS Tree Decline Survey

Your answers could help find the solution to tree decline in the orchard.

Food Safety Virtual Office Hours

Cornell Institute of Food Safety "Virtual Office Hours", Tuesdays Noon to 1pm https://cals.cornell.edu/institute-for-food-safety/resources/virtual-office-hours

Past recorded virtual office hours can be found on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZJs5b7KUuvfcquH3ZtQHo5dSmF2m5MdQ


Pollinator Resouces

Now available Pollinator Resource Links


Meeting Recordings Now Available

Did you miss the recent meeting?  Check and see if we recorded it and added it to our website or Lake Ontario Fruit Program YouTube Channel.

Honeycrisp Meetup recordings available here.

Why are my trees growing so poorly? recording available here.

Additional Recorded Webinars listing with recording and resource link are available at



New Publication on Growing Pawpaws

Are you a fan of pawpaws? These custardy fruits can be hard to come across, so this guide provides information on how to grow your own pawpaw from seed, and how to care for grafted seedlings. Pdf on growing now available.​ https://lof.cce.cornell.edu/submission.php?id=799&crumb=crops|crops|unusual_fruit|crop*50

New Weed Management Technology Survey

Want to move away from herbicide reliance? Are you using novel technologies to manage weeds? We want to know about it to inform our weed science research. A team of weed scientists from University of California Davis, Oregon State University, and Cornell University are asking berry, tree fruit, tree nut, and vine crop growers to take 5 to 10 minutes and answer this short and anonymous survey. Weed Technology Survey link: https://cornell.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_bEpfAijoP7puQDP

For more information on this survey please visit http://blogs.cornell.edu/swd1/2020/12/02/new-weed-management-technology/


Pollinator Webinar Series - Summer 2020

The Pollinator Webinar Series presented by Penn State cover bee health and pollination services.



Bloom Pesticides for Pollinator Health

A reference table created by Janet van Zoeren and Anna Wallis, is now available at https://lof.cce.cornell.edu/submission.php?id=711&crumb=pests|pests.