ONONDAGA COUNTY SOIL &

WATER CONSERVATION DISTRICT

6680 Onondaga Lake Parkway Liverpool, NY 13088 Phone: 315-457-0325 Fax: 315-457-0410 Email: info@ocswcd.org www.ocswcd.org

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$200 per year= 4 issues!

Call us at 315-457-0325

Conservation Quarterly Onondaga County Soi l & Wa ter Conserva t ion Dis t r ic t

Volume 10, Issue 4 Fall 2012

DISTRICT RECEIVES $564,476 GRANT FUNDING

By Mark Burger, Executive Director

Seneca River Watershed

1,600 acres of fall cover crop to reduce soil

erosion after crop harvest.

250 ft of animal trail and walkway for

dairy cattle.

2,000 ft of exclusion fence to restrict beef

cattle access to surface water.

Skaneateles Lake Watershed

A 64-acre intensive rotational grazing sys-

tem for dairy cattle complete with alterna-

tive water supplies in four locations of the

pasture.

A 6-acre intensive rotational grazing sys-

tem for alpacas complete with alternative

water supplies in two locations of the pas-

ture.

Two manure composting systems at the al-

paca farm.

The Onondaga County Soil and Water Con-

servation District is the recipient of three

NYS Environmental Protection Fund Round

18 grants. The award amount of these

grants, $564,476, will be used to cost-share

the following conservation practices in the

Oneida Lake, Seneca River, and Skaneate-

les Lake watersheds.

Oneida Lake Watershed

2,800 ft of exclusion fence to restrict

dairy cattle access to a stream.

Alternative water supply to provide an

environmentally safe drinking water

supply for dairy cattle.

3 ac. grassed filter area to trap sediment

and nutrients from entering a stream.

1 Water & sediment control basin and

600 lineal ft of diversion to capture flow-

ing water and safely release it to an 800

lineal feet grassed waterway.

110 acres of fall cover crop to reduce soil

erosion after crop harvest.

Evaluation of one undersigned manure

storage (project requires engineer review).

5.9 ac. of grassed filter strips to filter

sediment and nutrient out of flowing wa-

ter on crop land.

1 barnyard runoff management system

to provide a cleanable surface to contain

dairy manure for spreading on cropland.

Three watersheds to benefit from conservation improve-

ments on farms.

THE 2013 TREE & SHRUB SALE IS HERE!

See inside for order form.

Page 2 Conservat ion Quar ter ly Volume 10, I s sue 4

CRITICAL AREA SEEDING PROGRAM

COVER CROP UPDATE

Do you have a wetland on your

property?

Do you need a permit to work in a

stream on your property?

Landowners and municipalities in

Onondaga County and the Skane-

ateles Lake watershed can call the

Onondaga County SWCD for as-

sistance with these and other en-

vironmental questions. We can

provide technical assistance with

permits and offer advice on work-

ing near environmentally sensi-

tive areas.

Call us at 315-457-0325.

By Ryan Cunningham, Resource

Conservation Specialist - SLWAP The growing season is over; the District now has time

to reflect on another great year assisting municipalities

on seeding projects. A total of

approximately 33 acres of dis-

turbed area was hydroseeded

throughout Onondaga County,

most typically relating to road

ditch clean-outs. That trans-

lates to roughly 40 miles of

road bank stabilization.

A special thanks goes out to

Onondaga County DOT, NYS-

DOT, and the participating lo-

cal highway departments. The

District also seeded/mulched roughly 19 acres of dis-

turbed area on agricultural BMP projects, using the hy-

droseeder or straw blower. We are very pleased and are

looking forward to the 2013 growing season.

By Jeremiah Eaton, Resource Conservation Specialist

Freshly hydroseeded roadside

at Plainville Road, Town of

Lysander.

The District utilized EPA funding and Onondaga Lake Partnership (OLP) funding to start a

cover crop project last fall (2011) with farms in the Onondaga Lake watershed. The project con-

tinued in 2012 with about 2800 acres of cover crops installed with varying levels of District fund-

ing through OLP or NYS Environmental Protection Funds (EPF) from Rounds 16 and 18.

One of our CAFO farmers remarked how he had never seen Tully Valley so green in the fall.

That’s the goal, keeping bare soil protected from corn harvest to spring plowing and allowing the

early-planted cover crops to claim some of the soil nutrients unused by

this season’s corn crop. These cover crop functions protect our valuable

surface water resources from cropland storm runoff and nitrates leach-

ing into the groundwater.

From our observations during the past two fall harvests, cover crops

and winter forages are also being utilized throughout the county in

other watersheds. Funding will not be available through OLP in the fu-

ture, but farms with CAFO plans or AEM planning that addresses soil

erosion or the nitrogen leaching index may be eligible to apply for USDA

NRCS funding or EPF funding with a 3 year commitment to implement

cover cropping as a conservation practice on specific tracts and fields. For planning assistance,

please contact you CAFO planner and/or the District early (before the end of summer) to allow

us time to evaluate eligible fields before grant applications are due.

CONSTRUCTION NEAR

STREAMS & WETLANDS

By Alan Masters, Resource Conservation Specialist

Forage oats and Triticale (a

hybrid of wheat and rye).

FYI

Page 7 Conservat ion Quar ter ly Volume 10, I s sue 4

SAYING GOODBYE

Onondaga County Soil & Water Conservation District

Board of Directors: F. Spencer Givens III, Chair, At-Large Rep. Craig Dennis, Vice-Chair, Practical Farm Rep. Annette Raus - Farm Bureau Representative Wayne Norris, Treasurer, Grange Rep. Brendan Whelan, At-Large Representative David Knapp, County Legislative Rep. Derek Shepard, Jr., County Legislative Rep. Staff: Mark Burger, Executive Director Maggie Connelly, Secretary Gwyn Olenych, Account Clerk I Doug Fisher, Program Manager Jeremiah Eaton, Resource Conservation Spec. Mark Schaub, Resource Conservation Spec. Alan Masters, Resource Conservation Spec.

Skaneateles Lake Watershed Agricultural Program

Watershed Agricultural Program Review Committee (WAPRC) Mike McMahon, Chair, Cortland Co. Steve Nemec, Vice Chair, Cayuga Co. Jim Greenfield, Onondaga Co. Ed Tidd, Onondaga Co. Mark Tucker, Onondaga Co. Vern Filkins, Cortland Co. Dale Kehoe, Cayuga Co. Lee Macbeth, City of Syracuse Rich Abbott, City of Syracuse Staff: Mark Burger, Program Manager Ryan Cunningham, Design & Implementation Eric Jensen, Farm & Nutrient Mgmt Planner Phone: 315-457-0325 Fax: 315-457-0410 E-mail: info@ocswcd.org and slwap@ocswcd.org Website: www.ocswcd.org

On November 2, 2012 a very big part of our Imple-

mentation Team left the Onondaga Soil & Water

Conservation District when Chris Creelman moved

on to become the AEM Implementer for Seneca

County SWCD. Chris joined our program in July

2005 as a “seasoned veteran” coming from the New

York City Watershed Program, and gave this

county’s Agricultural Producers seven and a half

years of great survey, design and installation assis-

tance for improved water quality. During this

time we also loaned him and his knowledge to our

neighboring Districts (Oswego and Wayne) on a

part-time basis to help them establish their pro-

grams. Those of you that had the pleasure of work-

ing with Chris on your farms know exactly what we

have gained, and lost. We wish Chris the best in

his new position and thank him for the many fine

years and projects that he assisted us here in

Onondaga County.

Thank You Christopher Creelman From All of Us

By Doug Fisher, ProgramManager

Lee Macbeth retired on

December 19th from the

City of Syracuse Depart-

ment of Water. Lee was

the Water Quality Coordi-

nator for the Skaneateles

Lake Watershed Agricul-

tural Program since its in-

ception in 1994. Together,

the City and the District

partnered to create a pilot

program for the City’s

drinking water supply in

Skaneateles Lake, making

it a template for other pro-

grams, nationally and in-

ternationally. Lee’s dedica-

tion to the program is unmatched - her expertise,

leadership and guidance brought the SLWAP to

success.

Lee, from all of us, we thank you and wish you

the very best in your retirement!

Lee Macbeth is honored at

the SLWAP Annual Meet-

ing. She is standing with

Mike McMahon (l) and

Steve Nemec (r), both farm

producers in the watershed

and both serving on the

agency’s review committee.

“Promoting excellence in the wise use of our rural and urban natural resources.”

2013 TREE & SHRUB INFORMATION Conifers Balsam Fir (Abies balsamea): Pyramidal shape, Reaches 40-75’ high. Prefers well drained soil and ample moisture. Desirable as a Christmas tree. Canadian Hemlock (Tsuga Canadensis): Medium grower, up to 40’-70’. Ideal for screening; likes full sun to light shade. Colorado Blue Spruce (Picea pungens): Pyramidal shape, slow to medium growth rate, reaches 50-75’ high. Full sun; drought tolerant. Douglas Fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii): Pyramidal in shape, medium growth rate, and reaches 50-100’ high. Full sun to partial shade and tolerates various soils. Sensitive to drought conditions; requires good drainage. Fraser Fir (Abies fraseri): Pyramidal in shape, medium growth rate, reaches 40-60’ high. Prefers moist to damp but well drained soils. Full sun to partial shade. Short dark-green needles with silver undersides. White Cedar((Thuja occidentalis): Also known as the American Arborvitae is slow to medium growing, pyramidal in shape and reaches 60’ high. Full sun and tolerates various soils. Drought tolerant, but also does well in wet soils.

White Pine (Pinus strobus): The largest conifer, can reach 225’ high, the only five-needled pine to grow east of the Rocky Mountains.

Deciduous American Cranberry (Viburnum trilobum): Attract birds with this 8-12’ shrub. Bright red fruit September through February, used for making jelly. Black Cherry (Prunus serotina): The largest and most valuable of the cherry trees in New York State, the Black Cherry has profuse white flowers in the spring and brilliant gold leaf color in the fall. Fruit is food for wildlife and is used for making wine and jelly. Crabapple (Malus sargentii): 6-8' high tree which is densely branched. Sargent Crabapple will have fragrant white flowers, that are red in bud. The fruit is edible to both humans and birds. This tree prefers well-drained soils. Native Birch (Betula papyrifera): Growth height of 50’, slender tree, the native birch has white bark after 3 to 4 years. Grows well in moist soils. Pin Oak (Quercus palustris): Native to the Eastern U.S. the pin oak is fast growing to 60’-70’ with a 25’-45’ spread. It is naturally a wetland tree, and develops a shallow, fibrous root system, unlike many oaks that grow a deep taproot when young. Spectacular bronze color fall foliage. Red Maple (Acer rubrum ): Growth height of 60’. Red Maple is a strong wood. Color year-round. Tolerates all soils, but prefers slightly acidic soils. Red Oak (Quercus rubra): Rounded shape, fast growth, 60-75’ high. Tolerates polluted environments. Drought tolerant, well drained and clay soils. ripening in June, enjoyed by various birds. Thrives in moist well-drained, acid soils. Full sun to partial shade. Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum): Rounded shape, slow to medium growth rate, reaching 60-70’ high. Does well in full sun well drained soils. Tulip Tree (Linodendron tulipifera): 80 to 100 feet tall and maintains a fairly narrow oval crown. Fragrant flowers attract small wildlife,(the perfect tree for wildlife lovers! The Tulip Poplar is highly resistant to disease and insects, making this a healthy tree that will provide a lifetime of enjoyment. White Flowering Dogwood (Cornus florida): Low branching tree that spreads horizontally and has a semi-rounded top. Sun to part shade and in well-drained acid soil. Mulch to maintain a cool, moist soil. Needs summer water. One of the showiest native trees! White Oak (Quercus alba): Rounded shape, slow growth rate, 50’-80’ high. Does well in full sun, well-drained soil. Suitable for larger areas.

Conservation Pacs * Native or Naturalized Fern: 2 each of Christmas, Cinnamon, *Maidenhair, *New York, Ostrich. Pond Habitat: 2 each of *Red Osier dogwood, *Buttonbush, *Ninebark, *Stream Co Willow, and *Tag Alder Wildflower: 2 each of *Black-eyed Susan-s, *Oxeye Daisy-s, *Bluebells-s, Wild Geranium-sh, *Red Trillium-sh. (Grows best in sun=s, Shade=sh)

Fruit Blackberry (Rubus darrow): This plant produces large black fruit that is firm, fleshy, and sweet. Blackberry will produce over a long period of time. It is a very hardy and heavy producer. The root systems of this plant have great soil holding capacity. Blueberry- Jersey early and mid July (Vaccinium): A vigorous erect bush with medium size, firm, sweet berry. Hardy and drought resistant. Red Raspberry (Rubus latham): 3-5' Dark Green Foliage on an upright bush, producing bright berries. Bloom time late spring, fruit begins to ripen in midsummer. Full sun required. Honeycrisp: Exceptionally crisp and juicy apple, the Honeycrisp was produced from a cross of Macoun and Honeygold. Harvest mid-September to mid-October, with an excellent storage characteristic. Performs best in full sunlight. Macoun: A New York favorite, what many call a premium dessert apple, the Macoun was developed at the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station in Geneva in the early 1900’s. Crossed with the McIntosh and the Jersey black, the Macoun is an extra sweet and juicy all-purpose apple, ready to harvest at the end of October. Performs best in full sunlight.

What to know:

Trees are bare-root stock and sold for conservation purposes only. Sizes subject to change based on availability from nursery.

Transplants are seedlings that have been removed from their original seedbed and transplanted to a new bed. Transplants have a more mature root system, ensuring better survival

The District is not responsible for the success or failure of your plantings. No refunds will be given for orders not picked up.

Questions? Call us at 315-457-0325 or email us at info@ocswcd.org

All orders must be picked up on Thursday, April 18th at the Salt Museum, at the Onondaga Lake Park, Liverpool from

8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. www.ocswcd.org Descriptions gathered from: www.treesandseeds.com

Page 3 Conservat ion Quar ter ly Volume 10, I s sue 4

THIS IS AN EAB WARNING

By Mark Burger, Executive Director

They’re coming - that’s the ugly truth. Ash

trees in Onondaga County soon will be un-

der attack. Got your attention? Good. It’s

a serious matter and it’s upon us, much

like the loss of our beautiful Elm trees al-

most 85 years ago. Dutch Elm disease was

the culprit back then and now we’re brac-

ing for the Emerald Ash Borer (EAB); it’ll

get them all—our white, green, black and

blue ash trees are

in danger of being

wiped out.

The Emerald

Ash Borer is na-

tive to eastern

Russia, northern

China, Japan,

and Korea. It

likely traveled to

the United Sates

and Canada in

ash wood used for

stabilizing cargo

in ships or for

packing con-

sumer products;

it is believed the insect arrived here in the

1990’s, but was not detected until 2002 in

southeast Michigan and Windsor Ontario,

and in the town of Randolph, New York in

June 2009.

Signs of infection include tree canopy

dieback, yellowing, and browning leaves.

“The biggest concern about EAB is that you

will likely notice your ash tree dying before

you ever see the insect responsible for its

decline (Wedge Community Coop Newslet-

ter, Aug-Sept., 2009)” Heavily infested

trees exhibit canopy die-back usually start-

ing a the top of the tree. One-third to one-

half of the branches may die in the first

year. Most of the canopy will be dead

Borer larvae feasting under-

neath the bark of an Ash tree.

Adult Emerald Ash Borer.

within two years from when symptoms are first

observed. Some ash trees will also push out

sprouts from the trunk after the upper portions

of the tree dies. Most trees will be completely

killed in 3 to 4 years. In the Detroit area alone,

the infestation was so significant that over

70,000 city ash trees have been lost!

Research shows that EAB adults can fly only

1/2 mile from the tree where they emerge, so

that it appears that many infestations were

started when people moved ash nursery stock,

logs or firewood, unaware that they are moving

eggs or larvae that are hidden on or under the

bark or buried deep within the logs. The same

goes for New York State, likely that people are

moving firewood that originated from infected

trees, The best recommendation we’ve got to

stop the spread of EAB is to stop moving fire-

wood! Please buy your firewood locally and

close-by (less than 50 miles radius) to your rec-

reational destination. In New York State, only

firewood labeled as meeting New York’s heat

treatment standards to kill pests (kiln-dried)

may be transported in the state and further

than 50 miles from the firewood’s source. So

far, 18 states have detected the EAB; New York

and 11 of the state’s 58 counties are among

them.

Earlier this year, Onondaga County created a

task force to address EAB before it becomes a

full-blown issue in Central New York. Its mis-

sion is to coordinate and facilitate the sharing of

information, technology, equipment, policy and

contracts in order for all stakeholders in Onon-

daga County and the City of Syracuse to have a

better and less expensive outcome in regard to

EAB and ash tree management. The task force

is comprised of industry, municipal, educational,

and research institution representatives. The

Onondaga County Soil & Water Conservation

District is assisting the task force by perform-

ing an inventory of Ash trees for Onondaga

county on 100+ County-owned facilities and

800+ miles of highway right-of-way.

FALL 2012 IMPLEMENTATION WRAP UP

Page 4 Conservat ion Quar ter ly Volume 10, I s sue 4

By Doug Fisher, Program Manager

The Onondaga County Soil & Water Conservation District prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, and marital or family status.

My last newsletter listed many projects that were in various stages of construction at that

time throughout the county. We continued to have a very good year for implementation pro-

gress and those projects have been completed thanks to the drier than normal weather pattern we ex-

perienced. Some additional projects that have installation progress this fall include:

We also had a very high participation in planting of Fall Cover Crops on harvested corn cropland

throughout the county. We had 23 farms participate throughout the county, planting 2800 acres of fall

cover crops to reduce and control soil erosion through the vulnerable fall-winter-early spring run-off

events. This practice is easily the most beneficial and protective Best Management Practice (BMP) for

this critical time of the year. Thank you to all of the concerned agricultural producers that took advan-

tage of this opportunity.

Farm Name Project Watershed

N. L. Hoffmann Spring Development and Animal Laneway Upper Tioughnioga

Smokey Hollow Farm Alternative Water Supply-Pasture Management Oneida Lake

Manley Beef Farm Alternative Water Supply-Pasture Management Seneca River

Dennis Family Farm Milkhouse Waste Collection & Treatment revision Oneida Lake

Pastureland Dairy Alternative Water Supply and Access Roadway Oneida Lake

High Path Stock Farm Clean Water Exclusion-Roof Water Collection Nine Mile Creek

Barnyard before implementation. Heavy Area Use Protection and fencing imple-

mented

2013 TREE & SHRUB SEEDLING ORDER FORM

Onondaga County Soil & Water Conservation District

Name: ________________________________________________ Phone #: ____________________________

Address: __________________________________________ ____ E-mail: _____________________________

City, State, Zip _________________________________________

– Make check payable to Onondaga County SWCD ORDERS DUE BY MARCH 8, 2013

Exp. Date _________

Signature _________________________________

Species Avg. Size

Price per bundle

10 plants= 1 bundle Quantity Total

C

O

N

I

F

E

R

S

Balsam Fir - Transplant 3-1/8-15” $25.00

Canadian Hemlock – Transplant 2-2/12-18” $25.00

Colorado Blue Spruce - Transplant 2-2/18-24” $21.00

Douglas Fir – Transplant 2-2/12-18” $21.00

Fraser Fir – Transplant 2-2/12-18” $25.00

White Cedar –Transplant 2-2/12-18” $21.00

White Pine – Transplant 2-2/18-24” $21.00

D

E

C

I

D

U

O

U

S

American Cranberry 18-24” $14.00

Black Cherry 18-24” $14.00

Crabapple (Sargent) 18-24” $14.00

Native Birch 18-24” $14.00

Pin Oak 18-24” $14.00

Red Oak 18-24” $14.00

Sugar Maple 18-24” $14.00

Tulip Tree 18-24” $14.00

White Flowering Dogwood 18-24” $14.00

White Oak 18-24” $14.00

F

R

U

I

T

Blackberry 9-12” $20.00

Blueberry Blue Crop – early summer 9-12” $27.00

Blueberry Jersey – mid summer 9-12” $27.00

Raspberry 9-12” $20.00

Honey Crisp apple tree (sold single) 3-4’ $25.00 each

Macoun apple tree (sold single) 3-4’ $25.00 each

M

I

S

C

Fern Pac - $21.00

Pond Habitat Pac - $21.00

Wild Flower Pac - $21.00

Bluebird House (sold single) - $14.00 each

Bat House (sold single) - $15.00 each

Fertilizer tablets - 8% tax included 10-pack $ 1.75

Marking Flags – 8% tax included 10-pack $ 1.75

TOTAL $

Please mail your order with payment to:

Onondaga County SWCD

6680 Onondaga Lake Parkway

Liverpool, NY 13088