Pasture Walk to Focus on Soil Health

Spas Farm in Ashville welcomes all to attend

-by Lisa Kempisty, Dairy/Livestock Educator with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Chautauqua County

JAMESTOWN, NEW YORK (May 1, 2018) -- Cornell Cooperative Extension of Chautauqua County’s Agriculture program is pleased to announce the upcoming Pasture Walk to be hosted by Spas Farm in Ashville, NY. All agricultural producers interested in learning more about soil health, rotational grazing, and beef cattle production are encouraged to attend. The Spas Family also invites the public wishing to learn more about how they manage their naturally raised grass-fed beef to join the Pasture Walk or contact them anytime.

This On-Farm Pasture Walk will be held rain or shine on Saturday, May 12, 2018 from 11:30 am to 2:30 pm at the Spas Farm, 3781 Morley Road, Ashville. The cost to attend is $5 per person to help cover the cost of lunch, payable that day. Pre-registration is required by contacting Lisa Kempisty at Cornell Cooperative Extension of Chautauqua County at 716-664-9502 Ext 203 or ljk4@cornell.edu by May 10th with the number of people planning to attend.

The Spas Farm is a third-generation family-run farm owned and operated by Paul and Connie Spas on Morley Road, overlooking historic Chautauqua Lake. Their registered Red Devon Cattle herd of 30 cow-calf pairs, are rotationally grazed, with a focus on producing high quality beef using regenerative farming practices to build and sustain soil health. They market naturally raised grass-fed beef from their on-farm store.

With soil health being identified as the limiting factor to productivity on many farms, it is important to focus on the physical structure and biological life in the soil to make the most of seeds and nutrients. This Pasture Walk will include interactive activities using the “Soil Health” trailer equipped to measure and demonstrate the three vital components of soil health – Physical, Chemical, and Biological. This trailer is part of a 5-state Conservation Innovation Grant funded by the NRCS. We will also walk the pastures and discuss the management of the Spas’ beef herd, and how they market their high quality beef.

Fay Benson, Extension Educator with Cornell University SCNY Regional Team, will compare some soil management plots under a rainfall simulator to measure aggregate stability. Participants will use penetrometers to measure soil compaction, and a demonstration of the Active Carbon test to measure how much food the soil contains for the biology living there. We will also discuss the Pasture, Rangeland, Forage (PRF) Insurance program available to help land owners manage risks growing forages and pastures.

This Pasture Walk is being co-sponsored by New York’s Grazinglands Coalition, Seneca Trail RC&D, the Spas Farm, and Cornell Cooperative Extension of Chautauqua County, with support from the Northeast Extension Risk Management Education Program.

The Agriculture Program is one of many programs offered by Cornell Cooperative Extension of Chautauqua County (CCE-Chautauqua) in line with the County’s 20/20 Comprehensive Plan. CCE-Chautauqua is a community based educational organization, affiliated with Cornell University, Chautauqua County Government, the NYS SUNY system, and the federal government through the United States Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture. For more information, call 716-664-9502 or visit our website at www.cce.cornell.edu/chautauqua. Cornell University Cooperative Extension provides equal program and employment opportunities.

Last updated May 1, 2018