Cornell AgriTech

How do you help your plants grow in extreme heat? "Water, water, water," says Steve Reiners, professor of horticulture, to WAER FM radio.

'Water, water, water': Extreme heat impacting some NYS crops A rise in 80- and 90-degree days across New York state is starting to have its effect on some crops.

From cultivating a snail sanctuary as a child to successfully rearing spotted lanternfly eggs to adulthood at our Hudson Valley Research Laboratory, Hannah Tolz’ lifelong passion for nature and insects is playing a key role in New York State Integrated Pest Management’s efforts.

Tolz' work is aimed at stopping the spread of invasive species and better understand orchard, vineyard and livestock pests.

Natural curiosity rears essential research Meet Hannah TolzWe recently talked to Hannah about what inspires her work and how it’s contributing to NYSIPM’s mission to lead research and education on the selection and use of pest management options to protect personal, environmental and economic health."I find myself turning over leaves and...

📢Introducing: The Seneca Foods Foundation Pilot Plant!

A historic $10M gift from the Seneca Foods Foundation to the Cornell Food Venture Center (CFVC) at Cornell AgriTech, will grow the NYS food economy by supporting new innovation, education, expertise and programming for the food industry.

The gift will also endow the critical professor and director of the CFVC role to ensure impactful leadership of the CFVC for years to come.

$10M gift from Seneca Foods will support the Cornell Food Venture Center | Cornell Chronicle The gift from the Seneca Foods Foundation will help food producers of all sizes bring their products to market.

Although it's not welcome news, Cornell resources are available to Finger Lakes growers when it comes to Spotted Lanternfly and researchers are hard at work to identify and disseminate solutions.

Vigilance and reporting are also key.

Invasive spotted lanternfly detected in Finger Lakes vineyard | Cornell Chronicle The New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets identified the invasive pest in Romulus, New York, following reports from Cornell’s New York State Integrated Pest Management Program.

In case you missed it: Cornell’s Hudson Valley Research Lab - a unique research station supported by Cornell AgriTech & Hudson Valley farmers - has received $1M in capital funding from
Senator Michelle Hinchey. Thank you Senator! https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2024/07/state-invests-1-million-hudson-valley-research-lab

Cornell’s Hudson Valley Research Lab (HVRL) in Highland, NY - a unique research station supported by both CALS and local Hudson Valley farmers - has received $1M in capital funding from Senator Michelle Hinchey to support critical infrastructure updates.

“The value of the science that happens in this facility to commercial agriculture is priceless,” said HVRL board president Sarah Dressel-Nikles ’11, who owns a local multi-generational fruit farm. “The lab is the heartbeat of the region’s farming and this investment will ensure that it can help carry Hudson Valley agriculture into the future.”

Thank you, Senator Michelle Hinchey, for your support!

"When you think of agriculture and you think of computer science, there's really no better institution than Cornell University."

Cornell AgriTech is a digital agriculture hub with many exciting projects in the works.

Cornell AgriTech | Jonathan Moon of GREATER ROCHESTER, NY “Digital agriculture is rapidly growing here.” After an internship at Google, California native and software engineering student Jonathan Moon wanted an oppo...

Our campus will soon be the hub of research & innovation for the U.S. grape industry thanks to a USDA-ARS National Grape Improvement Center. Many thanks to Senator Chuck Schumer and our wine grape industry for your support. The future is bright for Cornell, the USDA Agricultural Research Service & national producers.

USDA breaks ground on $70M lab for grape research at AgriTech | Cornell Chronicle The National Grape Improvement Center is expected to propel innovation, foster collaboration and revolutionize grape production nationwide.

“One of the reasons that I love this job is because all the other people here also love their jobs," said Chris Smart, Goichman Family Director of Cornell AgriTech. "You come into work, and you’re just bombarded by people with amazing ideas. And it’s truly inspirational.”

Christine Smart: Advancing Agriculture at Cornell AgriTech - Locate Finger Lakes Christine Smart has two offices on the Cornell AgriTech campus, reflecting the dual nature of her role as the Goichman Family Director of Cornell AgriTech and Associate Dean of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, a new position she started in October 2023. Her research office is overflowin...

Researchers from College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Cornell University and Cornell AgriTech are recreating Piquette, an ancient French beverage made of upcycled grape pomace, with a NYS spin that includes the addition of dairy byproducts. The result: A spunky, spritzy & sustainable craft beverage.

Spritzy and sustainable: Researchers riff on an ancient refreshment | Cornell Chronicle Piquette, an ancient French beverage made of upcycled grape pomace, gets a New York state spin with the addition of dairy byproducts.

There's been a lot of talk about Joro Spiders these days. Alejandro Calixto, director of New York State Integrated Pest Management, says, "don't panic".

Don't Panic | Joro Spider Edition NYSIPM Director Alejandro Calixto offers a look at joro spiders and why there's no reason to panic.

We are a fun community at Cornell AgriTech! This week, several of our faculty and staff enjoyed a "Bike to Lunch" event to the Geneva lakefront.

New research indicates that damaged grape berries combined with vinegar flies are a recipe for promoting sour rot, a disease that lowers vineyard yields and wine quality

‘Sour’ grapes: Berry damage, fruit flies worsen wine | Cornell Chronicle Damaged grape berries combined with vinegar flies are a recipe for promoting sour rot, a disease that lowers vineyard yields and wine quality.

We were thrilled to recently host QU Dongyu, Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)for a tour that highlighted how our researchers support sustainable and resilient agrifood systems in New York state and beyond.

Shown below: QU with graduate students who participated in a roundtable discussion as part of the tour.

https://cals.cornell.edu/news/2024/05/un-fao-visit-highlights-importance-agrifood-system-transformation

Congratulations to the students from Cornell AgriTech that graduated over the weekend!🥳

Click on the photos below to see what a few of our graduating students had to say about their experience at Cornell.

https://cals.cornell.edu/news/2024/05/celebrating-cals-class-2024

A little sour, a little sweet, a tiny bit vegetal. We think rhubarb could be a significant boon to NYS wines, beers, distilled spirits and hard ciders.

Our researchers are working to advance rhubarb production in the Northeast.

High stalks: Could rhubarb be New York state’s next big crop? | Cornell Chronicle A little sour, a little sweet, a tiny bit vegetal: New rhubarb cultivars could be a significant boon to the state’s wines, beers, distilled spirits and hard ciders.

Advancing insights on precision agriculture for vineyards across NYS and beyond, The Efficient Vineyard (EV) Project has reached 1,000+ users worldwide.

The EV Project is run by Terry Bates, director of our Lake Erie Research and Extension Lab.

Cornell’s digital viticulture tools help grape growers worldwide Every day, vineyard managers from all over the world benefit from The Efficient Vineyard (EV) Project, which provides spatial data, research and information to help growers increase their yield and fruit quality.

Vêsucré, an Upstate NY-based producer of plant-based frozen desserts, is rapidly growing one cup at a time thanks to the Food Spark Program, coordinated by our Center of Excellence for Food and Agriculture at Cornell AgriTech.

These vegan frozen dessert cups are taking New York by storm After Sarah Hartmann adopted a vegan diet in 2020, she ran into a big problem: she couldn’t find a vegan-friendly frozen dessert she liked. So Hartmann, who built a career in non-profits and sports marketing, got to work developing her own. What she created was more than just a delicious dessert ....

New first-of-its-kind research at Cornell AgriTech could pave the way for fresher, more nutritious, minimally processed fruit juices.

Using nonthermal processing technologies of pulsed electric field and high-pressure processing, researchers were able to create a superb cold-pressed Concord grape juice.

The research may provide new product opportunities for NYS Concord grape producers and can also be applied to other fruit juices.

New method produces fresher, tastier cold-pressed Concord grape juice | Cornell Chronicle Cornell AgriTech’s first-of-its-kind research combines the nonthermal processing technologies of pulsed electric field and high-pressure processing.

For her innovative work improving pest and disease management in grapes, Katie Gold, asst. professor of plant pathology and plant-microbe biology, received the 2024 Research Award from the New York Wine & Grape Foundation. Congrats Katie! https://newyorkwines.org/for-her-work-with-grape-pathology-katie-gold-earns-the-research-award/

From establishing monitoring stations at area farms, attract and kill stations on borders of affected areas to studying environmental factors on development, our Hudson Valley Lab is developing effective strategies to control spotted lanternfly.

Hudson Valley lab ramps up battle against invasive pest | Cornell Chronicle Researchers at the Hudson Valley Research Laboratory – part of Cornell AgriTech – are working to identify effective strategies that the region’s fruit growers can use to fight the invasive spotted lanternfly.

We are pleased to welcome Sara Emery, assistant professor of entomology.🥳

Sara is researching how arthropod communities are impacted by the interacting drivers of climate & land-use change in order to mitigate pest damage & enhance the resilience of ag production systems. https://cals.cornell.edu/news/2024/04/meet-our-faculty-sara-emery

UVC light, which is an effective management tool for Cercospora leaf spot fungus in beets, could have long-term, sustainable impacts on NYS beet production (currently ranked #1 in the U.S.).

UV light treats beet disease, combats fungicide resistance | Cornell Chronicle Germicidal ultraviolet light is effective at killing a damaging fungus that infects table beets, adding an important organic tool to fight the growing problem of fungicide resistance, according to a new Cornell study.

Though Canned wine is the fastest growing segment in the wine market, it faces some hurdles, including occasional rotten egg small. Researchers at the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Cornell University have identified solutions that may help keep canned wine tasting and smelling fresh for consumers' optimum enjoyment.

What’s behind canned wine’s rotten egg smell? Cornell team IDs culprit | Cornell Chronicle Cornell food scientists are working with wineries, manufacturers and New York state to eliminate the “off” aroma in some canned wines by subtly altering the product’s formulation and packaging.

One of the biggest mistakes gardeners make is starting their transplants for their vegetable garden too early.🌱

Horticulture prof. Steve Reiners shares a planting schedule to assist with your garden prep this year.🍅

Planning for a Vegetable Garden? Don’t Start Transplants Too Early ITHACA, N.Y. -- With mild weather swings across New York, you may be looking at your garden and planning ahead for the spring and summer....

The clouds didn't dampen the palpable excitement at Cornell AgriTech yesterday as hundreds of faculty, staff and students from both the Ithaca and Geneva campuses experienced the eclipse in totality together.

https://alumni.cornell.edu/cornellians/eclipse-photos/?fbclid=IwAR24bAGatNRoSP3Ookn5rIeZyyfRkdSNOoTvnhTXXs5_D7Q8OXuKVPJebSY

Lidia Komondy (3rd from right in front row), Ph.D candidate, was 1 of only 5 U.S. grad students selected for the '24 U.S. Department of Agriculture Future Leaders in Agriculture Program. Lidia recently toured the nation's capital, attended briefings & career development opportunities as part of the program. Congrats Lidia!🥳

Lidia Komondy lauded as ‘future leader’ in agricultural science Lidia Komondy is a Ph.D. candidate working in the lab of Brian Nault, professor of entomology at Cornell AgriTech. Komondy has so excelled in vegetable entomology research, she was one of only five graduate students in the U.S. selected for the 2024 USDA Future Leaders in Agriculture Program. The pr...