W INTER 2016
U
E
Learning How to Heat with Wood & Pellets
UME hosted live webinar, Room 8
Allegany College Continuing Ed.
Bldg.
January 12, 2016, 7 pm – 9 pm
Tri-State Hay & Pasture
Conference
Salisbury Fire Hall, Salisbury, PA
January 14, 2016, 8 am-3:30 pm
Future Harvest CASA Annual
Conference
College Park Marriott Hotel,
College Park, MD
January 14 - 16, 2016
Appalachia Grows Small Farm
Conference
Allegany County Fairgrounds
January 22 – 23, 2016
Maryland Grain Marketing
Workshop
Washington County Extension
Office, call 301-791-1304
February 2, 2016
PASA’s 25 th Annual Farming for the Future Conference
State College, PA
February 3 – 6, 2016
A
C
A
A
G
H
N
Y
!
I would like to invite you to participate in the second annual Appalachia Grows Small Farm Conference to be held at the Allegany County Fairgrounds on
January 22-23, 2016. Last year’s conference was a great success with over 150 people participating from our Tri-State region. This year’s conference has some new and exciting events. Friday’s free morning sessions are geared for 4-H and FFA youth. Friday afternoon’s regular programming will focus on farm marketing success. A winter farmer’s market will be available starting at 4 pm. At 5 pm, the conference will host the “Taste of Appalachia” dine around, featuring local restaurants, caterers, and craft brewers offering dishes made with local foods. On Saturday, five sessions will be offered, featuring classes from four different tracks: fruit and vegetable production, livestock and farm management, greenhouse and high tunnel production, and special interest topics.
I have attached a conference brochure and registration form. If you would like to attend the conference on one or both days, please fill out the registration form and mail it with your check to the
Garrett County Extension office. If you prefer, you can also register and pay online at our website: appgrows.com
. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions, or would like to participate as a vendor. This year’s Appalachia Grows conference promises to be a great way to gain valuable information and network with other farms and agriculture entrepreneurs. I hope to see you there!
Best wishes for a prosperous and blessed New Year,
UME Agriculture & Natural Resources Educator sfrick@umd.edu
The University of Maryland, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources programs are open to all and will not discriminate against anyone because of race, age, sex, color, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, religion, ancestry, or national origin, marital status, genetic information, or political affiliation, or gender identity and expression.

T
-S
H
P
C
T
, J
14, 2016
Salisbury Fire Hall, 385 Ord St., Salisbury, PA
How are your management practices affecting the stand productivity and persistence of your hay and pasture stands? Are you cutting or grazing at the proper height? Are you applying appropriate amounts of lime and fertilizer and doing so at the correct times? Are you seeding grasses and legumes that are adapted to your soil types and your management practices? Is weed control hurting your pastures production? These and other questions will be addressed by renowned forage and equine experts at the Tri-State Hay and Pasture
Conferences to be held on January 14 at the Salisbury Fire Hall in Salisbury, PA with registration starting at 8:00 am.
Featured speakers will include Dr. Marvin Hall, forage specialist at Penn State University, Dr.
Sidney Bosworth, agronomy specialist at the University of Vermont, and Dr. Jessica
Williamson, forage specialist at Penn State University.
Don’t miss this very informative day with some of the regions experts in the field of forage production and management.
To register for the Tri-State Hay and Pasture Conference contact the University of Maryland
Extension office in Garrett County at 301-334-6960. The fee which includes lunch is $20 for advanced registration by January 8 and $25 at the door if not registered.
For a complete schedule of the days events contact the extension office or visit: https:// extension.umd.edu/events/thu-2016-01-14-0800-tri-state-hay-and-pasture-conference.
Nutrient management credits will be available for nutrient applicator vouchers and certified applicators.
11:45 to 12:30 pm —Managing Forage
Quality with Fluctuating Weather
12:30 to 1:15 pm —Lunch
8:00 to 9:00 am —Registration
9:00 to 9:15 am —Welcome,
Housekeeping Details, Evaluation
9:15 to 10:30 am —Improving Farm
Viability through Advanced Forage
Selection and Management
10:30 to 11:30 am—Plant Growth,
Development, and Implication for
Management Decisions, Part I
11:30 to 11:45 am—Break
1:15 to 1:30 pm —Greetings from the
Maryland-Delaware Forage Council
1:30 to 2:30 pm —Plant Growth,
Development, and Implication for
Management Decisions, Part 2
2:30 to 3:30 pm —Improving Pasture
Productivity through Better Weed Control

E
A
L
, H
F
-R
F
P
(ELAP)
The Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees and Farm-Raised Fish Program
(ELAP) provides payments to eligible producers of livestock, honeybees, and farm-raised fish to help compensate for losses due to disease (including cattle tick fever), adverse weather, or other conditions, such as blizzards and wildfires, as determined by the
Secretary. ELAP was authorized by the Agricultural Act of 2014 (the 2014 Farm Bill) as a permanent program and provides retroactive authority to cover losses that occurred on or after Oct. 1, 2011. ELAP assistance is provided for losses not covered by the Livestock
Forage Disaster Program (LFP) and the Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP). Losses must be reported within 30 days after livestock, honeybee, or farm-raised fish loss.
For more information, visit http://disaster.fsa.usda.gov. To report a loss, contact Eric
McCartney at 301-777-1747.
Four Categories of Livestock Losses Covered by ELAP:
 Livestock death losses caused by an eligible loss condition;
 Livestock feed and grazing losses that are not due to drought or wildfires on federally managed lands;
 Losses resulting from the additional cost of transporting water to livestock due to an eligible drought;
 Losses resulting from the additional cost associated with gathering livestock for treatment related to cattle tick fever.
Eligible Honeybee Losses
ELAP provides assistance for the loss of honeybee colonies in excess of normal mortality.
FSA has established a normal mortality rate for honeybee colony losses of 17.5 %. ELAP covers damage to honeybee hives and honeybee feed that was purchased or produced for eligible honeybees, including additional feed purchased above normal quantities to sustain honeybees until such time that additional feed becomes available.
To be eligible for ELAP payments, honeybee colony, hive and feed losses must be:
 Due to an eligible adverse weather or loss condition;
 Incurred by an eligible honeybee producer in the county where the eligible adverse weather occurred.
Adverse weather and loss conditions include colony collapse disorder (CCD) (colony loss only), excessive wind, cold, hurricane, lightning, volcanic eruption or wildfire.
L
I
P
(LIP)
FSA
LIP provides benefits to livestock producers for livestock deaths in excess of normal mortality caused by adverse weather. In addition, LIP covers attacks by animals reintroduced into the wild by the federal government or protected by federal law, including wolves and avian predators. Losses must be reported within 30 days after death is apparent . For more information, visit http://disaster.fsa.usda.gov
. To report a loss, contact Eric McCartney at 301-777-1747.

P
U
EPA’s new steps to minimize neonicotinoid exposure to bees and other pollinators
There are now new label changes and additional restrictions on all neonicotinoid products containing clothianidin, dinotefuran, imidacloprid, and thiamethoxam that are registered for outdoor foliar use. Label changes include a Pollinator Protection Box and the Directions for
Use section that contains specific restrictions accompanied by a bee icon in a red diamond. The revised labels state that for crops under contracted pollination services, products cannot be applied until flowering is complete and all petals have fallen, or can be applied when managed bees are at the treatment site if the applicator notifies beekeepers no less than 48 hours prior to the application. For flowering crops without contracted hives, products can be applied if one of the following conditions is met: flowering is over and all petals have fallen; made after sunset, made when temperatures are below 55 degrees F.; made in accordance with a state administered apiary registry program where beekeepers in the area are notified no less than 48 hours prior to the application; or made if there is documented evidence that the pest population exceeds a pre-determined threshold and poses an imminent threat of significant crop loss, provided that beekeepers in the area are notified no less than 48 hours prior to the application. EPA has also temporarily halted the approval of new outdoor neonicotinoid uses until new bee data are submitted and risk assessments are complete.
How will the new label changes for foliar neonicotinoids affect insect control options for bee attractive vegetable crops?
Fruiting vegetable crops, such as dry beans, eggplant, peppers, tomatoes, squash, and pumpkins, are highly attractive to honey bees, bumble bees, and solitary bees. Other vegetables that are attractive to bees to a lesser extent include peas, snap/lima beans, okra, potato, cucumber, muskmelons, and watermelon. Most of these crops have indeterminate growth patterns and thus flower over a long period of the crop cycle when both pests and bees are active (some flower right up to harvest). The following neonicotinoid foliar products can be used to control insect pests on one or more of these crops: Admire Pro (imidacloprid), Belay (clothianidin), Scorpion and Venom (dinotefuran),
Actara (thiamethoxam), Voliam Flexi (thiamethoxam+chlorantraniliprole), Endigo (lambdacyhalothrin+thiamethoxam), Brigadier (bifenthrin + imidacloprid), and Leverage360 (imidacloprid+beta-cyfluthrin). The new label changes would prohibit applications of these products when bees are foraging in the crop unless the beekeeper notification requirement and/or other conditions outlined above are met. Some manufacturers have removed uses from their labels due to the new restrictions, so check the label for changes and restrictions. The label is the law, so as soon as the product container displays the new label changes, applicators are required to comply with the new directions for use. In certain treatment situations, applicators may have to consider non-neonicotinoid products; however, many of these products cannot be applied if bees are foraging in the crop.
For example, pyrethroids are highly toxic to bees and commonly used in sweet corn, a crop that is attractive to bees during pollen shed. According to the label, pyrethroid products cannot be applied during this period if bees are visiting the crop.

N
M
C
Helena Lewis, our former nutrient management advisor, has moved on to a new position with NRCS in New Jersey. Interviews for the position will be held in January and we hope to fill the position soon.
Until then, Ashley Travis, the nutrient management advisor from the UME-Washington County office, will be here on Thursdays. Please call our office at 301-724-3320 to schedule an appointment with
Ashley.
Timeline for Implementing the PMT
Maryland’s Phosphorus Management Tool (PMT) became effective June 8, 2015. The regulations provide a multi-year process for farmers to transition from the Phosphorus Site Index (PSI), a tool they have used since 2005 to measure the risk of phosphorus runoff into waterways, to the PMT, an updated tool that uses the latest science to identify the potential risk of phosphorus loss from farm fields and prevent the additional buildup of phosphorus in soils that are already saturated.
Typically, soils with high phosphorus levels are present on farms that have used manure as a crop nutrient over an extended period of time. Use of the PMT only applies to farm fields with high soil phosphorus levels identified by a Fertility Index Value (FIV) of 150 or greater on soil test results. If farm fields score less than 150, the farmer can apply phosphorus to the land following his or her current nutrient management plan.
The following phased-in implementation schedule applies:
Effective Immediately
Fields with the greatest risk for phosphorus runoff into nearby waterways as indicated by a FIV of 500 or greater are immediately banned from receiving additional phosphorus.
All new/updated nutrient management plans should be developed using both the PSI and the PMT for farm fields with a FIV of 150 or greater.
September 30, 2015
Nutrient management consultants and certified farmers to report soil phosphorus FIV results to MDA for all farm fields. The report will not associate these values with a specific address or individual.
June 30, 2016
Consultants must provide farmers with an average soil phosphorus FIV for all fields in their operations with a FIV of 150 or more. Tiers govern the time farmers have to transition to the PMT.
September 1, 2016
Farmers report average FIV values to MDA.
Beginning in 2018
New phosphorus management requirements begin to phase in for High Risk Tier
C farms with average phosphorus levels greater than 450 FIV.
Beginning in 2019
New phosphorus management requirements begin to phase in for Medium-Risk Tier B farms with average phosphorus levels of 300-450 FIV.
Beginning in 2020
New phosphorus management requirements begin to phase in for Low-Risk Tier A farms with average phosphorus levels of 150 – 299 FIV.
January 1, 2022
All farms with fields having high soil phosphorus levels of FIV 150 or greater will be required to fully implement the PMT.

N
S
R
 A minimum 10-ft. setback is required for all nutrient applications adjacent to surface waters and streams.
 A 35-ft. setback is required when using broadcast fertilizer application methods. No crops may be grown on the 10-ft. setback except pasture and hay. The remaining 25ft. setback may have crops, but may not be fertilized unless a direct application method is used.
 Pastures and hayfields are subject to a 10-ft. setback.
 Nutrients may not be applied mechanically within the setback.
 Livestock are not allowed in the setback.
 Fencing may not be required in all cases. Discuss alternative practices with your soil conservation district.
 Livestock sacrifice lots require a 35-ft. setback from surface water.
 If nutrients are custom applied, it is the operator’s responsibility to inform the applicator of the setback distance based on the method of application.
*Information taken from Maryland Nutrient Management News, Summer 2015.
P
E
A
I
P
The Agriculture Incentives Program is available to Maryland commercial and industrial retail service customers of Potomac Edison. The Program offers incentives and information to encourage participants to install high-efficiency equipment. Flat-rate incentives are available for the following equipment categories:
 Variable Frequency Drives on Dairy Vacuum Pumps
 Automatic Milker Takeoffs
 Dairy Scroll Compressors
 High-Efficiency Ventilation Fans
 High-Volume, Low-Speed Fans
 Livestock Waterers
Pre-Approval Requirements
All applications received by the Program will require pre-approval before the purchase and installation of equipment.
Effective Dates
To qualify for incentives through this Program, equipment must have been purchased and installed after December 1, 2015, and after the receipt of a preapproval email from the program administrator.
Limitations
Incentives available from the Program are limited to the total equipment cost
(excluding taxes). Only installation of new equipment is eligible for incentives under this Program.
For an application and further details, please visit the website at: energysavemd-business.com/specialty-programs/agricultural.

UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND
UME — Allegany County Office
One Commerce Drive
Cumberland, Maryland 21502
NONPROFIT ORG
U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
CUMBERLAND, MD
PERMIT NO. 932
Sherry Frick
Extension Educator sfrick@umd.edu
Ashley Stevens-Travis
Nutrient Management Advisor
Jody Parrish
Administrative Assistant jparrish@umd.edu
301-724-3320
The Maryland Master
Gardener Program, a volunteer education program taught and administered by University of
Maryland Extension (UME), puts research-based knowledge and environmental power into the hands of people who want to create sustainable gardens and landscapes, and protect and improve natural resources. Master Gardeners are citizens from all walks of life who combine their love of plants, people, and the environment to help residents solve problems and make environmentally-sound decisions on public and private properties.
For more information on the Master Gardener Program in
Allegany County, call 301-724-3320.