This Month’s Topic: Tree & Shrub Leaf-Silage Production

Latest Findings on Mechanical Leaf-Separation, Harvest Yields, Ruminant Intake and Performance

Are you interested in integrating tree and shrub leaf silage into your farm for your ruminants? Shana Hanson, Project Leader for Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) FNE22-013, will offer 45 minutes of new information on tree and shrub leaf-silage harvest yields, labor efficiency, ruminant leaf-silage intake, preferences, and milk yields from that study, where they used seventy six 30-gallon barrels-worth of 23 tree & shrub species. Karl Hallen, maker of the Chain-flail Leaf-separator that Shana used, hopes to also be available for our 45 minutes of questions, answers, and discussion, which will follow Shana’s presentation.

 

 

Shana Hanson (3 Streams Farmer & Belfast Blueberry Cooperative Coordinator/Laborer in Belfast, Maine; ) has pruned apple trees professionally since 1983, and has harvested tree leaves for ruminants in earnest (and networked internationally with pollard and tree fodder researchers) since 2011. She was the only US farmer-presenter at 2iem Colloque Trognes in Sare, France in 2018. Her SARE FNE18-897 tree-leaf project began upon return home, exploring tree-leaf harvest in a mature woodland, various storage methods, and palatability. A VT Grass Farmers mini-grant followed, to look at leaf-fodder nutrition. She is motivated by aromatic compounds, and gets satisfaction from ruminant munching of leaves.

When not strategizing about tree leaves with Shana or presenting about agroforestry, Karl Hallen (Senior Research Support Specialist, SUNY college of Environmental Science and Forestry, and owner of Hallen Farm in  DeRuyter, NY) makes, modifies and repairs equipment, lays out plots and completes harvests for SUNY  ESF, and many other US willow biomass research projects. He collaborates with multiple universities and organizations to support other agroforestry, nutrient management, and soil health projects.  Trained at Cornell as an agronomist and cattle nutritionist, he has 40+ years experience with dairy farming, farm and forestry consulting, sawmills, and biomass boilers.  He sees SARE FNE22-013 results as a stepping-stone toward climate-smart farming.

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Go Nuts is our informational and conversation-rich agroforestry call. During this call which takes place every other odd month, we will discuss all things related to agroforestry, from planting and tree establishment to infrastructure and consumer access. This includes insight into the variety of species of trees and shrubs and their various applications as well as discussing more technical elements such as soil health or animal integration. All of these discussions are grounded in the relevancy of agroforestry as a unified food systems solution, and how it can help sustain our environment, improve soil health and boost community resilience.

Join us every first Thursday of the odd months (Jan, March, May, July, September, November) at 7pm EST.

Sep 7, 2023 07:00 PM

Nov 2, 2023 07:00 PM

Jan 4, 2024 07:00 PM

Mar 7, 2024 07:00 PM

May 2, 2024 07:00 PM

Jul 4, 2024 07:00 PM

Sep 5, 2024 07:00 PM

 

NOFA Mass is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting. Join Zoom Meeting

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88328466124?pwd=dmRNcHZ0UVZxQS9CNWcwVW1LT2Q5dz09

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