Episode 13: New York Breeding Bird Atlas

Kathryn Schneider rejoins the podcast with a discussion about the upcoming New York Breeding Bird Atlas. Discover how it is created and how you can help! This is followed by a Linda Levitt (Flower Power) covering an early spring flowering plant, the hellebore. This episode concludes with a description of two wild strawberry plants and the Scarlet Runner Bean ( The Cover Up with Jean Thomas and Tim Kennelty ).

Hosts: Tim Kennelty and Jean Thomas

Guest: Kathryn Schneider

Photo by Tim Kennelty

Resources:

New York Breeding Bird Atlas (Kathryn Schneider): About the Atlas - New York Breeding Bird Atlas (ebird.org) ; New York Breeding Bird Atlas - Discover a new world of birding... (ebird.org)

Hellebores (Flower Power with Linda Levitt): gardenersworld.com; finegardening.com; Penn State Extension: Hellebores - An Amazing Winter and Early Spring Display; Colorado State Extension | Hellebores

Wild Strawberries and Scarlet Runner Beans (Cover Up with Jean Thomas and Tim Kennelty): NC State Extension | Wild Strawberry; NC State Extension | Barren Strawberry; Burpee American Gardening Series - Vines

Transcript:

Welcome to Nature Calls: Conversations from the Hudson Valley. Our team's goal is to present science based information about gardening and all things nature in New York's Hudson Valley. Hosts Jean and Tim, along with team members, Teresa and Linda, are Master Gardener Volunteers for New York's Columbia and Greene counties. So if you're interested in gardening or nature or nuggets of information about what's happening outside your door, settle in, enjoy the conversation. Whatever the season, we have something to say.

Musical segue

Tim: Hi, I'm Tim Kennelty.

Jean: And I'm Jean Thomas,

Tim: And welcome to Nature Calls: Conversations from the Hudson Valley.

Jean: Today is a very important day.

Jean: It is?

Jean: Yes, we're dropping episode number 13.

Jean: Uh oh, lucky thirteen.

Jean: And we lucked out with Katherine Schneider, resident bird expert.

Jean: Our bird go to person and she's going to talk about something really interesting, which I wasn't even aware was happening. It's that Breeding Birds of New York State Atlas that she's working on.

Jean: And it's going out and counting birds and listening to them and watching where they're nesting and all kinds of cool stuff like that.

Tim: Yeah, and this is something that they do every 20 years, and they have hundreds of volunteers. And the really great thing about it is they can compare populations across the state of different bird species and see what's happening. And the good news that Kathryn is going to talk about is we're seeing new birds in New York State and increases of birds in New York State. Like she said, the black vulture we never saw in New York State and now we're starting to see it. So there is some good news.

Jean: And then Linda Leavitt steps in and we have a little chat about Hellebores.

Tim: I like Hellebores. Yeah, they're kind of the sign of spring.

Jean: They are pretty.

Tim: Yeah, they are.

Jean: And they bloom at a time that you don't expect anything to be blooming.

Tim: And even though they're a non native plant, they do provide nectar for really early pollinators.

Jean: And they're tidy, and they're not aggressive.

Jean: But they do spread.

Jean: They will spread neatly.

Tim: So that's a good one to listen to.

Jean: And then we can go back to our favorite subject food.

Jean: Food?

Jean: Yeah, we're doing something about vines and ground covers today.

Tim: In The Cover Up, The Cover Up, right. And we've switched it up, because you're going to talk about vines. And I'm going to talk about groundcovers this time, right?

Jean: Yes. Now tell me about your groundcovers

Tim: My groundcovers are basically two types of kind of wild strawberries. One is the typical wild strawberry and the other is Waldsteinia. And they're both great native groundcovers. They spread really well. They're really really tough. Good pollinator plants. And you're going to talk about scarlet runner beans, right?

Jean: Yes.

Tim: When I listened to your episode, I decided to plant this because it's a really fast growing vine and it attracts hummingbirds. And it's beautiful. And it's something that really covers up kind of unsightly things like chain link fence and chicken wire and things like that.

Jean: And not only are the flowers pretty, the beans are. You can eat them like regular little green beans. Or you can let them grow and make the seeds and the seeds are beautiful.

Tim: Well, I can't wait to listen to that. And we want to remind people to follow us on Instagram at Nature Calls Hudson Valley.

Jean: And you can email us with ideas about future episodes at ColumbiaGreeneMGV@cornell.edu.

Tim: Yeah, come on. We want some feedback. We want to hear from you folks. I think it's a great episode to listen to.

Jean: I have the snacks ready. We're good.

Tim:

Excellent.

Musical segue

Tim: Hi, I'm Tim Kennelty.

Jean: And I'm Jean Thomas.

Tim: And welcome to Nature Calls: Conversations from the Hudson Valley. Today we're talking to Master Gardener Volunteer Katherine Schneider, who's our resident bird expert. Katherine's an avid birder and has a PhD in ornithology. And she's even written a book called Birding the Hudson Valley. Today's topic is The New York Breeding Bird Atlas. Kathyrn, thanks so much for joining us today. So tell us first what is a Breeding Bird Atlas. And how did you get involved in the project?

Kathryn: Well, the Breeding Bird Atlas is basically a five year long scientific research project that's done by citizen scientists, just ordinary birdwatchers that are actually led by professionals. What a Bird Atlas does is it creates a snapshot on the distribution of breeding birds for a specific time in a specific geographic area. I got involved in that nestling about 40 years ago during New York's first Breeding Bird Atlas. This is the third one that we're doing here in New York State. I got involved through the New York State Ornithological Association, which is a group of birdwatching clubs and individuals. Atlasing is basically bird watching, but it's a little more challenging. And I think interesting, because you actually have to watch the behavior of the birds to tell what, what they are doing and if they are breeding. It's bird watching with a purpose because information is used for conservation purposes.

Jean: Okay, so this atlas is just for New York State. Are there other breeding bird atlases?

Kathryn: Yes, our our atlas just covers New York State. But this is the third time we've done one in New York. In fact, we're among the first states to do one three times, other states have generally done one or two. Right now there are broad atlases being worked on in New York, in Maine, in Maryland, and Washington, DC, North Carolina, and Wisconsin, as well as in countries like Israel and New Zealand.

Jean: How is the data collected?

Kathryn: We divide the state up into blocks, 5,710 blocks for New York State, they're about three miles square on the side. Then we send volunteer birds out to watch birds and record what they see. When you're atlasing, it's important to stay in just one block. We ask our volunteers to make at least three visits to the block, one early, one middle and one late in the season. We also asked them to be sure to visit all the habitats in the block so they find all the different kinds of birds. So to be sure that they get to forests and wetlands and shrubby areas and grasslands, if they're present in the block. And finally, we asked them to spend at least two hours serving at night to find nocturnal species like woodcocks, whipowills and maybe owls. We ask them to record the birds and the breeding behaviors they observe using a series of codes for different levels of breeding. This allows us to classify birds as possible probable or confirmed breeders. For example, if you hear a bird singing a song, it might be a breeder, or it might just be migrating through singing is considered possible breeding. On the other hand, if you see a bird carrying nesting material, or food for the young, that would be considered confirmed breeding.

Tim: So it sounds like a really amazing project to get involved in. What what what are you going to use the data for? What's the purpose and what are the uses for this?

Kathryn: Well, if we know where the birds breed, we can avoid conflicts with development projects. For example, many new solar projects are being cited in old fields that are used by grassland birds and grassland birds are declining across New York state. State agencies like parks, for example, might use the data when they plan to build a new campground as they did on Schodack Island State Park. That way they could avoid habitat conflicts with birds like swirling warblers that breed there.

Jean: Does the data help in looking at the increases and the declines in the bird populations and shifting around?

Kathryn: We can use the data from these blocks to create maps for each species that breeds in New York state. So for example, after five years of data collection, we can make a map that shows all the places that Eastern Bluebird breeds by block. We can do this for all the other species as well that breed in New York State. We basically have a snapshot of the breeding distribution of each species over the five years of the Atlas. Atlases are typically repeated every 20 years. New York first Atlas took place between 1980 and 85. And the second one took place between 2000 and 2005. So we can compare these maps at 20 year intervals and see how they've changed over time.

Tim: So every 20 years, you do want why every 20 years?

Kathryn: Well, it's a convenient interval five years is a pretty long investment in fieldwork, at least for our volunteers it is. Well, now that we've completed two atlases, and our two years into our third, we know how bird distributions change over time. We know that a bird a small Falcon, called the Merlin that didn't even breed in New York state during the first Atlas in the 80s is now widespread throughout the state. We know that black vultures have moved into the state during that time as well. We also know that some species that were widespread during the 80s have become quite rare, such as red headed woodpecker. That birds now listed as a species of conservation concern, whereas it was considered secure in the 1980s.

Jean: So who collects the data?

Kathryn: Well, we have a project coordinator, Julie Hart, who runs our Atlas with the help of about 15 regional coordinators who scattered across New York state. The majority of the data gathering is actually done by volunteer birders. Basically anyone who can read a map, identify at least some birds and watch and record bit the behaviors they see can get involved in the bird Atlas. You don't have to be an expert birder. If you find a robin's nest in your yard, you've confirmed you have a confirmed breeding record We'd love to have you report that to the Atlas.

Tim: That is very, very cool. So so I think I know the answer to this question, but where, then are the volunteers entering all this data?

Kathryn: The eBird group from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology is managing the data for our Atlas, and for other atlases that are going on in the United States. eBird is an online database that most serious birders use to record their bird sightings. And entering Atlas data in eBird just takes a few extra steps. The nice thing about eBird is that instead of recording your information on paper, or in a notebook, you could actually use an app in the field on your phone to record the information and you don't have to deal with it when you get home. Using eBird to record our Atlas data means that Cornell can then use the information for scientific research and conservation from the minute it's entered.

Jean: Okay, I'm psyched. How can we and our listeners get involved? How much of a commitment do I need to make if I want to participate? Am I responsible for that whole three square miles?

Kathryn: Only if you want to be we have a great website that tells you how to get involved their websites addresses ebird.org/atlasny. There's instructions there that we call Atlas Essentials, that tells you about the block system, it tells about the codes for breeding behaviors. And it tells about data entry through the New York breeding bird Atlas portal. You can commit as much or as little time to Atlasing as you want.

Tim: Jean, I think you're committed now and it's time for you to leave and go entering data into eBird.

Jean: I should be committed.

Tim: So with something like this, a project like this, there's always money involved, right, somebody has to fund this. Who's funding this?

Kathryn: The Atlas is primarily funded with federal aid money that comes to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation from the US Fish and Wildlife Service. We've been fortunate to receive two large grants from them for the Atlas. Some aspects of the volunteer project like this can't be supported with these funds, however, such as things like advertising, volunteer appreciation events, and parts of the final product that we plan to produce with the data. These things have to be funded from other sources, so we're soliciting donations. Bird clubs across the state have been very generous and made donations to the Atlas, including our local Alan Devoe Bird Club and the Hudson Mohawk Bird Club. We received a $10,000 grant from a energy company called Next Era Energy Corporation. And we've put up a sponsor species campaign where you can make a donation for your favorite bird and have your name listed in the Atlas. So we're collecting donations for the things that cannot be funded with the grants that are absolutely essential. Volunteer appreciation is certainly absolutely essential for a volunteer project like ours. We also have an Atlas store where you can purchase Atlas swag, and show your support for the Atlas with an Atlas t-shirt or hat.

Jean: Okay, you probably answered this already, but it just came up in my head. How many people are now, right now working on the project?

Kathryn: After two years, we have more than 2,000 birders that are contributing data to the Atlas.

Jean: And that's it all at all ranges from from just your backyard to the ...

Kathryn: Yeah, varying degrees of commitment, commitment, and we're always looking for more. So if you only just want to put your Robin's nest in the Atlas, that's great.

Tim:

And there are like grids that are really a need. So there are some kind of not as densely populated areas where you especially need folks, right?

Kathryn: We call these gaps and we are desperately trying to address the gaps in the Adirondacks. The gaps in the Southern Tier gets gaps in the Catskills where we don't have enough birders we have to. We have to cajole and basically bribe volunteers to go to those parts of the state and go birdwatching.

Tim: Well, so they get like a nice t-shirt or soemthing?

Kathryn: We have challenges, we have monthly challenges where we give awards for what we want, grassland birds confirmed and we the person that turns in most checklists with confirmed grassland bird sometimes get a t-shirt or a hat or something like.

Jean: Oh, yeah, I'll work for t-shirts.

Tim: I just think it's so amazing, because there's so much bad news that you have this good news about the merlin and the black vulture. I think I saw a black vulture in the Kingston area and if that's possible, in like a trash like a big trash receptacle.

Kathryn: Black vultures are different from turkey vultures. Turkey vultures have been here for a really long time and most people are familiar with those but they migrate and they're just starting to come back from their southern trip. Now. Black vultures are resident here. so they've moved up here and they stay here year round. So we see them on Roadkill. And we see them in trash and we see them sitting on people's chimneys where they're trying to get the warm air coming up. So they, and they eat dog food too, so you have to, they're gonna be here year round we're gonna have to learn to live with them.

Tim: This one was enormous and, and I walked right up to it and took, I'll have to show you pictures after...

Kathryn: They're really tame.

Tim: Yeah, and really big too. So I know that you talked about learning about the Merlin and learning about the vulture. What else have you learned so far in the first couple years that you're working on this?

Kathryn: Well, I want to I want to caution you that we're only two years into a five year project. So anything I say cannot be used against me in future. But, for example, we can still tell that Merlin has continued to spread its range across New York state. We also know that bald eagles are doing really, really well. There are many, many more bald eagle nest sites than there were in the past. We can also tell a little bit about there was a recent study in Canada that showed that aerial insectivores, these are birds that catch insects on the wind, like barn swallows and tree swallows for example, that study showed that those aerial insectivores in Canada were in serious decline. And the early data on barns swallows suggests we may have a similar problem here in New York state.

Tim: So a lot of people out there are gardeners and I always say gardeners can make a difference. And you're saying insects are on the decline. So would you say then like that people should be planting plants that are attracted to pollinators, that attract insects? Is that a good thing to do?

Kathryn: There are so many reasons to plant native plants, but their their role in the environment in providing ecological services to other organism isms, like birds can't be overstated. I mean, I plant as many native plants and pollinator attractors in my garden as I possibly can.

Tim: And the more people who do that the more of a real difference you can make. And in terms of I think people don't think about birds as much as they think about oh, to see that beautiful butterfly, but it's really important to birds, right?

Kathryn: Birds eat. I mean, the majority of birds feed their young caterpillars. And caterpillars are a course are larvae of things like beetles and butterflies and loss and things like that. And we think that some of the declines we're seeing in birds are related to the lack of availability of these kinds of foods. So whether adults may very well eat seeds, but the young birds need protein and they need animal matter. And very often, this is caterpillars.

Jean: I feed my bluebird live mealworms.

Kathryn: That's good, I bet they love them.

Jean: They take my walk with me every morning because it's after my walk and they get the mealworms. Well, gee Kathryn, it's been so interesting talking to you today about the New York State Breeding Bird Atlas. We'll get that name up.

Tim: We love alliteration.

Jean: Oh yeah. We're we're absolutely going to have a link to the New York State Bird Atlas website for more information for our listeners. Thank you so much for joining us and thanks to our listeners.

Kathryn: Thanks for having me.

You're listening to Nature Calls: Conversations from the Hudson Valley.

Stay tuned for Flower Power.

Linda: Welcome to Flower Power, a regular feature of this podcast that will focus on all things flowers.I am Linda Levitt, a Master Gardener Volunteer with the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Columbia and Greene counties in New York’s Hudson Valley.

Approximately once a month, we will cover different types of flowers – how to best select, plant and care for each of the flowers discussed.

Today we will spend a couple of minutes talking about a genus of plants commonly called Hellebores. No garden is really complete without a few of spring’s first bloomers. They are called the “harbingers of spring”.They reflect the joy of the upcoming growing season.Plus a bonus, they provide nectar for emerging pollinators when there are so few nectar sources available.

This genus consists of approximately 20 species of herbaceous or evergreen perennial flowering plants.Some of the plants are well-known by the names Winter Rose, Christmas Rose or Lenten Rose when they really have no relation at all to the rose family.

The genus was first established by Carl Linnaeus some time in 1753.He first talks about the genus in his book Species Planetarium. Various species of the genus originated in Europe and Asia with the greatest concentration in the Balkans.A small portion of the plants came from China, Turkey and Syria.

Hellebores first appear in late winter or early spring.The plants are surprisingly frost resistant and some are even evergreen, they keep their color even during the winter months.Many of the species are toxic to animals but taste so bad, pets and animals usually do avoid them.They tend to be deer resistant.They can grow in USDA climate zones 4 to 9.They thrive in partial shade, especially at the woodland edge. They will grow in dense shade but may not produce many flowers. However, they have been known to adapt to more light if necessary.

Plant hellebores in moist well-draining soil that you have supplemented with compost but be careful not to cover the crown of the plant. They prefer soil rich in organic material. Ideally, they are perfect at the woodland edge or under trees. And if you plant them under trees, they will actually thrive bring light because the lack of leaves on the trees and continue to drive in the summer months when the shade of the trees keeps them cooler. Hellebores do not like hot summer sun.

You may start with four inch pots, they will grow very quickly. The larger plants actually have more initial impact but take longer to settle in and thrive. Plant in the spring or early fall making sure that the ground is frost free and on the other extreme, make sure the weather is not too hot. When established, the plant will grow about 18 inches high with flowers that consist of five large petals, which are actually sepals, first formed to protect the reproductive parts of the plant. For most species, the flowers are drooping and falling downward, so a woodland slope would actually be ideal. Some varieties however, have been bred for their upright flowers and are used in spring bouquets. After a few years, a mature plant in the right conditions can produce 50 or more flowers. You should mulch every year in the fall and do allow fallen leaves to act as natural mulch and soil conditioner.

You can pull back old leaves from the foliage in late winter to expose the leaves of new blooms. Feed the plants in the fall with a balanced fertilizer like 20-20-20 used for perennials and a layer of compost and or bone meal. Each spring pruned the oil foliage off as the plant starts to flower, which actually may leave bare stems or if you don't mind the look of winter leaves prune the old foliage as new foliage appears.

Hellebores are hardy, long loved perennials that if grown in ideal conditions will naturalize and spread. However, if division is necessary, ideally you would divide the plants in the early fall. Avoid the heat again of the summer sun. When dividing, divide by digging up the entire plant. Cut it in half or in thirds with a sharp tool. But make sure you wear gloves when dividing since their sap can cause skin irritation.

Hellebores can be planted in garden beds along with early bloomers like grape hyacinth, virginia bluebells, crocus, and snowdrops. I actually have used hellebores in my containers as the first display in the spring. It is difficult here in the northeast to find plants that can thrive outdoors in late March or early April. I usually plant hellebores in my containers along with pansies and heather, supplemented with corkscrew willow, or pussy willow branches. Since hellebores are a perennial, you can remove them from your container and plant them right into your garden. Hellebores are prized for their early spring blooms and attractive foliage. They are an invaluable addition to the shade garden and provide early pleasure after a long winter. They are tough, cold hardy, deer or rabbit resistant and easy to grow, providing the possibility of evergreen foliage for year round interest.

I'd like to thank you for listening to this episode of Flower Power. I hope you enjoyed it. You will find additional information for this episode on our website. Until next time, I am Linda Levitt. And please remember to stop and smell the flowers.

You're listening to Nature Calls: Conversations from the Hudson Valley.

Stay tuned for The Cover Up.

Jean: I’m Jean Thomas.

Tim: And I’m Tim Kennelty.

Jean: And welcome to another edition of “The Cover Up,” where we talk about our favorite ground covers and vines. Tim, we’ve switched things up this time and you’re going to talk about your favorite groundcover and I’m going to be focusing on a vine I like alot.

Tim: That’s right Jean. And what we like about this segment is we have our own personal favorites to talk about and might not always agree.I really like tough but beautiful plants that can grow in many conditions and return year after year. I’m cheating today because I’m actually going to talk about two groundcovers that fill that bill. I’m talking about wild strawberry ( Fragaria virginiana ) and what some people call barren strawberry (Waldsteinia fragarioides). Both plants are in the rose family and share many common characteristics. They are both tough and will thrive in a variety of conditions; they are similar in appearance, growing low to the ground with trifoliate coarsely toothed leaves; and they are both natives with spring flowers that support early pollinators.

Let’s start though with wild strawberry. This is a plant you’ve probably seen growing wild in disturbed areas and even in your lawn. It is a low growing very vigorous evergreen plant that spreads by runners. In fact it’s so vigorous that many people plant it to outcompete invasives, and it can even be used as a lawn substitute. I have it growing along a stone path and it doesn't seem to mind when stepped upon. Because of its vigor, you may want to use it in a shrub border or along stream banks, but perhaps not in your cultivated annual or perennial beds. This is one of the parent plants for cultivated strawberries and as such it has pretty white blossoms in spring followed by small, but really delicious fruits. It thrives in a variety of soils and likes full to part sun.

Wild strawberries make a great ground cover if you want to support wildlife, too. The nectar and pollen of the flowers are eaten by a wide variety of native bees, flies, moths and butterflies. It is also the larval host for the gray hairstreak butterfly. And get out in the garden early to sample those little strawberries because they are in high demand. They may be devoured by pheasants, towees, brown thrashers, veerys or robins. And if those bird species are late to the party, the fruit is also enjoyed by possums, chipmunks, squirrels, field mice and even three species of turtles.

If you have a bit more shade and you want a less aggressive ground cover, you may want to try Barren Strawberry. The second half of it’s Latin name actually means “strawberry-like.” While the plant is similar in appearance to wild strawberry it bears pretty yellow flowers in spring and like its name implies it bears seeds, but inedible fruit. Instead of runners, barren strawberry spreads more slowly through underground rhizomes. Even though this species may be slow growing, I think it’s a great choice for a ground cover as it can eventually cover a large area and can thrive in shade, drought, clay soil and it’s even deer resistant. As an added bonus, the leaves of barren strawberry turn an attractive bronze in Autumn.

So Jean, I hope you’ve upped your game and have a great vine to talk about today.

Jean:Okay, Tim. Challenge accepted. Last time out we were musical. I see you want to talk about snacks in the garden. I’ll see your strawberries and raise you some beans.

First a little side note… there are strawberries with colored flowers that also make edible fruit. Pink Panda comes to mind. The plant is a chunky little thing and the berries aren’t really plentiful, but anything edible gets my attention.

But anyway: beans are the bomb. Scarlet runner beans are edible both as green pods and as fully mature shelling beans. The shelling beans are a pretty thing, speckled with purple and black. There’s a white flowering one that produces a white bean. They are an annual called phaseolus coccineus and arrived in North America along with the pilgrims. The vines can grow to 15 foot in length. As an annual, they are wonderfully flexible. You can try growing them in different places in different years without the emotional turmoil brought by an expensive perennial. Or if there’s an area you want to screen for a season, just string a couple up a trellis or fence.

Being a nitrogen fixing plant, they improve the soil when they grow, so it can’t hurt to run some up a tepee in your veggie garden in rotation with squash, because squash are said to deplete the nitrogen in the soil.

They do grow pretty quickly but you can start them easily from seed to get a running start. See what I did there, Tim? Just be sure the soil is warm and the seedlings are in peat pots or other small plastic pots that allow you to slide the root ball out and plant it immediately.

Besides all these good features, they’re great fun to plant with children. Try planting a patch of the three sisters as the Iroquois did right here in the Hudson Valley. The corn gives the beans something to climb and squash planted beneath provide protection from weeds and keeps the moisture in the soil.

Fence them if you live in area infested with deer. On a trellis, wrap a circle of wire fencing about a foot out from the plant. After the plant has reached enough height they’re unreachable to the deer. Otherwise they’re not fussy. A nice mulch layer at the base of the plant helps keep the roots moist, but water if there are drought conditions. After a hard frost has killed the plant, save some of the seed and store it for next year. Then rip out the frost-killed remains of the plant, chop them up, and add to the compost.

This is a great vine if you’re a new gardener or you’re growing with kids … or if you like the historical value like I do.

Tim: So as much as I hate to admit a gene, I have to agree with you. I'd like runner beans a lot and my neighbor gave me some seeds. So I am going to try them this year. So thanks for that suggestion.

Jean: I'm here for you, Tim. That's it for this edition of the cover up until next time.

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That concludes another episode of Nature Calls: Conversations from the Hudson Valley. We'd like to thank Sandra Linnell and Devin Connolly from Cornell Cooperative Extension of Columbia and Greene counties for production support. And a special thank you to our listeners for joining us on this episode of Nature Calls: Conversations from the Hudson Valley. You can find links to any of the topics mentioned in this episode at our website at CCEcolumbiagreene.org. Comments and suggestions for future topics may be directed to us at ColumbiagreeneMGV@cornell.edu or on the CCE Master Gardener Volunteers of Columbia and Greene County's Facebook page. For more information about Cornell Cooperative Extension of Columbia and Greene counties, visit our website at CCE Columbia green.org or visit us in Hudson or in Acra. Cornell Cooperative Extension provides equal programming and employment opportunities.

Last updated May 3, 2023