Cornell Cooperative Extension Tompkins County

Growing Wine Forests in New York Tour: 5:30-7:30 pm, Thursday, August 13. An exploration of the most ancient way of growing grapes for wine becomes a leap into the very deep rabbit hole of polyculture agroforestry and rethinking our relationships to the more than human community that makes wine possible.

This is a walking tour of a local farm. Learn the techniques, ecological principles, and low-cost, low-input ways of growing multi-story wine forests, which might make the worlds most delicious wine.

Sign up online at ccetompkins.wufoo.com/forms/growing-wine-forests-in-new-york .

Instructor Adam L. Huss moved to Spencer, NY to develop the Wineforest Farm as one of the first wine producing polycultures of its kind in the Americas. Adam is the host and producer of the Beyond Organic Wine podcast, has worked in vineyards and made wine commercially in California and Vermont, and ran a winery in Los Angeles for 7 years.

(Image by Jacopo Manni, Pescosolido, Lazio, Italy)

The Tompkins 4-H Joint Youth Commission Phenomenal Photographers program celebrated a week of learning and practice by sharing their work in a special gallery show at the Ithaca Farmers Market this afternoon. Nine young artists showcased their unique eye for capturing a variety of nature photos and other scenes, talking about their work with those who attended.

Congrats, and keep at it!

Discover the basics of foraging for plants, online or in person at 5:30 pm on Thursday, August 13! We will start with general foraging tips and then go over some easily identifiable species. Instructor Marissa Nolan is the Horticulture Team Lead at CCE Tompkins and previously worked in forest restoration and as a naturalist.

Sign up online at ccetompkins.wufoo.com/forms/m126igok0ft0441. This program is valued at $20, however, please pay what you are able. Contributing more than $20 funds scholarships for others to attend the class. For a hands-on follow-up, register for the Foraging Walk later in the month.

The Liberty Hyde Bailey Center Project is raising funds to purchase the Ithaca home of Liberty Hyde Bailey — a cofounder of the American Society for Horticultural Science who helped establish the national Extension system — and establish it as a center for interdisciplinary dialogue around climate, civic engagement, plant science, and related topics.

"For years, and in some cases decades, members of the Cornell faculty and others in the community have been interested in seeing the historic significance of these properties leveraged for the public good and the buildings opened to the public," shared John Linstrom, Project Manager (under CCE Tompkins Environment Issue Area) leading the fundraising effort to establish the Liberty Hyde Bailey Center. "The project of restoring and curating the properties themselves is nascent—the public has never had access—and bursting with potential. I keep imagining the greenhouse and gardens restored and turned into an intentional working-learning space for children."

You can read John's thoughtful essay about this project at johnlinstrom.substack.com/p/on-leaving-the-tenure-track-or-on .

On Leaving the Tenure Track; or, on the Scent of Deep Gladness, Deep Hunger Learning to follow my own vocational advice—an odyssey to Ithaca.

Did you get our Community Toolbox email news today? If not, you can find it online at https://conta.cc/4pQbK8O . This month's programs include:

🚜 Open Farm Day
🚶 "Walk with a Doc" Social & Health Series
🌿 Plant Foraging
🩸 Blood Drive
🧸 Family Open Play
🌳 Agroforestry Tours and Webinar
🔋 Smart Energy Choices Public Forum & Info
✅ and more!

🌱 Growing a successful vegetable production business takes more than just growing crops — it takes the right knowledge, tools, connections, and strategies.

At the Cornell Small Farms Program, we create hands-on learning opportunities where aspiring and experienced farmers can connect, share experiences, learn from each other, and build stronger farm businesses.

Whether you are just getting started or looking to improve your current operation, we invite you to join us and be part of a growing community of farmers.

🌱 Ready to learn more? Register now: https://smallfarms.cornell.edu/event/so-you-think-you-want-to-be-a-market-gardener/

"'I would say that the biggest benefit [of the Community Beautification program] is just basically pride in community,' Janine said. 'Not only from those like us who are actually doing the work, but people who are appreciating it. We’re out with volunteers one to three days a week, and I don’t think there’s any time when some passerby doesn’t stop and say thank you. So there’s a lot of community investment in this.' ...

"Part of that visibility is education for locals, too, which is one of the missions of Cornell Cooperative Extension. From offering help to businesses who want to maintain planters at their storefronts to volunteers looking to learn more about gardening, the beautification efforts provide a variety of ways to encourage more knowledge and excitement around plants."

Green Profit magazine spoke with our Community Beautification Coordinator as part of a story about downtown beautification programs — a niche read, but interesting!

Inspiring Beautification 6/30/2026 Jennifer Polanz

Join us for a free Renewable Energy Farm Tour at Lawrence Doody & Sons Farm. This guided walk and talk tour will focus on small wind energy systems and how on site wind generation can support daily farm operations.

Guests will have the chance to tour the farm’s renewable energy setup, ask questions, and hear from the Doody Farm team and wind energy experts.

📅 Saturday, September 12 - 10:30 AM to 1 PM
📍 Lawrence Doody & Sons Farm
1626 Barker Road, Tully, NY 13159

Register Here: https://ccetompkins.wufoo.com/forms/mgw2j921izg77t/

Forquestions, contact Jordan Clements at [email protected] or 607 272 2292

We are hosting a blood drive at our office and education center (615 Willow Ave in Ithaca) on Friday, August 7! Sign up for any open spot between 10 am and 3 pm and help the American Red Cross save lives.

New donors are critically needed: please consider giving a Power Red Cell donation if you are O-, O+, A- or B-. Make your appointment online at RedCrossBlood.org and enter your zip code.

All who donate at a WNY Red Cross drive in July/August will be entered to win a $100 gas card. Multiple winners selected weekly; email address required.

Parents Apart® is a 4-hour workshop offered over two 2-hour sessions for parents who want to learn how to help their child(ren) adjust during their separation or divorce. The workshop is certified by the New York State Parent Education & Awareness Program and is taught by parenting educators. The workshop focuses on the emotional reaction of children to their parents' separation or divorce, and methods parents can use to help make the transition easier for children.

The next Parents Apart® workshop will meet for two Monday evenings, August 10 & 17, 6:30 - 8:30 pm.

Registration is confidential and parents of the same child(ren) are placed in different sessions. There is a sliding scale fee to attend that is based on your ability to pay. If you have questions or concerns, contact [email protected].

ZOOM: Parents Apart® Parents Apart