William H. Miner Agriculture Research Institute is located at the former Heart’s Delight Farm on the lake plain adjacent to Lake Champlain at Chazy, NY. The Institute was created in 1951 as an agricultural research, education and demonstration farm.
Focus areas include the crop-animal-environment interface, cow comfort and behavior, and equine reproductive management. The Institute maintains a demonstration dairy herd of Holsteins and a herd of approximately 25 Morgan horses.
The Institute provides building space and field areas in support of Northern New York Agricultural Development Program small grants research and demonstrations.
Soils in the 40-acre area used for soil and crop studies were formed from lake and marine sediments. The dominant soil that developed in the lacustrine silts is the somewhat poorly drained Roundabout variant soil. A subsurface drainage system is in place, hence, the limitations excessive soil wetness may have on the growth and yield of field crops on this soil have been greatly alleviated.A beach ridge of Glacial Lake Vermont soil about 15 feet above the surrounding area borders the eastern edge of the 40-acre demonstration field. The substratum is rapidly permeable gravel and sand and water drains freely from the profile. The dominant soil in the ridge is Waddington.Areas within the 40 acres are managed for yield trial evaluation of varieties and selections of forage legumes and grasses, field corn and soybeans. Studies related to the management of these field crops have included the evaluation of tillage practices for field corn, the management of tall fescue, and kura clover as a crop.
The local climate is cool temperate with a freeze-free season of 128 days. The weather station at the Institute is at an elevation of 200 feet, a latitude of 44o 53′ and a longitude of 73o 28′.Learn more: http://www.whminer.com/Home.html