{"id":8946,"date":"2025-03-06T15:22:09","date_gmt":"2025-03-06T20:22:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nnyagdev.org\/?p=8946"},"modified":"2025-03-06T15:22:09","modified_gmt":"2025-03-06T20:22:09","slug":"nnyadp-research-new-nut-crops-for-nny-established","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nnyagdev.org\/index.php\/2025\/03\/06\/nnyadp-research-new-nut-crops-for-nny-established\/","title":{"rendered":"NNYADP Research: New Nut Crops for NNY Established"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Hand
The first hazelnuts produced in the NNYADP New Commercial Fruit and Nut Crops for Northern New York project were harvested on 11\/4\/24. Photo: Michael Davis<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Willsboro\/Northern New York; March 6, 2025. Early results of field trials of hazelnuts, chestnuts, and cold-hardy pecans funded by the farmer-driven Northern New York Agricultural Development Program (NNYADP) to evaluate them as new commercial crops for regional farmers are now posted at www.nnyagdev.org.<\/p>\n

The 3 nut crops and 4 high value fruit crops: juneberry, elderberry, honeyberry and aronia are part of the NNYADP\u2019s \u201cNew Commercial Fruit and Nut Crops for Northern New York\u201d project. The trial are hosted at the Willsboro Research Farm in Willsboro, New York.<\/p>\n

Commercial growers in each of northern New York\u2019s six counties: Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Jefferson, Lewis, and St. Lawrence are cooperating producers in the research.<\/p>\n

American hazelnut and hybrid hazelnut varieties were planted at the Willsboro farm in 2023 and 2024, followed by three lines of chestnut in 2024, and cold-tolerant pecans added in the fall of 2024. These nut crops are nutritious foods, for example, hazelnuts are high in protein and oleic acid, a monounsaturated fatty acid.<\/p>\n

According to the early results report, all three nut species established well with one of the American hazelnut seedlings producing the trial\u2019s first nuts in April 2024.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Photo left: Jim Ochterski; right: NNYADP<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The high-antioxidant, high-phytonutrient \u201csuper fruits\u201d in the NNYADP-funded trials represent a significant economic opportunity through sales of fresh fruit, u-pick, and value-added products. For example, elderberry is a highly imported product into the U.S., indicating an opportunity to develop a locally-grown domestic market. Aronia fruit production in North America has grown into a multi-million dollar industry with several dozen unique value-added products.<\/p>\n

The NNYADP established New York\u2019s first juneberry nursery of commercially-sold and wild-collected varieties at the Willsboro Research Farm in 2013. Aronia plantings were added in 2017, honeyberry in 2018, and elderberry in 2021.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith enough growing seasons now, we are now seeing the natural stressors that impact established crops and beginning to develop best practices for managing pest, disease, and climate-related impacts,\u201d notes Willsboro Research Farm Manager Michael H. Davis, Ph.D.<\/p>\n

In 2025, the research team is testing strategies to encourage regrowth after a spongy moth infestation in the juneberry commercial and wild-collected plots and in the honeyberry trial in 2022. The ornamental varieties of juneberry were not defoliated by spongy moth in 2022 and in 2024 flowered profusely.<\/p>\n

Visiting Honeyberry Expert Offers Insight<\/strong>
\nIn 2024 University of Saskatchewan Professor Robert Bors, Ph.D., a renowned honeyberry plant breeder, toured the NNYADP honeyberry plots at the Willsboro Research Farm. The trial experienced a marked fruit yield decline between 2021 and 2023. In 2024, yield rebounded with some varieties, but the low yield trend continued with lines with and without branch dieback.<\/p>\n

\u201cDr. Bors suggested that low organic matter in the soil of the trial plots might be impacting productivity, and noted that the use of black landscape fabric weedmat might be causing damage to the honeyberry\u2019s shallow root system on summer high heat days here,\u201d Davis explains.<\/p>\n

The 2025 research plan includes nutrient management applications to enrich the soil to encourage honeyberry plant growth and replaces landscape fabric with wood chip mulch for weed management.<\/p>\n

Heavy rains in 2023 and 2024, Japanese beetles in 2024, and a fungus that thrives in wet soils and was identified in 2024 may all have played a role in poor vigor and branch dieback in the aronia trial planting in 2024. In 2025, the research team is adjusting irrigation management and applying milky spore powder for Japanese beetle management.<\/p>\n

\"Photo
Elderberries; USDA\/Stephen Ausmus<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Elderberry growth slowed by heavy deer browsing in 2023 rebounded with protection measures installed in 2024. This young trial planting has not yet matured to produce fruit.<\/p>\n

Project collaborators include SUNY Plattsburgh Biology Associate Professor and botanist Michael Burgess, Ph.D., Cornell University Horticulture Professor Marvin Pritts, and New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission Agronomist Myra Lawyer working with the Lake Champlain Basin Program.<\/p>\n

The 2024 and previous years\u2019 \u201cNew Commercial Fruit and Nut Crops for Northern NY\u201d results reports are posted at www.nnyagdev.org. Updates on this NNYADP research are regularly presented at the annual Willsboro Research Farm Field Days and grower events held statewide.<\/p>\n

\"NorthernFunding for the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program is supported by the New York State Legislature through the New York State Assembly and administrated by the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Willsboro\/Northern New York; March 6, 2025. Early results of field trials of hazelnuts, chestnuts, and cold-hardy pecans funded by the farmer-driven Northern New York Agricultural Development Program (NNYADP) to evaluate them as new commercial crops for regional farmers are now posted at www.nnyagdev.org. The 3 nut crops and 4 high value fruit crops: juneberry, elderberry, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-8946","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-press-releases","7":"entry"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nnyagdev.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8946","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nnyagdev.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nnyagdev.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nnyagdev.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nnyagdev.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8946"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/nnyagdev.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8946\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8955,"href":"https:\/\/nnyagdev.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8946\/revisions\/8955"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nnyagdev.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8946"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nnyagdev.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8946"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nnyagdev.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8946"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}