Photos by Tom Rivers

GAINES – An apple orchard on Route 98 in Gaines is full of apple blossoms in this photo taken at about noon today.

New York, the country’s second-leading apple state behind Washington, is out in bloom with white blossoms dotting the landscape in fruit country.

“Grab your cameras and take a drive this weekend,” Jim Allen, president of the New York Apple Association, said in a news release. “We’ve got more than 11 million trees across the state and they are putting on a gorgeous show right now.”

The state’s apple trees generally didn’t mind last winter’s cold temperatures and snow, Allen said. The apple trees actually need a certain number of “chilling hours” before they can develop next year’s buds, he said.

This year’s bloom is actually slightly ahead of the 2014 bloom, which was two weeks behind the perennial schedule. A late spring means less chance of crop-damaging frost such as New York saw statewide in 2012. Apple buds progress from dormant brown tips to green tips, to bright pink clusters as the buds start to open, to full white flowers.

Photo by Tom Rivers – Maggie Roberts is pictured with a hanging basket and other flowers in a greenhouse that opened last year at Roberts Farm Market on Maple Ridge Road.

MEDINA It was about 40 years ago when Joan and Ginny Roberts started a roadside stand on Maple Ridge Road. Like a lot of farm families, they wanted to sell some produce directly to consumers.

The family had success with the stand, so much that they started a farm market down the road. Roberts Farm Market has been growing steadily since then. Last year Roberts added a new greenhouse. Three years ago they remodeled the market and expanded its apple cider operation.

The family has also started an annual benefit for the Alzheimer’s Association. It sold hot dogs, chips and soda last weekend, with basket raffles that generated $1,500 for the Alzheimer’s Association. That topped the $1,380 raised in 2014 for the debut benefit.

Maggie Roberts and her husband Gary run the market and have pushed the recent renovations. Mr. Roberts makes the cider for the Roberts farm market and several other farms in the region.

Mrs. Roberts manages the growing garden center. They have four full-time and one part-time employee at the site, which is open from April 1 to Dec. 23, as well as on Tuesdays during the winter for the apple cider customers.

The new greenhouse, at 64 by 96 feet, has ventilation in both sides and vents in the roof peaks. It has an irrigation system that feeds the plants water and fertilizer.

“That has been marvelous,” said Mrs. Roberts. “Before it would take forever to water them by hand.”

The greenhouse also has a heater that is often turned on at night. The greenhouse, with all of its features, has kept the 500 hanging baskets and other flowers looking lush.

The market is next to a U-Pick orchard and those fruit trees were starting to bloom last week.

Mrs. Roberts said the family appreciates the community’s support, since the early days of the roadside stand to the more recent renovations and expansion.

Photos by Tom Rivers
GAINES – Jim Kirby checks the corn seeds in his planter this morning on Zig-Zag Road. Kirby and other local farmers are working long hours to get their crops planted.

After a dry April and early May, parts of New York, including Orleans County, are already in near-drought conditions. Nearly three-quarters of the state is considered “abnormally dry,” the condition just before a drought begins, according to The National Drought Mitigation Center.

Kirby operates the planter on a corn field on Zig-Zag Road, just west of Keitel Road.

Photos by Tom Rivers
The blossoms are starting to come out in local fruit orchards. These photos show blossoms on peach trees this afternoon at Watt Farms along East Bacon Road in Albion.

The peach trees tend to have pink blossoms. In a few days the apple blossoms should be out and those white blossoms will make for stunning drives in the countryside.

Chris Watt, owner of Watt Farms, said the blossom season can be an anxious time for fruit growers. When the blossoms are out, bees need to be busy pollinating so the fruit can grow, Watt said.

Photos by Tom Rivers
A tractor driver is pictured this afternoon with a planter at Roberts Farm in Shelby at the corner of Salt Works Road and Maple Ridge Road.

After a miserable last week, with so much rain and cold and wind, local farmers have been out in force the past few days with sunshine and temperatures in the 60s. Farmers have been plowing fields and planting seeds.

This photo shows a farmer with tillage equipment, getting a field ready for planting on West County House Road in Albion by Hu-Lane Farm.

Photos by Tom Rivers

ALBION – FFA student leaders Sara Millspaugh, president, and Aaron Burnside, the vice president, are pictured on a new Kubota RTV donated to the agriculture program at Albion Central School.

Students won’t be permitted to operate the vehicle, which will be available to other buildings and grounds employees at the district.

Kast Farms bought the new Kubota RTV-X900 from Bentley Brothers in Albion. Brett and John Kast, partners in the farm with their father David, said the family is pleased to see the FFA program do so much for students and the community.

John was in the program 25 years ago when there was talk of eliminating the FFA program. Now there are 65 students in the high school program and a group in the junior high FFA.

“It’s amazing to see it from where it was to where it is now,” John Kast said. “It’s good for the students because agriculture is the backbone of the community.”

Albion FFA members are pictured with representatives from Kast Farms. The group includes, from left: Adam Krenning, FFA advisor; Aaron Burnside, FFA vice president; Sara Millspaugh, FFA president, Brett Kast; John Kast; and John’s daughter Sierra, a member of the FFA in junior high.

The school district has set aside 5 acres for a land lab for agriculture students to test soil and learn about growing plants and food. Part of the land lab includes apple trees. Soybeans will soon be planted as well.

The utility vehicle will make it easier to transport tools and equipment to and from the land lab and the ag shop. Students this week will be running wiring to hold up the apple trees in a trellis system.

Brett Kast said farming is best learned by doing, rather than reading about in a book. Adam Krenning, the agriculture teacher and FFA advisor, agreed.

“This is not a traditional program where the students sit at a desk,” he said.

He thanked Kast Farms and other farmers and community members for supporting the program through either donations or by providing expertise to students.

“It’s amazing to me the amount of support with the people willing to help out,” Krenning said. “Words can’t express how thankful I am to everybody.”

Photos by Kristina Gabalski

BUFFALO – Orleans County 4-Her Emily Harling of Barre presents her illustrated talk on Famous Race Horses and Horse Racing during 4-H Western District Public Presentations held Saturday at Bishop Timon/St. Jude High School in Buffalo.

Six local 4-Hers represented Orleans County at the district level: Alden Cayea presented on “Superheroes,” Arian Cayea presented on “The Rescue Dragon,” Brian Shaw presented “All About Trapping,” Joan Gabalski presented on “The History of Gingerbread,” and Peggy-Jo Gabalski presented “An Introduction to Takashi Nagai.”

All six 4-Hers qualified for district level following Orleans County Public Presentations in February of this year.

Brian Shaw presents his illustrated talk, “All About Trapping.”

Photo by Tom Rivers – This historical marker on Route 98 notes the Elba Mucklands, which started in 1915 when the Oak Orchard and Tonawanda swamps were drained. The muck continues to be highly productive agriculture soil.

ELBA – It was 100 years ago when the Oak Orchard and Tonawanda swamps were drained to create the Elba Mucklands. I didn’t realize we were in the centennial year of the muck’s creation.

I was driving on Route 98 on Saturday and had a feeling I should stop and look at the historical marker by a big drainage ditch for the muck, just south of the Barre town line. The marker notes the mucklands were created in 1915.

I didn’t know some of the area’s finest farmland emerged 100 years ago. The muck has been more than good agriculture land for growing onions, lettuce, potatoes, carrots and other crops.

This panoramic view shows the mucklands off Route 98 north of Elba and in the southern part of Orleans County in the early 1930s. The photo, from the Orleans County History Department, shows men harvesting lettuce and putting it into crates.

The work needed to tame the swamp brought hundreds of hard-working Italian and Polish immigrants to the community. They cleared the land, removing trees and boulders, and set up 90 miles of drainage in the 7,000-acre muck. It is an impressive feat.

The muck includes the towns of Clarendon and Barre in Orleans County, and Elba and Byron in Genesee County. Most of the remaining deeper muck is in Orleans County.

The muck continues today as valuable farmland, and still is responsible for many jobs in the community. Farmers have stepped up efforts in recent years to battle erosion to help preserve the fertile soil in the mucklands.

File photo by Tom Rivers – Ditches help keep the muck drained. This picture was taken in August 2013.

I would like to see the muck’s legacy celebrated in the community. I like the idea of bronze statues to honor the immigrants who helped shape our communities.

It would be awesome to have a statue of a quarryman in Orleans County as a memorial for the thousands of immigrants who worked in the sandstone quarries.

In Elba, a statue of a farmworker could highlight the muck’s heritage, spotlighting the immigrants who cleared the land and the farmworkers who continue to plant and harvest crops today.

It would be a nice addition on Route 98 as a gateway into the Village of Elba. Orleans and Genesee residents and agricultural organizations could make it a reality. That project could be part of a bigger heritage trail that would connect museums and historical sites on Route 98.

That trail would be a bigger attraction with a site in Elba celebrating the muck farmers and a spot in Albion in honor of the quarrymen who worked in the many quarries throughout Orleans County.

In my dreams, I’d also put a bronze statue near Batavia Downs for the horsemen and a statue at Point Breeze of a fisherman.

New York Farm Bureau is praising the new state budget for directing $70 million in agriculture programs “that touch every farmer,” Dean Norton, NYFB president, said in a statement today.

He was pleased to see funding for many farm programs, and also to see that a minimum wage hike wasn’t included in the budget. Higher labor costs would put New York farmers at a competitive disadvantage to farms in other states and countries, Norton said.

He is happy to see increased support for the Environmental Protection Fund, which is responsible for enhancing water-quality projects, farmland protection and expanding conservation efforts on farms across the state.

“In addition, the budget funds critical research for a variety of commodities including dairy, fruit, vegetables, honeybees and maple,” Norton said. “We are also appreciative of money that supports new farmers, promotes the world-class products grown and made by our farms, and makes a substantial investment to upgrade services at the State Fairgrounds.”

The budget also makes commitments to infrastructure and expanded rural broadband, which Norton said have been top priorities for the organization.

“Safe roads and bridges are imperative for farmers to move machinery and product in an effective manner,” Norton said. “This funding will also go a long way in ensuring that there is reliable Internet all across New York. This is important for farms to access timely information and take advantage of new technology that improves efficiency.”

State Assemblyman Steve Hawley, R-Batavia, also is happy to see money in the budget to bolster local agriculture, including a $1 million initiative for the Beginning Farmers NY Fund to attract young people to the career of farming, a $4.2 million increase for local agriculture assistance programs, and a $500,000 loan fund for the Soil and Water Conservation Committee to create a revolving loan fund for drain tile installation on farms.

“Farmers constantly deal with threats to their businesses such as drought, heavy rainfall and destructive insects,” said Hawley, a former farmer who once led the Genesee County Farm Bureau. “These proposals will help keep our agriculture industry flourishing, entice young people to the industry, and allow farmers to obtain loans they will use to protect and enhance their crop production.”

Provided photo – Brett Kast of Albion is pictured in Washington, D.C. He was in the nation’s capital recently to press for immigration reform and other issues that affect the apple industry.

Press Release
U.S. Apple Association

ALBION – Brett Kast, a fifth-generation apple farmer from Albion, was selected by the U.S. Apple Association for the 2015 Class of Young Apple Leaders.

In its sixth year, U.S. Apple’s Young Apple Leaders Program mentors the next generation of American apple growers and leaders. The program provides orientation, understanding and encouragement on public policy issues affecting the apple business.

It is designed to foster fellowship and cooperative working relationships across U.S. apple growing regions through discussions about key apple industry issues, trends, research and other activities.

This year, 16 young growers were selected from across the country, representing seven states.

“These young people will be the future decision-makers in their businesses, communities, and at U.S. Apple,” said U.S. Apple Chairman Mark Nicholson.

Kast was one of two chosen from New York, which is the second-largest apple producing state in the country, behind only Washington. Also, apples are the fourth-largest agricultural commodity produced within the state of New York.

Kast grew up on the family farm, Kast Farms. He is now the orchard manager and works closely with his father David and brother John in the operation.

Brett returned to the farm in 2008 after a year working on the oil rigs of Texas. He works mainly in the fruit side of the operation. He has expanded it into modern tall spindle plantings, including acreage of the new varieties Snapdragon and Rubyfrost.
Brett is a part of the NYAG organization and serves on the variety evaluation committee. Brett is an avid hunter and traveler. He is now spending days on the farm working in a partnership with his father and brother.

The young leaders joined forces with apple leaders from coast-to-coast for U.S. Apple’s Capitol Hill Day, an annual event hosted by U.S. Apple. They brought a unified message to Capitol Hill: pass immigration reform, our business is depending on it.

Kast met with the offices of Charles Schumer (D-NY), Kirsten Gilibrand (D-NY) as well as Representative Chris Collins (R-NY) and House Majority Leader Kevin Mcarthy (R-CA), among others.

The apple industry is heavily dependent on migrant labor, H-2A, and H-2B workers to grow, harvest, pack and process apples and apple products. For a perishable crop like apples, a delay in the arrival of harvest workers can impact the quality and value of the apples.

Growers also emphasized the economic impact they have on the local community and the jobs that harvest workers support. Securing a legal, stable and reliable workforce will continue to be U.S. Apple’s top legislative priority.

Daniel Larios Hernandez seeks better working and living conditions for migrant workers

Photos by Tom Rivers – Daniel Larios Hernandez holds a picture of his son, Luis Daniel Larios Hernandez, in a march on Main Street in Albion to raise awareness about the dangers of working on farms. The march followed a vigil at the Presbyterian Church in honor of Luis and other farmworkers who died on the job.

ALBION – Daniel Larios Hernandez said his son was hard-working and determined to provide for his family, which included his wife Teresa and 4-year-old daughter Citlalli of Jalisco, Mexico.

Luis Daniel Larios Hernandez, or “Dani,” had worked in the United States at farms in Florida and California. Last year he came to Western New York for the first time, hired by Root Brothers Farm.

He was killed in an accident on Aug. 29 when he was standing next to a parked farm truck and a second truck (also parked and unoccupied) rolled down a slight incline and struck Dani, age 25. He was pinned between the two vehicles, according to a report from Orleans County Sheriff’s Department.

Dani’s father raised money and sold off pieces of his property to travel from Mexico and see where his son died. He made the trip to honor his son and other workers from Mexico who make the long journey to work at U.S. farms.

“We are trying to commemorate my son,” Larios Hernandez said through an interpreter with about dozen supporters. “I want to reiterate my support for all of the migrants. I want this action to be on their behalf.”

Paula Macas Betchart, an organizer with the Worker Justice Center of NY, speaks during a vigil and rally inside the First Presbyterian Church of Albion. The three photos show workers who died in a farm accidents in Penn Yann, Ithaca and Albion.

Larios Hernandez was joined by the Worker Justice Center of NY, the Workers’ Center of Central New York and a few members of churches in Albion, Brockport and Rochester.

“This is a sad day,” said Bill Plews, a member of the Brockport Ecumenical Outreach Committee. “This is a reminder of a very tragic day.”

The groups would like to see safer farms for the farm owners and their workers, better housing for the workers and an immigration overhaul, so workers can more easily cross the border and return home when their work is done.

Rebecca Fuentes, an organizer with the Workers’ Center of CNY, is pushing for more farm inspections by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, stiffer fines for infractions, more safety training and better protective equipment and gear for workers.

“Dani” is one of 61 farmworkers who died on NY farms between 2006-2014, with 23 dying in 2014, with tractor rollovers and entanglement in other farm machinery the leading causes of death, according to the Worker Justice Center.

The vigil for Dani today included photos of workers who died in farm accidents, including Marco Antonio Ortiz Perez in Penn Yann and Francisco Oritz in Ithaca.

“These are fatalities that are preventable,” Fuentes said. “Agriculture is one of the most dangerous places to work.”

She spoke at a press conference outside Root Farms on Route 31A in Barre. Some of the posters made for the vigil and rally included images of tomatoes. “Dani” was working with tomatoes the day he died.

Daniel Larios Hernandez holds a picture of his son while standing along Route 31A in Barre, near Root Brothers Farm. The rain caused the writing to bleed.

“When you pick up a tomato or an apple or drink a glass a milk, think about the labor that went into it, and not just the farmer but the farmworker as well,” Fuentes said.

She said many farmworkers return home with serious injuries – missing fingers and sore backs – that make it difficult for them to provide for their families.

Improved safety programs would beenfit the farm owners as well, she said. Their workers would be less likely to be injured, their would be reduced workman’s compensation costs, and the farmers could save their own lives, Fuentes said.

“There’s this way of thinking that farmers are very strong and self reliant,” she said. “But what does that mean if you’re missing an arm or a leg, or if you lose your life?”

Larios Hernandez wants to raise the farm safety issue in the region, home to a dynamic fruit, vegetable and dairy sector that rely heavily on physical labor.

He will speak at a Presbyterian Church in Gates this evening and will also address a group in Syracuse on Monday.

He said his son was a friendly person who loved his family. In Mexico, “Dani” worked at a job installing closed circuit televisions.

He made the trip to Orleans County last year, traveling with family to work at Root Brothers.

“He was very caring,” Larios Hernandez said through an interpreter. “He was very humane. He respected everybody and treated everybody equal.”

Gail Mott, a member of the Downtown United Presbyterian Church in Rochester, makes posters in Albion for a vigil and rally.

ALBION – The father of a worker from Mexico who died in an Aug. 29 farm accident will be in Albion on Friday for a vigil and rally in memory of his son.

Luis Daniel Larios Hernandez was 25 when he died late last summer. He was part of a work crew employed by Root Brothers that was “on loan” to Kirby Farm and was irrigating a field of tomato plants.

Larios Hernandez was standing next to a parked farm truck when a second truck (also parked and un-occupied) rolled down a slight incline and struck the victim, pinning him between the two vehicles, according to the report from Orleans County Sheriff’s Department.

Larios Hernandez is survived by his wife Teresa and 4-year-old daughter Citlalli of Jalisco, Mexico, according to the Worker Justice Center of NY.

The organization has planned an 11:30 a.m. vigil on Friday for Larios Hernandez at the First Presbyterian Church of Albion. Larios Hernandez’s father, Daniel Larios Hernandez, is attending the vigil.

He will also be part of a press conference outside Root Brothers Farms at 12:30 p.m. at 12595 West Lee Rd. Larios Hernandez and the Worker Justice Center of NY will also visit the site of the fatal accident at 3400 Densmore Rd. at 1 p.m.

The Worker Justice Center of NY wants to highlight the danger for many workers on the farms, said Carly Fox, a worker organizer with the Justice Center.

She said Root Brothers was fined $7,000 by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration following the death of Larios Hernandez.

“That is not enough for a farm to change its policies and procedures,” she said.

The Justice Center would like to see more safety training for workers, and overtime pay for the employees who often work 12 hours or more in the hot weather.

“There are a lot of precautions in other industries, but they do not exist in the agricultural industry,” Fox said.

She said 61 farmworkers have been killed on farms between 2006-2014, with 23 dying in 2014, with tractor rollovers and entanglement in other farm machinery the leading causes of death.

“This is a region of the state that is extremely rich in agricultural products and we celebrate that,” Fox said. “But the underbelly of that is a lot of workers are afraid to speak out on the conditions.”