New Jersey Department of Agriculture (NJDA), Division of Agricultural and Natural Resources is offering the following grant opportunity:
Nutrient Management Assistance Grants
Available Funding: Up to $25,000
Application Deadline: June 16, 2025
Funding Period: Three Years
The New Jersey Department of Agriculture (NJDA), Division of Agricultural and Natural Resources is pleased to announce a funding opportunity to support manure spreader purchase and maintenance, and to establish a community use program for the manure spreader. This grant aims to advance nutrient management Best Management Practices (BMPs) across New Jersey farms by enabling the shared use of properly maintained equipment.
Eligible Applicants:
• New Jersey-based individuals
• Agricultural businesses
• Cooperatives
• Not-for-profit organizations (NFPs)
• Government agencies
Applicants should demonstrate a strong working relationship with local agricultural producers and must be committed to supporting nutrient management in their communities.
Program Highlights:
• Purchase and maintain a manure spreader
• Establish a community use program for the manure spreader with a minimum of five farms
• Support the implementation of Animal Waste Management Plans (AWMPs) with Nutrient Management Plans or nutrient budgets where the manure spreader will be used
• Implement all funded activities over a three-year period
For application materials and additional information, please visit: https://www.nj.gov/agriculture/grants/njdanutrientmanagementgrants.html
Vegetable Crops Edition
Seasonal updates and alerts on insects, diseases, and weeds impacting vegetable crops. New Jersey Commercial Vegetable Production Recommendations updates between annual publication issues are included.
Subscriptions are available via EMAIL and RSS.
Quick Links:
NJ Commercial Vegetable Production Recommendations
Rutgers Weather Forecasting - Meteorological Information important to commercial agriculture.
Need a Manure Spreader? Nutrient Management Assistance Grants – Deadline 6/16/25
Last Call: Farmer Resource Fair in Somerset County
All New Jersey farmers are invited to attend this Farmer Resource Fair which will feature an array of agricultural service providers. In-between a light breakfast and a hearty lunch, there will be engaging presentations and opportunities to visit with service providers at their table displays. The program schedule, as well as a preliminary list of service providers who’ve confirmed their attendance, is included below.
The event will be held on Friday, April 11, 2025 from 8:30 am to 2:00 pm at the Ted Blum 4-H Center located at 310 Milltown Road, Bridgewater, NJ 08807.
Click here to register for this free event (registration is required). Please register by April 1, 2025.
This collaborative event is being organized by Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Somerset County, Somerset County Agriculture Development Board, and the State Agriculture Development Committee Next Gen Program. We hope you will join us! [Read more…]
Last Call: Stop the Bleed Training in Burlington County
Rutgers Cooperative Extension, in partnership with the Vegetable Growers Association of NJ and the Rutgers NJ Medical School, will host a Stop the Bleed training on Tuesday, April 8, 2025 from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm at the Rutgers EcoComplex located at 1200 Florence Columbus Rd, Fieldsboro, NJ 08505.
Don’t miss this opportunity to learn the life-saving skills of pressure application, wound packing, and use of tourniquets. Attendees of this free training will also receive a complementary bleeding control kit. Space is limited, register today! Please complete our pre-registration form by Monday, April 1.
Questions? Email Kate Brown, RCE-Somerset County Ag Agent, at kbrown@njaes.rutgers.edu or call 908-526-6293.
Allium Leafminer Update 3/24/2025- First oviposition scars spotted
The first Allium leafminer (ALM) oviposition scars were reported in Cape May this past weekend (38.9588N, 74.9082W), suggesting that adults are active in the southern part of the state. ALM are active around 250 GDDs. If you want to know how many GDDs have accumulated in your area, the NEWA website https://newa.cornell.edu/ has a helpful GDD calculator. From the NEWA home screen, select the nearest weather station from the drop-down menu at the center of the page. Next, scroll down to “Weather Tools” on the right side of the page and select “DD Calculator.” Select your start date (1/01/25) and end date, as well as Degree Day Type (39 F) from the menu at the left of the page. The site will automatically generate the accumulated GDD base 39 F to the last day of your requested sample, and then offer a forecast of accumulated GDD for the next week.
ALM can cause injury to chives, scallions, garlic, onions and leeks, but leeks and scallions seem to be the most effected. Look for neat rows of white spots descending from the upper tips of allium leaves (see photo below). Initial injury often occurs on the tallest leaves. Adults may be seen in warmer conditions at the tips of the leaves- look for small flies with grey-black bodies and yellow heads (see photo below).
If you are concerned about crop injury due to Allium leafminer, you may want to prepare for control efforts. Floating row covers, kept on until the first flight ends (around the end of May) can restrict ALM’s access to vulnerable plants. Adults can be targeted through insecticide sprays. Appropriate materials that are labeled for ALM control include spinosyns (Radiant, Entrust (OMRI approved)), pyrethroids (Mustang Maxx, Warrior), neonicotinoids (Scorpion, Venom), and the insect growth regulator Trigard. The first application should be applied 2- 3 weeks after initial detection of ALM flies (if you see oviposition scars or the fly itself) and subsequent sprays should be completed in 1–2-week intervals. Two or three sprays should provide adequate control.
Notice the white oviposition scars and an adult female ALM. Photo: Brian A. Nault, Cornell AgriTech.
If you have any questions/concerns, feel free to reach out to me at amanda.quadrel@rutgers.edu or 732-742-8441.
Food Safety Modernization Act Traceability Rule Delayed
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced March 20 that the Traceability Rule is being delayed for 30 months. The rule was to go into effect January 1, 2026, but now enforcement will not start for at least 2.5 years. FDA will be publishing a proposed rule at a later date. There are no indications at this time what changes they plan to make or how it will impact growers of different size operations.
Stop the Bleed Training: Burlington County
Rutgers Cooperative Extension, in partnership with the Vegetable Growers Association of NJ and the Rutgers NJ Medical School, will host a Stop the Bleed training on Tuesday, April 8, 2025 from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm at the Rutgers EcoComplex located at 1200 Florence Columbus Rd, Fieldsboro, NJ 08505.
Don’t miss this opportunity to learn the life-saving skills of pressure application, wound packing, and use of tourniquets. Attendees of this free training will also receive a complementary bleeding control kit. Space is limited, register today! Please complete our pre-registration form by Monday, April 1.
Questions? Email Kate Brown, RCE-Somerset County Ag Agent, at kbrown@njaes.rutgers.edu or call 908-526-6293.
