Cornell Cooperative Extension Tompkins County
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ccetompkins.bsky.social
Cornell Cooperative Extension Tompkins County
@ccetompkins.bsky.social
44 followers 13 following 160 posts
We put knowledge to work in pursuit of economic vitality, ecological sustainability and social well-being. We bring local experience and research based solutions together, helping New York State families and communities thrive in our rapidly changing world
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ccetompkins.bsky.social
Our mission is to bring local experience and research based solutions together, through our 4-H youth programs, ag and home gardening support, energy advising, family/parenting workshops, nutrition classes, compost education, health navigation, and other supportive spaces. bit.ly/CCE-TC25
4-H youth playing a game in the snow during the Rural Youth Services Winter Olympics. A person talking about a tree on his farm while another watches. A CCE energy educator speaking with a community member at a local park. Three adults and a young child sitting at a table together with art supplies.
November 26, 2025 at 6:34 PM
Reposted by Cornell Cooperative Extension Tompkins County
senatorleawebb.bsky.social
I am proud to have secured $68,000 in state funding for Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County. CCE has long been a trusted resource for families, youth, and community members across our region, and this investment will help ensure that their facilities remain safe and welcoming for all.
November 18, 2025 at 9:15 PM
ccetompkins.bsky.social
Take earth and make it art! Join Primitive Pursuits to learn the processes of taking clay from the ground and transforming it into pottery you can enjoy. At this one day workshop, 1-4 pm on Saturday, December 7, you will learn to clean and sculpt wild clay into ceramic art you can take home.
A young person holding up clay-covered hands like claws. Clay shapes drying on a pair of broad leaves. Clay shaped into pots, animals, and other assorted shapes drying on a flat rock.
November 18, 2025 at 9:22 PM
ccetompkins.bsky.social
Take a few minutes to read through Staying Warm in Winter, a short list of tips and resources prepared by the CCE Tompkins Energy & Climate Change team! energy.ccetompkins.org/diy-at-home-staying-warm-in-winter.
DIY at Home: Staying Warm in Winter – Energy & Climate Change
energy.ccetompkins.org
November 18, 2025 at 3:48 PM
ccetompkins.bsky.social
Has your heating system stopped working? If you’re facing a no-heat emergency in your home, there is assistance available. Check out the list of assistance programs and support services that can help in no-heat situations: smartenergychoices.org/noheat-assis....
No-Heat Assistance — Smart Energy Choices
smartenergychoices.org
November 17, 2025 at 6:37 PM
ccetompkins.bsky.social
Pruning reduces pests & diseases while maximizing production. Prune fruit trees & cane berries as instructed for that variety late fall for the next growing season or as days lengthen before buds begin to swell in early spring. Compost fallen fruit/prunings in another location.

#ecologicalgardenCCE
Pruning. Image of a person pruning a tree in a snow-covered garden.
November 17, 2025 at 4:00 PM
ccetompkins.bsky.social
Sign up for Monday morning Open Family Play! From Nov 24-Apr 13, families with children ages 0-4 can play and socialize with other families. We'll provide toys, books, and space for movement. Register online at ccetompkins.wufoo.com/forms/family-open-play-20252026
Images of families playing with text: Family Open Play 2025-26, Mondays 9:30-11:30 am, Nov 24-Apr 13, CCE Tompkins Count,y 615 Willow Ave Ithaca. Free! Free space for families to come with their children ages 0 to 4 years old to play and socialize with other families. Variety of toys, books, and space for movement. Space is limited. Register today!
November 15, 2025 at 4:40 PM
ccetompkins.bsky.social
Trees on farms can serve many purposes: shading livestock, sheltering from wind, serving as stream buffers along field edges, and producing a nut, fruit or timber crop. Alongside these functions, they also sequester carbon!

Learn more and sign up for this workshop: ccetompkins.org/events/2025/...
Rows of trees with grain growing between and text Measuring tree carbon on farms: LiDAR methods, 12-1 pm, Friday, November 21.
November 14, 2025 at 8:25 PM
ccetompkins.bsky.social
Fill your holiday table with local foods! Whether a family dinner, Friendsgiving, a dish for a potluck, or you just feel like putting together a delicious spread, you can always eat and feel better buying local.

ccetompkins.org/agriculture/...
Local Thanksgiving
Are you looking to support local farms with your Thanksgiving dinner this year? Tompkins County farms and the surrounding area has many great opportunities to do that!TurkeysLocal Farms that sell turk...
ccetompkins.org
November 14, 2025 at 5:43 PM
ccetompkins.bsky.social
Join a special cooking & nutrition class on Healthy Thanksgiving Cooking 🍽️, 4:30-5:30 pm, Thursday, 11/20 at CCE Tompkins. Pick up tips and kitchen skills while learning to prepare cranberry sauce, mac & cheese, and roasted squash! RSVP to Nutrition Director Craig at cl2742@cornell.edu.
A bowl of mac and cheese, a cranberry sauce, butternut squash, crock pots, and oven mitts with text shared in the post.
November 13, 2025 at 7:03 PM
ccetompkins.bsky.social
Add a personal touch to your holiday décor with a cozy evening of cross-stitching! In this beginner-friendly workshop, learn the basics of cross-stitch as you craft a delicate snowflake design.

Wednesday, November 12, 6:30–8:00 PM
CCE Tompkins, 615 Willow Ave, Ithaca
$30 per person | Ages 12+
Text Winter Craft Series Cross Stitched Snowflake, 6:30-8 pm, Wednesday, November 12, above a photo of intricate snowflake crafts.
November 7, 2025 at 7:37 PM
ccetompkins.bsky.social
If you missed this month's newsletter, you can find it online at conta.cc/4nvSD0Z to read about:

🔥 Primitive Pursuits Outdoor Skills
🏡 Free Energy Advising
🍠 Healthy Thanksgiving Cooking
🧸 Free Family Events
🍂 Bokashi Composting
☃️ Winter Crafts
🖌️ Thriving Futures Murals
✅ And More!
Plants growing from a rock wall with text The Community Toolbox, November 2025 News and Updates.
November 4, 2025 at 6:53 PM
ccetompkins.bsky.social
Providing food and habitat encourages birds to forage and take shelter in your garden. Leave the seeds of late blooming perennials for our feathered friends to eat.

#ecologicalgardenCCE
Winter Birds. Image of a bird perched on a dried sunflower head eating the seeds in a snow-covered garden.
November 3, 2025 at 4:08 PM
ccetompkins.bsky.social
A local fiber Holiday Pop up Store will be open Wednesday to Sunday, 11 am-6 pm (and until 8 pm Thursdays) Nov 1 to Dec 28! Stop by 115 South Cayuga St for yarn, fiber, handmade items, and crafting supplies. They will be hosting open spinning and knitting evenings & workshops over the next 2 months.
Illustration of a sun, yarn, llama, goat, sheep, and rabbit with text found in the post caption.
October 31, 2025 at 6:12 PM
ccetompkins.bsky.social
This Tuesday, hear presentations from four Master Gardener Volunteers about how each went about growing native plants in their gardens, their successes, and lessons learned. This program is valued at $20, however, please pay what you are able. Sign up at ccetompkins.wufoo.com/forms/za9ql120ey7be8.
A cute stripey caterpillar crawling along leaves with text Native Plant Gardening: 4 Master Gardeners, 4 Approaches, 5:30-7 pm, October 28.
October 22, 2025 at 6:36 PM
ccetompkins.bsky.social
Overwintering insects need winter cover. Leave the hollow stems of late blooming perennials for beneficial invertebrates to use as a cozy home for winter.

#ecologicalgardenCCE
Beneficial Insects. Image of an insect living inside a dried out hollow stem in a snow-covered garden.
October 20, 2025 at 3:00 PM
ccetompkins.bsky.social
All are invited to a community book discussion of Charles Darwin’s last published work, The Formation of Vegetable Mould Through the Action of Worms with Observations on Their Habits, at CCE Tompkins!

This event is free and open to the public. Sign up online at civi.ccetompkins.org/civicrm/even...
Book on table, Darwin on Earthworms (along with the full title given in the post caption) and overlaid text World Earthworm Day Book Discussion, 5:30 pm, Tuesday, October 21.
October 15, 2025 at 8:43 PM
ccetompkins.bsky.social
Join us for the 4-H Fall Festival, 10 am - 3 pm on Saturday, October 18 at Ithaca's Tractor Supply Co.!

Stop by any time to visit local animals, make crafts, play games, purchase baked treats, and learn more about 4-H programs for local youth.
A view over the shoulders of two adults and a child making bookmarks. Two 4-H youth showing bunnies on a tabletop for festival visitors. A young person works on a craft on a table of materials. A 4-H adult shows sheep and a calf to a visiting family.
October 9, 2025 at 6:44 PM
ccetompkins.bsky.social
Winter is time for record keeping, resource gathering, and reflection. Maximize your success with ecological site planning. With the "right plant, right place" approach, your garden landscape will thrive and provide abundance and habitat in a changing climate.

#ecologicalgardenCCE
Winter Checklist. Image of a person tending to a snow-covered garden. A checklist that says: Prune fruit trees and berries. Create habitat for beneficial insects and birds. Observe and reflect to plan for ecosystem health. Extend the season using cloches and cold frames.
October 9, 2025 at 2:16 PM
ccetompkins.bsky.social
The Healthy Eating Support Community is a welcoming, non-judgmental, and trauma-informed space for anyone struggling with making changes to their diet, for whatever reason, with whatever goals.

Next meeting Oct 9 4:30-5:30 pm, making sweet potato pie (gluten free) and winter squash salad.
Illustrations of sweet potatoes, squash, and pie, with text Autumnal cooking class. Sweet potato pie (gluten-free, sugar-free, contains nuts), winter squash soup (nut-free). Thursday, Oct 9, 4:30-5:30 pm, Cornell Cooperative Extension, 615 Willow Ave, Ithaca. To register email cl2742@cornell.edu. The Healthy Eating Support Community meets everyone other Thursday to support the health and eating goals of participants.
October 2, 2025 at 7:19 PM
ccetompkins.bsky.social
Outdoor composting skills can help you to deal with large amounts of leaves, garden debris, food scraps and more in a productive and environmentally-friendly way! The compost will improve your soil and your garden will thrive.

Just $5 per household — sign up at civi.ccetompkins.org/civicrm/even....
A person kneels and points to a collection of scrap materials with compost bins in the background and text Outdoor composting class and demonstration, 5:30-7 pm, Thursday, October 9.
September 30, 2025 at 7:47 PM
ccetompkins.bsky.social
Fall is an ideal time to build new garden beds, or rehabilitate existing beds by adding compost. Sheet mulching - or lasagna gardening - is an easy, low-cost method of smothering weeds while building soil organic matter. #ecologicalgardenCC
Build Healthy Soil. Image of a garden bed with layered composting. Message that says: Create healthy, fertile soil starting in the fall.
September 29, 2025 at 2:16 PM
ccetompkins.bsky.social
If you've found yourself with too many apples for fresh eating, or if you're just curious about food preservation, join us at 5:30 pm on Tuesday, October 7, for a workshop on how to preserve apples and other seasonal foods at their peak flavor.

ccetompkins.org/events/2025/...
Rows of applesauce in jars with text Canning Applesauce Food Preservation Class, 5:30-7:30 pm, Tuesday, October 7.
September 25, 2025 at 7:53 PM
ccetompkins.bsky.social
On October 1, learn about New York's Draft Energy Plan, a policy outline with recommendations for meeting future energy demands that prioritize an energy system that is reliable, clean, and affordable.

Register online at ccetompkins.org/events/2025/10/01/can-ny-have-affordable-and-clean-energy.
ccetompkins.org
September 23, 2025 at 7:54 PM
ccetompkins.bsky.social
Cover crops are an inexpensive and efficient way to rebuild soil fertility and organic matter while protecting your soil from winter damage. There are different cover crops for different purposes such as adding soil nutrients, feeding soil microbes, or keeping weeds at bay. #ecologicalgardenCCE
Cover Crops. Image of a garden bed of a cover crop.
September 15, 2025 at 4:00 PM