Hurricane Helene greatly impacted many farmers in Yancey County. Here is a list of resources that are available to assist Yancey County Farmers. Continue Reading to learn more about these programs:

• N.C. Cooperative Extension of Yancey County Pasture and Hayfield Restoration Program
• N.C. Cooperative Extension of Yancey County Count Cover Crop Seed Purchase Program
• N.C. Cooperative Extension of Yancey County Shared Use Equipment for Restoring Farmland

N.C. Cooperative Extension of Yancey County Pasture and Hayfield Restoration Program

N.C. Cooperative Extension in Yancey County received a grant from the Community Foundation of Western North Carolina (CFWNC) to assist livestock producers whose pastures and hayfield were impacted by Hurricane Helene. We will be purchasing forage seed for producers to restore hayfields and pastures impacted in the following ways:

1. Pastures and Hayfields damaged directly be flooding or landslides which occurred during Hurricane Helene
2. Pastures or Hayfields damaged as a result of storm response such as…
   1. fields that were damaged because they were used as an alternate route to access neighboring property due the main access being damaged (i.e. bridge washout, culvert washout, road damage, etc.
   2. Fields that were used as part of the disaster response and received damage as a result (i.e. place to park responder equipment, serve as a supply distribution location following the storm, or other related use in the disaster response).
3. Pastures that were damaged due to overgrazing resulting from the inability to use other portions of the farm due to storm related causes.
   1. When rotation was not feasible due to washed out fences, or fences damaged from fallen trees
   2. When rotating to other fields was not feasible because they were directly damaged in the storm from flooding or landslides.
   3. When rotating to other fields was not feasible because they were being utilized as part of the disaster response
4. Annual forage seed can be purchased for producers that are not ready to plant fields due to debris clean-up or due to the need for field restructuring in the recommended seeding window for permanent forage crops, if it will allow for grazing or hay harvest prior to the next recommended establishment window. Annual forage seed purchased will not reduce the amount of permanent forage seed that can be purchased (up to 15 acres). Examples of annual forage seed that can be purchased and their uses include:
   1. Annual ryegrass or cereal grain planted for grazing or hay harvest.
   2. Summer annual crabgrass planted for grazing or hay harvest
   3. Summer annual sorghum, sorghum x sudangrass hybrid, pearl millet, teff or other summer annual planted for grazing and/or hay harvest.
   4. Other annual forage mixes may be considered

Requirements of the Program

1. Producers can receive seed to restore up to 15 acres. The maximum acreage may be increased as funding and demand allows.
2. Contact N.C. Cooperative Extension of Yancey County to express interest in participating in the program
3. Complete the online sign-up form.
4. Take soil samples from the pastures/hayfields that are to be re-seeded and submit them to the NCDA Soil Testing laboratory. Soil testing supplies are available at the N.C. Cooperative Extension Yancey County Center
5. Determine the desired seeding window, forage species, and coordinate the timing of seed purchase. Forage seed will be purchased by N.C. Cooperative Extension of Yancey County, and picked up by appointment.
6. This program is open to any livestock producer that is operating a farm business (producing livestock as a means of increasing farm income).
7. The program is open to producers in Yancey County. It may be offered to impacted producers in Mitchell County at a later date if funding allows. Those producers will be served by their local county extension center.

If you would like to know more about this program, please contact David Davis (david_davis@ncsu.edu) or call the N.C. Cooperative Extension Yancey County Center at (828) 682-6186.

N.C. Cooperative Extension of Yancey County Cover Crop Seed Purchase Program

N.C. Cooperative Extension of Yancey County has been given permission by CFWNC to allocate funding from the pasture and hayfield seeding grant toward purchasing cover crop seed for farmer that were impacted by Hurricane Helene. This program is open to any Yancey County farmer producing crops as part of a farm business. We will be purchasing the seed for participating farmers by custom order. Farmer whose fields were directly impacted by flooding or landslides as a result of Hurricane Helene are eligible to participate in this program.

Program Requirements:

• Participants must be engaged in farming as a farm business (producing income). This program is not open for home gardeners, or those only producing food/crops for personal use.
• Farmers can order enough seed to plant up to 15 acres.
• Any cover crop blend can be purchased. Seed orders will be placed by custom order for each participant
• Soil test must be completed for the field(s) that will be planted in cover cover crop.

If you would like additional information about this program, please contact David Davis (david_davis@ncsu.edu) or call the N.C. Cooperative Extension Yancey County Center by calling (828) 682-6186.

N.C. Cooperative Extension of Yancey County Shared Use Equipment Available Soon for Farmland and Soil Restoration Efforts 

Yancey County Farmers that experienced damage to fields such as soil loss, or degradation, as a result of Hurricane Helene will soon have access to some shared use equipment that may benefit their soil restoration efforts.

NC Farm Bureau recently funded the purchase of a pull type manure spreader for N.C. Cooperative Extension of Yancey County. This equipment will be available for those farmers that will benefit from adding compost or aged mulch to their soils. These materials are currently being offered for free by several local storm debris processing entities. N.C. Cooperative Extension of Yancey County will be able to offer the use of this equipment for producers for a small rental fee ($10/day) and deposit ($50). The rental fee will be applied to cover the cost of maintaining the equipment. The deposit will be returned to the producer when the spreader is returned by the agreed upon return date.

The Mount Mitchell Community Fund has recently funded the purchase of a shared use lime spreader to assist producers impacted by Hurricane Helene. This is a 3 pt hitch, 2 Ton lime spreader that will be available for shared use. The main purpose of this spreader will be to assist those producers that will be applying biochar to rehabilitate farmland soil that was impacted by the storm. We have a local business that will be producing biochar, and we are currently working on plans to provided biochar to local producers at a reduced cost. The lime spreader will also allow producers to lower input costs as it will allow them to spread bulk lime. The lime spreader will be available for Yancey County farmers. A small rental fee ($10/day) will be charged to assist with maintenance costs, and a deposit ($50) will be required. The deposit will be returned to the producer when the spreader is returned upon an agreed upon return date.

We are continuing efforts to assist producers in accessing composted mulch, ground and aged mulch, and biochar. We are seeking funding to assist farmers with the cost of transporting mulch or biochar material from it storage location to farms. More details will be shared if these efforts are successful at a later date.

If you would like more information on the available shared use equipment from N.C. Cooperative Extension of Yancey County, please contact N.C. Cooperative Extension of Yancey County.