Kitty O'Neil

Ag Climate Resiliency Specialist

cell 315-854-1218
email Kitty

Areas of Interest
soil health

Kitty O'Neil joins Harvest NY with an extensive background in climate smart farming; Her goal is to improve productivity and resiliency across the state through smart farm and business management with keen attention to climate-related risks to land, farms, crop, and animal production and long-term soil health. She is a member of the Cornell Climate Smart Farming Extension Team and the Agriculture and Climate Change Program Work Team. Her current research projects focus on impacts of soil compaction to crop yields and soil function.

Kitty previously served as the Cornell Cooperative Extension Regional Field Crops and Soils Specialist in Northern NY. She grew up on a successful family dairy farm in Cayuga County, NY and went on to receive a B.S. in Animal Science from Cornell University, her M.S. in Animal Nutrition and Plant Biochemistry from Michigan State University (MSU), and her Ph.D. in Sustainable Plant and Soil Cropping Systems from MSU. Kitty is also a Certified Crop Adviser.

Prior to working with Cooperative Extension, Dr. O'Neil spent several years working at MSU researching potato cropping systems, studying impacts of crop rotations, soil amendments, and cover crops on soil health and biophysics on potato farms.

Intercropping with Mushrooms

October 14, 2025
4:00 pm - 6:00 pm
Poughkeepsie, NY

Join us for an afternoon of hands-on learning at Pershing Community Farm, led by Urban Agriculture Specialist Yolanda Gonzalez.

2025 Agroforestry Field Day Series -- Agroforestry Implementation and Management

October 23, 2025
3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Highland, NY

Interested in incorporating agroforestry practices into your farm? Join us for a series of workshops co-hosted by CCE Ulster, Orange, and Harvest NY with Mastwood Farms, Black Creek Farm and Nursery and Scenic Hudson. 

On October 23, we'll return to Erik Schellenberg's farm, Black Creek Farm and Nursery, for a Fall tour of their agroforestry plantings. Erik will talk about harvesting and managing plantings while we see some seasonal crops and installations of different ages and types. There will be time for questions and discussion as we wrap up the series. covered.

Soil Health 101 for Community Gardens -- A Bilingual Workshop

October 24, 2025
11:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Staten Island, NY

Join Urban Agriculture Specialists, Karen Guzman and Yolanda Gonzalez, as they discuss the importance of soil health and testing your soil as you prepare for the incoming growing season. They will go into strategies for best practices when it comes to soil health management and highlight the current soil testing program through NYSDAM and CCE. This workshop will be in both Spanish and English.

New Produce Auctions in NYS!

With the opening of the new Augusta Produce Auction on August 19th, New York State now has 11 produce auctions! See the new map of produce auction locations across the state and contact information.

New York Urban Farms Sustainable Pest Management Fact Sheet Series

Cornell Cooperative Extension has partnered with dozens of urban farms across New York State to demonstrate and evaluate sustainable pest management strategies. Together with farmers, we found success using control methods that prevent or reduce crop losses through exclusion strategies, crop timing, host resistance, the introduction of beneficial organisms, and more. Regardless of management strategy used, common requirements for success include a knowledge of the pest and disease complex, preventative deployment and commitment to the process. The New York Urban Farms Sustainable Pest Management Fact Sheet Series includes case studies highlighting pest management techniques that New York urban farms have found valuable.