Crops protected by 50 miles of fencing on East End

Nearly six dozen Suffolk farmers — most on the East End — have installed more than 50 miles of eight-foot deer fencing to protect their crops, under a $937,000 state grant.

The grant, obtained by State Sen. Kenneth P. LaValle (R-Port Jefferson), provided $14,642 for each of the 69 farmers who took part in the program, enough to put up 178,746 feet of fencing. The farmers also used some of their own money to complete the work, which resulted in installing a total of 266,702 feet of permanent deer fencing.

A spokeswoman for the Suffolk County Soil and Water Conservation District said that much of the fencing went up on farms in Riverhead and Southold. Work was also done on farms in the Hamptons.