What Vermont advocates want to see in next Farm Bill
When it comes to the Farm Bill, Vermonters know where their priorities lie.
Painting chickens preferable to raising them
Chicken chowder, cranberry seltzer and good cheer grace upcoming Monday Munches at the Charlotte Senior Center.
Transformative agricultural work happening in NEK
You may not be aware of the innovative and transformative agricultural work happening in Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom.
Delicata squash: A seasonal favorite from local farms
The farm stands and farmers markets are loaded with winter squash of just about every shape, size and color right now.
Philo Ridge switches to agricultural research
Change is coming to Philo Ridge Farm, and like much change, it comes with some difficult decisions.
Senior center letting the dogs — and beans — out
In “Upstairs Delicatessen: On Eating, Reading, Reading About Eating, & Eating While Reading,” New York Times book critic Dwight Garner delivers a delicious account of his linked pleasures of food and books. It is both insightful and laugh-out-loud funny.
Two special sit-down meals coming in November
Note: there are two special Senior Center sit-down meals in November. Both of these meals require advance registration and volunteer servers are needed.
Pumpkin Month celebrates a vegetable to die for
October is the treasure of the year,
And all the months pay bounty to her store.
— Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872-1906)
Months after summer floods, most Vermont farms are still waiting for state help
Outside Dog River Farm recently, five pallets of bright orange pumpkins rested roadside in a loose grid along the grass, far fewer than owner George Gross would have normally had for sale.
Put on a sweater and enjoy fall at the senior center
Tian Tian recently celebrated his 26th birthday at the National Zoological Park in Washington, D.C.
More than 1,000 migrant workers critical to VT dairy
There’s no doubt that a critical thread of being stronger together in Vermont and nationwide is our relationship with our local and national food systems.
Enjoy your “salad days” at the senior center
In medieval times salads were composed of green leaves, sometimes with flowers.
Charlotte farmers closing out a brutal summer
Farmers in Charlotte had never seen a summer like 2023.
Ways to save summer’s bounty for winter’s scarcity
In trying to wrap my mind about a useful and interesting topic for this week’s column, I had a problem deciding on featuring the abundance of summer blooms showing off currently in the garden or featuring the abundance of offerings in our farmsteads and veggie plots. So, I’ll mix it up a bit.
Let legislators know how you feel about Farm Bill
The Farm Bill is a massive omnibus bill which sets policy and funding levels for a wide range of programs under the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Tomato troubles — too little calcium, too much hornworms
As you harvest the first tomatoes of the season, you may notice that some of the fruit is not perfect. Blossom end rot, a physiologic disorder, results in dry, sunken, brown areas on the blossom end or bottom of the fruit.
Charlotte farms celebrate Open Farm Week
This summer is the ninth time that Open Farm Week has been celebrated in Vermont.
Sour cherry season is here
The beginning of July means that sour cherry season is almost here. Sour cherries are bright red, jeweled fruits that are exceptionally tart and acidic, yet delicious when made into jams, jellies, syrups, ice creams and baked goods.
Containers may be way to release inner gardener
Container gardening is a good option if you have limited space or want to be able to alter your environment by moving pots around.
Keep herbs close and diverse
Through the years I’ve always placed my herb garden as near to the kitchen door as possible. If it isn’t close you won’t tend to use what you’ve lovingly grown.