Food in Vermont: Weekly Events, 9/27-10/3

Heads Up for the Week

Save the Date – On October 31st, the Food Systems Spire will host its 3rd Annual Food Systems Symposium. It will run from 8am-2pm with a variety of speakers — including Marsh Lecturer Dr. Wouter van Hoven from the University of Pretoria and many more. Details to come. Please check our Facebook page for future updates.

It Takes a Region NESAWG Conference is coming up on Oct 28-30th. All those working for food systems change should check it out. Register and find more information here.

Burack Lecture with Barry Popkin (“The World is FAT”) is coming up on Oct 4th from 10:30-11:45am in the Silver Maple Ballroom. Davis Center. UVM Campus. More information here.

Thursday (Sept 27)

Gardening Tips for Fall

Master gardener Kelly Wakefield provides tips of the trade for bulbs, perennials and veggies as we move further into fall.

6:30pm. Fairfax Community Library. Fairfax. Free.

Handmade Spaghetti & Tomato Sauce

Kids (ages 8 and up) get to try their hand at cranking out fresh pasta (on a hand-crank pasta machine) and paring it with their very own sauce.

5:30–7pm. Chittenden Emergency Food Shelf. Burlington. $5-10.

Wild Plant Walk

Folks hone their plant-identification skills while learning about the local habitat and sustainable wild-harvesting practices.

5–6:30pm. Wisdom of the Herbs School. Woodbury. Donations accepted. Please preregister here.

Janet Hubbard

This author of Champagne: The Farewell tells of a mysterious tale set in France.

7pm. Phoenix Books. Essex. Free; cash bar.

Potato Production

Tony Lehouillier, owner of certified organic Foote Brook Farm in Johnson, VT, will cover the following essentials for potato production: understanding your soils, cultivation techniques, irrigation needs, harvesting with a two-roll picker, and disease issues. Feel free to bring a camera to take pictures of equipment. Bring boots for field walking. Vern Grubinger, UVM Vegetable and Berry Specialist will co-lead this workshop.

4-6pm. Foote Brooke Farm. Johnson. Free for farmers and VVBGA members; $10 NOFA-VT members; $20 non-members. Please preregister here.

Paul (Paligwende) Nikiema

Dr. Nikiema — Post Doctoral Research Fellow, Department of Soil Science, University of Manitoba — discusses the role of Beneficial Management Practices for greenhouse gas mitigation and carbon sequestration in agro-ecosystems.

2:30-3:30pm. Gund Conference Room. 617 Main St. UVM Campus. Burlington.

Major Valentine’s Swedes

In 1890, Vermont’s Commissioner of Agricultural and Manufacturing Interests, Alonzo B. Valentine, launched a program to repopulate Vermont’s ‘abandoned’ farms with farmers recruited from Scandinavia. The program brought a handful of Swedes to three towns in the state, was immediately discontinued, and generally has been dismissed, both by contemporaries and by historians, as a preposterous fiasco. In this talk, Paul Searls (Professor of History and Music at Lyndon State College) will explore the bizarre and ironic story of Vermont’s Swedish colonists, what the program has to teach us about that transitional era in Vermont’s history, and more.

7:30pm. John Dewey Lounge. Old Milling building. UVM Campus. Burlington. Free. More information here.

Friday (Sept 28)

UVM Apple Sale at the UVM Horticulture Research Center 10am to 4pm. Out this week: Macoun, Golden Supreme, & Empire.

Wild Mushrooms

Mycologist Greg Marley teaches attendees all about the fungi of fall.

6:30–8:30pm. Richmond Free Library. Richmond. $5-10.

Rocktoberfest!

The 1960s cover band Mellow Yellow delivers some smashing tunes for this first night of the full Oktoberfest weekend in Stowe.

7–11pm. Jackson Arena. Stowe. Free. The Oktoberfest continues through Sunday. More information here.

Community Dinner

Neighbors gather for this friendly meal of corn bread, coleslaw, and more.

5:30–7pm. Osborne Parish House. Hinesburg. Free.

SIPtemberfest Meet the Brewers Dinner

Brewers from Lawson’s Finest Liquids and Otter Creek Brewing Company host this night of delicious eats and beer pairings — four courses worth.

6:30pm. General Stark’s Pub & Grill, Mad River Glen. Waitsfield. SIPtemberfest continues on Saturday. $60. Purchase tickets here.

Vermont Law School Conference on Agriculture and Food Systems


This conference will serve as a launch platform for the law school′s new Center for Agriculture and Food Systems, bringing national experts and leaders in the field together to address the major legal and policy issues related to agriculture and food systems.

8:30am- 6pm.
Vermont Law School. Chelsea Street. South Royalton. $25 in advance, $30 day of, free for students. Email lawreview@vermontlaw.edu or get more information here.

NODPA Field Days and Annual Meeting

Northeast Organic Dairy Producers Alliance presents a program packed with compelling, practical topics, two farm tours, a large trade show, delicious local and organic meals, a social hour, and plenty of time for networking with fellow farmers. The theme is “Farming Smarter: A Nutrient and Energy Dense Agenda to Help Farmers Become More Self-Reliant.”

All day. Vermont Agricultural Business & Education Center. Brattleboro. More information here.

Saturday (Sept 29)

Burlington Food Tours

Food lovers get a guided food tour as they are led through tastings from local restaurants and food producers. Tours start at East Shore Vineyards Tasting Room.

12:30–3pm. Church Street Marketplace. Burlington. $45. Purchase tickets here.

Butter Making

Shaking butter in a jar — a timeless classic for kid-friendly fun.

11:30am. Shelburne Farms. Shelburne. Regular farm admission, $5-8; free to members, Shelburne residents and kids under 3.

Vermont Public Radio’s Listener Picnic

This locavore luncheon is hosted by Lynne Rossetto Kasper, who also happens to host “The Splendid Table.”

11am–3pm. Vermont Agricultural Business Education Center. Brattleboro. Free.

Harvest Celebration

This fest is full of farm tours, hands-on harvesting, a locavore dinner, and a concluding concert with Vermont singer-songwriter Anaïs Mitchell.

1–9pm. Pete’s Greens. Craftsbury. $20 for concert; $5-20 for preshow dinner; all other events are free. More information here.

American Flatbread Fungi Fest & Feast 

Mycologist John Atkinson leads a mushroom spotting walk to Dana Forest Farm, where Nick Laskovski picks up and teaches attendees about the nuances of getting mushrooms from forest to plate. Flatbread dinner follows at 6pm.

3pm. American Flatbread. Waitsfield. $5-15 for the 3 pm walk; $50 for dinner (space is limited).

Caledonia Spirits & Winery Open House

The Caledonia curious can check out the distillery and see where these beverages are produced.

10am–5pm. Caledonia Spirits & Winery. Hardwick. Free.

Chicken Pie Supper

Mashed potatoes, squash, and homemade pies  — yum.

5pm. Bellows Free Academy. Fairfax. $5-10; takeout available.

Pumpkin & Apple Celebration

Cider pressing, pumpkin ice cream, and more make this harvest party a fall event to fall for.

10am–5pm. Billings Farm & Museum. Woodstock. Regular admission, $3-12; free for kids under 3. Continues through Sunday.

Rosemary Gladstar

Rosemary whips up a batch of “fire cider” while telling attendees all about the best herbs for winter health.

7pm. Phoenix Books Burlington. Burlington. Free.

Sustainable Development in Nicaragua – Fall Tour 2012

Through a multi-media presentation, and round table dialogues, Compas de Nicaragua Executive Directors, Ana Rosa Narvaez and Michael Boudreau will share their knowledge and insight on community development, organic farming, sustainable living and the challenges faced due to global climate change. Potluck supper at 6 followed by presentation. Please bring a dish or snack to share.

6pm. St. Albans Bay UMC (next to Town Hall). Lake Road. St. Albans Bay. Free. Contact Rev. Elizabeth Griffin with questions at pastorliz@earthlink.net or (802) 849-6588

Sunday (Sept 30)

All-You-Can-Eat Pancake Breakfast

Need we say more?

7–10:30am. Masonic Hall. Bradford. $5.50.

Cheese & Apple Tasting

Make some cheese, press some cider, snack a little bit — a classicly fabulous Vermont event.

11am–3pm. Old Stone House Museum. Brownington. Free.

Monday (Oct 1)

The Great Vermont Corn Maze

If the sun is shining, maze lovers get to try their hand at this massive field full of twists and turns.

10am. 1404 Wheelock Rd. Danville. $9-12; free for ages 4 and under.

Tuesday (Oct 2)

Winter Tunnel Production and Season Extension


Bread and Butter Farm harvests kale, chard, spinach, cilantro and other crops from their high tunnel all year long. In this workshop, Corie Pierce will explain the four keys to winter hoop house production: crop selection, timing seeding and planting, crop protection needs, and overall system management. Vern Grubinger, Vegetable and Berry Specialist with UVM Extension, will be on hand to provide additional information and answer questions.

3-5pm.
Bread and Butter Farm. Shelburne. Free for farmers and VVBGA members; $10 NOFA-VT members; $20 non-members. Please preregister here.

Wednesday (Oct 3)

No events known. If you have food events for this newsletter, please send them to haylley.johnson@uvm.edu.

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