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This month, we’re sharing how our work with farmers, partners, and volunteers is strengthening Vermont’s food system - from supporting farm businesses to caring for the land and waterways that sustain them. Read on for updates from across our programs and opportunities to get involved before the growing season ends! |
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Nationwide Farm Viability |
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| How do we better support farm businesses? Recently, we got to compare notes with people asking the same question across the country. Our Farm Business Services team and Board Chair Chuck Ross traveled to Albuquerque for the National Farm Viability Conference.
Our team led presentations on marketing and accounting techniques, attended workshops, and visited local farms. Farm Business Services Director Sam Smith also teamed up with Michael Robertson of Cornell FarmNet to lead a conversation on the social, emotional, and financial dimensions of farm viability – a complex topic that benefits from bringing different perspectives to the table.
We’re glad to be part of a network where we can keep learning from each other, both at home and beyond! |
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It’s Pawpaw Season at Wet Foot Farm |
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| | Formerly Sugarsnap Farm, Wet Foot Farm is now owned and operated by Patrick Shafer, Jamie Cohen, and Abbey Duke. They’re one of seven farm operations growing food on land leased from the Intervale Center!
Alongside produce for Sugarsnap Catering, the farm grows pawpaws—North America’s largest native edible fruit. With a creamy texture and hints of mango and banana, pawpaws naturally grow in moist forests and along waterways. Adapted to periodic flooding, these perennial trees support healthy ecosystems by stabilizing soil, reducing erosion, and providing wildlife habitat. Their resilience makes them a promising crop for climate-resilient agriculture. |
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| Pawpaw trees take several years to produce fruit, making growing them a long-term investment. Abbey Duke planted the original pawpaw trees in 2010 and in 2021, Patrick and Jamie began cultivating and planting more trees to meet growing demand, and they plan to continue expanding production in the coming years. They sell the whole fruit, create delicious cannoli filling, and collaborate with local businesses to create specialty treats, like ice cream and hot sauce! |
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Stewarding Riparian Forests to Take Root and Thrive |
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| Our Intervale Conservation Nursery grows thousands of native trees and shrubs each year, but our work doesn’t stop there! This year, our Nursery Crew is also caring for 50 acres of young forests across Vermont, thanks to funding from Lake Champlain Basin Program and Great Lakes Fishery Commission.
At Riverside Park in Warren, we’re working with the Town of Waitsfield and Friends of the Mad River to restore 2 acres along the Mad River. Along with removing invasive knotweed around young trees, we’re building living barriers from willow branches that take root and sprout! These natural barriers will help stabilize riverbanks, prevent invasive knotweed from spreading, and protect water quality throughout the Lake Champlain Basin. |
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New Tools for Healthier Soils |
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| Right now, we are planting cover crops. These crops are planted to protect the soil between growing seasons, rather than for harvest. Their roots hold soil in place, build organic matter, and reduce nutrient runoff; creating a strong, resilient foundation for our food system. The seed drill plants seeds with minimal soil disturbance, and the mower chops down vegetation for quick and efficient turnover back to crop production. Their compact size makes them ideal for smaller farm fields and garden plots in the Intervale that were formerly cover cropped by hand or not at all. These tools will support Intervale Center land stewardship, Intervale farmers, the Intervale Conservation Nursery, and agroforestry initiatives- including a riparian forest buffer along the Winooski River.
This means healthier soil and water, greater resiliency from climate impacts, and a stronger future for the community food system that sustains farms, land, and people. |
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Riparian Lands Native Seed Partnership Fall Newsletter |
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| The Fall Riparian Lands Native Seed Partnership (RLNSP) newsletter is here! The Intervale Center works alongside partners across the region to collect native seeds for restoring ecosystems along rivers and streams. This issue highlights the collection of nearly 32,000 black ash seeds, new approaches to planting native seeds, and fall seed availability for restoration projects.
Read the full newsletter to catch up on our work together! |
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Updates From the Intervale Food Hub |
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| | The Intervale Food Hub’s new online webstore store is live! The Food Hub works with Vermont farmers and producers to source, aggregate, and deliver local food to restaurants, businesses, schools, and institutions. Now, wholesale buyers can browse available products and place orders online.
Thanks to financial support from the New England Food Vision Prize, we’re making it easier for wholesale buyers to source local food!
Want to order products? For more information on how to place an order, visit our website or email IFHSales@intervale.org to get started. |
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| | As we head into cooler weather, our team has been reflecting on the fervor of the last couple months. On Monday August 24th, the Intervale Food Hub moved 11,041 pounds in one day! We couldn't do it without our devoted (and strong) staff, incredible volunteers, pallet jacks, a forklift, and skid steer. |
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Elderberry Syrup Workshop |
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| For the third year in a row, we are making hundreds of bottles of elderberry syrup to distribute for free through Fair Share!
Join us and Spoonful Herbals to learn how to make elderberry syrup, a traditional herbal remedy often used during cold and flu season. Take home a jar and help us prepare jars for our community. The syrup is made with elderberries grown and harvested right here in the Intervale and honey from an Intervale beekeeper.
🍯 Thursday, October 22 | 1–4 PM |
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| Development Coordinator: A full-time staff role supporting fundraising, donor relations, business partnerships, events, and communications. Expected start January 2027.
VHCB AmeriCorps Nursery Operations Assistant: Serve a full-time term from Jan. – Dec. 2027, growing native trees and shrubs and supporting land stewardship at the Intervale Conservation Nursery. |
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End of Season Volunteering |
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| As the growing season comes to a close, we’re making the most of these last few weeks before winter! With our final Fair Share distribution on October 26th and the ground soon to freeze, we’re wrapping up gleaning, planting native trees, and preparing for the colder months ahead. There’s still plenty to do, and we’d love your help finishing the season strong!
Are you a City Market Co-op member? If you volunteer for 4 hours at the Intervale Center, you can receive a 12% monthly discount! |
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| | | 9AM-12PM Community Tree Planting
Come help plant native trees and shrubs in the Intervale to enhance the health of our landscape. It’s our last chance to plant trees before the ground freezes!
9AM-11AM or 2PM-4PM Gleaning! (Location TBD)
Help harvest surplus produce in farmers fields! All food will be distributed through our free food CSA. |
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9AM-11AM or 1:30PM-3:30PM Gleaning! (Location TBD)
Help harvest surplus produce in farmers fields! All food will be distributed through our free food CSA.
1PM-4PM | 173 N. Prospect St., Burlington VT Elderberry Syrup Making Workshop
Join us as we make elderberry syrup for distribution to Intervale Center Fair Share members, and for each participant to take home- for free! |
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9AM-11AM Gleaning! (Location TBD)
Help harvest surplus produce in farmers fields! All food will be distributed through our free food CSA. |
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