September at the Intervale Center
Summer may be winding down, but activity at the Intervale Center is not! Read on to learn how our work is radiating across the state through innovation on Vermont farms, volunteer-powered food access, and more.
Farms
Does’ Leap Farm | Photo Credit: Northeast Dairy Business Innovation Center
Does’ Leap Farm has discovered a fence-free way to herd their goats, promote herd health, and increase profits! Through our Farm Business Services, we have the great joy of supporting Vermont farmers explore innovative strategies to boost their business. Farm Business Specialist Sara Armstrong Donegan worked with Does’ Leap to win a grant from the Northeast Dairy Business Innovation Center which they used to purchase a virtual fencing system for their dairy goats. The goats wear electronic collars connected to a phone app which allows farm owners, Kristan and George, to not only easily designate boundaries for the herd, but also to move them into forested areas where the goats can graze on a greater diversity of plants. Now that their herd has more quality, diverse feed, Does’ Leap has observed a 15% increase in milk production!
Learn more about Does’ Leap and their impactful project in this video from the Northeast Dairy Business Innovation Center!
This month the Intervale Food Hub tabled at UVM Farm Fest, a free outdoor tasting event hosted by UVM Dining Services on the University Green. Farm Fest is part of Eat Like a Local Week, a regional initiative launched by Sodexo sustainability managers to promote local food systems and sustainable sourcing across campuses, schools, and workplaces. This yearly event that sees about 800 attendees is a great opportunity for students and UVM staff to sample delicious bites and meet the makers behind more than 20 local farms and food producers that provide food for the UVM Sodexo kitchens, including the Intervale Food Hub, who has partnered with UVM Sodexo since 2015.
At the Intervale Food Hub table, we provided samples of crudité showcasing a variety of local farms including Trillium Hill Farm, Burnt Rock Farm, and Honey Field Farm, which was paired with hummus locally made by the Just Cut program at the Center for an Agricultural Economy. Tabling at this event has been a wonderful way to hear from students about what they want to see in the dining halls and introduce them to other program areas and volunteer opportunities at the Intervale Center.
Land
Photo Credit: NOFA-VT
Members of our Land Stewardship team, Duncan Murdoch and Patrick Dunseith, attended the kickoff of NOFA’s Farmer Agroforestry Cohort at the Smokey House Center in Danby. This cohort is a two-year commitment, including workshops and trainings across the state, to foster co-learning and knowledge sharing in a network of agroforestry professionals while working toward designs for future projects. This collaboration will further our work to enhance our own agroforestry projects in the Intervale, improving habitat and food production and serving as a model to partners and other land stewards statewide.
The Intervale Conservation Nursery Fall Tree Sale is OPEN!
Our Fall availability includes an extended list of bareroot and potted trees and shrubs, as well as live stakes, fascines, and tube stock.
To place an order, contact our Nursery Manager, Ben Rodgers, at benr@intervale.org for a copy of the full availability list. All stems are reserved on a first-come first-served basis, so we encourage you to place your order soon!
People
Established in 2020, our People’s Farm and Garden grows produce directly for free distribution to the community through our Fair Share CSA program. This year, we are on track to grow more produce than ever before! So far, we have harvested about 14,000 pounds of fresh fruits and vegetables for Fair Share. Through the People’s Farm, we are able to design our growing plans to accommodate items specifically requested by our participants, better meeting their dietary needs and preferences. In 2025, we have doubled the amount of sweet potatoes grown as they are not only our top request, but are also a flood resilient crop.
The abundance of the People’s Farm is in large part thanks to volunteer support! Each year, we host hundreds of community volunteers as well as our People’s Farm Crew, who volunteer with us all growing season long. Volunteers support all tasks involved in running a farm—from planting to harvesting—and learn valuable organic farming skills as they go! One Crew member shared, “I’m deeply grateful for all of the people I’ve met and the food we’ve grown and shared with one another. This farm is a beautiful example of what our community is capable of in the face of growing food insecurity in Vermont.”
If you’d like to volunteer with the People’s Farm or Fair Share, you can sign up here!
Check out some scenes from the Intervale center this summer!
UVM students plant native trees from our Intervale Conservation Nursery to help steward one of our bird and pollinator habitat zones.
A volunteer feeds a baby goat at Flower Gap Farm in their new location. Flower Gap Farm found their new home through our recently refurbished land matchmaking website, Vermont Land Link.
A young peach tree in the Intervale–one of the many fruit trees we've planted to increase community food production and explore the benefits of agroforestry for farm and ecosystem health.
A snapshot of some of the fresh produce available at our Fair Share, our 16-week free CSA-style food distribution at our Community Barn.