BRATTLEBORO — Spring is just around the corner, and the Strolling of the Heifers is gearing up to make more connections between farmers and the community with its first annual Spring Gardening and CSA Preview.
The event is Sunday, March 9, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Stroll's new headquarters: the Robert H. Gibson River Garden in downtown Brattleboro.
CSAs are community-supported agricultural ventures in which members or subscribers pay at the onset of the growing season for a share of the anticipated harvest. Once the harvest begins, members receive weekly shares of vegetables, fruit, meat, cheese, eggs, and other products, depending on the farm.
Exhibitors include:
• Wild Carrot CSA of Brattleboro, a small, diversified, horse-powered farm that raises more than 180 varieties of vegetables, flowers, pork, chicken, turkey, lamb, and raw cow and goat's milk using strict organic methods.
• Akaogi Farms of Putney, a certified organic family farm committed to supplying high-quality, safe food locally since 1985. Here the focus is on fresh greens guaranteed harvested within 24 hours of CSA delivery.
• Rambling Brook Farm, based in Marlboro, which produces pork of the highest quality at reasonable prices for retail and wholesale customers in southern Vermont and beyond. The CSA will include their meat and organic herbs and vegetables.
• Walker Farm CSA of Dummerston, which includes fruits, vegetables, and perennials at harvest - and boasts programs to fit every lifestyle.
Home gardeners will also find garden-supply exhibitors of interest. Some to watch for: Vermont Cedar Goods, which offers Vermont-made raised garden beds and other garden products. Vermont Victory Greenhouses will have information on small-scale and residential greenhouses and installation.
As well, David Schoales of Brattleboro will showcase his White Cloud Garden chairs and locally made cutting boards, and Ben Goldberg will bring his Ben's Bins home worm composting bins, complete with supplies and knowledge: everything you'll need to put vermicompost into practice.
Lunch offerings include crêpes, lasagna, and hot soups by Luis Osorio of Seitanic Kitchen of Townshend, a past competitor in the Stroll's business plan competition, and Thai Hut of Brattleboro fare by Varee Sankgasoot, another farmers' market favorite.