The Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont (NOFA-VT) and the Vermont Department of Libraries celebrate Agricultural Literacy Week during the third week of November to highlight and celebrate local farms, farmers and the food system. The theme this year is “Land Connections.” Check out some recent books that explore Vermonters’ connections with the land.

Seven Sisters: Ancient Seeds and Food Systems of the Wabanaki People and the Chesapeake Bay Region (2018)

Fred Wiseman describes exciting efforts to reclaim Abenaki agricultural traditions.

Life on the Other Border: Farmworkers and Food Justice in Vermont (2019)

Teresa Mares shares ethnographic portraits of Mexican and Central American farmworkers who support Vermont’s dairy industry. She looks at issues of food security, food sovereignty, border vulnerability, service providers, and labor activism.

The Land of Milk & Honey: A History of Beekeeping in Vermont (2020)

Bill Mares and Ross chart the long history of Vermont beekeeping and honey production from the early 1800s to the present, with special attention to the connection between successful beekeeping and a healthy environment, and looks ahead to future challenges.

Farming on the Wild Side: The Evolution of a Regenerative Organic Farm and Nursery (2019)

In the preface, Nancy J. Hayden and John P. Hayden tell readers that Farming on the Wild Side is the story of how and why we turned a former conventional dairy farm into a biodiversity-based regenerative organic farm. It is the story about our practices and building a relationship with the land and all its inhabitants. It describes the work that heals and restores us, the work of farming as cocreators with nature."