By Gaen Murphree MIDDLEBURY—While lawmakers in Montpelier argue over marijuana legalization, Middlebury dairy farmers Joel Pomainville and Sam Berthiaume are readying a harvest of a cousin of marijuana — hemp — that promoters hope could be a new cash crop […]
Tag: Gaen Murphree
State News
Leahy farmworker bill gains momentum, advocates
By Gaen Murphree A key to finally getting federal law changed so immigrants can more easily work on Vermont’s dairy farms is getting farmers and farm advocates here to reach out to their counterparts in Republican-leaning states. That is the […]
State News
Coyote hunting in Vermont is weighed
By Gaen Murphree Motivated by constituent outrage over unregulated coyote hunting, some Legislators are asking state wildlife officials to rethink Vermont’s open season on the canine predator. “Coyotes are important animals, not vermin to be attacked,” said Rep. Jim McCullough, […]
Local News
State sees resurgence of birds once endangered
By Gaen Murphree If you heard a loon’s wild cry, were lucky enough to spot a bald eagle nest or watched a peregrine falcon on the wing this past summer, you shared in the continued resurgence of three of the […]
Local News
Disease claims thousands of turkeys
By Gaen Murphree ORWELL—Hail, flood, drought, plagues of locusts—since ancient times farming has been one of the riskiest of human endeavors. And it still is. Just ask Orwell turkey farmer Peter Stone, who faced devastating losses just as Turkey Day […]
Local News
Apple picking: Hot dry summer produces smaller crop, sweeter fruit
By Gaen Murphree Apples being harvested in central Vermont this fall are smaller and overall yield is down, following trends throughout the Northeast, say local growers. But local consumers can expect plenty of beautiful apples with some added zing, as […]
Local News
Bobolinks losing ground to solar
ANR policy could balance wildlife, renewable energy By Gaen Murphree The bobolinks that nested in Vermont hayfields and grasslands this past summer are already winging their way toward winter homes in Argentina and Brazil. Environmentalists warn that when the birds […]
Local News
Orwell farmer tries no-till corn, increases profitability and reduces phosphorus runoff
Orwell farmer Brad Thomas looks over a field of no-till corn planted with winter cover crops. Thomas is one of only a handful of Central Vermont farmers using no-till farming to improve his farm’s profitability and to reduce phosphorus runoff. […]