CAPA, Institutional News

Resilience Gardening in Bennington

On May 18, CAPA and the Robert Frost Stone House Museum hosted a webinar on Resilience Gardening in Bennington, featuring some of our community's expert gardeners who answered questions on everything from compost to keeping plants healthy to saving seeds, and much more.

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Resilience Gardening in Bennington

Resilience Gardening is the idea that by getting outside and growing food, we are doing our part for our health, the health of the planet, and our community.

In the same way that Victory Gardens were a response to World Wars I & II, Resilience Gardens are our generation's way to create self and community prosperity in the face of the global COVID pandemic.

On May 18, CAPA and the Robert Frost Stone House Museum hosted a webinar on Resilience Gardening in Bennington, featuring some of our community's expert gardeners who answered questions on everything from compost to keeping plants healthy to saving seeds, and much more. We also discussed our "Grow a Row" campaign, where we are encouraging local gardeners to grow an extra row of vegetables to donate to families in need.

Presenters

Shannon Barsotti is the Community Development Director for the Town of Bennington and the co-owner of Longview Farm in Pownal, where she and her family raise lamb and chickens and tend a large vegetable garden.

Aila West is a medicinal herb farmer who grows and wildcrafts Ayurvedic, Chinese, and Western herbs for a company based out of Cold Brook, New York.

Dane Whitman '16 is the owner of Grey Oak Landscaping & Garden Design, a Bennington based business that promotes edible and ecological land management.

51³ÉÈËÁÔÆæ's involvement in this work is supported by a $1 million grant from the  that supports a three-year collaborative effort with local partners to address the systemic causes of food insecurity in Bennington County.

Learn more

Book/Film Recommendations

, Grace Gershuny

- documentary mostly featuring northeast permaculture farms

, Edward Smith

, Louise Riotte

(or other books by Rosemary Gladstar)

, Eliot Coleman

Books from and  

Home Gardening/Victory Garden Resources

—free webinar on May 22, 2020

—includes an "ask a master gardener" service; you can also sign up for the training to become a master gardener

Master Gardener Hotline: 802-656-5421 or 1-800-639-2230, open Mon-Thurs from 9:00 am-12:00 pm

—includes access to seeds and gardening information

—find out how to connect with folks involved with Victory Gardens

Soil testing info â€”Contact Chris Callahan at Bennington’s UVM Extension office for soil sample kits and order forms:

for organic, open-pollinated herb seeds