WESTMINSTER WEST, Vt. -- An award-winning sheep-cheese farm,
community-supported vegetable farm and a garden with semi-wild
medicinal herbs are among the attractions that will be featured on
Sunday, July 20 in an event celebrating the continuing agricultural
heritage of a small Vermont village.

The second Westminster West Farm, Garden and Homestead Tour will enable
visitors to tour the local farms, visit with experienced farmers and
gardeners, and learn about the various ways they make a living, or add
to the quality of life, by producing food locally.

The daylong event also serves as a fundraiser for the Westminster West
Public Library, which is organizing the farm and garden tour.

“I think there’s a lot of support for farmers and the agricultural
heritage in the community, and the resurgence of small-scale
agriculture,“ said library board member Tatiana Schreiber, whose small
Sowing Peace Farm will be part of the tour. “I think it’s really
interesting to see what various people are doing, not just farmers, but
gardeners too, and seeing what people are doing on a small scale to
produce their own food and to practice ecological techniques for
growing food.”

“We’re doing it to raise money for the library, but also to honor the
area’s hard-working farmers. We have quite a large and varied group of
farmers,” added librarian Bev Major.

About 10 gardens and homesteads will be featured on the tour, including
Vermont Shepherd Farm, a large sheep farm that produces award-winning
cheese from sheep’s milk.

Other participants include South Valley Farm, a vegetable farm that
participates in a community-supported agriculture program; High Meadow
Farm, Vermont’s oldest certified organic farm; the Haas family farm,
which includes a Dexter calf and heirloom fruit and vegetables; and
Sanctuary, an organic garden that includes a semi-wild medicinal herb
garden.

The tour includes musicians at some of the venues, including Pandora,
Nick Keil and Daron Tansley. Rides on a horse-drawn wagon will also be
offered by Phil Pellerin.

And a “localvore” lunch, using ingredients obtained from the region, will be offered for sale by BOCCELLI’s on the Canal.

The tour starts at the Westminster West Public Library, eight miles north of Putney, where tickets and maps will be provided.

The fee is $10 per adult, and $2 per child, with a maximum of $20 per family.

The event runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, July 20. For more information, call 802-387-4682.