The fourth edition of "Vermont Almanac" has been published and is being shipped to readers and bookstores this week. The book features all new stories about and by Vermont farmers, writers, loggers, artists, scientists, poets, thinkers, and doers. More than 50 Vermonters contributed stories to Volume IV.
"Vermont Almanac" is produced by For the Land Publishing, a Vermont non-profit organization, and is published annually. Editors Dave Mance III and Patrick White collate the material – this year with significant help from writer Brett Ann Stanciu. With nearly 300 pages of content, organized into monthly chapters, there’s something for anyone who has an interest in the land and the people of Vermont.
Remember the Christmas storm last December, the freaky warm January that was 12 degrees above the 20th century mean, the severe May frost that decimated apple crops, the Canadian smoke in June, the epic floods in July and August? The book provides a record of and a context for the crazy weather.
Volume IV also traces the architectural evolution of Vermont barns. We look at some unusual crops being grown in the state, such as cranberries and rice. We follow the legal evolution of cannabis as it went from unlawful to ubiquitous.
You’ll learn how to make paper snowdrops, how to compensate in a recipe for various-sized eggs, and about a foolproof way to kill potato beetles in the garden.
As always, there’s a heavy dose of history.
The book is full of gorgeous essays by some of Vermont’s best writers, including Melanie Finn, Rowan Jacobsen, Sydney Lea, Jeffrey Lent, Margot Page, Verandah Porche, and Brett Ann Stanciu.