Vermont: Of Soil, Garlic, Blueberries & Pizza
Harvesting Organic Garlic at Luna Bleu Farm Feeds Body & Soul
July 21, 2026
South Royalton, Vt—It doesn’t take much to answer the call of my local organic farm. Just roll out of bed on a Sunday morning and head over to Luna Bleu Farm when garlic harvest day is on the docket. That was this past Sunday, a beautiful day here in the Upper Valley with sunny-day temperatures reaching only to about 75 degrees. The skies were brilliant blue, the winds fair and steady, while the skyscape was punctuated by silken white clouds hovering over abundant fields planted with garlic, onions, tomatoes, kohlrabi, lettuce, cucumbers, squash, and more vegetables than most people see in a lifetime — except local organic farmers, that is.
Suzanne Long and Tim Sanford started Luna Bleu Farm in the early days as Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) was just springing into being. Luna Bleu is one of the oldest continuously-running organic CSA’s in Vermont, founded by Suzanne and Tim in 1989, first in Plainfield and Lebanon, NH, then Strafford, VT, then to its current location in South Royalton, off Rix Road just north of town, in 1993.
Side note here—until recently, I thought Rix Road was a play on somebody named Rick who might have lived there a while back. Instead, it’s named after the Rix family, who moved from Connecticut to Royalton in 1778. At that time, Daniel Rix acquired significant land holdings near present day South Royalton. His family played a prominent role in the town's history. This included Deacon Daniel Rix, whose historic farm and corn barn are part of regional history, including surviving local raids during the Revolutionary War. Farming has been, and remains, a crucial part of the Vermont ecosystem. As does, of course, garlic!
Garlic is planted in the fall, with each clove being placed pointy-side facing the sky to a depth of about 6 inches or so. In this case at Luna Bleu Farm, there had to have been 10,000 garlic plants ready to be harvested. A tractor runs the length of each garlic row with a metal bar attachment that’s slowly dragged underground to “raise the bed”. It’s a bit of a gentle mining process to loosen the dirt under the garlic bulbs so pulling them up by their previously cut stalks is easier on the hands and back. That’s where the harvesters come in.
The call to CSA members went out and volunteers arrived early to harvest thousands of heads of garlic. First came the pulling. Then brushing off the dirt. Then placing the garlic bulbs with partial stalks attached on the ground in rows where they had been growing. Next came the pickers who first separated out the seed stock, the largest bulbs that would be re-planted for next year’s crop, placing them in large orange baskets for saving. Then the remaining garlic went into large green bins to get loaded on the back of a pickup and driven to where they would dry for a few weeks before heading to market.
As I pulled at the green/white/fading-to-brown stalks, I mused over trying to figure out the best, most efficient way to harvest garlic from the ground. Should I pull and clean off one bulb at a time while kneeling? Should I pull three, or six, then stand, brush off the dirt, then toss them down to then stoop and pull more, then do it over again, and again? I watched others to learn their techniques, but it wasn’t until Suzanne came and plopped herself down in the row across from me, cross-legged and lithe, to start pulling, brushing off dirt, and laying the bulb-laden stalks back down again, while sliding her body sideways to grab the next set of stalks, did I witness what an expert harvester could accomplish in short order. She worked her way down the row with bare-handed ease as I struggled with dirt clumps, gloves, and thoughts of whether I was making enough headway to be worth it to farmers who could do this work with their eyes closed.
Ultimately, though, harvesting garlic is the stuff of manual labor where many hands make light work. What a handful of people can accomplish under minimal direction and sunny skies in a field of garlic is a sight to behold. Within a few hours, all the garlic that needed to be harvested had been pulled, cleaned, stacked, packed, and moved to its drying spot. As we toiled in the fields, Suzanne and Tim’s daughter, Shona, herself an organic farmer just up the road on Tunbridge, and others, made ready the wood-fired pizza oven to cook up and serve some fine and festive fare.
First, though, we had another stop to make for harvest day at the Farm.
As we farmhands-for-a-day transitioned from field to outdoor dining chairs and table, my partner, Margot, and I knew there were blueberries close by and ready for the picking. We grabbed containers from our car and wandered a well-worn path past house and outdoor pizza oven pavilion to find bushes bursting with berries. With about four quarts of deep-blue-hued orbs in our hands, we returned to find pizza at the ready, with beer, lemonade, and camaraderie that comes readily among people who’ve had a shared work experience to accomplish a common task. Pulling organic garlic from the ground under a hot, but gentle, sun, stretching muscles, easing your back and arms into new positions, stooping and kneeling, standing and stooping again, then again, and yet again makes for strong community bonds and great-tasting pizza no matter the weather.
I cherished this day and my conversations out in the field and at the outdoor dining table, where we relaxed, ate, and shared stories about farm, field, and the history of Luna Bleu Farm with Suzanne, while Tim tended the wood-fired oven. To my surprise, a special blueberry pizza was served that tasted sweet and tangy, with a dough that was textured and firm. Along with a Garlic Mustard IPA (I know, it sounded terrible to me but tasted great, and, yes, garlic mustard is an invasive plant but it’s also edible!), this was a slice of heaven on my tongue that made the day all the more rich. Who knew that blueberries and mozzarella cheese, thrown together with a handful of spices then baked on a flat hearthstone could be so immensely and satisfyingly good? I’m a convert of working and eating in the company of good people who care to help their local organic farm. Oh, and I also don’t mind being in the company of a good pizza chef or two. My abiding thanks go to the cooks, the fire tenders, the food preparers (Shona, Martin, and Lluvia), and all who made this day such a delight.
Out in the fields of Luna Bleu Farm, it’s easy to appreciate the beauty of what Daniel Rix created back in the late 1700’s, and that Suzanne Long and Tim Sanford have perpetuated for the past thirty-five-plus years. When you venture out for your next shopping bag, basket, or cart of produce, decide to purchase organic, and support Luna Bleu Farm (and other local organic farms) with your shopping dollars. You’ll find Luna Bleu every Saturday, from May to October, 9 am - 1 pm, at the Norwich Farmers Market on Route 5 South in Norwich, VT along with about fifty other market vendors.
Why the focus on organic? For me, it’s about the health of our soil, the land, our planet, and ourselves. Organic farming using the low-impact practices Luna Bleu has helped pioneer, ensures synthetic pesticides, fertilizers, or herbicides play no role in what they sell—and what you and I eat. The food is better for you and your family, and the downstream impact on the land and its soil health builds goodwill and good nutrients for future generations of famers and consumers to enjoy.
As Suzanne and Tim watch their family grow into the next generation of local farmers, this is important to them. And so should it be to all of us. Protecting the land, ensuring its biodiversity and soil health, and using farming practices that make for nutrient-dense earth and crops is a large part of the Luna Bleu effort. As Suzanne will also point out, good organic farming practices also help to combat climate change by actively strengthening the land’s resilience to unexpected weather events. Here’s a helpful synopsis from the Luna Bleu webpage on Farming for the Climate:
“At Luna Bleu, we have always tried to create a farm ecosystem full of cycles, webs of relationship and energy flows building biodiversity on the farm and protecting the surrounding natural ecosystems--above ground and below. We plant a large variety of crops and rotate them each season. We plant cover crops and maintain pollinator habitats. We integrate chickens and livestock in and around the crop fields, use compost and reduce tillage to nurture biological activity and biodiversity in the soil fostering Soil Health --- the key to organic farming and reducing climate change.”
My day this past Sunday started with garlic, pulling it out of the ground alongside a dozen others who cared to help by volunteering their time. It turned out to be an exercise that fed my stomach and soul with organic blueberries, delicious pizza, and a renewed sense of the critical need for organic farms like Luna Bleu to expand and succeed. You can help by joining the Luna Bleu Farm CSA and purchasing their wonderful organic produce at the Norwich Farmers Market next Saturday morning.
Here’s a garlic scape pesto recipe that’s sure to please:
Place a cup of coarsely chopped scapes, half a cup of basil, and a third of a cup of pine nuts in a food processor and blend them. Slowly add a half cup of olive oil. If the mixture seems a little dry, add a bit more oil until it reaches a consistency you like. Add a third of a cup of parmesan cheese and blend well. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Alternatively, you can roast the scapes with some butter or olive oil until tender and add salt as desired. Then eat them as is or layer them atop your favorite dish of fish, meat, or veggies.
Luna Bleu is now also selling its produce at Suzanne and Tim’s daughter Shona’s and her husband Hugo’s Flying Dog Farm, alongside Flying Dog’s lovingly-grown, certified organic, 100% grass-fed beef, pork, and lamb at its Tunbridge location just off Route 110 (north of South Royalton Village by a few miles) and through the covered bridge on Belknap Brook Road. Flying Dog is also home to semi-monthly community Burger Nights and monthly Taco Nights all summer long. I can’t speak highly enough about these culinary events, that include local live music, Brocklebank Brewery craft beer served up fresh from the tap, local ice cream, and a big tent under which people of all ages can (and do!) enjoy great food, music, and good company while immersing themselves in a Vermont farm experience. Children and adults delight while watching the gently grazing cows wandering green, undulating hillsides. Oh, and Hugo’s delectably-seasoned burgers & fries, as well as his several home-made, traditional Mexican salsas, make either night, burgers or tacos, a gastronomic gala not to be missed.
Hope to see you for a true organic food fiesta at either Luna Bleu or Flying Dog Farm, or at the Norwich Farmer’s Market one of these Saturday mornings soon.
Dave Celone writes from Sharon, Vermont, where his understanding and passion for organic food and organic farming practices continue to grow. He writes about food, art, education, and community here in the Upper Valley region of Vermont, New Hampshire, and beyond.
Are Royalton, N. Royalton and S. Royalton separate towns? I like to make city names into word scrambles and tell a little history about places. It’s a weird hobby I must admit. Great story, BTW