The New England Agroforester - Winter Solstice 2025
ADAPT core team members gathered at UNH on December 9, 2025 for a full-day retreat to align progress, goals, and strategy for integrated project success.
Back row, L to R: Ranjit Sawa, PhD., Ryan Smith, Wade Weber, Steven Roberge, Rich Smith, Ph.D., Analena Bruce, Ph.D., Heidi Asbjornsen, Ph.D., Aaron Guman, Mark Ashton, Ph.D., Mike Smith. Front row, L to R: Megan Glenn, Theresa Ong, Ph.D., Bernard Nyanzu, Kelly McAdam, Jess Gerrior, Ph.D., Alix Contosta, Ph.D.
Intro: Reflecting on 2025
Dear agroforestry enthusiasts,
The first snowflakes have fallen over the forests and farms of New England, and the ADAPT team is delightedly anticipating the winter holidays amidst a flurry of activity! We would like to take this moment of our first Winter Solstice issue to slow down and reflect on some amazing accomplishments this year.
Two summers ago, the ADAPT team hired two project managers, a field technician, and a team of undergrads who launched into conducting rapid field assessments of thirty agroforestry operations throughout New England. These assessments included a biophysical survey of the soils and vegetation present on each farm, as well as a series of socioeconomic interviews that gave us transdisciplinary insight into establishing and managing agroforestry systems.
Since then, we’ve hosted two co-design workshops for forest farming and silvopasture, connecting farmers, technical service providers, NRCS officials, and researchers from UNH, Yale, and Dartmouth. Collectively, we’ve identified research priorities for the remaining duration of our grant and gather expertise that will aid us in implementing demonstration sites in the upcoming year, and we are immensely grateful for everyone who shared their advice and experience with us.
This month, the ADAPT Project team gathered in Durham, NH for a full day focused on visioning and planning to align project objectives and forward actions. The morning centered on the goals of the original ADAPT proposal and updates from the lead scientists on each project component, followed by strategic targets for years three and five. After lunch, we collaborated on a roadmap for achieving these goals, integration across project components, and roles and responsibilities. The afternoon concentrated on research priorities, data management, and detailed planning for silvopasture, food forest, forest farm, and socioeconomic studies. By day’s end, we had strengthened our shared vision and set actionable steps to advance agroforestry innovation.
Keep scrolling to see more great advances in agroforestry among our partners in New England, recipes using agroforestry crops, and resources for aspiring agroforesters.
Sincerely,
The ADAPT Team
Issue #2
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Feature Story
Educators Are Bringing Agroforestry to the Classroom
Technical Assistance & Peer Networking
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The Learning Landscape
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Image and recipe credit: Linwood Thayer, (NATIFS)
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Publications: Winter Reading & Listening
State-by-State Resource Libraries:
New England and Beyond:
: The updated list includes 14 new activities, outlined in a produced for FY 2025. Producers interested in applying new climate-smart activities across their operations may be eligible for financial support through NRCS conservation programs including (EQIP), the (CSP), and .
of fact sheets, reports, studies, and articles cover federal conservation policies and programs, state farmland protection strategies, securing land, and passing on the farm to the next generation.
Podcasts
is the Savanna Institute’s podcast about perennial agroforestry (AF). Listen to interviews, event recordings, and stories from the field featuring real agroforesters and perennial farmers each month.
Other podcast & radio episodes produced within New England:
- (Â鶹app)
- (New Hampshire Public Radio)
- (New England Public Media)
- (The Permaculture Podcast)
- (Connecticut Public Radio)
Events Calendar
New England’s NOFA Winter Conferences
Connecticut:
Saturday, March 7, 2026 in Middletown, CT. Featuring a series of virtual workshops on March 3-5 in the lead up to the full day, in-person gathering and celebration of the Bill Duesing Organic Living on the Earth award. for more information, .
Maine:
February 7-9, 2026 in Portland, ME. Featuring farm tours and walk-and-talk sessions, Cabbage (MOTH) Hour, and keynote by members of Agricola Farm, who will share about their worker’s cooperative and navigating change on the farm while upholding core values and healthy relationships with fellow farmers. for more information.
Massachusetts:
Saturday, February 28, 2026 in Amherst, MA. Featuring Keynote Speaker , speaking on “Living Soils: Unlocking Nutrient Density.” The conference is part of a broader effort to advance the . or more information.
New Hampshire:
March 7, 2026 in New London, NH. This year’s theme, Taking Root: Nourishing Community, honors the deep connections between land, people, and practices that sustain us. for more information.
Rhode Island:
December 16–17, 2025 online, free. Features a workshop on Growing Organic Chestnuts as a Commercial Crop plus technical content grounded in research, innovative methods, and real-world production challenges relevant to the Northeast. or more information.
Vermont:
February 14-15 in Colchester, VT. Keynote speaker Ira Wallace is a worker/owner of the cooperatively managed and is creating an African Diasporic Seed Collection. for more information.
Meet You Greens
is Northwest Connecticut’s Green Drinks happy-hour network, with opportunities to make connections, exchange news, brainstorm ideas, and plant seeds for collaboration. All are welcome; no reservations or RSVP necessary. for more information.
January 30-31, 2026 in Manchester, NH or online. This year’s event is a confluence of the & the Annual Meeting. Keynote speakers of . A 15% early-bird discount is offered before December 18, 2025. for more information.
March 10 – 11, 2026 in Albany, NY. Hosted by the . Tracks on dairy farm innovation and modernization, processing modernization and expansion, and dairy workforce development. For more information, .
Sausage Master Class
February 21-22, 2026 at , Randolph, VT. Registration closes two weeks before the training starts. For more information, contact the Center for Agriculture & Food Entrepreneurship (CAFE) by emailing Taylor.Paone@VermontState.edu or visit the .
February – April 2026 online and at Â鶹app and field sites. Offered by (NHTOA). Includes a virtual session followed by field skills at Â鶹app and an industry tour. For more information and to register or be added to the waiting list, or contact Doug Cullen, Workforce Development Manager.
March 18-20, 2026 in South Portland, ME. This year’s theme will be: Forest Reciprocity: What Can You Do for Your Forest and What Can Your Forest Do for You? for more information.
Seeding Success: Funding & Finance Opportunities
Catalyzing Agroforestry Grant Program
The 2026 (CAGP) application deadline is March 3, 2026. ​Applications after that date will be considered for the next round. The CAGP supports agroforestry practices such as alley cropping, forest farming, riparian buffers, silvopasture, windbreaks, and urban food. It also supports the for ecocultural learning, workforce development, and networking among producers and partners.​ Nationwide; 100+ producers from 18 states were awarded funding for agroforestry projects in the first two grant cycles. For more info, .
Acquisition Grant Program for Partners
(NCLC) offers the to help partner land trusts to quickly complete acquisition projects and contribute to regional conservation goals. Grant awards will fund land purchases in NCLC’s service area (not including transaction costs). For more information,
Funds for Drought Relief and Recovery in Vermont
can assist producers with urgent drought relief or recovery needs with loans of up to $15,000. The provides funds of up to $2,500 for commercial farmers who are NOFA-VT to assist with recovery from natural and unnatural disasters. Ongoing funding opportunities in Vermont also include , , , and Conservation Reserve Enhancement Programs ().
Through the Program, the supports farmers to meet increasing challenges of extreme weather events, frequent and prolonged droughts, and increased pest pressures. Applications are due February 1, 2026. For more information about the grant program, past recipients, educational opportunities, and additional funding opportunities for climate mitigation and adaptation, .
(FACT) offers two in Vermont and New Hampshire: Fund-a-Farmer Welfare Improvement Grants up to $3,500 each and the Fund-a-Farmer Systems Change and Innovation Grant for up to $10,000. This year’s grant deadline is January 3, 2026. For more information including application questions and scoring criteria, .
provides funds of up to $10,000 to address emergencies that disrupt operations for businesses and organizations led by Black farmers and food business owners in the northeast. Decisions for funding are made by a community-led committee. Rolling deadline. For more information, .
More places to find grants:
- Ambrook:
- Community Enterprises, Inc. (CEI):
- Maine Farmer Resource Network:
- Maine Organic Farmers & Gardeners Association (MOFGA):
Support for grant-seekers:
’ provides low-cost and no-cost services in the Northeast. With funding from the , the program offers full-service support or self-driven, guided support to build participants’ capacity for grant writing and development. The program prioritizes organizations led and serving historically underserved communities and individuals. For more information,
Classifieds
Common Good Vermont regularly lists in agriculture, sustainability, and related fields.
lists feed sources for purchase. Vermont and New York are the most active areas but listings are welcome from any state. For more information, contact the Vermont Agency of Food and Markets at AGR.Helpdesk@vermont.gov.
Photo Synthesis: Reader-Submitted Images
Principal Investigator and Professor of Ecosystem Ecology, shared these photos from a recent kitchen experiment with pawpaw, one of many agroforestry crops. for the recipe for these brilliant holiday cookies and check out more recipes in this issue’s section.
Help us grow this section! Send your images to: agroforestry@unh.edu. Images will only be shared with author’s permission.
UNH Land, Water, and Life Acknowledgement
As we all journey on the trail of life, we wish to acknowledge the spiritual and physical connection the Pennacook, Abenaki, and Wabanaki Peoples have maintained to ±·â€™d˛ą°ěľ±˛Ô˛Ô˛ą (homeland) and the aki (land), nebi (water), olakwika (flora), and awaasak (fauna) which the Â鶹app community is honored to steward today. We also acknowledge the hardships they continue to endure after the loss of unceded homelands and champion the university’s responsibility to foster relationships and opportunities that strengthen the well-being of the Indigenous People who carry forward the traditions of their ancestors.