California has the artichoke, Georgia has the Vidalia Onion, New Mexico has the chile and frijoles , Utah has both the sugar beet and the sweet onion, Idaho of course has the potato. . . and Vermont has the Gilfeather Turnip, the official state vegetable.
The Gilfeather Turnip (which is actually a cross between a turnip and a rutabaga) originated at the end of the 1800's on a Wardsboro farm owned by John Gilfeather. It is known for being sweeter than other turnips, especially after a frost. It can also grow quite large before getting woody. It is sufficiently versatile and delicious that there is a whole cookbook dedicated to Gilfeather Turnip recipes, available through the Friends of Wardsboro Library.
Wardsboro celebrates its turnip with the annual Gilfeather Turnip Festival, which is now in its 21st year.
Festival attendees can expect
- Turnip soup
- Turnips by the pound
- Turnip themed merchandise
- Turnip seeds
- Turnip contest (last year's winner weighed in at 52 pounds!)
- Turnip kids games
- Turnip puppet show
- Gilfeather Turnip movie and talk
- And so much more!
Proceeds from the festival go to supporting the Wardsboro Library.
This year's festival will be held on Oct. 21 from 10:00 am - 2:00 pm in downtown Wardsboro, VT.
