At a recent workshop on herb production, held at MOFGA’s annual Farmer to Farmer Conference, Emily Springer of Meeting House Farm shared an anecdote as part of her presentation on the importance of adding of herbs to your crop plan. One winter, when making medicine for her two young sons, she attempted to purchase the dried flowers of common elder (Sambucus canadensis) locally. Try as she might, she couldn’t source any, though the plant is native to Maine. She ended up ordering some from a supplier in Oregon only to find that the herb had been imported from out of the country. Springer saw this as an opportunity to grow the available supply of organic Maine-grown herbs. She saw a hole in Maine’s web of community resilience, and she and the Meeting House Farm herb growers’ collaborative stepped in to meet the need. I often feel fortunate to live in a wider community committed to a resilient food and farm system, and Meeting House Farm is just one example of what a responsive community do (they were featured in the fall 2022 issue of The Maine Organic Farmer & Gardener if you want to learn more).

In this issue of The MOF&G, you can read about just a handful of the many other entities in Maine that are committed to building a more resilient future, and what that looks like on the ground. Land in Common (page 20) works to reshape landholding, with a vision of decommodification that prioritizes land security for communities that have historically been dispossessed from the land. The Maine Food Convergence Project (page 14) galvanizes various network partners to strengthen food, climate, and land justice systems across the state. And the Maine School Garden Network (page 22), through events, programs, online resources, and more, helps support school garden educators who in turn help students learn about growing food and healthy eating. MOFGA has been committed to transforming our food system since its inception over 50 years ago — and cultivating radical connections is a big part of that transformation. One such example is spotlighted here: flip to page 36 to learn about MOFGA’s critical work helping Maine farmers foster climate resilience, by facilitating peer-to-peer support.

Cultivating community is an act of resilience, especially in times of uncertainty, and I feel more grounded knowing that we’re working together towards common goals and a shared future. If this winter finds you wanting to deepen your connection to the food system, perhaps you’ll find inspiration in the pages ahead. In addition to exploring community connections, there are opportunities for honing skills to foster your own sense of resilience, and to perhaps act as connecting points within your own community. You can learn to how to: grow your own paste tomatoes for canning (page 16); nixtamalize corn (page 12); raise goats for meat, milk, or fiber (page 18), and better understand their hay needs through the winter (page 32); and grow your own medicinal herbs from seed (page 9). To celebrate community-based skill sharing — from mowing with a scythe to woodworking to dyeing with plants — save the date for MOFGA’S annual Farm & Homestead Day, to be held on June 21, 2025. Planning is underway and volunteer instructors eager to share sustainable living skills are welcome!