Wardsboro is the undisputed home of the Gilfeather Turnip, the Vermont State Vegetable.
By Anita Rafael.
Ever since 2002, long before the State of Vermont designated the Gilfeather turnip as the State Vegetable, the residents of the small town of Wardsboro have been throwing a party every October for the humble tuber that was first grown in the town over a century ago. It started out, more or less, as just a few folks from around the village gathering to share a big kettle of turnip soup.
A group of volunteers, following a recipe created by Chef Greg Parks, who was then at Newfane’s historic Four Columns Inn, made big batches of Gilfeather turnip soup on the old gas range in the kitchen at Town Hall. They invited their neighbors and friends to stop in and have a bowl or two. Every penny of the money raised from the bowls of soup went to support the town’s public library, which had just moved into old farmhouse that needed renovations. From that point on, everything about the annual turnip party grew and grew.
Today, the Gilfeather Turnip Festival and Turnip Contest is one of the most unusual culinary-agricultural events in all of New England. The minute the fete opens there are customers waiting to buy just-harvested turnips off the big, red market cart – some 1,600 pounds of turnips are delivered the day before. Just a note to everyone who cooks: The turnips will keep perfectly in a cool place until Thanksgiving Day and about five medium-sized turnips will serve six people a good helping of mashed Gilfeathers. So creamy, naturally sweet, and delicious, it’s Vermont comfort food.
At the festival, there’s an outdoor kiosk serving steaming hot turnip soup, of course, and there’s an inside cafe offering a menu of turnip “tastings” from favorite recipes in the Gilfeather Turnip Cookbook. The Turnip Boutique sells, what else, turnip-themed clothing, caps, gifts, and handicrafts. Spread out across the lawn next to Town Hall and along Main Street, there are various Vermont vendors selling their wares. Many craft sellers have said that Wardsboro’s annual marketplace is their favorite – echoing Goldilocks, they say things like “It’s neither too big, nor too small,” and some say that “it’s a perfect stick-season event.” The festival is supported by funding from 802 Credit Union and the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food, and Markets.
For people who want to hear the backstory of Wardsboro’s famous turnip and the old farmer who grew it, there are short, entertaining talks in the historic Methodist Church, directly across the street from Town Hall. It turns out there are still a couple of mysteries yet to be solved about this vegetable – one: where and how John Gilfeather first obtained the seeds, and, two: whether or not the turnip he named for himself is a turnip after all. (Perhaps it’s really a rutabaga?) Plus, the story of how the schoolchildren of the town spent two years campaigning for the State Legislature to pass the Act making it Vermont’s official State Vegetable is an inspiring tale of youthful grit and glory.
Without a doubt, though, the highlight every year is the Gilfeather Turnip Contest. There’s always a local celebrity judge who volunteers to pick the winners in numerous categories, from serious to humorous: Heaviest, Most Interesting, Best Dressed, and so on. There are awards for junior growers, too. It’s free to enter the contest. The Gilfeather Turnip Contest record, so far, is a 52-pound gnarly giant grown in a garden in town. It was the grand champion about four years ago.
One of the clues that the citizens of Wardsboro are darn proud of their special turnip is the fact that at either end of town, north and south, they have placed colorful road signs that read “Welcome to Wardsboro, Home of the Gilfeather Turnip, The State Vegetable.” Painted right in the center of the sign is a big, beautiful turnip.
Celebrating Vermont’s State Vegetable
Saturday, October 24, 2026
Website: gilfeatherturnip.org
Gilfeather Turnip Festival and Turnip Contest, 10 to 2, rain or shine. Field parking $5. Big and little tents on Main Street, indoor and outdoor activities with farm-grown Gilfeather Turnips for sale, Turnip tastings, Turnip soup, Turnip attire and gifts, Turnip seeds, marketplace sellers, and a Turnip Contest for Gilfeather Turnip growers, junior and adult. Wardsboro, Vermont (10 miles north of Mount Snow on Route 100). Festival details and contest rules: gilfeatherturnip.org or email gilfeatherturnip@gmail.com. A fundraiser for Wardsboro Public Library, Wardsboro School Club, and Scout Troop #428.
Anita Rafael is a writer living and working in an 1840s carriage barn in Wardsboro. Her art book For the Love of Vermont: The Lyman Orton Collection was published in 2023.
