Lightfoot Farm
Selling dried flower crafts, jams and jellies, herbal teas, and maple syrup
During this pandemic we can ship or offer curbside pickup in VT; call 802-485-7444
During this pandemic we can ship or offer curbside pickup in VT; call 802-485-7444
Owner Biography
Owner Biography
I would like to share my story about my background in Plant Science and how I started the business of Lightfoot Farm
Carol Servetnick at Castle Seed Co.
I majored in Plant Science at University of NH and graduated in 1979. My first horticultural job was at Castle Seed Co. in Hollister, CA. This is a photo of me working in the greenhouse with the cucumber plants.
Carol posing along with all the other employees at Castle Seed Co.
We are all in front of Castle's tomato field where I would taste test and evaluate new varieties of tomatoes. My job there was as an Assistant Plant Breeder. I worked there for one year and during that time we had a major earthquake, a 6 on the richter scale.
Carol and Lainie at Johnny's Selected Seeds
From 1980 to 1982 I worked at Johnny's Selected Seeds, hand pollinating flowers of squash and cucumbers to develop new varieties. I also managed the plants in the greenhouse and packed and shipped seeds in the winter. This photo appeared in Horticulutre magazine in the March 1982 issue.
Joseph Kiefer, Keizo Yamausaki, and Carol in the ISE student garden
During the summers of 1984 through 1986 I was an instructor for the Institute for Social Ecology in Central Vermont. I co-taught Ecological Agriculture with Joseph Kiefer and I also taught Holistic Nutrition. Joseph and I would plant a garden in the spring to use as a teaching tool for our students during the summer.
Carol at Flower City in Montpelier, VT
For the rest of the year, when I was not teaching for the ISE, I worked at Flower City from 1984 to 1986. We had bedding plants, houseplants, and vegetable plants and I worked year-round. When the price of oil went way up the greenhouse went out of business.
Carol at a NYC Food Show
From 1986 to 1987 I worked for Cherry Hill Cannery in Berlin, VT. We sold apple sauce, apple butter, jams and jellies, and pickles to Vermont tourist attractions, to all Grand Union grocery stores in the state of VT, and to several distributors in New England.
Lightfoot the cat
I lived in Calais, VT for four years from 1986 to 1989 and during that time I had a cat named Lightfoot. Lightfoot was the inspiration for the name of the business. He was there when it all began. I started out growing and selling potatoes to the coop and natural food stores in Montpelier, Vt. They were grown on rented land in Calais. Then I moved to Plainfield, VT and worked at Littlewood Farm. The owner, Joey Klein, let me rent land to grow flowers for drying and fresh cut use. I sold cut flowers to local resaurants and dried flower arrangements to customers at the Montpelier Farmers' Market.
Carol at Northfield, VT Farmers' Market
In 1990 I moved to Northfield, VT and grew flowers here and sold them in Central VT and Burlington stores. In 1996 I got married and became Carol Noyes and in 1998 I had a son. The busy-ness of motherhood and wifedom meant that I had to stop the business for a while. Lightfoot Farm was dormant for many years until I started it up again in 2010. In the present form of Lighfoot Farm the business has expanded from flowers only into production of herbal teas and natural, low sugar jams and jellies from fruit grown on the farm in Northfield Falls.
Mary Clifford with a heart wreath
On February 6, 2013 I had a heart wreath making class here at the farm. Several women enjoyed spreading out dried flowers all over the tables and letting the creative juices flow.