Young farmers buy West Side Farm
Rhianna Zadravec and Alex Libenson, who spent four years farming together on leased property in Lisbon, NH, are very happy they were able to buy a 68-acre farm in Lunenburg, VT, that’s only 100 yards from the Connecticut River.
The pair spoke informally, one-on-one, for 30 minutes at the Colonial, a nonprofit theater in Bethlehem, NH, and then, more formally, standing at the front of the theater, microphones in hand, to members of an audience.
Rhianna and Alex had been asked to come to the 115-year-old theater to talk about their journey of starting up an agricultural venture before “The Biggest Little Farm,” a movie filmed in 2018 near Los Angeles, was shown.
When Alex recalled the days they were hoping to buy ag land in New Hampshire, he said, “Nobody seemed to want to fund a farm.” Interest rates were high.
Vermont, however, turned out to be a different story. Working with the Vermont Economic Development Authority (VEDA), with offices in Montpelier, Burlington and Middlebury, allowed them to together secure a mortgage as a business loan, and, after arranging for a formal appraisal that met VEDA’s requirements, they closed in February, buying what had long been a farm where animals were raised. Rhianna and Alex named it West Side Farm.
They have other big news that will forever make 2026 a very special year for this energetic couple: Their wedding is scheduled to take place on their own farm on Oct. 17.
The pair, who’ve been partners for seven years, met in 2018 while studying agriculture at UMass Amherst.
“After college, we worked as farm hands in Montana and traveled the west,” they explain on their webpage. “We lived in our Kia Sportage and spent our days climbing desert towers, backpacking the high peaks and camping at backcountry lakes. But nowhere felt like home like New England. We found land for lease in New Hampshire and made the move back East to pursue our dream of owning our own farm.
“We spent all our money on equipment, lived in a barn and adopted a puppy (named Vesper). It was mayhem, but soon enough we were up and running and doing what we love most – growing food and enjoying quality time in the outdoors. We ran Rocky Branch Farm for four seasons before making the move to Lunenburg.”
The soil is far more fertile in the Connecticut River Valley than it is in Lisbon, Alex explained. They’ve raised the beds in which they grow plants, so the garden drains well, which is now necessary since heavy rains seem to be part of climate change. There are no rocks in the flat stretch of land on which they’re growing a full spectrum of vegetables. Several applications of lime on this soil will raise its pH to correct its acidity. The upland that Rhianna is eying as a place to plant a variety of fruit trees in the future is quite stony, but she doesn’t think it will be a problem.
Alex and Rhianna agree with the advice old-timers have given them about starting a new venture: “Go slow.” That’s why they have only 1.25 acres under cultivation this year, including their tunnels. And they’re not raising any animals, although they could in the future.
“Right now, we’re sticking with what we know,” Alex explained.
“It’s been a very busy spring,” they agreed. They were able to retain some very satisfied CSA clients that they attracted when were in Lisbon. They’re participating in two outdoor farmers markets – St. Johnsbury, VT (Saturdays) and Littleton, NH (Sundays). They sell their vegetables to eight popular area restaurants and some specialty food stores. Super Secret Ice Cream of Bethlehem, whose slogan is “Tiny Batch Made from Scratch,” last summer bought a few hundred pounds of melons, from which batches of cantaloupe sorbet were created. They hope to repeat this effort.
Before the weather warmed up in June, Alex got up at 3 a.m. every day to feed chunks of wood in the woodstove that heats their 70-by-15-foot caterpillar tunnel. They also have a 90-by-30-foot high tunnel and three other caterpillar tunnels. They planted their high tunnel in March when snow was still on the ground and brought their first vegetables to market in May. Next winter they expect to be able to sell greens, including bitter chicory, spinach and endive. Fortunately, they have a walk-in cooler in their red barn.
Rhianna and Alex have posted their goals on their webpage: “We strive to produce only the finest quality diverse vegetables year-round using modern low-till market farming practices. Our mission is to feed people, build healthy soil and have fun while we’re at it!”
As part of the Colonial’s special evening designed to support local farmers like Rhianna and Alex, a staff member with the nonprofit Ammonoosuc Conservation Trust (ACT), headquartered in Franconia, NH, not only explained its overarching goal of saving significant parcels of Granite State land from development but also how buying permanent agricultural easements on some farm parcels can be used to keep land costs down, allowing newcomers to afford to become farmers.
by Edith Tucker
