The Roanoker November/December 2023 - 52

B
ite into a
hamburger
at Burger in the
Square.
Sink your fork
into a meat entree
at Local Roots.
Cut up a leafy salad at Bloom.
These menu items are brought
to you by local farmers.
Meet some of the faces behind
your food, and learn about why
they love growing the foods that
you savor.
FIELDS EDGE FARM
Four years ago, Leslie and Roger
Slusher traded jobs in higher
education and insurance for a
new way of life.
They relocated from
Pennsylvania to Virginia to run
Roger Slusher's long-time family
farm, Fields Edge Farm in Floyd.
" We decided that if the family
farm was going to keep going,
we would come back, " said Leslie
Slusher, who taught genetics at
West Chester University for 26
years.
At Fields Edge, located in the
Rush Fork Valley area of Floyd,
the couple manages the farm's
day-to-day produce and meat
production.
Terry Slusher, Roger Slusher's
brother, manages the farm's
Hereford cattle.
The Slushers sell produce
and meat at farmers markets
in Roanoke and in downtown
Blacksburg. Area grocery stores
and restaurants also sell the farm's
meat and produce, from Local
Roots in Roanoke to Square 5
Public House and Rising Silo
Brewery, both in Blacksburg.
The farm supplies the food for
Villa Appalaccia Winery's farm
to table dinners in Floyd.
Leslie Slusher is the face of
the farm at the Roanoke farmers
markets, where she said she
enjoys interacting with the customers
directly.
" I really enjoy talking about
food and giving people recipes, "
she said.
In fact, she recently explained
to her market customers how to
cook with fennel, an herb that
she featured at the farm stand.
For farms like Fields Edge,
selling directly to the community
is essential. They can't compete
with large grocery stores that buy
products in bulk and offer lower
prices, said Leslie Slusher.
" For the small family run farm,
I think direct to consumer with a
couple wholesale accounts is the
only path to survival, " she said.
" We're looking for the consumer
who wants to know where their
food came from and know how
it was produced. They are willing
to pay more. "
RABBIT HEAD FARM
Glancing at a map of this
Franklin County farm, its name
is self explanatory.
Tara and Jordan Sharpes are
co-owners of Rabbit Head Farm.
The 14-acre property where they
live and work is shaped like a
rabbit's head.
The Sharpes are first-generation
farmers who moved to the
Roanoke Valley in 2011.
Their farming dreams became
a reality in 2014, and at Rabbit
Head, meat is their focus. They
raise antibiotic-free chickens,
hogs, dairy cows and free range
veal calves. Their focus is poultry
and pork, but they're growing the
farm's veal operation, in particular
rose veal.
You'll find them selling whole
chickens and other meats at the
Grandin Village Farmers Market.
Rabbit Head meat also is sold at
the Roanoke Co-op and at Yard
Bull Meats in Roanoke.
The farm offers a subscription
service and home delivery for
customers as well.
Like many family farmers, the
Sharpes live on the farm. Jordan
Sharpes is an attorney in Moneta,
while Tara Sharpes homeschools
their three girls.
Their children are involved
with farm life as much as
ABOVE: Susanna Thornton of Thornfield Farm.
BOTTOM: Cam Terry, owner of Garden Variety
Harvests, talks with customers at the Grandin
Village Farmers Market.
possible. Even their school year
is based on the farm's growing
cycles.
" We couldn't do this any other
way, " said Tara Sharpes. " We are
passionate about raising children
on the farm. "
52 NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2023
TheRoanoker.com
COURTESY OF THORNFIELD FARM / JENNY K. BOONE
http://www.TheRoanoker.com
The Roanoker November/December 2023

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