Russo's Roots

About the Farm

Nestled on 26 acres in the rolling hills of Canterbury, Connecticut, Russo’s Roots is a Certified Organic vegetable farm that blends tradition, curiosity, and stewardship into every row it cultivates. The land itself carries echoes of the past, once home to a Finnish chicken farm in the 1930s with its now-rare two-story coop still standing. Since 2015, farmers James Russo and Libby Tarleton have been transforming rocky pastures into thriving fields teeming with organic vegetables, restoring the soil through composting, cover cropping, and regenerative practices to breathe new life into old land.

James Russo is a first-generation farmer whose passion for growing began in the Pioneer Valley of Massachusetts and carried him through years of experience across the Hudson Valley and Long Island. There, he co-managed a 65-acre CSA feeding over 2,000 members. Libby, too, found her calling in agriculture after college, first working in vegetable fields, then among the ordered rows of Long Island vineyards. When the time came to build something of their own, they returned to vegetables—and to Connecticut—with a shared vision rooted in sustainability, flavor, and community.

Now in their tenth growing season, Russo’s Roots offers a wide range of Certified Organic vegetables—from everyday staples like carrots and tomatoes to adventurous offerings like ginger, red napa cabbage, and puntarelle. Through a popular CSA program, a vibrant farm stand, and a loyal presence at the Willimantic Farmers Market, the farm nourishes both body and soul. James and Libby’s thoughtful cultivation methods and deep reverence for the land result in produce that is not only beautiful and delicious, but truly restorative—for the eater, the soil, and the spirit of local farming.