Stanardsville

Field of Carnivores

At this Stanardsville nursery, insects are on the menu. (Photo courtesy of Robert Sacilotto) Look closely: the rows of colorful flowers at Botanique, a curious plant nursery in the Blue Ridge foothills, are not flowers at all. They’re carnivorous pitcher plants. Robert Sacilotto was first inspired to grow carnivorous plants—which survive on insects […]

by Jackson Landers

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The Story Behind the Moonshine Explosion in Rocky Mount, Virginia

It was during the early days of the Great Depression, and Virginia’s statewide prohibition was still in effect, banning all sales of alcohol. Meanwhile, in Franklin County, the area was laying the foundation for its future title: the Moonshine Capital of the World. Nestled among the Appalachian and Blue Ridge mountains, the Turner Motor Co. […]

by Gabriela de Camargo Gonçalves

A Couple’s Small-Town Makeover

After a successful career in investigative services in Washington, D.C., Terri Wesselman and her husband, Julien Patterson, decided to settle down in Irvington. Initially drawn to the area by the Tides Inn, the couple had been weekending in the Northern Neck since the late ’90s. “There was something about the area that was quiet but […]

by Stephanie Ganz

The Ghosts of Virginia

The pendulum of the mind oscillates between sense and nonsense, not between right and wrong.—Carl Jung It may be the little diversion on a vacation that no one can resist. After we pad the waistline with fries and ice cream, we turn to the ghost tour in a haunted house. On the surface, of course, […]

by Avery Chenoweth