TUESDAY OPEN HOUSE

Days like today . . . you either love them or you hate them, and your thoughts may well depend on whether you are indoors or out! As I type, the sky is clear bright blue, the wind is howling and it’s cold as blue blazes . . . at least this particular 44 degrees fells like it.

As you know, Open House did not take place last Thursday as originally planned. When everything was said and done, rescheduling was the absolute right thing to do! Thankfully it has not been canceled! We are looking forward to much nicer weather next TUESDAY, DECEMBER 12 from 4-7 pm. It will still be chilly and require a jacket or sweater but the weather promises to be warmer and hospitable.

So that’s what’s going on with Open House. THANK YOU for your patience with all the ups and downs dealing with this cold front.

MARKET CHITCHAT

Thank you to everyone who braved Friday’s nasty weather to pick up their orders. Some of you probably noticed that your “refrigerated” items were already bagged. It just made since as the weather felt like a refrigerator! Those of us working were most thankful for the little Coffee Bar inside the Nursery as the warm liquid refreshment was most helpful!

I thought we’d have a name for our pick up area to announce this week, but more names came in on Friday. We talked about them, then got so busy we forgot to settle on one! So its not too late to speak up if you think of anything. Just email to marketatdothan@gmail.com . We’ll try again!

Today is the first of two more order cycles for 2017. Individual schedules allowed us to “stay open” a bit longer this year which means you should be able (weather permitting!) to get FRESH greens and produce almost right up to Christmas.

And if you have not noticed, the Market is offering local seasonal citrus this year! A neighbor in Dothan is sharing his abundance and we are so glad because his fruit is so good!

SEASONAL GROWING

Today seemed like to good time to talk about cold and how it affects crops. Market At Dothan has been very blessed with beautiful and bountiful greens this year. Yesterday I saw several kinds of lettuce, chard, kale, collards and turnip greens come through . . . and brought some home too!

Farmers have dealt with the forces of nature for centuries and have employed many means to deal with it – everything from row covers to blankets and spraying water and in recent years the use of greenhouses and hoop houses. Even those are subject to the whims of nature. At one time Avalon Farms enjoyed the use of a hoop house . . . until a tornado came through. The Lolleys of Mayim Farms are engaged with Auburn developing cold tolerant Moringa Trees . . and hoping theirs survive. No doubt Danny has his hand built bed covers over the lettuce at his farm. We here at Horton’s farm have lost several citrus trees over the years despite drastic measures to keep them alive all the while hoping the cold will help the raspberries set fruit the next spring.

Now that we’ve got this cold front upon us all of our growers are hoping it doesn’t destroy the hard work they’ve put into their winter gardens. No doubt covers and protections are in place, but those things don’t guarantee plants will do well in harsh conditions.

Timing determines a lot of a plants ability to survive tough conditions. Young tender shoots don’t stand much of a chance in prolonged harsh conditions, whereas other plants actually thrive and become tastier on a bit of cold. I’ve heard many an old timer talk about frost making their collards better.

Variety plays a part in it too. While lettuce prefers cool weather , Danny of Danny’s Greens has elevated growing lettuce to nearly an art by careful selection of seasonal varieties. The seed for the winter varieties growing right now wouldn’t even germinate in June because of the soil temperature.

THIS WEEK’S GROWER NOTES

We have the best Growers in the Wiregrass! Please learn more about them on our Grower Page.

AVALON FARMS: One of our goats has learned a new trick…not in a good way. She’s discovered that the temporary fence we used to utilize some extra grass is NOT electrified. So she just politely rears up and sort of falls over it! Smarty pants. Another trip to Tractor Supply for electric fence tape. She loves kale, turnips and snap peas so free range goat near the market garden is a BAD idea.

As far as the garden goes, we’ll  have to see what things look like after this freeze. Farming is so unpredictable.

BAIN HOME GARDENS: Hello market friends, We hope this weblog finds you are yours warm & dry! This has been a difficult task over the last few days and we have concerns about how the garden will fair, especially since the lowest forecasted temperatures are yet to come! Although we didn’t get any snow, friends of ours, north of us in Grady, Al did get some. I made sure to express just how jealous we were!

As a side note, this is good time to make sure that those we love have adequate heating for the winter.  Sometimes our dear friends & loved ones suffer in silence so as to not be a bother. If everyone checks on someone, we should all be ok.

We hope to be sharing some new items with you this week! They have been tried and tested by our family and pass the “deliciousness test”! So look out for our tasty peas & salad blend from our family to yours!

FOOTNOTES

We would love to hear from you! If you have a favorite recipe, want to write a product review, have an idea or request for an article or information, let us know! You can reply to this newsletter or write marketatdothan@gmail.com.

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!