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Nov. 25, 2023 M@D Newsletter - Order NOW for limited quantity items!
ONE WEEK FROM TODAY!
Join us for Dothan Nursery’s Christmas Open House that’s sure to jingle your bells and make your spirits merry!
-The REAL Santa will be present from 10-12
-M@D Full Farmers Market
-12 Additional Local Vendors
-Live Music
-Mr. Coffee Bean
-Tin Bell Food Truck
-Evergreen Photo Bus
Shop from handcrafted gifts while you eat lunch, sip coffee, and enjoy live music. Say “ho ho ho” to Santa and don’t forget to check out the Photo Bus!
Grab your favorite people and come join us for a Christmas Open House that’s sure to make this holiday one for the books!
| Avalon Farms | D’s Jellies | Casa Perdido |
| Mt. Moriah Farms | Hortons Farm | Scrappy Chic |
| Grows In Rows | Old Drone Crystals | Parlita’s Heritage Herbals |
Kathy’s Kluckers: We are excited to be participating in Open House and will have many things available that are not usually listed on the website. In addition to farming I create unique crafts and will have many kinds of fused glass wind chimes (Christmas. Beachy & etc). Also fused glass ornaments/necklaces angels & crosses & earings & many other pretties. We will have our freezer full of frozen chickens, turnips, Patty pan squash & more. We will also have fresh turnips & roots & dicon radishes (good to pickle or put in a salad). All parts of dicons are usable as the leaves can be used in Asian style soups.
We look forward to seeing you next Friday at one of our pickup locations. 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!
Nov. 11, 2023 M@D is Ready for Your Thanksgiving Orders
MISC MARKET NOTES
Ever have days when your thoughts were all jumbled and you kind of struggled to make sense of it all?
This Veteran’s Day has kind of been that way for me. I’ve been close to three veterans in my life – First my Dad who served as an infantry sharp shooter in the mid 1950’s before I was born. The second person was my Uncle Gay Taylor. He was much older than my dad and had cut General Patton’s hair while serving in Europe during WWII. Both Dad and Uncle Gay have passed on. The third person I was privileged to see this week, my Uncle Paul who served in Viet Nam. The fact that he’s home now is a testament to our family’s prayers.
A few years ago at a family gathering Uncle Paul was given a Quilt of Valor in a ceremony. It was a beautiful and moving tribute to his service and I’m thankful there are great quilters all over the country who bless our veterans by donating time, material and money to love on these men this way.
Which brings me to the last jumbled thought – I bumped into Quilts of Valor again recently at the Annual Quilt Show at Landmark Park. Our own Sherry Burkhaulter of Casablanca Ranch organizes this annually and if you’re even remotely interested in quilts you owe it to yourself to pop in there and take in the beauty and craftsmanship next year. It turns out there are local artisans who produce quilts to give local veterans and I guess the sum of these random thoughts is to THANK the veterans for what they’ve given in service to our country and to thank the quilters who take on the task to honor and bless them with their time and talents.
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JBW Farm Fresh: Fall is a very important time on our farm. If we don’t focus on what is the highest priorities we can get off track very quickly! Goats and Sheep have a gestation period of 5 months, that means we have to be putting our breeding males in with our females now so that we will be on time for the spring season.
We also have to be looking ahead for the winter months of grazing. Naturally, there won’t be a lot coming up. We have been overseeding some of our pastures with a variety of grasses that will come up when most of the year’s plants are dead.
As you can see, we are constantly having to look ahead to the future, making plans and lists of what all needs to be done to be prepared. Several months ago we made plans for some changes to our storefront location. Just this last week, we saw some of those plans come to life! We hope that some of y’all have seen our new sign outside of our store on HWY 84W. If not, we would love for you to stop by and tell us what you think. About the middle of this month we are going to be getting in some whole hams just in time for the holidays! You can plan ahead and cook some 100% Pasture Raised Ham for THANKSGIVING!
Mt. Moriah Farms: HAPPY VETERANS DAY! I hope everyone has had a wonderful day. Growing up, we always had a cookout or some family outing to celebrate. We have/had a close family member in each branch and like to reminisce on stories that have been passed down. It is the core of who we are as a country and we do not want the love for our military to ever die down. Thank you to all of our customers or local farmers who have served or are currently serving. We appreciate your dedication!
We look forward to seeing you next Friday at one of our pickup locations. 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!
Oct. 29, 2023 - Lots of M@D Goodness Ready to Order!
MISC MARKET NOTES
Katherine’s Kitchen: Here in Katherine’s Kitchen, one of the only things that still grew happily away through the August heat was basil. I wasn’t getting any tomatoes from my home garden anymore, so I thought I’d try a home-version of the other ingredient in my favorite, Caprese salad. I started experimenting with cheesemaking! The trouble is, fresh cheese like fior di latte is banned for sale by our government. The other trouble is, I stink at cheesemaking. After three batches of lumpy, dry notzzarella, I caved in and realized I needed to go back to storebought cheese for a while. The basil is still delicious, fresh, and homegrown, though! Keep on experimenting and always thank God for the little gifts he still gives us.
Avalon Farms:
Persimmons are SO pretty hanging on the tree. They glow in the sun, looking like tiny pumpkins. I’m always surprised how crunchy and sweet they are.
Finally have a few leafy greens coming in. Kale and broccoli leaves are available this week.
Been crazy busy “jarring” lots of our specialty jams. There are approximately 500 jars of tastiness awaiting our customers. We’ll be attending several seasonal markets and festivals in the coming months.
CASE PRICES – We offer discounted case prices on jarred stuff. Pay for 11, get 1 free. Mix and match products. If you have any questions give me a shout at info@avalonfarms.us
Enjoy this glorious weather!
Wendy
Ode to a Friend Oh sweet friend, I hate to see you go! We’ve spent so many glorious mornings and early evenings outdoors together. Many a cool moment you’ve joined me in enjoying natures splendor and pondering the mysteries of life. And now you’re leaving for a year . . . how am I to cope?
October Gave A Party
October gave a party;
The leaves by hundreds came,
The Chestnuts, Oaks, and Maples,
And leaves of every name.
The Sunshine spread a carpet,
And everything was grand,
Miss Weather led the dancing,
Professor Wind the band.
All balanced to their partners,
And gaily fluttered by;
The sight was like a rainbow
New fallen from the sky.
Then, in the rustic hollow,
At hide-and-seek they played,
The party closed at sundown,
And everybody stayed.
Professor Wind played louder;
They flew along the ground;
And then the party ended
In hands across all round.
We look forward to seeing you next Friday at one of our pickup locations. 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!
Oct. 14, 2023 - M@D is OpEn 4 oRdErS!
MISC MARKET NOTES
Most weeks our M@D newsletter is about food and farming. This week will be a bit different as I’ve had SO MANY questions about my mining trip last week that I’m exercising a bit of self indulgence and sharing a few things.
For starters, I’ve not cleaned up my rocks yet! That’s another story. Suffice to say my fragile Black Tourmaline will be hardened by the time I get to it.
Mining is WORK. Whatever the YouTube videos show you, they don’t include all the time and dirt you have to invest and dig through to find something worthwhile. Our group found three of the four gemstones at Hogg Mine along with many beautiful pieces of quartz.
We were fortunate to have one experienced miner in our group. One niece has been bordering her porch with plain quartz pieces from the mine as well as making yard art/electroculture plant stakes utilizing quartz she gets from the mine.
All in all it was good clean fun. The kids found the best place to dig for Black Tourmaline and found soft clay that they sculpted into forest animals. Thank God for the guys who pulled the wagon after it was heavy with tools and rocks. We all got really dirty and were really sore at the end of the day.
And yes – I would do it again and hope to some day.
We look forward to seeing you next Friday at one of our pickup locations. 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!
9/30/2023 M@D is Open - Upcoming Fall Festival
MISC MARKET NOTES
| M@D Folks: | D’s Jellies | JBW | Avalon Farms |
| Katherine’s Kitchen | Grows in Rows | Mount Moriah Farms | Parlita’s Heritage Herbals |
JBW FARM FRESH: Last weekend we went up to Albertville, AL and attended the South Poll Field Day. We had an absolutely wonderful time. We thoroughly enjoyed hearing Teddy Gentry speak on the South Poll cows. He is the one who created our dearly loved breed! For those who might not be familiar with who he is, he is the bass player for the country music group, “ALABAMA”. Teddy started the South Poll breed in 1989. The South Poll is a four way cross of Hereford, Red Angus, Senepol, and Barzona. He wanted an animal with a gentle disposition and would produce tender beef on grass. Here on the farm we raise these South Poll cows, which are also called “The Southern Momma Cow Breed”, and we love them!
On an entirely different note, we also launched our “Seasonal Collection” of Tallow Lotion! They capture the scents of fall perfectly! We look forward to seeing y’all at the Fall Festival, October 7th!
MOUNT MORIAH FARMS: Happy Fall Y’all! We are certainly enjoying the cooler weather. We are super excited to be working on a few New Products to Add to our Line. We are trying our hardest to have them by the Fall Festival! I had a sweet customer of mine give me some mexican oregano to grow for my chickens this week. After doing some research, I read that oregano for chickens is known to strengthen the immune system and is thought to help guard against common poultry illnesses such as salmonella, infectious bronchitis, avian flu, and e-coli! Needless to say, I’m so happy to try my hand at growing some to help naturally prevent sickness!
We look forward to seeing you next Friday at one of our pickup locations. 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!
Sept. 16, 2023 M@D is *FINALLY* OpEn fOr OrDeRs
MISC MARKET NOTES
After talking with our growers we’ve made the hard decision to continue with a bi-weekly schedule for the foreseeable future. As much as we love hanging out and visiting with everyone in the Market Shed on beautiful fall days, some of the setbacks our growers have experienced kind of kill the purpose for being there at all. It’s no fault of anything or any person – just the ups and downs of farming.
So . . . this is what things look like through the end of 2023:
Katherine’s Kitchen: We have relisted the following favorites . . ,.
JBW FARM FRESH:It is crazy to think that fall is right around the corner! We are counting down the days to September 23, the first official day of Fall. We are excited for several reasons.
First, any chance of cooler weather makes us very happy and our animals!
Second, we will be planning several days where we are going to invite the community to come on out and visit the farm! Cooler weather=more enjoyable experience.
Third, we will be launching a Fall Collection of soaps and lotions! This is something we have been working towards for a while, and we promise, these scents will not disappoint! Stay tuned for more updates and pictures!
MOUNT MORIAH FARMS: The last two weeks have been pretty busy around here. We just expanded our chicken coop to add 33 more hens into the poultry family. They are all getting along well. We also added four more rabbits, they are silver Foxes. So we now have Silver Fox rabbits and rex rabbits! The goal is to be as self-sustaining as we can be. It is so easy to rely on the grocery stores for our food but the more aware I become of what is actually in the food sold, the more I want to dedicate time towards teaching myself to really rely on the land. While i was milking the goats this morning i couldn’t help but to be jealous of my goats, they really don’t have much to do. I feel like I have a never ending to-do list. Then the thought hit me, I don’t believe God ever intended us to be as busy as we are. So i am purposing to be less busy and really look at my priorities. Do I have them out of order? I challenge y’all to be as purposeful in your day as you can, enjoy your life. It is a beautiful Gift from God.
We look forward to seeing you next Friday at one of our pickup locations. 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!
Sept. 2, 2023 - VIP M@D Newsletter- $ Talk & Upcoming Fall Festival
MISC MARKET NOTES
This last week has been a tiny bit exciting and a lot of gut wrenching for M@D. The exiting part is that the bill we lobbied for earlier this year went into effect. It’s not everything we hoped for, but it is a start and yesterday sales tax on Alabama’s groceries lowered by 1%. You can read about it from our legislator who initiated it by clicking . . .
The gut-wrenching part was how to implement it for our customers. Our website is not designed for multiple sales tax percentages and lowering by 1% across the board would force M@D to pay the extra 1% on lovely things like beard balm and candles. A big order on soap or lip balm could easily put us in the red any given week.
One thing I’ve not shared is that for all these years M@D has been absorbing extra expense on standard overhead fees as it is, specifically 3% of all sales tax collected (web hosting) and about 3% of all sales tax from most card payments. We simply cannot absorb any more.
Our four core values are FRESH, LOCAL, SUSTAINABLE and YEAR ROUND. SUSTAINABLE includes finances and in order to continue to service our customers we have to service our obligations. So rather than nickle and dime each order we are leaving our overhead fee at 9% now listed as “Taxes and Fees”. The State of Alabama will receive exactly what they’re due on all products and should there be a surplus in the 9% collected it will help offset the 6% we’ve been losing all along anyway.
So that’s how it’s going to play out and unless something else comes up this all you’ll hear about the matter. This info will be added to the Q&A page of the website for those who might not read this newsletter.
JBW FARM FRESH:Weeds, Forbes, Peanuts, Cotton… Did you know that a peanut plant that comes up in a cotton field is considered a weed? There are many, many weeds in our fields/pastures. We do not spray to single out one variety of plant, we want a diversity of plants in our pastures. The weeds, or what people call weeds, are actually forbes. These forbes are amazing, they have many nutrients, vitamins, and minerals that are important for our animals. Where most people are bush hogging their pastures, we are bush hogging with our sheep and goats. They thrive off of forbes. They turn the forbes into fertilizer, allowing the dung beetles to take that fertilizer down into the soil. By the activity of the dung beetles, it creates soil aggregation which helps with soil erosion. (Soil aggregation is soil particles that bind together—to resist breaking apart when exposed to external forces such as water erosion.) It is truly amazing to see how much thought the Lord put into creation, how every living thing is to work hand in hand with each other.
MOUNT MORIAH FARMS: I can’t believe it’s now September!!! We are two months away from kidding season starting and I am eager to meet all the littles that will be born. I am working on preparation for that time. We are still milking eight does, that number could go up to 13 in November! I absolutely love milking the girls. It is our special time together, as I’m sitting milking I am able to look everyone over and make sure there isn’t anything different. I am seeing some bellies growing! Prayers are already being said for a healthy kidding season, if you want to say some as well, we will certainly appreciate it!
We look forward to seeing you next Friday at one of our pickup locations. 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!
Aug. 19, 2023 M@D is OpEn! Organic Updates in Newsletter
MISC MARKET NOTES
It’s well known that our USDA owns the word “organic” and its use is prohibited outside their agency parameters and permissions. Terms like “organically grown” and our favorite, “sustainable” are often used to describe growing conditions that would readily be certified if only the farmer had the means (meaning $) to do so. So actual “organic” certification is pretty well limited to those growers with operations large enough to pay those fees. There are many wonderful growers out there who do the hard work to meet true organic standard guidelines, but there’s also a growing trend to grow “organic” and cut corners without actual soil.
This is important because maintaining soil health is at the heart of what organic farming was all about originally. Healthy soil produces healthy plants that can resist disease and pests naturally without chemical intervention. Soil grown plants are higher in nutrition. Hydroponics were the earliest soil-less grown products, and by switching to organic fish emulsion as their fertilizer/nutrition source, hydroponic growers were able to achieve organic certification. This has in turn led to other “organic” soil-less growing systems utilizing plastic ground cover, plastic pots and inert substrates. Actual ground is treated merely as a surface to be leveled, compacted and covered with plastic containers. Rainwater leaches plastics into the soil and eventually the plastic remnants go the the landfill. There’s nothing regenerative or sustainable about that.
Back to those nutritional differences . . . the problem is, hydroponic farms aren’t required to disclose how their “organic” products are grown. It’s obvious with lettuces, you can pretty well tell by looking, but blueberries and other products, how would you know? This issue has developed to the point that there is a second movement to identify what is and what is not grown in the good earth God created. This is why the farmers who started the organic movement began the REAL ORGANIC PROJECT (ROP). The ROP label identifies the integrity of actual organic products with a label, shown below, to identify USDA organic products that are actually grown in soil using real organic, SUSTAINABLE, means. To date over 1000 farms have joined this movement.
We here at M@D want you to shop our LOCAL lovingly organically grown SUSTAINABLE foods as much as possible, but we also understand that if it’s out of season in this region, you may look for the same product that’s been shipped in from a different part of the country. One of the beautiful things about M@D is that your growers are local, friendly and glad to answer questions. That’s not possible with big grocer produce. So no judgment. We just want you to know what’s going on the organic food world so you can be safe out there. And know what label identifies the best products.
For more info visit www.realorganicproject.org.
D’S JELLIES: D’s Hot Pepper Jelly is available now! My jalapeno, cayenne, sweet banana, and bell peppers are all red and I am making lots of pepper jelly. Thank you for being longtime customers! Dianne Herring
JBW FARM FRESH:Now that we have started harvesting our pigs, we have lard to be able to make body products! Lard is made through a process called rendering. The fat from the pig is cooked slowly until it is melted. We already are aware of this process because of our Tallow! Tallow is made by rendering suet, the fat of cows, generally found surrounding the animal’s organs. Lard comes from pigs and Tallow comes from cows!
What is the difference? Pastured lard is rich in Vitamin D (something more than half all Americans are lacking), while tallow is rich in a slew of pro-metabolic fatty acids and vitamins.
How does this help our skin and hair? When we use lard on our skin, we’re soaking up all of that Vitamin D, which helps to minimize dark spots and lines, reduce acne, promote collagen production and reduce inflammation which is a common factor in conditions such as psoriasis and atopic dermatitis. Given the molecular structure of our skin and the suet used to make tallow, it is naturally more compatible with our skin, allowing it to act as natural sebum, locking in moisture and nutrients without clogging pores. BE SURE TO CHECK OUT OUR TALLOW SOAPS & LOTIONS!
MOUNT MORIAH FARMS: If you follow us on social media then you probably have already seen our exciting news!!! The news is, we made it on the news!!! We were very excited to get a last minute call from WTVY about being interviewed for their “Proud to be a farmer” segment! It aired on Tuesday of this week. I am so thankful for the opportunities the Lord sends our way. I am thankful for allowing me to be a proud farmer. I am thankful to my parents for raising me up on a farm. I am very blessed and want to say thank y’all for your continued business!
- Soap HIGHLIGHT***
Lemon Verbena / sea salt spa bar… Sea Salt has natural antimicrobial properties, making it effective at fighting bacteria and other germs. Sea salt can also help to exfoliate the skin, removing dead skin cells and revealing softer, smoother skin underneath.
AVALON FARMS
Avalon Farms’ Emotional Support Zephyr Squash is packed and ready to go. Where could it be adventuring to now!?! Check back next time for an update.
We look forward to seeing you next Friday at one of our pickup locations. 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!
Aug 5, 2023 M@D is OpEn with NEW PRODUCTS!
ENJOYING THE SEASONS’S BOUNTY
Seeing pears listed on the Market Page made me remember the box I have in the kitchen waiting to be canned. One reason I’ve put it off is that there are many more to be picked and I prefer to do it all at once rather than a few here and there.
We are tee-totalers at our house, but if you search the deep recesses of my cabinets you’ll find part of a bottle of Captain Morgan’s Spiced Rum. It’s how we do pears here! I tried “Spiced Rum Pears” several years ago and we fell in love! I used honey as my sweeter to make a light syrup, added 1/8 c of spiced rum and a cinnamon stick to each quart. The first time I canned them this way we let them sit about 6 weeks before trying them. The Mr. liked them so much we’ve put them up that way ever since.
We’ve put up both muscadines and scuppernongs as well. I juiced them the first year only to have my hands break out from handling the skins (oxalic acid reaction). The next year I washed and threw them whole in the jar, added sugar and covered with water before processing. It didn’t have that dark rich color like straight juice, but sure looked pretty in the jar and tasted good when we opened it for Thanksgiving. I’ve still got a few jars of the thick strong juice saved for medicinal purposes.
These late summer blessings are easy to take for granted as they grow so well year after year here in the south, but they are so versatile there’s always something new and tasty to do with them.
MISC MARKET NOTES
FROM OUR GROWERS
AVALON FARMS:
Sometimes you have to adapt to the situation. This is my temporary grow light set up for some broccoli and cabbage starts. Yes, that is 2 cases of canning jars and a gallon vinegar jug for height/weight support. Ha ha
It’s too hot in the greenhouse to start these seeds there, so the guest bedroom doubles as a germination chamber. They’ll be moved outside, to some yet undetermined location, to grow for a few weeks. Then into the ground they’ll go.
JBW FARM FRESH: We are so very excited to finally have pastured-pork available for sale! Our pasture-raised pigs are raised on the pasture and in wooded areas where they are able to eat a diverse diet of plants, insects and nuts. They roam large areas and are very happy doing so. Pasture-raised pork contains higher levels of nutrients than commercially raised pork. It can also contain up to twice the amount of vitamin E and three times the amount of Vitamin D contained in confined pigs! We would love for you to give our pork a try and let us know what you think of it. Order here and follow us on our website, as well as on Facebook and Instagram!
MOUNT MORIAH FARMS: It is so hard not to let myself get overwhelmed with the constant “To-Do” List on the farm. Some days, I really think about how easier life would be without so many things relying on me to be on my “A Game”. It has caused me to step back and ask myself, “Why am I doing all of this?” The answer I give myself is not just one reason, it’s several. Most important to me, I’m doing it so that my family doesn’t have to rely on stores being open to provide for us. Secondly, I don’t want personal farms to end in my generation, I want it to continue on with my kids. Lastly, I do it because God gave me a passion and heart for it. It’s tough work but rewarding. I share all these personal thoughts to say THANK YOU for supporting our little farm, and letting us continue to be in business!
We look forward to seeing you next Friday at one of our pickup locations. 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!
7/22/23 M@D Newsletter - Last Weekly Order Cycle for the Summer
MISC MARKET NOTES
JBW FARM FRESH: 2+2 = 4 … Of course folks everywhere are trying to convince me that it’s something else. This year it has been quite different from previous years. Plenty to learn and plenty to watch. I have seen something that I have not seen since I was a kid… vigorous JUNE BUG activity!
As a kid, I remember June Bugs in the month of June and thought that June was the only month they were present. Well, I have learned that is not so. June Bugs are at work, many other months besides June. When I was a kid I remember June Bugs in cow patties (Cow Dung) and they would just be working away. Last year, I began to see that again on the farm and this year they have EXPLODED. They are almost completely covering the place where cow patties lay, with soil carried up from under the dung.
June Bug activity is such in the cow patties, that they are virtually regenerating it into the soil. They dig in and under and take the dung down into the soil. This helps the soil provide the plants with usable, regenerated nutrients from the dung, to grow vibrant, strong, healthy plants. We have had June Bug activity begin to increase on our farm as we begin to limit the use of commercial fertilizer, weed killers, and chemicals.
With that said, it’s amazing what can be done through proper animal management, without the use of commercial fertilizer and chemicals. We welcome the June Bugs onto our farm and request that they are actively working to regenerate our soils as many months as they will! To sum it all up… 2 many chemicals + fertilizers are not good 4 our farms!!!
MOUNT MORIAH FARMS: We have added another wonderful soap to our collection! OAK BARREL CIDER… The fragrance is actually one of our long standing, popular soy candle scents. A distinct oak note pulling through a classic cider fragrance makes this scent unique, warm and universally appealing. Notes of apple & mulled fruits are hinted. Go ahead and get this and you certainly won’t regret it! 100% raw goat’s milk along with good for your skin oils, who can beat that?
We look forward to seeing you next Friday at one of our pickup locations. 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!