NEW PET PRODUCT

This is Bella. She contacted my husband this week looking for pet owners who could use goats milk for their animals. Of course we were interested! I make a fabulous “get well” concoction for our canines that uses goats milk, pumpkin and raw eggs. We’ve seen it work miracles, and the opportunity to get fresh is an unexpected blessing.

Bella went through several breeds of goats before settling on Lamancha dairy goats which are currently giving her two gallons a day. It’s more than what both our families can use. Then I remembered how many times I’ve received calls from people looking for fresh goats milk and the light bulb went on . . .

You will find Bella’s fresh Goat’s Milk on the Market page under Pet Products. It comes in glass half gallon jars and we ask that you bring one to replace the one you receive your order in. They are available at most thrift stores. Bella will be sending Market at Dothan the freshest milk available.

Please know that this product is for PETS ONLY. Alabama does not allow the sale of fresh goats milk for human consumption and we committed to honoring that and will ask your pets name when you pick up. And if you’re making soap that’s ok too.

We hope you’ll support this very knowledgable and industrious young lady. Years before Market at Dothan our own daughter raised grass fed beef as a college project. Bella is already making a difference in people’s lives and planning for a career helping others. The goats are her college project and we are excited to be a part of that.

MARKET CHITCHAT

So much has been happening that we’re taking a little break from our “Diet” series. There is no doubt many of you are familiar with some of the things we have covered, and at the same time, there are things yet to cover that are more recent and not widely known yet. We’ll get back to it soon. In the meantime we’re excited to welcome our new vendors and new products.

By way of disclaimer, in case this newsletter doesn’t “look right” we are working with a new (to us) service for including photos in the newsletter. The good news is that its easy to use. The bad news is that if it doesn’t work everybody in our Market family will know!

THIS WEEK’S GROWER NOTES

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

AVALON FARMS: The farm is shifting into fall and yet there is one last planting of summer squash that will be making in a few weeks. 

DIET OVERVIEW #4

We have been examining diet plans. Last week we looked at Weight Watchers which US News & World Report ranked as their best “Biggest Loser.” This week we’re looking at prepackaged plans.

The HMR (Health Management Resources Program) ranked first for FAST weight loss plans among this group. It, like many others is designed to reduce calories via prepackaged meals & meal replacements (shakes or snacks). Each plan claims to be nutritionally balanced, and all encourage healthy lifestyle changes & increased physical activity. Some plans, like HMR & Optavia include coaching in their strategies. Other companies using this model include Jenny Craig, Noon & Nutrisystem.

PROS

• You don’t have to cook.
• Delivered to your door.

CONS

• Cost
• Highly processed ingredients
• Lack of variety/ becoming bored with choices over time.

M@D Note – While many of these plans work and work well, they are not without their risks as the reliance on soy & highly processed ingredients can wreck havoc in the body.

MARKET CHITCHAT

“Time flies when you’re having fun.” Even with the heat and dust we enjoy our Fridays with you so much every week that sometimes noon just sneaks up on us. Yesterday was like that. Just wanted to say we appreciate being part of your lives.

Repeat from last week: This is a tough time of year for farmers. Most of the summer crops are petering out. Weeds are trying to take over, and the soil is still too hot for many cool weather seeds to germinate. That being said, KUDOS to our growers who are managing to keep things going during this transition between growing seasons. Because of this we are suspending the New & Relisted Products section in this section for a few weeks. New products (like those from Bella Eden Farms) are visible at the top of the Market page.

THIS WEEK’S GROWER NOTES

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

GRIER ACRES: Harry and Jeannie are doing well but staying busy. There is a family of coons on the property. They have unfortunately ate most of the pears we had planned to sale. Okra is doing great! It finally survived the bug infestation. Our tomatoes are limited to the cherry and Campari varieties. We also have some bell peppers and will also have some ghost peppers and habanero growing. We have some mildly hot Thai peppers. Our watermelons are almost ready. We are looking to finish our fencing and hopefully start a goat journey. Jeannie loves her chickens. She has named them and has zip ties on them so she dote on them even more. We are considering doing a small winter garden. Hope everyone is having a great week.

DANNY’S GREENS: The greens are growing too slow in the heat to harvest this week but will be available the following week. Danny has green onions & carrots in the ground for sales later this fall.

AVALON FARMS:

DIET OVERVIEW #1

Everybody has a diet whether they know it or not. Your diet is what you eat and planned or unplanned it affects both your current and future health, and should be done with thought and planning. This is part 3 in a series about health and weight loss eating plans to help you make YOUR right choices. The last two weeks weblogs contained general information about selecting a plan that works best for you. The remainder of this series will be examining the pros and cons of various popular diets.

US News & World Report has catagorized and ranked 41 of the most popular diets. It’s a fascinating study as their analysis puts hard numbers on the common-sense belief that no diet is ideal for everybody. The overall top two were included in our previous M@D websogs.

In their “Biggest Loser” weight loss category, they considered Weight Watchers to be the best. Weight Watchers is built around one simple philosophy – to help its members lose weight by making smarter and more healthful decisions about food while getting support from the Weight Watchers® community.

PROS

• Unlimited food choices – you can eat anything you want as long as you track it
• Promotes healthy and whole foods – the lowest point foods on Weight Watchersreg; are fruits, vegetables, and lean protein sources.
• Teaches dieters about portion size and making better choices – the PointsPlusreg; system intuitively teaches dieters to make better decisions as they weigh whether or not a food choice is worth the points. Over time dieters tend to make better choices.
• Support – many diets find support and accountability through weekly meetings and weigh ins.
• Community – there is a huge community of people on Weight Watchers, which means that it is easy to find information, recipes, and other resources while you are on the diet.

CONS

• The cost may be prohibitive for some people. There is a fee for weekly meetings and the online program. Currently a monthly pass to unlimited meetings is $39.95, which also includes the online program. Pay as you go meetings are $12 to $15 per week in addition to a one-time $20 registration fee. Online only is $16.95 monthly.
• Lack of structure – if you are someone who needs structure, the diet itself won’t provide this since no one is telling you what to eat.
• Keeping track of all the points can be tricky and time consuming.

M@D Note – we consider it a con, i.e.,negative that this plan allows you to consume foods that are proven to be bad for your health

MARKET CHITCHAT

Every once in a while we get a special treat and yesterday it was Boston Cream Puffs from Laura’s Confections. THANK YOU LAURA for treating our customers with the yummy samples.

This is a tough time of year for farmers. Most of the summer crops are petering out. Weeds are trying to take over, and the soil is still too hot for many cool weather seeds to germinate. That being said, KUDOS to our growers who are managing to keep things going during this transition between growing seasons.

For the time being we are going to suspend the New & Relisted Products section for a few weeks. Thank you for your understanding and please be sure to check the top of the Market page for new and featured items as they become available.

THIS WEEK’S GROWER NOTES

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

AVALON FARMS:

Thankfully the worms don’t enjoy the Swiss chard and perpetual spinach quite as much. Those will still be available this week.

MARKET CHITCHAT

A hearty THANK YOU for your kind understanding of last week’s unplanned closing, and on a personal note from your Market manager, THANK YOU for your kindness and prayers during this past week. They were keenly felt and are greatly appreciated.

Barring another providential intervention, we plan to be open every week till Thanksgiving. We also plan to have monthly Fall Farmer’s Markets in October, November and December. Dates will be announced once the schedule is confirmed.

New & Relisted Products

• Cucumbers – Avalon Farms
• Chocolate & Raspberry Browniers from Laura’s Confections
• 6 Layer Chocolate Torte from Laura’s Confections
• German Chocolate Cake from Laura’s Confections
• Apricot Meringue Bars from Laura’s Confections

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THIS WEEK’S GROWER NOTES

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

AVALON FARMS: Cucumbers are finally producing. I’m wondering if they got a little too much nitrogen because they have big luscious leafy vines but very few fruit. 

Poplar Head Farmer’s Market is over for the year.  So many people at the market this morning expressed surprise that it was over. This opens the door wide open for me to tell them about our M@D market and how things are available year round. Even one of the other vendors of a big farm expressed interest in the M@D market because they don’t grow year round. How crazy is that?!?

It’s time to get started on growing fall transplants. It’s still crazy hot, but the recommended time to start was actually July 1, so I’m officially behind. But with this summer being extra hot I’ve decided I don’t want to start planting them out till September. Lots of broccoli, cabbage, kale, spinach, turnips, chard and senposai coming in a few months.

MARKET CHITCHAT

New & Relisted Products – Woo-Hoo!

• Roselle Hibiscus Leaves from Mayim Farm
• Pecan Pie from Laura’s Confections
• Raspberry Walnut Torte from Laura’s Confections
• Mocha Torte from Laura’s Confections

THIS WEEK’S GROWER NOTES

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

MAYIM FARM: This is our last Market cycle before we go on vacation for a few weeks, so if you need any herbals before the first or second week in August they will need to be ordered this week for delivery on Friday, July 19. We are planning on being back for the August 10th market. A trip to Maine to visit some awesome biodynamic farms and see the sites is in order!    Greg and Carole

MARTIN TEAS:  No orders week July 16-20. Vacation Thanks!

DANNY’S GREENS: Danny is giving his plants a break this week to catch up. Even with the welcome rains they grow much slower in the summer heat. Thanks for your understanding.

MARKET CHITCHAT

New & Relisted Products – Woo-Hoo!

• Rice Plus II from Hortons Farm
• Tomatillos from Smart Doc Resources
• CBD/Tumeric Salve from Mayim Farms
• Apricot Meringue Bars from Laura’s Confections
• Baklava from Laura’s Confections
• Willimsburg Orange Cake from Laura’s Confections
• Queen of Sheba Cake from Laura’s Confections
• CBD Medicinal Cream from Smart Doc Resources
• Baby Yellow Tomatoes from Smart Doc Resources

THIS WEEK’S GROWER NOTES

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

Grier Acres: The past weeks has been a tough one.  Still combating bugs on our plants combined with the struggles of no water source.  We do have large totes and a church allowed us to fill our containers but is labor intensive.  We are missing a lot of the rain that others are getting. Our squash plants are green but just not producing.  Our chickens and woodpeckers have been eating a lot of blueberries. Jeannie did snag about 1.5 cups last weekend for pancakes.  But we are GRATEFUL. Last year we didn’t get any. Must always see the silver lining.  

AVALON FARMS: It’s good to be back! It was great not having market responsibilities last week, but it seemed so weird. Most of the time I wasn’t sure what day of the week it was or what I was supposed to be doing. On a normal market week tasks are divided up over certain days to keep me on track. No market meant no market related tasks which confused things. Ha ha

Fresh garlic is SO MUCH easier to peel. I didn’t know that. It makes life so much easier. You can actually peel them with your fingers. No knife or peeler required. And there is no hard bit of seed plate on the end! The cloves come out shiny and very tender. If you smash one of these with the flat of your knife it is FLAT.
Working on the plan for the fall and winter garden. I’m open to suggestions. Anybody hungry for anything in particular?

MARY’S PEEPS: Mary sends greetings and that she misses her Market friends. She’s been occupied with taking care of family needs these last few months and asks that if anyone needs anything special to let her know.

ON THE HOME FRONT

This is part 6 and the last in a series reprinted with permission from the Alabama Cooperative Extension System. Previous installments of this may be found on our Weblog.

Simple ways to enhance garden management:
Protect and increase soil organic matter by using compost (make your own!), mulch, and cover crops and by choosing organic fertilizers, such as fish emulsion, kelp, and manures***.
Use an adequate mulch layer, even in a vegetable garden, to help conserve water, prevent soil erosion, and build a food source for beneficial soil microbes.
Use drip irrigation or soaker hoses to reduce water waste due to evaporation, and use these irrigation systems only when the weather calls for it. Learn how your plants use water by digging in the soil to determine how quickly it dries or stays moist because consistent soil moisture reduces plant stress.
Choose plants and vegetable varieties suited for your climate. This reduces water use, susceptibility to pests, and overall plant stress.
Use caution when applying any pesticide as some can also kill beneficial insects, such as honey bees and predatory insects. Think first of other control methods, such as row covers and trap crops that confuse pests, or the pick-and-stomp method (levels 1 and 2 above). Most important, realize that produce does not have to look like a grocery store display—a little aesthetic damage does not mean the vegetable tastes less yummy than the unblemished one.
Learn to recognize beneficial insects (lady beetle larvae, big-eyed bug, braconid wasps, etc.) that help reduce pests in your garden and landscape.
Finally, when you cannot grow it yourself, buy locally grown and locally made products. Knowing your farmer is one way to learn how the food on your table was produced.

Know the N to P (Nitrogen to Phosphorus) Ratio

• Most plants use a 5:1 ratio of nitrogen (N) to phosphorus (P). If the organic fertilizer contains a 1:1 ratio of N to P (as do manures), it will be necessary to apply excessive amounts of P so that the plant’s N needs can be met. This leads to excessive amounts of unused P in the soil. Soil test annually, or every second year, to ensure that P levels do not exceed the recommended amounts, and read the product label to learn nutrient percentages of the fertilizer you intend to apply.

MARKET CHITCHAT

A special invitation from our friend, Susan Avello, aka The Lean Bean Chef. Susan and The Kitchen have partnered to offer a HAND MADE TORTELLINI and RAVIOLI Workshop in July. If you LOVE Italian food Susan will walk you through the process from creating the perfect hand-made pasta dough, to the myriads of fillings and the art of shaping pasta by hand and cover the types of sauces that can be used to finish the pasta. There’s more, but if you’re already hungry just thinking about it she may be reached at leanbeanchef@gmail.com. She’ll be glad to fill you in on the details . . . and don’t wait, there are only a few spaces left.

We’re excited to announce a new book by a local author, Robin O’Sullivan Robin teaches in the History Department at Troy University. She has a Ph.D. in American Studies, M.A. in American and New England Studies and specializes in environmental history & cultural history.

Looks fascinating doesn’t it? If you’d like to see more it’s available on both Kindle and Hardback through Amazon where you can read a few pages, and check out both the reviews and the author.

New & Relisted Products – Woo-Hoo!

• Perpetual Spinach from Avalon Farms

THIS WEEK’S GROWER NOTES

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

D’S JELLIES: D’s Hot Pepper Jelly is wonderful served with fresh peas as well as an appetizer with Ritz crackers and cream cheese.  D’s BlackBerry Jelly is the best for your peanut butter and jelly sandwiches or a hot buttered biscuit. D’s Mayhaw Jelly is the best jelly for buttered toast.  Jellies are unique gifts! Treat yourself or someone special. Dianne Herring
_~~~~~

AVALON FARMS: I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about the state of the farm lately. We’re in the crazy time of year, doing both M@D and Poplar Head markets. It’s always difficult to keep up with the farm work schedule, even in the non crazy times: planting, weeding, harvesting, watering, fertilizing, weeding, delivering. (Repeat) The super hot weather and being down with my foot surgery made it even more interesting. Through all this I’ve been learning to prioritize even more. (and  pondering the difference between making excuses and explaining reasons! )

You might have noticed that I pulled all the squash and cucumbers from the market.  I thought they were coming back from the heat wave….extra water and fertilizer. But they were still dropping fruit and showing signs of disease. Had to put on my big farmer pants and mow them.  That’s a very hard lesson for me to learn, but I’m learning. In order to be productive you sometimes have to cut your losses and move forward.

Sigh. I hate it. The 3rd planting of squash and cukes are growing, but it will probably be a month.

Okra will be coming soon. Saw the first blooms a few days ago. Been working on rescuing them from the crab grass.

Sweet potatoes are in the ground.  Another weeding task!

Winter squash are next on the list to get planted.

Have a new product for this week: Perpetual Spinach. This faux spinach is in the chard and beet family but it tastes like spinach! And it grows in our Summer heat! Give it a try!!

WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

This is part 5 of a series reprinted with permission from the Alabama Cooperative Extension System. In an ongoing effort to become the best educated consumers possible, we felt it important to share what the US Department of Agriculture has to say about what certified organic is and is not, and also the practices they approve. Last week we finished up the Pest Management Section.

THE LEVELS OF ORGANIC FOODS
USDA NOP standards identify three official designations. Producers must follow these strict guidelines. Only producers who annually sell less than $5,000 worth of products are exempt from these labeling rules.

100 percent organic Whether a raw product, such as fruits, vegetables, and meat, or processed, such as breakfast cereal, all ingredients must be certified organic. Product labels must state the name of the certifying agent.
Organic These products contain at least 95 percent certified organic ingredients by weight. Noncertified ingredients must be from an approved list. The label states the certifying agent.
Made with organic These products contain at least 70 percent certified organic ingredients by weight and the noncertified ingredients must be from the approved list. The certifying agent is stated on the label, but the USDA organic seal cannot be used.

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR HOME GARDENERS?
Because of the cost of becoming certified organic, few home gardeners will take the steps necessary to be truly organic (editors note – in USDA terminology “truly” means certified) emphasizing the use of renewable resources and conserving soil and water to preserve environmental quality. Proper pest identification to reduce pesticide use, soil testing for responsible fertilization, and dutiful attention to building soil organic matter are all part of a garden’s ability to support natural biological cycles. All of these can easily be done in a home garden without all the record keeping and costly certifications required for certified organic farmers.

MARKET CHITCHAT

THANK YOU to everyone who ordered last week. Pickup Day was a bit more chaotic than usual (from what your Manager heard) and all of us appreciate your cooperation and patience and especially your communcation!

New & Relisted Products – Woo-Hoo!

• Bodacious Blueberries from Blue Acres
• 4” Cheesecake & Small Strawberry Sauce from Laura’s Confections
• Bok Choy from Smart Doc Resources
• Sour Cream Coffee Cake from Laura’s Confections
• Cantaloupe from Blue Acres
• Cream Puffs from Laura’s Confections
• Watermelon from Blue Acres
• Red Velvet Cake from Laura’s Confections
• Purple Basil from Smart Doc Resources
• Carrot Cake from Laura’s Confections
• Cranberry & Orange Scones from Laura’s Confections
• German Apple Cake from Laura’s Confections

THIS WEEK’S GROWER NOTES

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

GRIER ACRES This week has been a busy week.  Our chickens continue to do well.  Harry has been bush hogging around our new barn and we are looking to add a lean to the tractor barn for firewood – we have so much from hurricane!  We also have smoking wood if anyone is ever interested. We have a pecan orchard and we have limbs we cut from it. We are hoping to have pecans this fall.  We used a special organic fertilizer. Fencing is still going up for hopeful goat farming. It takes a lot longer than you would think to do. Our garden across the road has both the human/dog sachets for deer as well as electric fence.  The ants has been a huge struggle especially with the okra. We are trying borax (organic & sustainable!) and it seems to be decreasing the population. Tomatoes are doing well. Jeannie saw a parasitic wasp on a tomato worm. Was so proud of her for leaving it. They put their eggs in the worms and control the population.  We have some cukes that growing good as well. Our squash is growing but we think planted too close. Very little fruit. Our citrus plants are growing good right now but are not fruit bearing yet. Our blueberry trees have given us the first fruit ever. We got about 2 cups. We noticed our free ranging chickens were eating them.  Jeannie made pecan and blueberry pancakes yesterday. Not sure if we will have enough to sell after we eat some. Our garlic is also curing inside. Hope to list them soon. The pears are growing in size. Will list these again when they ripen. We also have some bees which developed queen cells. Steve Loveland helped us get these from a swarm recovery.  Our olives have struggled with the drought. We have lost one of our 20 trees. Two others are struggling. Jeannie is trying to water them twice a day with gallon jug containers. We don’t have water/pump on that side of the road and have to haul it across the road. We have obtained some totes for water on the garden side.  Our neighbor is a local church which is allowing us to fill our totes to minimize the work on Jeannie watering.  This has been a blessing. We hope you all are staying cool and getting the rain you need. We have only got about a 0.5 inch on the garden.  Not much but we are grateful for it and especially for our sweet church neighbors who have graciously blessed us with an occasional water source.  
Jeannie, Harry, Cammie cat and the chickens

DANNY’S GREENS This will probably be the last week Danny offers green onions or carrots for a while. The lettuce seems to have thrived on this week’s nice weather and is relisted.

ORGANIC PEST MANAGEMENT

This is part 4 of a series reprinted with permission from the Alabama Cooperative Extension System. In an ongoing effort to become the best educated consumers possible, we felt it important to share what the US Department of Agriculture has to say about what certified organic is and is not, and also the practices they approve. Last week we learned about OMRI Certificaion and how it fits into Organic Certificatied practices.

Pest Management Continued Although certified organic products are free of common synthetic pesticides and fertilizers, certified organic producers may use approved pesticides and apply fertility amendments to their crops.(OMRI Certified Products Some of the more popular organically approved fertilizers include manure-based products and items mined from the earth such as lime, potassium sulfate, and sodium nitrate. Some approved pesticides include Safer Brand EndALL Insect Killer (using pyrethrum from specific plants in the daisy, or Aster, family), DiPel (using Bacillus thuringiensis, a naturally occurring soil bacterium), and Conserve Fire Ant Bait (using a byproduct of the soil bacterium Saccharopolysora spinosa).

DEFINITIONS
Pest: Any organism (bacteria, viruses, fungi, weeds, insect, or other animal) causing economic damage to a desired plant or landscape.

Pesticide: Any material or substance that causes harm to a pest. Examples of NOP-approved pesticides are oil spray, pyrethrum, and copper sulfate. Examples of pesticides not used in certified organic production are glyphosate, (editor’s note: glyphosate is an herbicide, not a pesticide) hydramethylnon, and carbaryl.

Fertilizer: A material or substance that contains one or more of the 16 essential nutrients for plant growth. Carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen are derived from air and water; nitrogen (N), calcium (Ca), boron (B), phosphorus (P), magnesium (Mg), chlorine (Cl), potassium (K), sulfur (S), copper (Cu), iron (Fe), manganese (Mn), molybdenum (Mo), and zinc (Zn) are derived from natural and synthetic materials. Fertilizers can be plant based, as in compost tea; mineral based, as with dolomitic limestone; or synthetic, as in a crystalline, water-soluble brand such as Miracle-Gro Plant Food or an encapsulated slow-release brand such as Pennington Lawn Food.

This article did not include information about herbicides (a substance that is toxic to plants, used to destroy unwanted vegetation), probably because they are not utilized at all in any type oganic production. Next week we will look at Levels of Organic Foods & What it Means for Home Gardners

MARKET CHITCHAT

Wasn’t Friday Splendid? It was a joy to work in the fresh air with the nice breezes that occasionally came through. As always we enjoyed seeing each of you and count it a privilege to serve you with the Wiregrass’s freshest healthiest farm products!

Viki Richter will be managing the Dothan Pickup location next Friday as Ros handles a family situation. Thank you in advance for showing her every courtesy. She and Kathy are treasures we don’t take for granted!

New & Relisted Products – Woo-Hoo!

• Lemon Bundt Cake from Laura’s Confections
• Jumbo Blueberry Muffins from Laura’s Confections

THIS WEEK’S GROWER NOTES

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

DANNY’S GREENS Danny’s rotation system was hit pretty hard by the three weeks of heat and drought our region just experienced. The young lettuce beds did not grow at all and the more mature beds grew much slower than normal. He could not plant for future harvest because lettuce seed does not germinate in super hot weather. So Danny is taking a few days to let his beds catch up before posting again. He’ll be planting summer varieties next week that should be ready in July. The existing beds seem to be perking up with the break in the weather.