FREEBIES AND FUN

It was partially last minute and mostly unplanned, but we wound up with a whole bunch of good stuff for “the table” at the Market on Friday. Your Manager was thrilled to gave away a bunch of tasty jellies and Mr. Bob brought lots of freebie jalapenos as well. Mrs. Birdie was there with chai shortbread and tea cakes for a while and there was plenty of scuppernongs and okra.

No idea what next week holds except for some more jarred goodies as the Horton’s transition to less sugar and more green stuff in the pantry.

Hope to see you next Friday!

MARKET CHITCHAT

THANK YOU to Coastal Sharps who brought their impressive knife sharpening equipment out to the Market Shed yesterday. We kept Amory busy with knives from growers, customers and nursery employees who were all tickled with the results. For those of us who cut and chop our own meats and vegetables a sharp knife is a must! They’ll be at our Fall Farmer’s Market on October 13 if you missed yesterday. Check our facebook page for a peek at the quality of her work.

New & Relisted Products

• Danny’s Greens are relisted!

THIS WEEK’S GROWER NOTES

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

HORTONS FARM:

I couldn’t resist sharing this sweet “wink from God” (to borrow a phrase from my children) that happened yesterday. I came out from a local business to see this pretty baby hanging on to my windshield. I sat in the driver’s seat and stared a long time before taking the photo – it was there just for me!

Every year our family anticipates the seasonal transition that seems to start about right now. It means cooler nights, shorter days, milder weather and the beginning of the beautiful harvest season we enjoy so much here.

My heart did a happy dance. I wish you such moments too.
Ros

HAWKINS HOMESTEAD: Hello Market Friends! If you haven’t already please check out our “Growing Now” segment. It’s listed on the Market discussion page and you can also find the link here:    
https://hawkinshomesteadfarm.com/2018/08/31/growing-now-september/
It’s a great way to stay up to date with all that we have growing. With the change of seasons everything has slowed down and we don’t have much of our organic produce to offer, but it’s all in the works! We thank you for being patient with us and all our growers.

This week on the Market we have our pear jams, basil varieties, pesto, bone broth kit, and fresh organic sprouts! We also have what looks like it will be an overwhelming variety of late peppers growing so we hope to share some of these with you soon. The one shown will go into a beef stir fry that we’re having for dinner tonight. Fresh organic farm grown onions and peppers along with a few store bought items like organic mushrooms and broccoli will make for a great meal. Maybe one day we can grow ALL these things ourselves, until then we will continue to buy local and organic! Until next week.

AVALON FARMS:

This week’s primary goal was to get more transplants started and get those older ones in the ground. So over the course of the week I started 12 more flats of transplants. Broccoli, cabbage, spinach, Swiss chard, celery, cilantro and asian greens. This morning, with hubby’s help, I got the older transplants in the ground. Also put some asian greens and lettuce in the aquaponics beds.

The next construction project is to build a chicken tractor for our freedom rangers (meat birds). They are getting big enough it’s time to start moving them around on fresh grass everyday. We are on track for November!

Just bought 50 pound bags of iron clay peas and mixed cereal grains to use as cover crops. Add planting those to the list of things to do.

BAIN HOME GARDENS: Marketeers!

    Good afternoon! How are you? Things are super, crazy beautiful in these parts! Life gets away from you at times with its hectic nature – as is the life of a homesteader. This week we continue to plant and transplant for fall and sadly we have experienced a few losses but we are hoping due to the early start we will not feel such a set back.
    In other news we have had prolific production of the Oriental Yard Long Bean. They are now growing up the railing of the front porch. With their orchid-like blooms, I’m more than pleased! We simply chop into bite sized pieces and stir fry them – tender & tasty! We are hoping to bring these to the market soon. Keep on the lookout!

SPECIAL GUEST NEXT WEEK!

Those of you who picked up on Friday got to meet Amory Harris of Coastal Sharps. Amory is a specialist who is giving our customers a great deal next Friday when she sets up her blade sharpening equipment at the Market Shed. Normal cost for her services are $1 per inch, but she’s cutting us a break with a $5 max charge for your big blades.

If you’re like your Market Manager and have a drawer full of dull blades you’d rather not use, dig those things out and bring them next Friday! You don’t even have to place an order! Armory’s professional edges will make it easier for you to maintain your knives at home. Word on the street is that her hunting knife jobs are so good you could field dress and elk with no problem!

MARKET CHITCHAT

New & Relisted Products

• Organic Eggplants from Hawkins Homestead
• Purple and Bronze Muscadine Grapes 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.

HAWKINS HOMESTEAD: Hello Market Friends! Fall is in the air and we couldn’t be happier about it. Plus it didn’t rain for a few days this week which meant we were finally able to move some of our garden boxes closer to the house. I have some special plans for these boxes and having them closer will allow me to keep an eye on them. We have been trying to fully get this done all month. So it’s a big deal that they’re moved. We still have to fill up a few with compost, but for the most part they’re all ready for planting!

Of course we have sown lots of seeds already, but we still have organic tomatoes, late peppers, okra, and even heirloom eggplants. We’ve been using some of these veggies in our prepared foods like our Salsa Fresh! We even found some lettuce hiding between some bean plants! They needed the shade and we’re more than happy to have surprise Summer lettuce for our family to eat.

Back to the eggplants….I was hoping to bring them yesterday for table sales, but since I wasn’t able to, I have listed them this week on the Market. As stewards of our word, we support other local growers so these plants were originally purchased as seedlings from a local sustainable farm. They have been organically grown and suddenly started producing more than we can keep up with, so we offer them to you.

Thank you and we want to say welcome to a few new names we have seen lately and thank you to the ones who continue to come back. We appreciate you all.

AVALON FARMS . . . Rides Again!:

Here is our completed mobile egg prairie schooner. The girls have moved in and seem to approve. They’ve even started laying their first eggs in the nests! I love it when something actually works! Although why they insist on roosting on the roof is beyond me.

Also, we’ve  added Freedom Rangers to our menagerie. These are very hardy meat birds bred to excel on pasture. They grow a little slower than the industry standard Cornish Cross, but do not have the associated health problems of that breed. Freedom Rangers are also well known for being very tasty and tender big birds. We anticipate the first harvest to be around the first of November.

In the picture above they are 2.5 weeks old. Look at the legs on those guys!

The first set of transplants had to move out onto the front porch to make room for more inside. Last year grasshoppers and army worms ate a lot of the transplants before they were even big enough to set out. That’s why I’m starting them inside and also why I got creative with some netting and made a “safe zone” for these guys on the porch.

BAIN HOME GARDENS: Marketeers, Our journey towards self sufficiency has been very rewarding. I personally have learned so much. I am very appreciative for all the resources out there but as I’ve said before, listening & learning from others is by far my favorite way to grow in knowledge and experience. As I’ve sat at the feet of such sagacious gardeners, there has been an unexpected benefit. Suddenly I have developed an interest in growing flowers. I’ve always admired those who could identify virtually every flower or houseplant. I never personally had an interest until now.

Recently our daughter and I were gifted with a Begonia of which our friend calls a Friendship Begonia because it propagates so easily making it very easy to share. This is a part of one that has been shared countless times already! I must say, it adds a hint of character to our living space. Other flowers (Marigolds, Sunflowers, etc) as you know are great for distracting pests from your fledgling vegetable plants. Beautiful and useful – cannot go wrong with that!
   Sending well wishes and joy – from our family to yours!

AND NOW WE KNOW!

If you read our newsletter on July 28 you may remember some of the “frankenfood” trends going on ourside our realm of local sustainable eats. The one that disturbed your Market Manager the most was the laboratory created meat.

It turns out there’s a lot more to that! The effort to produce meat in a laboratory was started by PETA in 2008 with a one million cash prize to the first one who could pull it off. If you would like to learn more this article from Medium has all the details.

MARKET NEWS

Many thanks to Mrs. Melody for sharing a great produce tip with us:

Paying it Forward: What a great honor to have Jessica Kelton with the Headland Extension Service with us yesterday! Jessica has been assigned to write an article about CSA’s and sustainable farming markets. She spent the morning with us interviewing several of our growers. We hope her work helps other growers and communities around the state.

New & Relisted Products

• Hot Banana Peppers from Grier Acres
• Basil Pesto-Organic Lime from Hawkins Homestead
• Clemson Spineless & Emerald Okra from Grier Acres
• (Kitty Krack) Catnip from Grier Acres
• Jalapino Peppers form Grier Acres
• Avalon Okra is relisted

THIS WEEK’S GROWER NOTES

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

AVALON FARMS:

This is our new mobile covered chicken nest schooner. The new girls are slightly ahead of schedule as we got our first eggs this week. Which means our egg mobile is slightly behind schedule. They apparently they can’t read gantt charts!

These  hens are currently located on Garden 2. They will be tilling the soil, eating bugs and weeds, all the while fertilizing the garden for next year.

The weed block landscape fabric the tomatoes were planted on was pretty much a disaster. It didn’t really stop the weeds and it shredded. What a mess. I’ve been clearing out the tomato vines and ripping up the landscape fabric and weeds. I planted the first row of sugar snap peas in their place to reuse the t-posts and string trellis. Saved a little labor.

Just for fun:
Crinkle your nose and say the word “snout”. It just makes us laugh. LOL

BAIN HOME GARDENS: Hello Marketeers!
Have you ever been gifted seeds or plants, grown them successfully while not being exactly sure what variety you are growing? Funny story that: We have peas of some sort. We were gifted seeds by a dear friend who is from Jamaica and he called them “Jamaican Peas”. We headed to the internet but was overwhelmed with information. Then we spoke to one of my husbands cousins from the Islands and they said they thought that the peas were pigeon peas. Yay! Nope. Recently we have discovered that this is not correct either. Further research shows these could be a type of Cowpea, hence the earlier statement “we have peas of some sort”. Whatever they are they are quite tasty! We have used them as snaps and we have shelled them. Good eatin’! If you have funny seed sharing/gifting stories, please share over on our Facebook page. Let us know we are not alone!

We have the best customers in the Wiregrass area. Thank you for your understanding and continued support. We couldn’t do this without you!

HORTONS FARM: “Little by little, inch by inch. By the yard it’s hard, by the inch what a cinch. Never stare up the stairs just step up the steps, little by little, inch by inch.”

I’ve found myself singing this little Patch the Pirate song all along during this process of putting our home back together. Sometimes it seems to drag on forever despite progress being made every day. The pantry is very close and we hope to move the refrigerator and freezer back before days end.

We miss the kitchen! With so much of the pantry items stored there it’s been impossible to do much more than one pot wonders. We look forward to making great stuff like Salmon Rub and Cinnamon Creamed Honey again!

On a different and perhaps silly note, do you realize none of us will ever be able to date anything “08/18/18” in our lifetime again?

HAWKINS HOMESTEAD Hello Market Friends! Isn’t it nice to have had some cooler days this week. With all the rain the temperatures were so nice! We definitely enjoyed being outside, but wished there hadn’t been so much rain so we could do more.

On our urban farm we have been SO busy! With the start of the school year, homeschool for us…it’s always challenging to get back into a routine of school when your 11 and you’ve spent your summer sleeping in and having fun. I’m sure all you parents agree! So couple that with Fall plantings, garden changes, plus trying to balance work, family, and our spiritual things! Well let’s just say we’re tired!

Even still we’re working hard to bring you the best organic food we can. Speaking of which something new for us is organic mung beans! We’re growing them specifically for bean sprouts! Sadly we don’t have enough to share, but don’t fret because our friends at Bain Home Gardens have sprouts on the Market right now so grab some. New for us this week is our LIME basil pesto! In one word all we can say is YUM! See you next week!

THIS WEEK’S GROWER NOTES

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

AVALON FARMS: Well our first “real” crop of garlic has sold out! Last year’s crop was very pitiful and small, but I learned some things and this year’s was great. Wish I had planted more! Have already ordered seed garlic that will be planted in September.

Onions are still storing very well. That’s the area of improvement I focused on this year. We lost so many to spoilage last year. But they won’t keep forever, so enjoy them now.

For those that attended my heat table workshop last Spring, you may recognize this setup. I removed the heating parts and moved it all inside in the a/c. I needed cooler temperatures to start cool weather crops like spinach.  Plus this way they are protected from hungry critters and all the mold and fungus spores floating around. I lost half my fall transplants last year to bugs and fungus because they were outside. More lessons learned!

BAIN HOME GARDENS: Hello Marketeers!
    How goes it? Back to school season is upon us. Have your little ones started back to school? Our youngest is in 6th grade this year and our oldest will be beginning his freshman year of college on the 20th. I really wonder just where the time went?! Before Jarod, gets all tied up with the rollercoaster of college life, our goal is to finalize our early fall plantings. We had a very productive fall season last year and this year we want to kick it up a notch! Planning, planning, and more planning coupled with lots of hard work – ah that should get us off to a good start.

So far we have cleared and tilled only one of our smaller beds. There are yet two larger areas not to mention the growing boxes that currently are demanding attention. We have not a moment to waste! Till next week!

DANNY’S GREENS: Danny’s commitment to utmost quality has forced the tough decision to suspend sales for a few weeks till the current weather conditions ease up. His greens are tender and most vulnerable so he’s papmering them till they’re ready to take off again.

GRIER ACRES: We are excited to offer you all some of our baking pears. Jeannie and her mom have put up some canned pears and Jeannie has also made some cobblers with the pears. We have also enjoyed our hot banana peppers and will be offering these to you all as well. They are great in salad or to cook with to add some heat and texture to foods. We also have been getting a lot of the yellow pear tomatoes, we enjoy cutting these in half to add to a salad. We also have a tabasco plant with peppers that are starting to turn.

Jeannie was so excited as she got a new composter. She loves the box kind and moves it around as she fills it with green and brown compost in a layered fashion in our garden. We have one on our field where we have okra growing-we have clemson spineless and emerald okra growing. Hopefully we can list some okra. We eat it roasted in the oven or grill. When Harry has time he likes to make a gumbo with the okra. c It really is the secret to gumbo. As you get ready for cooler weather and smoking meats, we will have a variety of smoking woods.

HAWKINS HOMESTEAD: Hello Market Friends! I really enjoyed meeting a lot of you yesterday at the Market pick up.Since I work Full-time it’s not often that I get a day off on Friday, but yesterday was a good day to be off. It was very nice putting faces with the names I see from week to week. We even got to hear some customer feedback which we welcome. We hope you guys know that you can always reach out to us. Either through messenger on Facebook, phone, or even email. Our email address is info@hawkonshomesteadfarm.com. We would love to hear from you!

This week on the Market enjoy our bone broth kit, basil pesto, fresh basil varieties, salsa fresh, and pear jams. As always we thank you and hope you have a good week.

THIS WEEK’S GROWER NOTES

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

BAIN HOME GARDENS: Marketeers!
    We missed you guys! We have, however, really enjoyed our break thus far! Many times we focus on resting our bodies and minds thus rejuvenating them. We personally think it is even more vital to renew our spiritual selves! This weekend we’ve done just that and are ready to face the world!
    This week on the market you will notice our various kale varieties are not listed. We expect it to stay that way for a few weeks. They have been cut back and we will kindly allow them some time to “rejuvenate” as well. However, our Soybeans, Basil, Aloe Vera, Rosemary, Thyme, Summer Salad Blend, & Sprouts continue to be available for the pickin’!

    This year has been ABSOLUTELY AMAZING! Truly. We have been on this Market for over a year now and we have learned so much! We have grown new & exotic plant varieties, gotten to know you Marketeers & your endearing stories, learned so much from and have forged beautiful relationships with our fellow growers, and finally we feel worthy of the badge – grower. We are looking to the fall growing season with bright eyes. New plots are being tilled & prepared for even further expansion this 2018 Fall growing season, thus enabling us to proudly continue bringing quality organic produce from our family to yours!

HAWKINS HOMESTEAD: Hello Market Friends! Is it really August already?!?! Is anyone else trying to figure out where the whole year went? Seems like time has flown by so fast. Well we for one are ready to get through August and into the later part of the year. You know where the humidity loosens its grip on us and the temperatures actually cool down.

On our urban farm we are still canning pear jam. Our most favorite flavor is Lemon Ginger Pear. I love a good peanut butter and jelly sandwich, but I don’t usually like a lot of either on my bread. With this jam, well let’s just say that I had to go back and add more!

Have you checked out our website lately? Each month we post a special report of all that we have “growing now.” If you haven’t taken the time to check it out, please do! Besides our Facebook page, it’s a wonderful way to stay up to date on what we’re doing. Plus we know not everyone is on social media. You can find the link here:
https://hawkinshomesteadfarm.com/2018/07/31/growing-now-august/

As always we thank everyone for their continued support of us and the Market. Until next time.

YARD EATIN’S: is taking a short August break August 3 and 10 but will return on August 24 with their granola and other new items. My first grandchild is arriving in early August, and I’ll be in Texas waiting for, and then helping with the bundle of joy.

MARKET CHITCHAT

Did you notice it? We’ve settled on M@D for our Market at Dothan abbreviation. Steve of 3LC apiary thought it made more sense than “MAD”. We agree!

THANK YOU to everyone who made the effort to come a little earlier on Friday. We’re asking that for the next few weeks while the heat and humidity are intense that folks try to pick up by 11:30 am. We appreciate your understanding.

Don’t be alarmed if you don’t see your favorite grower the next couple of weeks. With summer coming to an end and the school year starting many things are going on that prevent several of them from listing this week.

New & Relisted Products

• Lemon Ginger Pear Jam from Hawkins Homestead
• Bulk Okra from a Sustainable Seasonal Grower
• Brown Sugar Pear Jam from Hawkins Homestead

THIS WEEK’S GROWER NOTES

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

AVALON FARMS: I admit defeat. The summer squash are on the list to be pulled out this week. I’ve done everything I can think of and they are still sad and not producing. So, put on my big farmer-girl pants and get ’em gone. (I hate killing plants!)

One thing that does seem to be doing well…the one row of winter squash that DID come up is starting to run! Also my mulching experiment is working too! Been saving my animal feed sacks and used them on the left side. On the other side is hay that I gleaned after the big farmer and big tractors got done on the hay field my Dad rents out. Made me feel smart and sneaky all at once. Plus a free upper body workout.

I found this nest while checking my persimmon tree a couple weeks ago. Now we have baby birds. Very vocal baby birds. LOL They’ll be assisting with pest control before long.

HAWKINS HOMESTEAD: Hello Market Friends! Today I want to talk to you about food preservation. So how do you preserve foods only available in one season for the whole year? For example, in the Spring and Summer we grow different organic basil varieties that aren’t available during other times. So how can we make sure there is basil year round? We make pesto! Pesto can be frozen in ice cubes trays and then you have access to basil year round. Not just that, but have you ever thought about dehydrating basil to make your own organic seasoning? Try it!

Another idea is with pears. If you’ve checked our Facebook Page lately, you’ve seen that we have been making preserves and jams with our freshly picked pears. If we only thought about pears as a fruit, it would go to waste, but by making them into something else, we are stretching our food and making fresh pears last the whole year or even longer.

Food preservation could also help not just your family, but others in times of need. If there is a family who has fallen on hard times, you could help them with a gift that was made from fresh organic food and preserved for later! Since we’ve done the research and possess the knowledge, we want to share with all of you.

Think about it this way, if there is a major disaster in our area and we lose power, the grocery stores are closed, and you can’t get off your street, will you be ok? What food provisions do you have on hand? Even water becomes so precious in a situation like that.

Now of course we know that not everyone has time or wants to grow their own gardens. We also know that canning is hard work. So thats where we come in. The law doesn’t permit us to sell everything, but we try to do our part for our family and yours! So if you’re already growing, think preservation! If you’re not, that’s ok too, because we’re always here to help. Until next time!

. . . COMES FROM YOU

Thanks to everyone who chimed in on our Market Discussion Page and shared how they use “Ugly Food”

Mrs. Patty: I save up all my veggie scraps plus stuff that maybe isn’t quite fresh enough for salads but not bad like lettuce, other greens and cucumbers. I also save up the bits left over from spiralizing, cucumber and tomato ends etc.
When I have a gallon zip lock or more full, I put it all in the food processor with a ton of seasonings and puree it. I will usually add a bag of cauliflower, kale and a few onions, several cloves of garlic, a few hot peppers and anything else that strikes my fancy. it usually takes several batches then I mix in huge bowl by hand.
Drain the excess liquid and scoop onto dehydrator sheets. If mixture is too liquid add coconut flour, almond flour, konjac flour etc until consistency of soft dough. Flatten and dehydrate until crisp. Drying time varies greatly depending on temperature, humidity etc. Highest temp is fastest but if you are trying to do raw, stay below 110. I usually get 150 to 200 2" round crackers/batch. When seasoning remember that seasonings will concentrate as the food dehydrates.
Another way I use bruised/scraps etc is to put in meatloaf.

T Harris: Soup stock. I always have a few bags in the freezer collecting scraps for soup stock. The crackers idea is great, and that would be a great way to use some of the vegetables that are too strong for vegetable stock.

MARKET CHITCHAT

Refrigerators! Someone stopped by late last Friday and noticed the ones we use in the Market Shed. It reminded me again how blessed we are to have them in this heat. Some foods require refrigeration and some just can’t handle the heat very long. A few of us remember retrieving such items were from coolers in the summertime. We’re thankful to the Nursery Staff and our donors who have made real refrigeration possible.

New & Relisted Products

• Bone Broth Kit from Hawkins Homestead
• Poona Dill Pickles from Bain Home Gardens
• Berry Granola Bars from Yard Eatins
• Pumpkin Butter from Hawkins Homestead
• Soybeans from Bain Home Gardens
• Cinnamon Spiced Pears from Hawkins Homestead

THIS WEEK’S GROWER NOTES

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

AVALON FARMS Just put a reminder in APRIL of next year’s farm calendar “July is coming. Farming sucks in July. Plan for it!”  That’s the unvarnished truth. It’s not even working in the heat. It’s when the heat ruins a crop because they won’t set fruit over 95 degrees. Or the heat plus lots of rain encourages fungus, mildew and disease. Or seeds just plain won’t grow. (It’s all so frustrating to a mere mortal. BUT it does showcase that only God can cause a seed to grow and produce no matter what you do right or wrong.) Next year it may be the lack of rain that is the issue. Or armyworms. Or volcanoes. Who knows! Always something out of our control. All of this is why it’s a joy to me when I am able to produce nice veggies for you all.

Working up my garlic order. Have to get those babies in the ground in September/October. With this year’s success (see, sometimes things work! ) I’ll be planting a full row of 1200. Plus a few elephant garlics just for fun.

While I’m planning and ordering for cool weather crops, do you have any requests? Would love to hear your ideas. Email me at wendy@avalonfarms.us

BAIN HOME GARDENS: Hello Marketeers!
    How are you?! This humidity is pretty rough! Humidity plays a large part in how productive vegetation is. Keeping things alive and well can be a REAL challenge this time of the year due to humid air which can zap the moisture right out of the plants! Having a humidity controlled environment to grow would be excellent. Since that is not an option at this point we will continue our tug of war with nature. Experimenting with different crops enhances our hands on knowledge and prepares us better for next growing.
    In the garden we have some exciting developments. We have soybeans!

Learning how they grow along with how and when to harvest, has been a great adventure. We are not experts – yet. So we will be releasing them on the market this week or the week of August 4th IF all goes according to planned. Keep on the lookout! This week we will also be releasing our Poona Dill Pickles- from the Poona Kheera Cucumber. They are extremely tasty!  For photos check our Facebook page – they are our pride and joy this year.
    We will be off next week. Don’t miss us too much! Sending warm wishes of rest and relaxation – from our family to yours!

HAWKINS HOMESTEAD: Hello Market Friends. Hope this past week has been treating you well. For us, we’ve been busy as usual with all that we have going on at our urban farm. In the next few weeks we will be introducing some new and exciting things to the Market, that we’re excited to share with you.

We went out on a limb and decided to plant pumpkins in the Spring and boy did we get pumpkins! So many in fact that we decided to make pumpkin butter. Rich with cinnamon, nutmeg and all the spices that bring Autumn to mind, this butter is creamy and delicious!

In addition PEARS are in season! So we’re making all types of pear goodies that we invite you to try. Starting with our Cinnamon Spiced Pears. Our family tested and approved!

In chicken news we will be offering our bone broth kit this week! This will allow you to make your own bone broth at home! Good and good for you! We do have chicken feet up and are still working on how to bring our chicken back to the Market. Hopefully soon!

Of course our egg flats are available along with our basil varieties. Did you hear about Bain Home Gardens Poona Pickles? Made using a wonderful cucumber variety that’s organic. We grew this this year as well but they never made it to the Market. That’s how good they are!

As always we appreciate you all. We have been on the Market for one full year now and we are happy and thankful to be apart of the only Wiregrass Market that offers sustainable food. See you next week.

MARKET CHITCHAT

I think one of the best things about Market at Dothan (besides the health benefits of sustainably grown food) is the variety of foods available. Seriously! When have you ever been able to buy Fairy Tale Eggplants or Grain Free Granola in a store? THANK YOU to all our growers and producers who think outside the box.

Speaking of Eggplant – Welcome back Restoration Gardens! We’ve missed you!

New & Relisted Products

• Fairy Tale Mini Eggplants are Relisted
• 30 Count Egg Flat- Relisted
• Vegan Granola from Yard Eatins
• Rosemary Rub from Hortons Farm – Relisted
• Organic Basil Snack Bag- New from Hawkins
• Green Pears from Restoration Gardens
• Asian Mini & Solid White Mini Eggplants – New from Restoration Gardens
• Organic Lime Basil- New from Hawkins

Don’t forget to vote this Tuesday! Market at Dothan has endorsed Gerald Dial for Commissioner of Agriculture and we hope you’ll support this outstanding public servant.

THIS WEEK’S GROWER NOTES

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

BAIN HOME GARDENS: Marketeers!
    How are you? We hope you are all well. We are doing our best to beat the heat but is that really possible anymore? Since we have much to do in the garden we must rise early! It really is the best time to be out there for multiple reasons. Besides the temperature, it gives time for meditation. As I walk through the various garden beds, I can’t help but be so thankful to God for the ability to grow our own food. Watching how things grow makes me more and more appreciative each day. Along with that, I’m really able to examine the plants without distraction, inspect them, talk with them (it’s therapeutic), & make plans for the future all while listening to the orchestra of birds singing, bees buzzing, and the gentle morning breeze blowing. Soon the scorching heat of the sun arrives and it over – till the next morning.
   Speaking of future plans, we have so much to do to arrange garden beds for fall. Remember the issues we had with trellises falling over earlier this spring? We are hoping to avoid that this fall by staging a new area against a fence line. This is being done as you read. In one section we will plant another planting of pole beans, later in the second plot will go fall plantings of peas.  
    You guys have come to know that Bain Home Gardens is really interested in growing the unusual, some would say exotic, veggies that you just don’t find in the grocery stores locally. This year we have experimented with Pigeon Peas, Oriental Yard Long Beans, Turkish Orange Eggplant, Poona Kheera Cucumber, and more!

On a small scale we planted these to test out our ability to grow them successfully. We are happier with some more than others but now that we have perfected the growing process of these unique heirlooms, next year we will grow many of them in larger quantities. Look forward to seeing them on in the market page – from our family to yours!

DANNY’S GREENS Danny sends word that he’s hanging in there raising awesome salad greens despite the heat. He’s had to cut back on the amount he can list because growth is SO SLOW right now. Once the nights start cooling off the lettuces will grow faster and produce better. In the meantime if you’ve not tried his green onions you are missing out! We’ve found that the best way to enjoy them is to chop them up right away and put them in the refrigerator. You’ll fill several containers and have them ready to use in all your favorite dishes. They will last several weeks that way.

HAWKINS HOMESTEAD: Hello Market Friends! New this week we have our organic lime basil. Never heard of it? Haven’t tried it? Well now is your chance! Bursting with full citrus tones, it smell so good and tastes even better. Of course our organic sweet basil is in full swing, so grab both if you like. We have even decided to package it in a smaller size for those who don’t need a quart. Just because we like basil in abundance, doesn’t mean everyone else does too!

Here on our urban farm, Fall planting is in full swing. We have pulled and cleared out most of our Spring veggies. We have a lot to look forward to in the next coming months, but for now our organic produce will be slim.

We recently took a trip out to Working Cows Dairy to pick up some organic mulching hay. Did you know that not only do they have organic ground beef, milk, butters, yogurts, and cheeses, but even organic hay?!?! That works for us! We miss them on the Market and if you do too, why not take a short drive and pick up a few things? We suggest the chocolate milk and their new cheeses are worth the drive itself! (Market Note – Working Cows is an approved Market Vendor. They stopped delivering earlier this year and prefer that people come to the farm to buy direct.)

When we first moved here, it was hard to believe that there were SO many farms, but very few organic or chemical free ones. Many of you know that’s why we decided to start our own. Thankfully we found this Market as well  as a very select few growers who are doing it the right way. We have been growing more this year than we ever have and it’s helping to feed our family. More and more of our meals come from right here! When we venture out, we shop less at the grocery store and more with local sustainable and organic farmers. We love that we’re able to do this with those on the Market and off. So wherever you decide to spend your money ALWAYS ask questions. Make sure what you think you’re getting is what you’re ACTUALLY getting. We are always open for questions! So please ask away and thank you for your continued support of the Market and us!

HORTONS FARM: Have you ever wondered about all the tinctures you see listed on the Market? If you’re curious about the who/what/when/where & why of tincutres you should reserve a spot at the Westgate Library for Tincture 101 on Tuesday, July 17 at 5:30 pm. Our classes are designed to remove the mystery and give beginners the tools and information they need to safely DIY their own products at home. Contact Keith Brantley at 334-793-9767 ext. 4216.

MARY’S PEEPS Mary sends word from Florida to thank everyone for their understanding when she had to cancel last week’s orders because of a death in the family. She’ll be back next week and is looking forward to getting back on track and filling your orders.

YARD EATIN’S: Yard Eatins is now making two new kinds of granola. (Woo hoo!) We will continue with our traditional granola, and we are adding a VEGAN VERSION of that recipe (i.e., replacing the honey with maple syrup) AND adding a grain-free version for our Paleo friends. We are So Excited about the new recipes and can hardly wait to share. The vegan granola will debut at the July 12 Market, and the grain-free granola will debut at the July 19 Market. AND ALSO, our oats will be certified gluten-free starting with the July 12 pickup-day batch. We are NOT raising prices with the shift. We’ve also been hard at work perfecting our granola bars, and those will be available for the July 19 pickup day.

UGLY FOOD MOVEMENT

The “ugly food movement” is taking off around the world, particularly in Europe and Australia, as an answer to the problem of food waste. So far, it has yet to firmly take hold in the United States, but given this country’s love of solution-driven food trends, it seems a good bet that ugly food might soon take its place beside local food, organic food, and environmentally conscious eating. “Ugly” foods are those that sellers and buyers often reject because of their appearance, like misshapen vegetables and bruised fruits. Farmers dump them. Supermarkets and restaurants reject them. Consumers historically have avoided them.

The problem of food waste is no joke. By some estimates, a third or more of the food produced globally goes uneaten. The costs are in the hundreds of billions of dollars. Marketing so-called “ugly” food is one answer to the problem. Until recently, the European Union had rules actually preventing the sale of oddly sized or misshapen produce. Some of the rules were hilariously granular: a spear of asparagus could not be sold unless at least 80% of its length was green. The curve of cucumbers was regulated down the millimeter.

The U.S., perhaps not surprisingly, has been slower than Europe to take up the trend, but there are some early indications that it might take off here. Bon Appetit Management, a big food-service company owned by the gigantic Compass Group USA, last year launched Imperfectly Delicious Produce, a program to divert ugly foods from the waste stream to the restaurants and cafeterias the company serves.

Large scale efforts like this are rare in the United States so far. Until recently, most “ugly” food that wasn’t simply thrown away has been given to needy people, though efforts like the Food Recovery Network (which Bon Appetit works with) and the Environmental Protection Agency’s Food Recovery Challenge. And such efforts of course do help. But if the private sector can be moved to make “ugly” food not only salable, but commercially popular, that would go a long way toward reducing the shocking amount of food our country wastes.

MARKET CHITCHAT

New & Relisted
Products

• Fresh Picked Figs from Mary’s Peeps
• Basil -from Hawkins Homestead is relisted
• Leeks From Avalon Farms
• Kale Stems from Bain Home Gardens
• Mixed beans from Hawkins Homestead
• Pea tendrils!!!! Salad addition and garnish
• Cut Prewashed Curly Kale from Bain Home Gardens
• Bone broth from Hawkins Homestead
• Okra from Avalon Farms
• Aloe Vera Leaf from Bain Home Gardens
• Lemonade from Hawkins Homestead

THIS WEEK’S GROWER NOTES

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

AVALON FARMS: We have had a wonderful time this week hanging out with all our kids! (How did they get that old?!?) Hope you had some quality time too.

The 3rd planting of squashes and cukes are starting to produce. The excessive rain has made it difficult to keep them weeded. You can’t really use tools like hoes or wheel hoes when the soil is wet. So this week I resorted to hand pulling the weeds in the rows and mowing the middles. Now it’s a cover crop of sorts. Sometimes you just work with what you have.

Planted my winter squash this week. Yes, it does sound silly, but winter squash actually are a warm weather crop just like regular squash. I’m guessing they are called winter squash because they store and are then available in the winter.

Just moved my young chickens onto garden 5. They will scratch up the soil, eating bugs and weeds and deposit all that wonderful chicken litter (manure/poop). That means this garden is off limits for quite a while. USDA Food Safety says we can’t grow crops here for 90 days AFTER we move the chickens. Seems excessive but we are all about our food being healthy and safe.

BAIN HOME GARDENS: Marketeers!
    Ok so it seems our little break was right on time. My body decided to take a break too! “It’s all a part of aging”, so I’m told.  Since I wasn’t able to supervise garden activities, it gave me an opportunity to expand our website. Yes you heard correctly – we now have a website! Feel free to check it out: bainhomegardens.wordpress.com. I’m happy in this new niche. Just call me the gardener/writer/blogger. It has been very enjoyable for me to say the least. So what is going on in the garden?
Lettuce & Spinach
We are absolutely determined to master this summer lettuce thing. Just because we are in the South doesn’t mean we don’t deserve fresh, organic lettuces! Am I right? In our research, we have attained much information. Now it is time to put it to work. We have had some success but will not be listing any lettuces just yet. Soon. In the meantime our summer spinach is taking off! That is still available in our Summer Salad Mix. I like it – a lot!
Kale
Surprisingly all varieties of our kale are pushing through the summer heat thus far. We are supposed to be blanching and freezing for later but who can resist a fresh kale salad? Not me! As a result, we have also begun using our kale stems in various ways. In fact kale stems are a new listing this week.  Have no idea what to do with them? Check our recipe here.:

Before we sign off, we really want to thank all of you who came out to support the last day of the Spring Farmers Market. Your love for fresh produce was evident as you came out sweated and laughed with us. It would have been more comfortable to go the local “air conditioned” grocery store but you chose us. So on behalf of Bain Home Gardens, and I’m sure all the  vendors of the Market at Dothan, thank you marketeers for your support!

HAWKINS HOMESTEAD: Hello Market friends!! Welcome back! Did you see it?!? We are now offering our organic  bone broth on the Market! Made using our organic chickens, it’s a wonderful way to treat your body good. We know not everyone has time to make their own bone broth, so we’ve done the work for you. We hope you love it!

Also new for us this week are our mixed beans. As always we grew these without chemicals or sprays. We have spent time shelling them and placed them in a beautiful mason jar, especially for you. We got this idea from one of our customers! Thank you!

Want to beat the heat? Try out our lemonade along with some fresh salsa from the garden! This salsa is all organic with a splash of lime juice! Both are so refreshing and delicious! In addition our basil is back! Sold by the quart. Grab it today.
Recently we announced a new price structure on our Facebook page and we have also completed our price restructuring through the Market. You guys know that we hold ourselves to a very high standard when it comes to feeding our birds and growing food. We love that we are able to bring healthy, fresh, organic food to you, and we hope to continue to do so. With that being said, what you may not know is the price you pay on The Market at Dothan is not the amount the growers receive. Each grower pays a different percentage for their Market share. It’s like the cost of doing business.

The Market connects us with all of you and it provides a service that gives so many growers access to a broad range of people and the people access to us. Since we farm on a small scale, we have to be strategic about what we grow, how we feed our animals, and how we organize it all. We want you to know that your continued support of us and the Market is why we’re here. Of course many growers, including us also sell direct, so you have options.

Lastly within our restructuring we announced that we would no longer be offering our chicken through the Market. This was a hard but necessary choice for us. Since then Roslyn has given us some ideas to try and they may work. We’re just not sure yet. It would mean more work for all of us, but we are trying. Again, we appreciate all of you and we thank you for choosing the Market at Dothan and us.

MARY’S PEEPS I am going to list figs on next weeks order, and weather cooperating will be able to fill orders. If not I will delete orders, please understand in fruit such as figs they are very perishable in unpredictable weather. Hopefully they will continue to produce well. We expect to have more blueberries too! Thank you, Mary’s Peeps, Mary Dale Peeples Echo, Ala.

LAST TENT MARKET OF THE SEASON

We will be setting up tents at Dothan Nurseries again on Saturday, June 30. This will be our last public event of the summer. THANK YOU To Dothan Nurseries for hosting us and to everyone who has come out to visit. We are grateful for your kindness and support. Sustainable agriculture is such a small part of farming in every region of Alabama and while our size isn’t impressive you understand that the quality of what we offer is.

MARKET CHITCHAT

WE ARE CLOSING. Don’t panic. It’s only for a week. Online orders will not reopen next Saturday, June 30 for a midsummer break coinciding with the Fourth of July. We hope you have a safe and enjoyable 4th and we promise to back up and running the following Saturday on July 7 rarin’ & ready to go!

New & Relisted Products This Week

• Ground Dexter Beef From Smith Farms has been relisted
• Market Day Lemonade from Hawkins Homestead
• Pickles from Bain Home Gardens
• Focaccia and Ciabatta bread Avalon Farms
• Organic Cucumbers from Hawkins Homestead
• Pickles from Hawkins Homestead
• Salad Blend from Hawkins Homestead
• Beef Filet Mignon from Smith Farms
• Basil Pesto from Hawkins Homestead
• Choi from Bain Home Gardens
• Beard/Shave Oil from Hawkins Homestead
• Summer Salad Greens From
  Bain Home Gardens
• Basil Trio from Bain Home Gardens
• Body Butter from Hawkins Homestead
• Beef Soup Bones from Smith Farms
• Body Oil from Hawkins Homestead
• Beets 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.

AVALON FARMS: First, we whine about too much rain. Now we whine about how hot it is. (Been running around 95 everyday here. Heat index of 110!) Is it really whining or just stating the facts? Guess it depends on if we sound like a whiney  2 year old when we say it. : ) Everything slows down at these temps except okra it’s just getting started and loves the heat. Tomatoes and peppers will bloom but will not set fruit at these temps.

I will be trying to keep a close eye on what’s producing and make more available if possible. So check back Monday or Tuesday if I have more.

I will be listing some small and baby beets. I’m bummed that they didn’t grow better. Apparently I don’t have that one figured out.

Also, I’ve been selling focaccia and ciabatta loaves at Poplar Head. I think you guys will like them too! So I’m listing them this week.

BAIN HOME GARDENS: Hello Marketeers!
    We hope you all are well. We are so excited because we finally got some much needed garden work done! As a result we are happy to offer a few new listings this week: Choi, Pickles, & Summer Salad Greens! So excited I can hardly contain myself! Check our new items on the Market page and feel free to inbox us with questions. We do love to talk!
    We have really enjoyed meeting the Wiregrass at the Farmers Markets. On the 30th we will be at Dothan Nurseries for the final Spring Market. Hope to see you there!

“Work Smarter Not Harder”
Plan Ahead
    Many of the summer crops are very heavy feeders. This can leave your soil, how should we say, wanting? Crops like squash, okra, and especially melons really pull nutrients from the soil. Not worry, with a little planning you can replenish some of these naturally. As some of your spring/summer veggies die out consider planting beans or legumes. Not only do these bring nitrogen back into the soil, but they also have root nodules that house Bradyrhizobiumbacteria that act as nitrogen fixers. Another plus for legumes is that they are super easy to maintain! And, who doesn’t love beans?
   That’s all folks! Till next week – sending fresh produce from our family to yours.

DANNY’S GREENS: Danny is not listing any produce this week to give his lettuce greens a chance to catch up. Tender leaf crops grow slower in the summer and his beautiful lettuces just don’t grow fast enough to keep up with demand when it’s hot.

HAWKINS HOMESTEAD: Hello Market Friends! How are all of you doing in this heat? The rain stopped and the heat decided to beam full on! We needed our rest, but I really don’t think we got any….isn’t that how it always goes?!?! Around here the answer is YES!

On the Market this week we will have the last of our organic potatoes, chicken feet, sprouts, and eggs. Eggs are limited because the chickens don’t like this heat either….

We will be listing some fresh organic cucumbers and pickles for the first time. Last week I played around with a few recipes and I found one I like. Hoping you feel the same way!

Many of you have adamantly requested our refreshing organic lemonade! We are happy to announce its debut this week on the Market.
 
Back on the Market is our essential oil blends along with our body butter. Coming soon we’ll be offering an essential oil mixture that helps us to fight off the bugs! Plus we found some arugula that decided to self seed so there is a small salad blend available as well.

We will have our fresh organic chickens at the last Farmers Market Day coming up this weekend, so come out and get yours!

We know you have many choices when it comes to deciding how to feed your family and we thank you for allowing us to provide you with the best, fresh, organic, and local that we have to offer.