Things I Learned at Farmer's Market 9/19/2009

Some people apparently think two large tattoos on one's shoulder blades can substitute for clothing on the entire upper backside of a woman's body. Add a top front, a skirt with many tiers and layers, and a ring in the nose, and you're all ready for a trip to the Farmer's Market.

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Red Jalapenos are less hot than green ones, according to one Hispanic shopper who fished through our tub for every green one he could find.

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You can never tell about flowers. This week I took fewer flowers, with less variety, than at any time all season, and everything sold--even the bouquet I put together with the leftovers--only flowers in magenta and sky blue. I had hardly finished it before someone bought it.

This week I included Wichita Mountains Goldenrod in the bouquets. It might be the only week when the flowers are in their prime and suitable for arrangements. It looks like a bright yellow version of lavender Liatris, or Kansas Gayfeather.

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You can never tell about eggs either. This week we brought home most of the cute pullet eggs produced by Lowell's hens. Last week they sold very well, perhaps because the regular egg vendors were absent.

Having to keep them at a constant 40 degrees is foolishness, in my humble opinion, and we made some pretense of doing that by putting the display cartons on ice packs. But it was a cool day, the eggs were very fresh, and I really would have liked to forget the ice packs and just show off our abundance.

Publish Post

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I bought a Bald Cypress tree for $5.00. It grew as a volunteer in the seller's flowerbed. He told me he must have just the right conditions, since they are apparently difficult to start from seed.

Now I need to find the right spot for it. I don't have a bog or pond or any such thing for it to settle in with. The best I can hope for is a spot that gets regular watering, and is not too exposed to hot dry south winds. Are there other things I should consider?

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The herb lady tells me that cilantro grows well here only in the spring and fall. In the summer, it bolts to seed very quickly.

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Sheila is home sick with pneumonia. She is one of the mainstays at the market, and her husband and son filled in for her today as vendors.

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Bruschetta (Bruce-ketta) is delicious. It was served at the market today by Marcella's, an Italian restaurant. The diced tomato topping usually also includes a little salt, olive oil, garlic, and basil. Pepper and balsamic vinegar may be added as well. It is served on top of thinly sliced and toasted Italian bread.

I saw on their menu that the special for the day at the restaurant featured escargot (snails). I think I'd prefer the bruschetta, thank you very much.

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The husband of the lady that makes the goat milk soap bought flowers for her today. We made a deal (with him leaning in conspiratorially), since he had only a five-dollar wooden nickel, that he could have a bouquet in a vase, as long as he made sure to return the vase.

Wooden nickles are tokens people can get when they swipe their credit cards at a central location at the market. These tokens can be spent on produce or flowers, and redeemed by vendors turning them in to the market credit card fund manager.

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Lots of people have never tried daikon, the huge white Japanese radish that we grow in the fall. Our cool wet weather has created wonderfully mild (with just a bit of a kick), crunchy specimans that we took to market today. We offered samples, and lots of people tried them.

Several people even bought the tops, which Hiromi uses to make Japanese pickles by salting and pressing them. I don't know what other people do with the tops, except for one person who said she steams them.

We use the daikon roots to make another kind of Japanese pickle, and sometimes we cook it in miso soup. Finely ground, it gets added raw to mizutaki, and adds a spicy flavor to the soup. For American palates, it's great too julienned for salads, cut into sticks for relish trays, or sliced for sandwiches.

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One market vendor sells a fuzzy navel salsa, which contains oranges and peaches. I've never tried it, but it sounds interesting.

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The "Honey Man" at Farmer's market, told Hiromi today about the first prize winner for honey at the state fair. It was apparently an entry by the Beekeeper's Association, which Bill, the honey man is a member of. Grant had told us that the first prize winner for honey was his boss Terry's friend, so this information is a bit difficult to reconcile. Maybe Terry's friend was the individual producer whose honey the association submitted. Or maybe there were different divisions in the honey contest.

Wesley, the principal where I teach, is a beekeeper. When I asked him how honey is judged, he said that he's aware of two primary factors: color and flavor. Light color is preferred, and some strong flavors are considered objectionable. Other distinctive flavors, like buckwheat honey, for example, are favorites for certain people, and not favored by others.

Wes also told me that smartweed, which is blooming right now, makes a bad-tasting honey. If bees have only that to forage on, the honey they produce is not great honey. He says that he can taste it every time if his wife uses smartweed honey in the dough when she bakes bread.

Last year was a bad year here for honey. It was dry during the times when good honey crops were growing, and wet when the blooming period arrived. In a good year, there's plenty of moisture while the crop is developing, and warm, sunny weather while the blooms are out.

I heard the honey man say today that all his bees are on alfalfa. People who produce alfalfa seed are happy to have bees to help pollinate the blossoms, thereby boosting seed production. So bees, alfalfa, beekeepers, and farmers can live together in a big, happy family. I like this kind of interwoven benefit in production systems.