Colored Carrots!

Baby Colored Carrots

So today I decided I would weed the carrot beds. I really have not looked closely at them since the last time I weeded them, and I was very happy to see how much they have grown since then. They still have a way to go but are getting there. I should have orange bunches, white bunches, purple bunches, and mixed bunches of yellow, red, orange, purple, and white. I am hoping that we will have some available sometime around either early or mid August.


There are many interesting facts about colored carrots, here are some of them:

~ Just one full size carrot will fulfill your daily quotient of the essential vitamin A.

~ Each color of carrot has a different health benefit of its own:

*Orange carrots - contain beta carotene pigments - essential for well-being, healthy eyes
*Red carrots - contain lycopene pigments - believed to guard against heart disease and cancers
*Yellow carrots - contain xanthophylls pigments - support good eye health, fight aginst macular degeneration, may prevent lung and other cancers, and reduce the risk of hardening of the arteries
*White carrots - lack pigments - but contain substances called phytomchemicals - can protect against disease
*Purple carrots - contain anthocyanins pigments - act as powerful antioxidants, can prevent heart disease by slowing blood clotting and are good anti inflammatory agents

~ Colored carrots may be new to some people but purple and yellow carrots were actually eaten more than 1,000 years ago.

~ In fact orange carrots are actually the "mutant" carrot, carrots were originally purple and yellow.

~ Carrots are a member of the parsley family, along with dill, caraway, cumin, chervil, coriander, fennel, anise, parsley, parsnip, and celery.

~ There are so many different carrot varieties that there is actually a variety for every letter of the alphabet.

~ Carrots could be used as a bio fuel, you would need approximately 6,000 carrots to drive one mile. (That is a lot of carrots, sounds to me like the idea needs some work).

Salad Mixes

This past Saturdays market we had a very good variety of different salad mixes available. We should have all the different mixes and maybe even some more mixes available for this coming Saturdays market.

You can see pictures and information about all the different mixes at our website, salad mixes page.

Our salad mixes are:
~ Just Lettuce Salad Mix
~ Looseleaf Lettuce Salad Mix
~ Spicy Salad Mix
~ Lettuce and Greens Salad Mix
~ Lettuce and Romaine Salad Mix
~ Lettuce and Herb Salad Mix
~ Ark of Taste Salad Mix

What's Available- Saturday October 17th

There are only two more markets left! We have not gone to market for the past couple of weeks. But we will be attending tomorrow's market! I had planned on baking a lot, but so far have not made as much as I had hoped to. I did not get any pies made so far, and since it is so late, I do not believe I will have time to do so. Hopefully next week I will get a lot more made. It is sooo hard to believe the end of this years market is almost here. Any how here is a list of the what we plan to have available. I wish it was bigger, but for this year it will just have to do. Next year our list should be a lot larger at this time of the year.

• Collards
• Red Russian Kale
• Leeks
• Yukon Gold Potatoes
• Golden Delicious Apples
• Red Delicious Apples
• Jona Gold Apples
• Pumpkin Bread
• Pumpkin Apple Streusel Bread
  

Next market- What's available

This Saturday July 4th, there will be no market at Valley City, due to the holiday. The next market at Valley City will be on Saturday July 10th. Here is what we are expecting to have available:

~Beets- Regular and Forono (longer than regular beets
~Radishes- Regular and French Breakfast
~Bagged Salad Mixes- I will post what types of mixes when it is closer to the market date
~Loose Leaf Lettuce Heads
~Head Lettuce- Should have some ready for next market
~Red Russian Kale bunches
~Collard bunches
~Sweet Basil bunches
~Red and White Scallions
~Red Cherry Tomatoes- may possibly have some ready for next market, if not we will have them soon after
~Bell Peppers- coming very soon, not sure if we will have any for next market, but will be coming soon
~Zuchinni and Summer Squash- coming very soon

Summer Greens

This year I hope to have bagged greens for salads and stir fry mixes available throughout the summer. Right now I have spinach, butterhead lettuce, baby romaine, collards, red russian kale, swiss chard, and radicchio planted. They are all suppose to be heat tolerant, so I am keeping my fingers crossed, and hoping I will have a nice selection. I also plan to plant some dinosaur kale and Tatsoi (a type of mustard green). I think I will also replant some mizuna and possibly some arugula. We will see how it goes.

So hopefully I will have salad mixes and mixed greens available all summer. I will let everyone know how all my summer greens are doing and of coarse will have to post some pictures.

Pictures from the market

I just thought that I would share some pictures from our market on Saturday.

Diakon Radishes, White Scallions, French Breakfast Radishes, Looseleaf Lettuce Heads, and Garlic Scapes

Picture of some of our bagged salad mixes. Just Lettuce Mix, Spicy Salad Mix, Red Sails Leaf Lettuce, and Black Seeded Simpson Leaf Lettuce.

Red Russian Kale Bunches, Collard Bunches and Some of our potted plants we have available for sale (such as Dahlias, Tomato Plants and Fairy Tale Eggplant).

Berry Bread

We also had Berry Bread available, which was made with strawberries and mulberries, and was very good. I am hoping to be able to make some more Berry Bread for this coming weekends market. I may actually have some raspberries to add to the strawberries and mulberries. I am not sure but am thinking that next week may be the last week for the Berry Bread because the mulberries and strawberries may not be producing for the following week, but we will see. I am almost positive that I will be able to make it this weekend.

First market of the year

Valley City Farmers Market

First Market of the year

We are the first table on the right

Yesterday was our first market of the year. We had lots and lots of lettuce available, and still have lots that we did not have time to pick.

Sadly we did not have any spinach available since it decided it wanted to bolt. Sometime within the next couple of days I plan to get rid of the row of spinach that I have planted and plant some spinach that I just bought the other day that is suppose to be heat tolerant. It will be the first time I try this variety, but we shall see. Hopefully it last longer that the one I have planted now. I almost forgot that I also have some Malabar Spinach planted. This will be my first time trying this also. It is actually a vine and it suppose to love the heat, should be interesting.

I also plan to pull the last of my arugula, since some of them have just started to go to flower. I am not sure what I will put in its place yet. Maybe some more kale and collards to be picked for bagged greens during the summer.

-------------------------------------------------------------

For next week I should for sure have more Red Russian Kale and Collards available, which I must say they both are very very beautiful.

Of coarse we will for sure have red and white scallions available.

I am thinking that I should also still have available my bagged lettuce mixes.

I should also have some beautiful full heads of leaf lettuce available.

The radishes should hopefully be ready just in time for next weeks market also.

Some of my dahlias are just beginning to bloom so I should have some of them to bring next week.

I am also hoping to get together some of my extra tomato plants.

If we get some rain this week like I believe we are suppose to things should get a growth spurt, so we may have other things available also.

What's Available (Market date 6/13/09)

Valley City Farmers Market
Saturday June 13th, 2009
First market of the year!!!

I will be posting updates as we get closer to market day, so be sure to check back.

Our main thing that we will have available for sale for this week is our bagged salad mixes. Everyday when I walk through the gardens I notice that it seems as if the lettuce and greens are getting more and more beautiful by the day. I think one of the most beautiful things are the collards. They are getting so big and beautiful. I am dieing to pick them and make some collard rolls with them. I am hoping that I have some collards left after the market on Saturday to make some collard rolls with.


Vegetables:

• Red Scallions
• White Scallions
• Bagged Salad Mixes: Just Lettuce Mix, Mild Spicy Mix, Super Spicy Mix, and A Little Bit of Everything Mix
• Red Russian Kale
• Collards
• Bagged Spinach (possible, depending on how much we have to pick)
• Bagged Arugula (also a possible, depending on how much we have come Saturday)
• Garlic Scapes
• Broccoli Raab
• Mulberries

Plants:
I am not sure exactly what I will be bringing, but I do know that I have lots and lots of plants. Listed are some of the possibilities.

• Large potted Dahlias (depends on which ones may be blooming by Saturday)
• Geraniums (also depends on which ones may be blooming by Saturday)
• Hanging baskets (with Sweat Peas and Carnations in them)
• Tomato plants (many different kinds)
• and others
  

Bakery:
I am not positive yet but I am thinking about making pizzelles (maybe mulberry, vanilla, and or almond). I am also thinking about some kind of bread (maybe mulberry).


We should have radishes available for next week also, if not this week. We have 4 different types of radishes growing right now. The beets are also getting closer to being ready. The head lettuce is growing bigger and bigger every day.


I have not posted any pictures in awhile, (been pretty busy) so hopefully I will get a chance soon to get out there and take some pictures, especially of what we will have available to sell.

Plants For Sale

This year we should have plenty of different kinds of seedlings and other plants for sale. Here is a list of what we should have available this year:

(I will post a more detailed list of what is available when it gets closer to when they will be available, with pictures of what they look like at that time, information about the variety, and prices. This is just a possible list of what may be available, check back in May, when it is closer to planting time for an updated list.)

In May and beginning of June we will have vegetable starts and possibly some flowers available, pickup only from our farm (Must call ahead or email us). Some of the varieties we should have available include:

• Black Cherry Heirloom Tomato (purple heirloom cherry tomato)
  
• Isis Candy Heirloom Cherry Tomato (striped heirloom cherry tomato)
  
• Dr. Carolyn Heirloom Tomato (yellow heirloom cherry tomato)
  
• Hybrid Sweet Baby Girl Tomato (red cherry tomato)
  
• Cherokee Purple Tomato
• Amish Paste Tomato (heirloom paste tomato)
  
• Sweet Red Pepper
• We will have a limited supply of Red, Purple, Yellow, and some other colors of peppers available
• Thai Dragon Pepper (red cayenne pepper)
  
• Coleus
  
• and possibly some other flowers, vegetables and herbs
  

At Valley City Farmers Market we should have the following plants available in gallon size pots (some smaller depending on the plant). We may also re-pot some of the left over plants from the above list for the market (of course the price will be higher since they will be larger plants in larger pots).

• Fairy Tale Eggplant
  
• Sweet Basil
• Cinnamon Basil
• Opal Basil
• Lemon Basil
• Thai Dragon Pepper
• Fish Pepper
• Mexican Sunflower Tithonia
• Sweet Peas (In hanging baskets)
• We will also have available a potted salad mix (You can have your own pot of lettuce and other greens to pick whenever you feel like having a salad!)

Some of the potted herbs that we should have available include:

• The varieties of basils listed above
• Parsley
• Rosemary
• Dill
• Oregano
• Thyme
• Sage
• Tarragon
• Mint
• and some others
• We will also have most of the above herbs available as cut bunches at our markets throughout the season

I just wanted to let everyone know that we will have many kinds plants available throughout the season, and give you a good idea of what exactly will be available and when.

Plans for our first market on June 13th

Our first market this year will begin on Saturday, June 13th from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. And will be at Valley City Farmers Market located on Center Rd. in Valley City. It seems like so far away but market season is getting closer than you may think.

Here is a list of what we plan to have available to sell for our first market:

• Red and White Scallions
• Beets
• Carrots
• Broccoli Raab
• Bok Choy
• Dwarf Pak Choy (Bok Choy)
• Bagged Salad Mixes
• Head Lettuce
• Individual Lettuces
• Leeks
• Collards
• Peas
• Radishes
• Spinach
• Swiss Chard
• We should have some kind of bread available also, not sure what kind yet though, maybe carrot bread or mulberry bread and muffins.
• We should have some plants available for sale also but will post what kinds when it is closer to market time.

This is just a list of what we are planning so far to have available for our first market day. We will post a new list just before our first market day.

Right now we are pretty much doing the same as you probably are, just looking out the window waiting for the snow to melt, wishing is was spring already. But, spring is coming soon, we know because starting next week we will begin starting some of our seeds inside. It seems like winter drags on and on until we start planting our seeds. That is when all the work begins and soon after that, before we know it we are tilling the gardens and planting everything. So for those of you that just can't wait for spring, it will be here soon.