It’s our first full week of the 2017 regular
season and by regular, I mean the three-day a week season. That means things are getting very busy for
us volunteers and for the vendors, especially the farmers.
It is amazing what the farmers are already
harvesting for market and of course they are also busy planting literally
thousands of seeds and plants. The slow
pace of winter market is over and the farmers are already putting in long hard
hours.
Tomorrow we’ll be open from 11 to 2. Stewart’s Bakery will have Sloppy Joes with
potato salad for lunch. Scott Eastman
plays on the market stage.
On Saturday, the fabulous Granny Chicks play for us. Cooking for a Cause benefits the Chert Glades Missouri Master Naturalists. Stewart’s Bakery will have mini-meatloaf with oven browned potatoes for eat-in or take-out.
On Tuesday Jake and Corky play and Linda
Stewart hasn’t decided what’s for lunch.
If it’s anything like yesterday’s lunch it will be good. The lasagna was delicious and the herbed
dinner rolls even better.
We’re keeping the sides down for the time
being because the forecast continues to be cool and rainy, interspersed with
warm and dry.
It’s a hassle for our
vendors to have to haul things in around the walls, but we all appreciate being
high and dry and the plants really enjoy being out of the wind. And do we ever have the plants – beautiful hanging
baskets and large tomato plants. The
Palmers are bringing their delightful handcrafted wooden planters filled with
flowers tomorrow. I can’t wait to see
them, especially the trains that Carrole has been telling me about. On Saturday we’ll have even more choices plus
a lot of flowering bedding plants.
We’re beginning to sign up folks to help with
the Free Kids Summer Meals which begin the last Thursday of May. If you, or a group you’re part of, or a
business or club would like to help, let us know. We’ll only need about 3 helpers each
time. You can also bring along your
little ones to help hand out milk and silverware. It’s easy work and very satisfying. Believe me, you will be impressed by the
number of children who say thank you and the number who then come up after they’ve
eaten to say thank you again. Manners
are still very much in style at the market.
Our first Twilight Tunnel Walk is tomorrow
evening at 7 p.m. at the market’s Year-Round Education Center. It is located on the Yang Farm, 1213 Route U,
Rocky Comfort (1.77 miles south of the intersection of State Highway 76 and
Route U).
Walk through the Center’s two high tunnels
with Extension experts and experienced farmers.
The tunnels are planted right now with tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini,
snap peas, broccoli, cauliflower and iceberg and romaine lettuce.
The walk is free and open to growers and the
general public. No reservations are
needed and no fee is charged. Just come
spend an hour exploring protected growing.
The Education Center is just one reason we are
blessed with a market filled with loads of top quality produce.
Come buy some! And while you’re here enjoy all
the other market offerings too. See you at the market – on Thursday, Saturday
and Tuesday.
