August is the month of plenty, in the vegetable world. Not only is there such a variety of ripening produce — all the nightshade family, the melons and squash, the onions and green beans — but we can be bowled over by the sheer abundance.
Now, in addition to repeat performances of vegetables at multiple meals, and innovative recipes, we turn to preserving – canning and freezing, predominantly, but perhaps also drying. For weeks, many groceries have been out of canning jars and now even bands and lids for canning are difficult to find. A friend told me that when he ordered canning jars online, he found he had to wait nearly three weeks for delivery. Who can fathom what product will suddenly be difficult to find these days?
You may want to think about starting some crops now for harvest in the early fall. The first frost date for us is somewhere between Oct. 9 (Columbus) and Oct. 17 (Cincinnati). And some produce can easily handle light frost and even a freeze. Peas, kale, beets and carrot seeds may be planted now. This is a great time to set out broccoli, cauliflower, and brussels sprout plants (some of which can be found at our market). Because lettuce and spinach grow better in cooler temps (but like these temperatures for germination) you might start them now or wait a week or two. For the price of a package of seeds, starting plants can be a fun experiment.
The Fayette County Farmers Market is open Saturday morning from 8:30 to noon and is located in the municipal parking lot on the corner of South Main and East East streets in Washington C.H. SNAP EBT food benefit cards and credit/debit cards are accepted. Those using the SNAP EBT card for food purchases receive matching dollar “Produce Perks” tokens ($1 for $1) good only for fruits, vegetables, and food producing plants. So,”buy one, get one” for up to $25 EVERY market day. Five-dollar coupons will be available again for FAYETTE COUNTY Farm Bureau members at each Saturday market; these can be spent at both the Wednesday and Saturday markets.
The following list contains the names and products of the vendors that expect to set up this Saturday. Other vendors may participate as well. Vendors who provide their phone number may be contacted for advance orders.
Cozy Baby Blessings (Nancy Cutter): Adult and children’s face masks in 4 sizes, crochet pot scrubbers (great for cleaning veggies too!) and hand poured wax melts in over 60 scents. Cozy Baby essentials including crochet blankets and hats, flannel burp cloths, flannel receiving blankets and teething toys. (New fabrics this week!)
Engedi (Alana Walters, Janet Bick, Beth Day): Assorted home baked goods including cinnamon rolls, yeast bread and rolls, cookies, fruit pies and noodles.
Greens & Greenery (Katrina Bush): Homemade baked goods: Small pumpkin pies, buckeyes, sourdough crackers (garlic/turmeric, rosemary, jalapeno/cumin, “everything,” ginger/wasabi). Farm honey. Natural body products: glycerin and honey soaps, beeswax hand and cuticle creams, lip balms, and natural insect repellent. Catnip, cilantro seed, and seasonal produce, including garlic, cucumbers, tomatillos, green beans, leeks, walla walla sweet onions, potatoes (red and Austrian Crescent fingerlings). Hand knitted fruit and vegetable purses.
Kelsie’s K-9 Creations (Jennifer Anderson): featuring healthy, limited ingredient cookies and treats for your 4 legged friends.
King Farms (Jeff and Sandi King) and Gerhardts (Kevin Gerhardt): Supersweet white corn, watermelons, very sweet honeydew, Crenshaw and regular melons, green beans, vine ripe tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, zucchini, Yukon Gold potatoes. Baked goods.
Persinger Produce and Cottage Food (Julie Mosny & David Persinger): The Pie Lady –Local honey and cut comb honey. Also will have blackberry, peach, apple, strawberry rhubarb, rhubarb and blueberry pies, cinnamon rolls, Cinni mini’s, buns bars, iced sugar cookies and oatmeal raisin cookies. The Jam Man – JAMS: peach, black raspberry, peach flamingo, cherry, red raspberry, strawberry, blueberry, strawberry-rhubarb, pineapple habanero, peach zinger, red raspberry jalapeno, blackberry, triple berry and peach zinger habanero jams and several no-added sugar varieties. Also assorted Texas sheet cakes including white cake w/ almond flavoring and zucchini bread.
Your Other Mother’s Kitchen (Don & Sara Creamer—740-572-0134 – make advance orders before 5 p.m. Thursday): Artisan bread, muffins.
B.Y.E Gardens (Brian and Elaine Yoder): Nirvana Bi-color sweet corn, zucchini, cucumbers, candy onions, bell peppers, tomatoes, green beans, kale, hot peppers(supper chili, garden salsa, jalapeño), melons, cabbage, cinnamon rolls, sweet breads (pineapple-zucchini, strawberry, banana, pumpkin), pies (raisin, pecan, blackberry, cherry), brownies, peanut butter cookies, adult and children’s face masks, ice cold beverages. Call or email Elaine to place orders: [email protected] or 740-606-6333.
