WEEKEND 7, Near the Height of the Produce Season

  We are closing in on the end of July and for that mark, some of the items we have carried and sold all season are nearing an end.  The bright side is, however, some of our very best sellers are just making it to their stride; name cantaloupes and corn.

   We are pleased to be selling two different types of corn this weekend.  We have Avalon White which is a triple sweet corn.  Also as triple sweet is our Providence Bi-Color Corn.  So, which every is your favorite we have it a4t a remarkable $4.00 dozen.

   For the first time this season we have hot peppers ($1.00 quart)  and hot banana peppers at just 4/$1.00.  We have a seasonal favorite beets for $1.00 bunch, cucumbers and/or zucchini 2/$1.00, potatoes at $3.00 basket, heart plums at $2.00 quart, eggplants at $1.00 each.  It is likely the widest variety of items we have had all season. 

   The weather projections for this weekend are absolutely fantastic.  It is going to be seasonably hot, unlike VERY hot weekends of last few.  The humidity is projected to be moderate.  This is the perfect weekend to go to the markets and buy.

   We will be in Kunkletown at the T&R Farm on Kunkletown Road on Friday from 12-6 and at the Blue Ridge Flea Market on Saturday and Sunday from about 7:30 AM – 2:30 PM.  For the last 3 weeks we have sold out around noon on Sunday, so you want to get to us early for best selection.

   Buy local, Buy fresh, Buy from US !

You say tomato, I say tomato

That sounds so much better sung than seeing it written.  I wonder how they figured out the lyrics.  Now I am going to have to google and find out.

This was the weekend of tomatoes !!!!!!   We sold 1500 plus tomatoes in three days.  That is 20 boxes of 25 lbs each.  500 pounds of tomatoes.  That is a lot of sauce, sandwiches and salads.

Plus 360 ears of corn, over 200 peppers, 200 cucumbers, 150 zucchini, 45 cantaloupes, 100 onions, and dozens of eggplant.  A total of two truck loads of produce sold in one weekend.  It might be some sort of personal record for us.  Not exactly sure, but it was a great weekend.

The temperature on Friday and Saturday was near 100 and it ‘lowered’ to lower 90’s on Sunday.  The heat was brutal. 

Friday we started selling at T&R Farms.  What a great place and great energy that is.  Horses, cool music, plants, greenhouse, farm shack, and other like minded people.  We made some money, but that seemed almost secondary to having a really good time.  I didn’t get there to later than Chuck, because I went to Lancaster and bought tomatoes with my father.  We got carried away and bought 20 boxes.

On Saturday it really cut down on the number of other vendors selling.  That helped us a lot.  Many of the produce vendors simply didn’t show up.  The buys may have been less, but those buying came to us.

Sunday was just a great Sunday all the way around.  We had a buyer take tomatoes from us on Saturday and came back for more, only to turn them down, as ‘they aren’t the same as yesterday’..  HUH?  We bought them the same day.  They were exactly the same tomatoes as the day before.  No bid deal, a restaurant owner came in and bought two full boxes and we sold many of the rest by the basket, rather than by the quart container.  

Corn sold out fast, as did most everything.

Makes it all like fun!!!!

Yet Another Weekend of Near 100 degrees, WEEKEND 6

  As we move into the sixth strong weekend of locally grown, pesticide and chemical free farm produce sales we make a geographic change.  Starting TODAY we are no longer selling directly from the farm in Williams Township.  The traffic this summer simply doesn’t warrant the time expended there.   Instead, we have a great opportunity to join with other local farmers and artisans and sell at the J&T Farm on Kunkletown Road, just west of Saylorsburg.   Very easy to find.  Take Route 33 North to Saylorsburg Exit.  Right off the Exit to Route 115, Right on 115 to gas station (Kunkletown Road intersection) Right and 2.2 miles is J&T Farms.  We will be there on Fridays from noon – 6.  Still will be at the Blue Ridge Market in Saylorsburg on Saturdays and Sundays, as we have all summer.

  This is a going to be a great weekend, I predict.  Weather is HOT, HOT, HOT, but dry.  We have a magic C/C combination.  Corn and Cantaloupes that is.  Last year those were the two most sought after items we carried.  This weekend we have both. 

   The corn is a bi-color corn for a lowered price of just $4.00 dozen.   We were able to get a better deal from the Mennonite Farmers we deal with, so that deal is being passed on to our customers.

   Add to that, some of the BIGGEST cantaloupes I have ever seen.  They are bigger than soccer balls.  For the amazing price of just $3.00 you get one that was picked fresh for sale.

   That is only the top of the line of produce.  We have zucchini 2 for $1.00 and cucumbers at 2/$1.00.  We were able have fantastic tomatoes for only $2.00 quart container.  Onions are on the list this weekend at 2/$1.00 as well as beautiful eggplants at $1.00 each.  

   These are all non certified organic produce, grown locally and fresh in season.  Still you get a lot for ‘dollars’.  You don’t have to spend a lot to eat healthy and eat well.

   Buy local, Buy Fresh, Buy from US !!!!

Making a lot, from what seemed like a little

  Again, a truly HOT July weekend.  Both days at Blue Ridge were well into the 90’s, but heck, it is July, that is what it is supposed to be like.  The foot traffic on Saturday was very light.  Many of the regulars and vendors suggested that since there was a show at “Jacktown”, near Bangor that many of the usual people we see on Saturday opted for that venue.  I guess it may be correct.

   We had a decent day.  Not setting any sales records with Saturday, but was pleased.  Sunday we did remarkably better than Chuck or I had hoped.  I had gauged Sunday on what I had done on Saturday.  The foot traffic was steady but not overwhelming.  By the end of the day, when Chuck tallied everything, we had more than met the goal for the weekend.  Great !

    Sold totally out of red beets again.  This is the summer of beets.  Last year we had beets left all the time.  We sold some, but never got carried away.  This year there are at least 3 customers who come to us every Saturday or Sunday and ask if we have beets today. 

    Virtually all the tomatoes are gone too.  We only have 4 left.  Out of the dozens we had, that is ‘sold out’  Most people wont buy the last of anything on the table.  They use the logic that this must be the worst we had, if they are still left.  That may be true sometimes, but not always.  It may simply be the way they were pulled from the boxes and put on the table.

    The dried flowers looked fantastic on the table.  Added a lot to the presentation.  We will make sure to do more of that.

   The added surprise this weekend was to find a farmers market that is looking for farmers to sell on Friday.  It is near the Blue Ridge Market in Saylorsburg.  Chuck and I went over to it after Sunday and met the owner, Trish, who is a really great person.  We liked the way the farm looked.  We liked the way she has plans for her market, so we are going to begin to sell with her next Friday.

   Selling at J & T Farms also means we are not going to be selling at our own farm anymore this year.  That is sad in one way, as that is the place we are banking the future on being able to farm, but we have to market it differently.  There is not enough sales or traffic to warrant Chuck being there for three days.  Take another look at if after we have more animals and advertise it better.

   Remember, Buy Fresh, Buy Local, Buy from Us ! 

WEEKEND 5, a HOT and HUMID July 15-18

   This weekend is predicted to be in the 90’s for the whole thing and humid.  Perfect time for in season, locally grown, and organic (pesticide and chemical free) produce and farm products.

   We made some excellent deals with our farmers this week.  We have fresh picked cucumbers at just 3/$1.00, basketball size cabbages for only $2.00 each, large onions at 2/$1.00, immense zucchini $1.00, CANTALOUPES are in at $1.00 each, fresh beets (continued fav @ the markets) $1.00 a bunch.  Finally we have some great tomatoes at just 2/$1.00 for these large beauties picked early this AM.  Peaches are 6/$1.00 (lower than two weeks ago, crops are in).

   Additionally we have fantastic dry floral arrangements for your picnic tables or for gift giving this summer at just $5.00 each. 

   It rained last weekend;  no new news there, but what that does give us is a fantastic opportunity to have freshly home canned apricots, apricot butter, pickled broccoli, pickled beets, bread and butter pickles and organic granola trail mix.  All were crafted in small batch with our continued no chemicals or artificial additives.

   We remind you to Buy Local, Buy Fresh, Buy from Us.   See you this weekend.

When it rains, it pours !

  Woke up ready to hit Saturday sales.  Sure to be a good day.  Wasn’t up 5 minutes and heard the rain start.  Then get worse, Then get even worse. 

   Decided it would pass by looking at AccuWeather.  By 7 AM would pass and maybe another cell at 10 AM and possible 1 PM on the hour by hour.  It rained at 6.  It rained at 7.  It rained at 8.  It rained at 9.  It rained at 10.  It is still raining at 11:30.  Day is a total wash, as is the weekend.

   OK, now plan B.  We are making ‘Bread and Butter’ pickles today.  Plan is to can apricots, dry apricots and make apricot jelly.  Bread and Butter pickles and likely some dill ones.  Pickled beets (which did remarkably well last year). 

   Try again next week !!!!!!

July 10th Weekend, WEEKEND 4

   Before I note what we are selling this weekend, must wish my parents, Art and Joy Verba, a very happy 56TH WEDDING ANNIVERSARY on July 10th.  56 isn’t quite the party we had for 55 but that will pale in comparison to 60.

   This weekend we are selling on an abbreviated schedule.  The farm stand will not be open at all for the weekend and we will be selling at the Blue Ridge Flea Market in Saylorsburg on Saturday ONLY.  We will not be there on Sunday the 11th.  Chuck and I both have personal commitments for this one weekend.  We apologize and we will be back in force for the full weekend, next week.

   Just because we are shortening our selling hours doesn’t mean we don’t have great stuff.  We have farm freshly picked apricots for just $1.00 pint, broccoli at  $1.00 a head, cucumbers 3 for $1.00, beets at $2.00 bunch (with the greens still attached).

   Additionally we have a really great organic granola for $1.00 snack size.  The stuff is fantastic.  I am addicted to it.  Oats, raisins, sugar, cinnamon, and other good tasting stuff.  It is better than anything I ever found in a grocery store.  Chuck concocted the stuff himself with trial and error.  You NEED to try this stuff.

   It is going to be hot again this weekend so take is slow and hydrate.  See you at the market for farm fresh produce that is locally grown and chemical free. 

   Buy Fresh, Buy Local, Buy from US !

Independence Day

Another weekend of selling in 90 degree weather.  I guess that is what is to be expected, as it is July.  Chuck had a soft sale day on Thursday, better on Friday.  That did cause some concern as we were gambling on a really big Holiday Sales Weekend.  The corn was the biggest gamble, as we paid out the maximum we were allowing ourselves on that and bought a bit more than we planned.

Saturday it all turned around.  The sales were higher than expected and the corn turned out to be a really big seller even at the $5.00/dozen price point, which is higher than we like to sell it.  The winning element was that we were the only vendors at Blue Ridge to have corn this weekend, so anyone who wanted it, bought it from us.

Saturday I was able to make a deal on some peaches, grown locally, pesticide and chemical free.  A slight gamble, as we only would have Sunday to sell them.  It was a make or break sales day for peaches.

Sunday started out strong and by 10:00 AM we were sold out of corn. YEAH !   Soon after we sold out of the peaches.  Not long after that the plums went, as did the zucchini and squash.  Onions were in that mix somewhere.  

When we looked at what we had a noon, we realized that after bringing a full truck load of locally grown, pesticide and chemical free produce to market we were left with 20 cabbages and 4- 1/2 peck baskets of new potatoes.  When we decided to call it a day at 1:00 (two hours early, as we had so little) we had just 8 cabbages and 2 baskets of potatoes. 

We gifted our neighbors, Todd and Shirley, at the market, with a cabbage and basket of potatoes, and did the same for my sister, Nancy, on the way home.  So we ended the day with 3 cabbages.  Not bad at all (btw, called cousin Diane who will buy the other three cabbages tomorrow, when I see her)

The percentage profit margin we did this weekend was nearly the highest, if not THE highest.  I have to check last years cantaloupe and corn weekends when we were high.  The dollar gross wasn’t bad either.

End result was that the corn gamble was a winner and the peach gamble was also a winner.  WEEKEND 3 is now history and we are on to a shortened WEEKEND 4, as we will be closed on July 11th for a personal day off.

The 4th of July Weekend AKA WEEKEND 3

   We are half way through 2010 and celebrating Independence Day.  What better way to celebrate this All American Holiday than with All American Fresh Produce.   Much of what we have today was picked this morning and as the weekend progresses you will have ONLY the freshest produce, raised locally, chemical and pesticide free.  It doesn’t get any better than that.

   We have CORN.  Everyone wanted corn for the 4th and we got it.  Our Bi-color corn is 2/$1.00 or $5.00/dozen,  while it lasts.  We don’t have that much.

   We have great white potatoes $2.00/half peck basket, Large Cabbage (basket ball size) for just $2.00, local purple plums $1.00 / pint, Yellow Squash are 2 for $1.00, Extra Large Zucchini are 2 for $1.00 and onions at $1.00 bunch.

   Please have a safe Holiday and remember to Buy Local, Buy Fresh and Buy from US !!!!!