Farmers Market

Today, I was at the Farmers Market in our town. It was a little sad, because the cold temperatures today reminded me that the weekly Farmers Market will soon be over. The farmers only come from June to end of October.

I love going to the Farmers Market. It's a bit like my former life in good ol' Europe.

In addition, the products are locally grown and much fresher than in supermarkets. One can also get a greater variety of fruit and veggies.




For example apples: It's almost impossible to find Spencer, Brock, Shamrock, Northern Spy, Melrose or Russet apples in a supermarket these days. It's just MacIntosh, Macoun, or Mutsu. Not even Baldwin apples are easy to find.

The only downside of the Farmers market in our town: The prices are considerably higher than in local supermarkets. That is different to what I'm used to. In Austria, buying directly from farmers also means saving money.

Well, nevertheless, I stocked up on apples, red cabbage, onions and leeks to fill the storage bins in our basement. Next week, I will buy more apples, pears and cabbage and then we will be all set for the long winter.

To find farmers markets in your state, go to Farmersmarket.com

Where to find Pick-Your-Own Fruit

A few days ago, we visited again an orchard. Now it's high season for apples and pumpkins, but I wanted something else.


I was looking for fall raspberries and I didn't mind that it a takes awhile to pick three pounds. The weather was beautiful, I was with a friend and we enjoyed being outside:




To find a pick-your-own farm, I look for ads in my daily newspaper, or I ask the farmers at the weekly farmers market in my town for an address. Another option is of course the Internet.

Links for Massachusetts:
http://www.pickyourown.org/mass.htm
http://www.mass.gov/agr/massgrown/pick-your-own.htm
http://www.farmfresh.org/food/pickyourown.php?zip=01373

Nationwide:
http://www.lgyp.com/Pick-Your-Own-Farms-in-.htm
http://www.pickyourown.org/
http://www.state.nj.us/jerseyfresh/searches/pyo.htm

For Christmas trees:
http://pickyourownchristmastree.org/