What is actually out of the field
The single question a market gets asked more than any other is whether the thing you drove out for is in yet. This is the honest answer, by month. Weather moves the edges by a week or two in either direction, never by a month.
In the building Peak, and the price drops
| Crop | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Asparagus | In | Peak | ||||||||||
| Rhubarb | In | Peak | In | |||||||||
| Lettuce and greens | In | Peak | In | In | Peak | |||||||
| Strawberries | Peak | In | ||||||||||
| Green beans | In | Peak | In | In | ||||||||
| Sweet corn | Peak | Peak | In | |||||||||
| Tomatoes | In | Peak | Peak | In | In | |||||||
| Cucumbers and squash | In | Peak | Peak | In | ||||||||
| Peppers | In | Peak | Peak | In | ||||||||
| Watermelon | In | Peak | In | |||||||||
| Cantaloupe | In | Peak | In | |||||||||
| Apples | In | Peak | Peak | In | ||||||||
| Pumpkins and gourds | In | Peak | ||||||||||
| Sweet potatoes | In | Peak | In | |||||||||
| Eggs | In | In | In | Peak | Peak | Peak | In | In | In | In | In | In |
The greenhouse runs on the opposite clock
The market is busiest in August. The greenhouse is finished by then. Bedding plants, hanging baskets and vegetable starts go out from the middle of March and the good ones are gone by the end of May, which is the fact worth knowing if you have ever driven out in June for tomato plants.
- Vegetable and herb starts, 4 inch $3.50
- Tomato and pepper starts, by the tray of 12 $34
- Hanging baskets, 10 inch $26
- Mixed patio pots, made to order, two weeks notice from $45
- Mums, 8 inch, September and October only $9
Eggs, and why the table has them at peak in spring
The hens are on pasture and they lay to daylight, not to a schedule. April through June there are more eggs than the market can sell and they sit at the lower price. In January there are about a third as many and they sell out most mornings by ten.
Nobody puts that on a sign because it sounds like an apology. It is not. It is what an egg from a bird outside actually does, and the alternative is a light on a timer in a shed.
- Dozen, April to June $4.50
- Dozen, the rest of the year $6
How buying here works
There is no online ordering and no delivery. You come out, you take what is on the tables, and you pay at the counter by the door. Cash and cards both, and there is no minimum on a card.
Bring a box if you are buying a lot. We have crates and you are welcome to one, but they go out faster than they come back and by the end of August there are usually none left.
Anything by the case or the bushel is worth ringing about first. Sweet corn in particular goes out the door in whole cases before nine on a Saturday in July, and one telephone call the day before means a case with your name on it rather than a wasted drive.