The Weblog
This page contains news, event information, and other items added by the market managers.
Summer Hours Starting Thursday May 9th
It is time to for us to begin asparagus harvest. Summer hours here at Martins Farmstand will begin for 2024 on Thursday morning starting at 10 am. Summer hours are Tuesday- Saturday from 10 am till 6 pm. We are closed on Sunday and Monday. Summer hours begin in early May with the beginning of asparagus harvest and continue till early November when daylight savings time ends. Daniel
Sunshine and Planting
The farmstand will be open this afternoon from noon till 5 pm.
This is the last Saturday of winter hours for this season. The asparagus is coming up. I estimate that we will begin harvesting asparagus starting sometime during the middle/ late part of next week (Thursday or Friday???) depending on how warm the weather is and how much sun we have. Summer hours begin when we harvest the first asparagus. The plan for 2024 is to be open from 10 am till 6 pm Tuesday through Saturday. We will be closed Sunday and Monday.This is the same schedule as last year.
In the early spring the sunshine makes a big differance on soil temps as the cold underneath is pushing up and the warmth from the sun is pushing down. If it is cloudy the soil tends to be cold in the seed/ root zone. Of course cold rains bring the soil temps down quickly also. When you are planting things like sweet corn, beans, sqush etc and are using organic/ untreated seed it is important that they begin to sprout as soon as possible. During the first few days after you plant them if the do not sprout quickly they are likely to rot or just to disappear. Once they are sprouted even just a tiny bit they are somewhat secure. During this time of the year I prepare the soil for the heat loving seeds but do not plant right away. I let it rain and in general sit tight. I am watching the weather forcast for about 3 days of bright sun (ideally somewhat warm also). Then I plant. Seeds that sprout in the cool soil (lettuce, peas, beets, dill, cilantro, spinach etc) can be planted anytime you get to it. If the weather conditions are not ideal sometimes I also presprout seeds in the house till the sprout tip is just showing and then set them out by hand. Again once they are sprouted they are much less likely to disappear or rot.
For us, this week has been dominated by lots of planting. We set all the onions, parsley, leeks, early cabbage, lettuce etc out along with various seeds. We plant with hope. God, we pray that you send your rain and sunshine and give us our daily bread. Daniel
Abundant Spinach
The farm stand is open tomorrow (Saturday April 27,2024) from noon till 5 pm.
In August and early September I plant lots of spinach. I spread this out over about 4-5 plantings. We harvest spinach off of those plantings as needed throughout October and November. It is hard to get the timing on the late spinach just right because if it is a little warmer or cooler in the fall months it speeds up or slows down the growth. This is the same spinach that I attempt to overwinter. I am overwintering this spinach with no extra protection. Some years it works better than others however there are details that we can manage. The first one is site selection. It must be on a well drained site that is not prone to form sheet ice in the winter. Sheet ice is sure to winter kill it. An area that the snow drifts into is better than a windswept knoll. It needs to go into winter with enough root strength that it is strong but also just the right amount of youngness. If a planting is old enough to get a second cutting in the fall it almost always dies out. The only way I know to get this timing right is to do plantings about 7 days apart. One never knows if this one or that is the best. This year we hit it right. I have about 3,000 feet of row that is as pretty as can be. We have abundance of spinach to harvest in the next 4-5 weeks. The overwintered spinach bolts quickly when the weather gets hot so it usually only lasts till sometime in late May. The spring seeded spinach will not be ready till sometime in June so there is almost always a gap in availability after the over wintered spinach is gone by and before the spring seeded crop is ready. The last detail I wish to mention is that it tastes really mild and good right now. We have been testing it on our table. Delicious. Eat with the seasons. Eat lots of what is ready. The seasons rush on quickly and by the time one is tired of this it is time to eat the next new thing. Summer hours will start soon. The trigger for that is the beginning of asparagus harvest in early May. Daniel
Fresh Greens
The farmstand is open this afternoon from noon till 5 pm. We just harvested a tub each of fresh garlic scallions, turnip greens from the young turnips that over wintered, and wildcrafted dandelion greens. Garrison is bringing some micro greens that he grew. Also there is the normal selection of potatoes, carrots, beets, cabbage, etc. Before you laugh at someone selling dandelion greens remember that not everyone has a good spot to harvest them or maybe one is just not able or inclined to harvest there own. I personally eat quite a few dandelion greens in salads or sandwiches. It is a good spring tonic and I like them better than turnip greens. Lettuce is better but it is not ready for harvest yet. Daniel
Weblog Entry
The farm stand is open tommorow (Saturday April 6,2024) from noon till 5 pm. Even though it is winter outside the farmstand still has carrots, beets, onions, bulk foods, and much more. We still have about 1,500 lbs of potatoes (red, white, yellow) left in storage. There are spring dug parsnips available and a few apples. Storage cabbage is abundant and still nice. The garlic scallions (outdoors) are up and almost ready for harvest. I expect that depending on weather that we can start harvesting them for the stand in 2 weeks. We already had a few garlic scallions and wildcrafted dandelion greens in a salad a few days ago. Delicious!! The overwintered spinach came through nicely. I estimate the first spinach will be ready to harvest beginning in late April. After that asparagus!!!. Daniel
Farmstand open Friday this week, not Saturday
This week (Easter weekend)we will be open on Friday, March 29th from noon till 5 pm and closed on Saturday march 30th for Easter weekend. This change is only for this one week. During April we will be open on the normal Saturday schedule with summer hours resuming in early May whenever asparagus harvest starts.
I cut a few big butternut logs from my woodlot into live edge slabs that I just stacked in front of the farmstand. They are priced @ $25-$40 each depending on how wide and nice they are. Butternut is a beautiful wood. I also have a bunch of fairly wide (up to 12 inches) 1 inch thick butternut boards that are available. Daniel
Weblog Entry
The farm stand is open today (Saturday March 23,2024) from noon till 5 pm. Even though it is winter outside the farmstand still has carrots, beets, onions, bulk foods, and much more. We still have about 3,000 lbs of potatoes (red, white, yellow) left in storage. There are also spring dug parsnips available and a few apples.
Next weekend we will be open on Friday, March 29th from noon till 5 pm and closed on Saturday march 30th for Easter weekend. This change is only for that one week. During April we will be open on the normal Saturday schedule with summer hours resuming in early May whenever asparagus harvest starts. Enjoy this last bit of winter. However I am even more ready to enjoy spring when it comes. I like to plant things and smell the warming earth of springtime. Daniel
Spring Dug Parsnips
The farm stand is open today from noon till 5 pm. Yesterday I dug the parsnips that we had left to overwinter in the field. We washed them up after supper and set the stand in order. There is still a fairly complete selection of cabbage, potatoes, carrots, onions, etc. Spring dug parsnips are extra sweet and delicious so come and get some sometime in the next few weeks. We like to roast them along with other root vegetables and meat in a pot roast.
We will be open the Friday afternoon before Easter March 29th instead of on Saturday March 30.
All the other Saturday’s in March/ April will be open as normal. Summer hours will resume in May whenever the asparagus harvest begins. Daniel
Freeze Dried Beets
The farm stand will be open tomorrow afternoon (Saturday Feb 17, 2024) from noon till 5 pm. This evening we went through the display cooler and set things in order. We peeled a batch of garlic cloves and bagged up a fresh batch of shredded red beets from the freeze dryer. Freeze dried beets have a nice sweet crunchy taste and texture. They are good sprinkled on salads or just to snack on. To make these dried beets I just shred and dehydrate raw beets. No salt or anything else. It takes about 8 lbs. of fresh beets for 1 lb. of dried product. Think of us if you are in the market for good wholesome foods such as cabbage, beets, carrots, potatoes, onions, garlic and much more. Enjoy! Daniel
Weblog Entry
The farmstand is open today from noon till 5 pm. Our winter schedule has us opening every Saturday afternoon. In the spring once the asparagus harvest starts summer hours will resume. See below for a partial list of what is available now. In addition to the winter storage crops the bulk food room is stocked with dried herbs and spices, baking supplies etc. This warm weather makes the sap run in the sugar bush. Yesterday I was part of the crew walking the lines and repairing leaks. It was a perfct day to be out in the woods. In just a few more weeks it is time to seed parsley and onions. I like to plant seeds and watch them grow. Daniel