FARMER’S MARKET MUSING

The words “light and late” seem to be in most conversations
about produce, again. It is August, and the tomatoes are finally
trickling into the market.
The Bernier’s have recently added tomatoes to their wide variety of
produce. They have been bringing Early Girls, Big Beefs,
Celebrities, Brandywine, Pineapple, Principe Borghese, and of
course Sungold Cherries from the Dry Creek and Alexander Valleys to
both the Saturday and Tuesday Markets.
Also at both the midweek and the weekend markets, Stan Lesniack and
Teri Sears of Geyserville Gardens have had a few dozen tomatoes at
the last few markets, including Big Beef, Pink Ponderosa, Gold
Medal, 4th of July, Black Cherry, Chocolate Cherry, Orange Paruche,
Green Envy, Yellow Pear, Early Cherry and the beloved Costaluto
Genovese.
Renee, Joel, and Sara Kiff brought Early Girls to the market last
Saturday, and Mary and Bert Villemaire had baskets of
Sungolds.
Foggy River Farm had a few dozen beautiful heirloom
varieties.
Red Owl Farm has a wide variety of tomatoes arriving. Christine
Engle says she kept 80 percent of the seed stock from her
grandparents, Tom and Marilyn Engle, and she grows 20 percent of
her tomatoes on their land in the warmer climes of Geyserville.
Last Saturday, Red Owl brought the Reisentraub and Yellow Pear
Cherry tomatoes. The bulk of their tomatoes are mostly from Tom and
Marilyn’s seed stock, which includes the Roma, Brandywine, Black
Sea Man, Beef Steak, and Yellow Jubilee. They also have the Carbon,
Dr. Whyches, Yellow Wonder, Pantano, and Romanesco varieties.
John Kearns, Strong Arm Farm, and Manuel’s Family also brought the
first good quantity of vine-ripened tomatoes last week.
It looks like this Saturday, August 6 will be the first day for the
large volume of local tomatoes to show up at the market. Dan
Magnuson of Soda Rock Farm called mid-July, when a blast of heat
hit, to say that he might be returning on July 30. But then the
long, foggy, cool mornings slowed down the ripening again. Is there
a little tension in the air with all of this waiting for summer
fruits and vegetables to ripen?
At times like this, I turn to Wendell Berry.
I was reminded of a response from Carolyn Harrison a few months
ago, after I asked people to tell me which books are an inspiration
to them. This was her reply:
“I have been reading Wendell Berry’s “Jayber Crow,” which is
probably the only book of his that I had never read. From time to
time, I like to reread Wendell Berry whether it is fiction or
nonfiction, although I think his fiction better serves to
accomplish my purpose in doing so. You would think that a farmer is
always “grounded” in his or her mind by nature of the profession,
but I find that this is not always so. It is easy to get caught up
in things that distract. I find in reading “Jayber Crow” that I am
reminded of why we choose to work in the rural, sometimes natural,
world. The sense of community in his books is pervasive, and
although it is mostly from a slower time when almost everyone
seemed to have more time, (loafing was one of the great occupations
in his town), his writing reminds us of the benefits of community
and inspires us to work for that.
The joys of simple living are abundant in his books, and
instructive even to those who already know them.”
-Carolyn Harrison, Fox Whelp Farm
Carolyn and Terry once owned the Antique Apple Farm, and still
harvest apples from their land. They will be returning to our
market to sell the Gravenstein and Skinner’s Seedling Apples this
Saturday. Their apples will be sold as a “Second Certificate” under
the umbrella of Strong Arm Farm at both the Tuesday and the
Saturday Markets. Tomatoes and apples! It looks like Indian Summer
is just around the bend.
Mary Kelley is the manager of the Healdsburg Farmers’
Market. The Saturday morning market continues through November. The
Tuesday afternoon market continues through October. For more
information go to www.healdsburgfarmersmarket.org.