I have fallen completely in love with local fresh produce. I am addicted to it. Between our backyard garden and my newest obsession, the local Farmer's Market, I am getting completely spoiled on fresh local veggies.
And, people, let me tell you it is easier than you can imagine to grow your own. We planted our summer garden in the spring and it included carrots, zucchini, tomatoes, green beans, radishes, and onions. Now, of those 6 things we only had success with the zucchini, tomatoes, and green beans, but the success we had was huge. My theory is that we had a few very hungry bunnies and chipmunks raid the garden before those other plants got the chance to grow.
Still, the veggies we had were nothing short of AMAZING. They were totally organic and delicious. I have never had better green beans than the ones I cooked up after picking them in our garden that day.
We're already planting our cool weather garden and are looking forward to a good crop of lettuce, broccoli, squash, peas, green beans, carrots, onions and pumpkins (for Halloween, of course!)
Growing your own produce is easy and cheap. It takes up very little room in our backyard and, I'm telling you, if we can do it anyone can do it. Because my black thumb is legendary and we've still managed to get some great food from our garden.
But, we can't grow everything and for the rest of the produce we use we are finding amazing stuff at the local farmer's market. Every Saturday dozens of pick-ups pull into the town square and sell their best produce. Their veggies and fruit are fresh, delicious and so much cheaper than supermarket produce. We have scored some amazing food going there.
Check out this Cabbage:
It was $2 at the Farmer's Market. In fact, we got this Cabbage, a large container of potatoes, three huge organic squash, three big organic onions all for $8. Plus, the best part, was we were supporting local farmers which just makes us feel good. We've purchased everything from baked breads and rolls to local honey at our Farmer's Market and we're continually surprised by the quality and variety we see.
You can check out your local paper and agricultural bulletin to see where and when your own local Farmer's Market meets.
So, that's what is working for me this week. Local grown produce. Whether grown in our backyard or from local farms, there is nothing like the taste of local, organic fresh picked fruits and veggies. Check it out!
For more WFMW head over to Shannon's Dryer and see what other mom's are doing!
14 comments:
That is a mighty fine lookin' cabbage! I've also been loving the summer's bounty of fresh produce, though the farmer's market is producing a lot more than my little garden is. Everything is so fresh, I just love summer!
i like getting cucumbers and potatoes out of my parents garden. mostly because they are free and i don't have to pick them myself! :)
I love supporting our local farmer's market. I do have a garden, but it's not thriving as much as I would like it too. I'm still learning though. :)
Abby
That cabbage is WOW-worthy. Any resources or books that were helpful in starting your garden? I can use all the help I can get. :)
Kudos to you for supporting the local farmers! I also eat a hearty fruit and veggie-based diet and just recently went on a cruise to the Bahamas where even the freshest of fruit did not taste fresh...it will certainly spoil you in so many ways!
I love the Farmers Market! I don't get up there as much as I'd like with the price of gas. Next year I'd like to plant a garden. :D
I love to make sauerkraut with our cabbage. Once you go organic you never go back!
http://tonsofsons.wordpress.com/
We stopped at a local F.M. here in MN and they were expensive. I have a huge garden at home w/some hopes of selling some. Post a sign at the end of the driveway. If it is ogranic you can sell it for a high $$. I am disappointed at the F.M.
We found this site to be helpful. It's a calendar posted by the UGA of when to plant certain types of vegetables and what to do to prepare your garden for different times of the year.
http://pubs.caes.uga.edu/caespubs/pubcd/L174.htm
It may not help you too much if you're outside of the southern states but you may be able to find something like this for your area with a little bit of Google snooping.
That cabbage is indeed beautiful. What are you going to do with it? I scored a similarly huge cabbage in our veggie box and was amazed at the amount of coleslaw it made. I'm also impressed by your success in the garden!
You may be interested in joining our new blog carnival over at the Green Baby Guide, which starts tomorrow. It's called "Thrifty Green Thursday." You will love our own Thrifty Green Thursday post tomorrow--it will feature even more ideas for finding "fresh produce for cheap."
Wow, I hope my garden fares as well as yours! :)
We love our Farmer's Market too! We go every Sunday after church to get produce for the week. We're also growing some things in pots on our apartment balcony.
Blessings,
Michele :)
www.frugalgranola.blogspot.com
We have a garden for the second year in a row. We got a lot of peas, but something keeps eating the green tomatoes before they can ripen! I hope more people will try gardening, it really is rewarding.
We have gotten a ton of fresh produce out of our garden this year. We had fresh crowder peas and fried okra the other night--and I swear it was the best we ever ate--all because we grew, harvested and cook it ourselves. YUM!!
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