Farmers Market update for Saturday, August 28

Featured Farm

Somerset Greenhouse
Margaret Wince & Rick Myers
Somerset, Ohio
740-743-3010
somersetgreenhouse@hotmail.com

How long have you been farming? We have been farming for 12 years.

How long have you been coming to North Market? We have been coming to the North Market for 10 years.

What are your signature crops? Fresh herbs and garlic, heirloom tomatoes and all kinds of peppers, both hot and mild. We also have Shiitake mushrooms in season. In the spring we sell lots of greenhouse plants such as potted herbs and tomatoes, 100 kinds of perennials for landscapes and annual flowers, hanging baskets and planters.

What is important to you about selling your items at the North Market? The people who frequent the market are looking for quality food. They get to know me and trust me personally to grow everything using all natural practices and inputs. We have a great time here.

How did you become a farmer? I quit teaching, Rick scaled back his carpentry business and we started by wholesaling basil to produce dealers.

Do you have any special farming practices? We use cover crops and 'green manures' to enrich our soil. We rotate crops. We use only organic fertilizers and mulch around all of our plants with chopped straw to repress weeds and hold in soil moisture. I hand pick everything and keep up our mantra of "less is more". You can grow nicer stuff if you can keep up with it.

*Chef Tricia Wheeler, Editor and Publisher of Edible Columbus will be sampling heirloom tomatoes from 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. at the Somerset Greenhouse stand this Saturday, August 28.

Participating Farms on August 28

Anderson Orchard Pollen-free sunflowers, cosmos, bouquets, free range pork products and homemade apple dumplings.

Beech Meadow Farm Ground beef $5.50 per pound. Pastured eggs. We are now accepting pre-orders for turkeys.

Bridgman Farm This week we'll have heirloom tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, Aunt Molly's cherry tomatoes, eggplant, onions and peppers.

Combs Fresh Herbs Tomatoes, salsa, pesto, beans and herbs.

Ehmann & Sons Greenhouse Hanging baskets and assorted annuals, perennials and hardy mums.

Elizabeth Telling Farm CSA pickup only.

Hinkle Farm Bell peppers, cantaloupe, candy sweet onion, cucumbers, sweet corn, flowers including astors and zinnias, tomatoes, red and yellow watermelon and zucchini.

Honeyrun Farm This week we will be bringing our pure honey, summer honey, infused honey, chunk and cut comb honey and hot pepper Ristras.

K & R Garden Fresh Produce We will have eggplant, flowers, red and green okra, peppers (spicy ones too!), potatoes and winter squash.

Oakvale Farmstead Cheese We will be bringing our family's Farmstead Gouda (caraway, regular, habanero and aged), homemade bagels and flavored cream cheese including jalapeno, blueberry and cherry almond.

Ohio Farm Direct SALE! Buy 2 cheeses and get a free organic beef stick! Whole milk cheeses including cheddar, mozzarella, baby swiss, pepper jack, garlic and herb, tomato basil pinenut and lemon zest. The beef is always trail bologna, summer sausage, and beef sticks. What makes them stand out is the wonderful nutrition and taste that comes from the 100 percent grassfed cows.

Persinger Farm I will be bringing green beans, tomatoes, corn, okra, zucchini, yellow squash, peppers, eggplant, pickling cucumbers, beets, turnips and assorted winter squash including acorn, butternut, delicata and spaghetti.

Quiver Full Farm We will be bringing: blackberries, brown eggs, heirloom tomatoes, honey, granola, scarlet and grey popcorn, potatoes, dried tomatoes, cornmeal, whole grain pancake mix, and stoneground flour.

Rhoads Farm Market This week we will have seedless watermelon, cantaloupe, blackberries, peaches, red raspberries, sweet corn, tomatoes, green beans, peppers, etc. See you on Saturday or pre-order at rhoadsfm@bright.net

Shady Brook Farm We will have beans, garlic, peppers, squash, tomatoes and baked goods including bread, cookies and pies.

Somerset Greenhouse I'll have cherry and heirloom tomatoes, basil, mint, rosemary, garlic, lettuce, carmen red peppers, spicy peppers, and shiitake mushrooms.

Thomas Family Orchard We will be bringing eight varieties of apples (including Gala, MacIntosh and Jonathan) and seedless grapes.

Toad Hill Farm Cherry tomato mix with 10 varieties cucumbers, watermelon and summer squash.

The Wayward Seed Farm

Wishwell Farms Produce We will have bell peppers, colored peppers, cabbage, cantaloupe, cucumbers, grape tomatoes, green beans, hot peppers, red cayenne, sweet corn, sweet pepper relish, hot sweet relish, tomatoes, watermelon white eggplant and zucchini.

Witten Farm Cabbage, candy onions, cantaloupe, corn, green peppers, habaneros, tomatoes and watermelon.

Congratulation to our Farmers Festival Winners!

Jeff Hilperts of Gahanna took first place in the Jam and Jelly Contest at the North Market Farmers Festival with his Strawberry Jam. Second place went to David Perdzock of Hilliard with his Jalapeno Peach Jam. Chef Alana Shock of Alana's Food & Wine was victorious in the "You say toe-may-toe, I say toe-mah-toe" Chef Challenge. Chef David MacLennan of Latitude 41 came in second place. Thanks to all of our participants, judges and attendees of the North Market Farmers Festival. To see more photos of the event, visit our Flickr page here>

Last chance for $40 School of Cooking Classes!

The roster of School of Cooking classes for autumn 2010 is now up on our website here>. All classes for the fall schedule purchased in the month of August have been discounted to $40. You've got until Tuesday, August 31 to get a great deal on all School of Cooking classes including the popular Dine Originals Chef Series classes. On Wednesday, they go back to their regular price of $50 per class or 3 for $125.