The day shone sunny and bright at the last outdoor farmers market of the year.
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| The low November sun kisses the last apples of the year at the Davis Square farmers market in Somerville, Massachusetts, earlier today. |
There were 11 different kinds of apples to buy.
The outdoor markets in these parts pull up their tent stakes the week before Thanksgiving.
There are some winter markets, including one in Somerville, but of late the apple scene there has not been great.
Wednesday honors
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Often the final market of the year is wet, windy, and bleak, but today's was as cheerful as you could wish.
Market report
The market peaked at 25 different kinds of apples in October.
Two of my late-season favorites, Baldwin and Blushing Golden, never showed up this year.
The absences reminded me of how great it is to be able to find these apples locally, when I can. That lets me buy just the number I want for the week, versus a whole bag for the season (which I have to store).
Tune of the day
Calendar
This year that peregrination gave us an extra market day: the latest possible before the latest possible Thanksgiving on November 28.
The indoor market, on Saturdays, has already begin. The next outdoor market will be in June.
Thank you for blogging.
ReplyDeleteI enjoy your journey through the apple season. Here there are no local apples, and this year I got a killing freeze in May.
That is a double whammy—sorry! But are you sure there are not apples where you live? I would suppose that anyplace where a may frost is unusual, but still occasional, would be very much in the zone for growing apples.
DeleteYou are lucky to live in an area with such a wealth of local apple orchards. Apples grow well where I live, but growing apples is not part of the tradition or culture here. It's a 2.5-hour one-way drive to the nearest local apple orchard from where I live. This means that if you're someone like me who doesn't just want to eat Gala, Fuji, Honeycrisp, Pink Lady, and one or two other varieties produced in Washington state, you have to grow the apples yourself, and you often have to purchase trees without ever having tasted the apple. Your blog has been a fantastic resource in getting a good sense of which varieties are worth planting; as is often the case, the best information tends to come from someone who isn't trying to sell you something. As the various varieties have entered production, and I've finally gotten to taste test, I've found your assessments to be spot-on. The only fantastic apple in my growing collection of trees that is missing from your blog is 'Keepsake'. It's a shame that it's a regional apple that apparently isn't grown much in the Northeast. It is towards the top of my list of favorites. Anyhow, sincere thanks. Your blog is fun to read and also very helpful.
ReplyDeleteHi Michael, it is nice to hear from you! Apples in New England are indeed kind of an iconic idea, though I am afraid we will be saying goodby to some old favorites as the climate heats up.
DeleteI'm flattered by the thought that what I write influences what people grow. I hope it's obvious that I am mostly ignorant of a whole range of qualities of considerable interest to farmers and gardeners! Good luck with your trees.