At the Thunder Bay Country Market, August 2008

BearHaven has now appeared at the Thunder Bay Country Market – Thunder Bay’s biggest Farmers’ Market – for two years, and we’re looking forward to our time there in 2010! Expect us on Saturday mornings in August and September (beginning August 7 – although the Market will be held at the Lakehead Labour Centre during the Canadian Lakehead Exhibition). This year’s emphasis is going to be on the “unusual” in the vegetable kingdom.

BearHaven’s fruits and vegetables are produced without manufactured pesticides, and without synthetic fertilizers. One often sees produce at the market labelled “organic”, “natural” or “ecological”. “Bear” in mind that these labels not only indicate something good about the produce itself, but also about how it has been grown, and how the farmland is managed. When you buy this food, you enjoy great taste and nutrition and also support sustainable land management that will benefit future generations.

Please note that use of the term “Organic” is now closely regulated in Canada – see the Page “Terminology – what’s organic?”.

Feel free to email me suggestions if there is a particular “weird vegetable” you’d like to see on our stand. For now, I can promise you that these will be in the 2010 line-up: Chioggia beets (red & white “target” inside and lots of beetly flavour), romanesco cauliflower, scorzonera, black radishes, vegetable marrow, red kabocha squash, red bunching onions, cute little yellow spaghetti squash, green cauliflower, red kohlrabi, collard greens, and Russian red kale! And lots more old favourites; for instance, good ol’ orange carrots.

For historical interest, here is the 2009 lineup – complete with crop failures noted … lets hope for a warmer summer this year!

2009 Planting Season
• pickling cucumbers – planted June 27 / blossoms Aug 10 / 1 inch long Aug 25 *very slow*/ ready Sept 5!
• *white* pickling cucumbers – planted June 27 / 1 inch long Aug 25 *very slow*/ ready Sept. 5!
• dill – planted June 1, takes forever to emerge! / ready Aug. 10 – where’s them cukes!
• slicing cucumbers – planted June 27 / coming along… / 1 inch long Aug 25 *very slow*/ ready Sept. 12!
• green kale – planted June 27 / groundhog attacks in August, re-growing
• Russian red kale – planted June 27 / will be ready mid-Aug. / groundhog attacks in August, re-growing/ ready Sept. 5!
• red chard – planted June 27 / ready mid-Aug.
• spinach – sorry, ran out of room
• “Shunkyo” Japanese radishes – ready early Sept.
• oriental eggplant – seedlings planted out June 18 / blossoms Aug. 3 … / only one eggplant was produced, too cold to set
• summer turnip – ready late Aug.
• kohlrabi (white, purple) – planted June 27 / groundhog attack! more planted… / groundhog attacks in August, still hoping for a few
• red cabbage – planted June 22 – to be ready late Aug. / actually ready Sept 12
• romanesco cauliflower (a greenish, “spiralled” cauliflower) – planted June 22 / groundhog attack! may have some late Aug. / one left, ready in Sept.
• broccoli – planted June 22 – foiled groundhog with extra transplants – ready in September / groundhog attacks in August, may be crop failureg
• broccoli raab (“leaf” broccoli) – planted June 22 – we’ll have lots in August / sold it all on Aug. 19!
• zucchini – green, yellow, and heritage Italian “costata” – planted June 27 – ready late August thru Sept. / nope, ready Sept. 5!
• potatoes – white and red – planted May 24 – ready in Aug.
• shallots – sorry, none this year – ran out of room!
• green and red bunching onions – seedlings planted out June 8 – to be ready in Aug. / 50% crop failure due to cold and wet / ready Sept. 5
• yellow cooking onions – seedlings planted out June 8, rather late, will be sold as green-tops – to be ready in Aug. / 50% crop failure due to cold and wet / ready Sept. 5!
• green and white acorn squash – seedlings planted out June 8 / growing well in Aug., good fruit set / ready in Sept. if no frost
• spaghetti squash – seedlings planted out June 8 / growing well in Aug., good fruit set / ready in Sept. if no frost
• orange kabocha squash *great flavour!* – seedlings planted out June 8 / growing well in Aug. / ready in Sept. if no frost
• delicata squash – seedlings planted out June 8 / growing well in Aug., no fruit set yet / may have been too cold this year
• pie pumpkins – crop failure! seedlings planted out June 5, flash frost June 6
• Jarrahdale pumpkins (those big blue ones that taste so good) – crop failure! seedlings planted out June 5, flash frost June 6

See you at the Market!

~Wendy O’Connor den@bearhaven.ca