What a Week!
Apr 18, 2018
What a week! Many an anxious farmer has been watching the weather and the power supply, hoping that seedlings won’t freeze, that there will be water for animals, and that fields won’t flood too badly, among other things. The picture up top is the Sosnickis’ fully planted greenhouse. Spot the leak! We’re hoping all the fallen trees are cleared from the roads so the farmers and vendors can get to market, and that for customers, the chance of a little precipitation will seem like a minor detail compared to what... Read More
Is gentrification helping the market?
Apr 12, 2018
Real estate agents like to mention the market as one of the neighbourhood’s assets, and developers tag us on instagram. Should we be rubbing our hands with glee at the prospect of wealthier customers? I’m one of the lucky people who moved here long ago, when the neighbourhood wasn’t crazy-expensive, but it wasn’t just the cost of housing that made it a good place to live. When I got involved at my kids’ school, and came to the park, more of the people who lived around here could afford to choose how they spent... Read More
No Fooling, It’s April!
Apr 5, 2018
On farms like All Sorts Acre, there are new arrivals, and we are happy to welcome back two vendors this week. ChocoSol will also begin attending every week again. Think gardening! However tiny the space you have may be, you can enjoy the pleasure of planting seeds and reaping an Urban Harvest. Colette and her friendly helpers can provide lots of advice about the conditions needed by different plants, be they herbs, flowers or vegetables. You’ll find Urban Harvest in the rinkhouse. Head to the garage for tasty harvests from Pine River... Read More
March 29th News
Mar 29, 2018
We had a very festive start to spring last week. Hope you got to try some ‘sap tea’ and samples of good things from the vendors to whet your appetite for the season ahead. Hope you also got to meet some of the Plan B Band pictured above: an improvisational, multi-player, evolving, sometimes tuneful ensemble that’s more fun than a barrel of monkeys! Everything wants to sprout now! These onions made a nice surprise addition to our salad even if they weren’t supposed to be green ones, but the farmers are running out of... Read More
The First Market of SPRING!
Mar 22, 2018
Official Start of Spring Checklist: First Robin Sighting: check! Witchhazel is in Bloom: check! Day is longer than Night: check! Sap is Running: check! Seedlings are up in Farmers’ Greenhouses: check! It’s Time to Celebrate the Arrival of a New Season! Here’s what’s happening this week, for the FIRST MARKET OF SPRING! Thursday, March 22nd, 3 to 7 pm: A Campfire with Sap Boiling Maple Syrup Tasting by Forbes Wild Foods and Spade & Spoon with Silver Dollar Pancakes (on the house!) A Visit from Island Oysters,... Read More
Mid-March-Market News
Mar 15, 2018
You can feel the strength of the sun when it comes out these days. My Mother used to tell me that her Mother told her that March sun was the best thing for getting stains out of fabrics. The sun is spoiling the rink for skating, but it’s pulling the seedlings up in our farmers’ greenhouses. Has anyone seen a robin yet? It won’t be long now…. Here’s a fine list of produce from Everdale: “We are pleased to bring the following items! SPINACH, BABY KALE, and SPECIALTY GREENS, oh my! Plus dry beans, red beets,... Read More
March 8th-A Toast to Women Who Feed Us!
Mar 8, 2018
This week’s market falls on International Women’s Day, so let’s pay tribute to the many wonderful women who keep us well-fed, be they farmers, cooks, bakers, makers, sellers, or volunteers! We have so many beautiful, strong women who are part of the market! Here are a few: There are so many others, too–I need a bigger collage. Thank you all! It’s fitting that we have a new farmer joining us, whose name is Lauren Nurse. Lauren grows unusual crops at Small Spade Farm (2 hours northeast of Toronto), including... Read More
Sap’s Running!
Mar 1, 2018
Don’t worry, winter lovers, I’m not saying there won’t be more of that beautiful white stuff, but the word from the sugar bush is that the first, secret sign of spring is flowing in the maple trees. Old-timers say the earliest and sweetest sap runs down from the branches to the roots, and then the rest flows up. Whether that’s true or not I cannot say; it’s all invisible except for the drips flowing from the taps on sunny days. You can ask Seth from Forbes Wild Foods or Blythe from Spade & Spoon for some... Read More
Coming to Market This Week?
Feb 22, 2018
Last week, to celebrate Lunar New Year, we put market buck vouchers in lucky red envelopes and gave them away to random visitors. Nicole decided to get more bang for our lucky bucks by asking recipients a bit about why they come to the market. Here are a few of their answers: Shawn: lives in the community, and highly appreciates an all-year organic market Kasia: having access to actual farmers and info about food directly Janine: it’s close by, it’s organic, and she “always gets a laugh from Rodrigo!” Belinda: the farmers! (she said with... Read More
Think Global, Party Local
Feb 15, 2018
This week, I’ve seen photos of Shrove Tuesday pancake races in London, Valentine’s dinners in fancy restaurants, Carnival parades in Rio, Mardi Gras blowouts in New Orleans, and Olympic sports in Pyeongchang. Lunar New Year celebrations are beginning, too. How are we going to match all this? What can we say that will bring out the crowds, cheering wildly and dancing in the aisles? The truth is, there are no marketing geniuses behind the market. We just really hope you will come and shop from the farmers and vendors every... Read More