Tag Archives: hoop houses

Farm Hoop Houses providing early Local Farm Produce

April 21, 2014

Rocky Glade farm grown strawberries

We saw them too – red, plump and juicy and flying out of the market as fast as cars zooming around a racetrack. The very first local farm strawberries of the spring were at the FFM this past Saturday and some of you could not wait to get your hands on them. We can’t really blame you. Those beautiful strawberries were grown on Rocky Glade Farm and are a couple of weeks earlier than expected. But remember how we told you that farmers are pretty resourceful, using hoop houses and row covers to protect their crops from bad weather? That’s exactly what they did on Rocky Glade Farm. The Vaughn family raises a lot of good vegetables in the fields. But they also have two large hoop houses, which help to protect early spring crops from those last-minute blasts from winter. It all adds up to delivering delicious local farm produce like those early strawberries. We’re betting you’ll see more of them next Saturday.

Pilgrims Produce radishes

Sweet green onions from Pilgrims Produce

Beaverdam Creek fresh lettuces and radishes

Farm fresh spinach, carrots, lettuces and radishes from Paradise Produce

Just picked romain lettuce from Norton Family Farm

It was one of those everything old is new again days at the FFM this past Saturday. Think about it for a minute. Sometimes it seems like winter drags on forever, with no bright flowers to see and no warm weather fresh veggies to enjoy. So when all the local farm produce of spring finally show back up again, it’s like we’re seeing them for the first time. That’s what it was like at the farmers market. There were new spring veggies to enjoy, like fresh green onions for the perfect salad.

Lettuces from Pilgrims Produce

Green Onions from Kirkview Farm

Celery from Rocky Glade

Delvin Farms fresh lettuces

Carrots from Norton Family Farm

Fresh lettuce mix from Norton Family Farm

Early starter plants, such as squash, tomatoes and cucumbers were going home to be planted by backyard gardeners.

Vegetable Starter Plants from Paradise Produce

Blackberry plants from Delvin Farm

Plus all the flowers… beautiful, bright flowers were found all over the market. Spring makes everything new again.

Beautiful Flowers from Blooming Baskets

FFM customers heading home with new starter plants for their garden

Volunteer Day April 26th

Have you ever wondered how the FFM comes together every Saturday, year-round? Sometimes to us, it seems like magic. But it is really the work of our volunteers who play an important role in making the Franklin Farmers Market the best market in Tennessee for local farm produce. We’re always looking for great volunteers.

Next Saturday is FFM’s Volunteer Day. It’s your chance to join the market team and help out in a variety of different ways. If you believe in local food, sustainability and the goodness of Tennessee farms, we’d love for you to be part of our team.

Look for the special farmers market Volunteer booth next Saturday at the front of the market and join the FFM team!

Baby Calf has a Name and Farmers bring Farm Fresh Produce to Market

January 20, 2014

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It was another cold day at the FFM

Mother Nature has been a bit grumpy and unpredictable this winter. The chilly wind blowing through the Franklin Farmers Market this past Saturday was proof of that. It’s the sort of weather that calls for a good dose of comfort food and that’s what everyone was getting at the market. Instant warm-ups, like those hot doughnuts from Ellie’s Old Fashion Doughnuts or Jones Mill Farm’s sourdough rolls with Triple L Sausage definitely qualified as comfort food. So did the hot chocolate from Ridiculous Chocolate and warm freshly prepared cornbread, made with Beaverdam Creek Farm’s special mill stone ground cornmeal.

Warm doughnuts and hot coffee from Ellie’s

Stone Ground Cornmeal and Grits from Beaverdam Creek Farm

Veggies, like potatoes and cabbage to make homemade soups. Great meats, like a chuck roast for a warm delicious meal.

Organic Cabbage from Delvin Farms

Delvin Farms Organic Potatoes

Tender tasty fresh beef from Bear Creek Farm

Homemade soups from Lucy’s Kitchen

Kenny’s Cheeses from Moonshadow Farm

And the vivid orange carrots and green Brussels sprouts offered a little tease of spring with their bright colors.

Garlic, Turnips and Tomato Sauce from Delvin Farms

Winter Squash from Delvin Farms

Delvin Farms Brussels Sprouts

Here’s a question for you: You don’t see any flowers growing or green leaves on trees, so how do vegetables grow during the winter? We overheard that very question being asked at the market this past Saturday. Are those veggies grown somewhere else in warmer weather and then shipped in to Tennessee? The answer to that question is no. Some vegetables, such as cabbage grow much better in cooler weather. But when the weather gets a little cold, row covers and hoop houses go over the top of the plants to protect them. The coverings help the plants to get a little more warmth from the sun and protection from frost too. So what you see in the FFM during the winter really is grown on a local farm.

Call me Buttermilk!

And finally, the voting is over and the little calf at Triple L Ranch is no longer without a name. Say hello to Buttermilk. The top seven names in the Name the Calf contest were Ollie, Jasper, Ace, Leo, Oliver, Bartholomew and Buttermilk. Who submitted the winning name? It was actually Ann Lee of Triple L Ranch. Ann put the name Buttermilk in the poll as a little joke, because the calf is neither a heifer nor a dairy cow. But that kind of backfired, because Buttermilk was voted as the favorite name for calf. The runner-up in the contest was the name Bartholomew, which was submitted by Savana Stroud. So the Lee family has awarded the prize of a day at the Triple L Ranch to Savana. Our thanks to everyone who voted in the Name the Calf contest!

The Franklin Farmers Market is community driven Saturday morning farmers market bringing together the best local farmers in the state of Tennessee. Visit our photo gallery and farmer profiles to learn more about Tennessee farm fresh produce and meats.

Fresh lettuces from Paradise Produce

Farm fresh eggs from River Cottage

Local Farmers providing Fresh Lettuce, Spinach and other Vegetables this Winter!

December 30, 2013

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Fresh lettuce from the Norton Family Farm

Salads are a summer treat, right? So how can there be fresh picked lettuce and spinach at the Franklin Farmers Market on a cold winter’s day? Just ask the market’s reigning lettuce master, Jim Norton. This past Saturday at the market, it was cold. Very cold. But the Norton Family Farm had beautiful tasty lettuce and spinach. How was that possible?

Norton Farm’s tender fresh spinach

You can find lettuce and spinach from the Norton farm practically year-round at the market because of the loose-leaf varieties of lettuce and spinach that Jim plants in succession and the use of hoop houses and row covers to protect the lettuce crops from weather and insects. So even though we’ve had plenty of cold days this December, the Norton lettuce and spinach crop continues to thrive.

There were also plenty of winter veggies at the market this past Saturday too, such as winter squash, sweet ‘taters and Brussels sprouts.

Winter Squash

Delvin Farm’s cabbage

Winter veggies from Paradise Produce Farm

Checking out the vegetables from Pilgrim’s Produce

A wide variety of winter veggies to choose from

Freshly baked!

Soups from Lucy’s Kitchen

Lots of yummy jellies from the Norton Family Farm

Tasty Brussels sprouts at the Franklin Farmers Market

Put some green in your diet!

The market’s “Eating in Season” cookbook

Eating vegetables year round is a healthy way to stay in shape. But maybe you are not quite sure what to do with a bunch of beets or a head of cabbage. You can find an easy solution to fixing meals with winter vegetables at the market. Pick up a copy of the FFM’s cookbook, “Eating in Season”. It has recipes for each season of the year. Let’s say that you picked up a turnip at the market but were not quite sure what to do with it in the kitchen. The Eating in Season cookbook has a recipe for Baked Turnip Fries that will leave you begging for more. You can pick up a copy of the Eating in Season cookbook through the winter season at the Norton Family Farm booth. It’s just $15 (plus tax) and it can make every meal, year-round delicious.

Lots of goodies from Lucy’s Kitchen

On this Wednesday, we say goodbye to 2013 and hello to the New Year. And with the new year, come a couple of changes at the Franklin Farmers Market. Starting January 4^th, dogs will no longer be allowed at the market, so please leave your pets at home when visiting the market. Secondly, the market’s winter hours will change. As of January 4^th, the Franklin Farmers Market will begin opening at 9am and close at noon. Those hours will remain in place until the start of the spring/summer season at the market.

As we close out this year, the farmers and the vendors at the Franklin Farmers Market want to express their appreciation to everyone who came to the market and made 2013 a record-breaking successful year. We are very grateful for your support of local farms. Thank you!

Tom the Barn Wood Sign Guy’s unique creations

Antlers natural treats for your four-legged friends

Loading up on a great variety of freshly baked breads from Jones Mill Farms