Watauga County Farmers' Market

Shoppers should have little trouble filling their grocery lists this week at either the Wednesday or the Saturday market. Charles Church will be offering practically everything that can grown and harvested in this area including Yukon Gold potatoes, red cabbages, turnips, spring onions, collards and kohlrabi. Charles has salad fixings ranging from lettuce to purslane, amaranth greens, and lamb's quarters, and always has a full selection of local pork including sausage, pork chops, and ham roast.

Jeff Thomas will be harvesting broccoli and green beans this week. Maverick Farms will have fresh carrots, burgundy bush beans and golden and red beets. Cynthia Lowrence of Poppy's Knob Farm will be handing out BBQ pork samples from her pasture raised pork.

Liza Plaster will bring fresh blueberries to the market this Saturday, and she will also have fresh chevre in six or eight different flavors, and Zinnia arrangements for the table. Carol Miller will have raspberry and blueberry vinegar for a limited time.

Joan Knox will have whole cheesecakes and whole pecan pies this Saturday in addition to her popular sourdough breads. Joan also offers bread mixes for fail-safe home baking in all of the flavors of her regular loaves including jalapeno, cheesy garlic, and apple cinnamon.

Representatives from Blue Ridge Women in Agriculture will be at the market every week to sell advance tickets to the 2008 High Country Farm Tour. The tour will be on Saturday, August 2 and Sunday, August 3, from 1 to 5pm each day. Buttons will be sold in advance for $20 and for $25 on tour days. There are new farms on the tour this year as well as some favorites from past tours. This is a great opportunity to see where your food comes from.

Watauga County Farmers' Market will be open on Wednesday mornings through September 10 at the same location as on Saturday mornings, the Horn in the West in Boone. Turn next to First Citizens Bank on Highway 105 Extension and go to the top of the hill. Call WCFM manager Karen Bauman at 1-828-355-4918 or visit http://wcfm.info for more information. We will be there rain or shine!