Friday, October 14, 2011

CONTEST WINNERS FOR ESPANOLA FARMERS MARKET


WINNERS  ESPAÑOLA FARMERS’ MARKET
TWELFTH ANNUAL BIGGEST VEGETABLE & BEST POEM CONTEST
October 10, 2011

Vegetable Judge:              Glenna Dean, archeobotanist
Poetry Judge:             Joan Logghe, Santa Fe Poet Laureate
 BIGGEST HEIRLOOM SQUASH
First Place:                        Eufelia Martinez, La Puebla
Second Place:            Gene Lopez, Lyden
Third Place:                        Ross Vargas, La Madera
BIGGEST PUMPKIN
First Place:                        Ross Vargas, La Madera
Second Place:             Tranquilino & Floraida Martinez, Penasco
Third Place:                        Ross Vargas, La Madera
BIGGEST CHILE
First Place:                        Rosa Espinosa  & Antonio Velasquez, Lyden           
Second Place:            Jorge Corona (smallest)           
Third Place:                        Salvador Corona
BIGGEST APPLE
First Place:                        Tony Maestas, Chamita
Second Place:             Rudy Cordova, Hernandez
Third Place:                        Gene Lopez, Lyden
BIGGEST ROOT VEGETABLE
First Place:                        Tranquilino & Floraida Martinez, Penasco
Second Place:            Lawrence Campbell, Alcalde
Third Place:                        Eufelia Martinez, La Puebla
ODDEST VEGETABLE
First Place:                        Floyd Gonzales, La Puebla (giant cucumber)
Second Place:             Steve Jaramillo, Espanola (unruly potato)
Third Place:                        Luz & Leonard Lopez, Nambe (orange “penguin” squash)
WILD CARD VEGETABLE
First Place:                        Steve Jaramillo, Espanola (watermelon)
Second Place:            Elias Gomez, Alcalde (beans)
Third Place:                        Luz & Leonard Lopez, Nambe (white squash)
BEST POEM
Honoring all Student Poets

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

12th Annual Biggest Vegetable & Best Poem Contest

When? Monday, Octrober 10, 2011
Winners announced at 1:30 p.m.

Biggest pumpkin, heirloom squash, root vegetable, apple or smallest apple, chile, oddest vegetable, wild card outstanding vegetable. And best poem by a student about farming. Where? at the Espanola Farmers Market. Deliver all poems and vegetable contestants to the market by 10 a.m. on contest day. Call 505-685-4842 for more information.

Sunday, August 21, 2011

FREE CHILE ROASTING AT ESPANOLA FARMERS MARKET


The Espanola Farmers’ Market will be roasting chile purchased at the Market free on Monday, August 29th. Market hours are 10am-5pm. Customers can purchase a variety of heirloom chile, including specialty chile from Chimayo, Hernandez, Velarde, Dixon and other communities. They can also browse for other fine produce- corn, sweet peas, lettuce, mixed greens, onions, garlic, herbs, atole, tomatoes, pumpkins, potatoes and other fresh foods. We have horno bread, pastelitos, honey, jams, USDA-certified grass-fed beef, dried chile, beans, blue corn meal and other special treats. We are also offering lunch each Monday and a growing market on Friday afternoon from 2-7pm. Thanks to a grant from Pojoaque Valley Fund and New Mexico Community Foundation, three students worked weekly in our Wildflower Garden and also helped prepare the irrigated fields behind the Market plaza for cultivation next year. Visit the Wildflower Garden in bloom now. 

The Market accepts WIC, Senior WIC, SNAP (formerly EBT) and Debit cards. August 29th is also the last day to redeem any Double Bonus tokens awarded earlier in the month. Children can select a free book at our Kids Book Exchange or customers can purchase a dollar raffle ticket for our Monthly Free Bag of Produce. We also have a colorful selection of Market aprons, tee shirts or post cards and issues of A Farming Chapbook from previous Market seasons. Come visit us! Every Market Monday and every Friday Afternoon Market are special events!

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Espanola Farmers Market News

The Friday market starts on Friday, July 22nd. Call to reserve a space (505-685-4842). The setup is 2 p.m. and the market closes at 7 p.m.

Three students are working with gardener Isabel Trujillo for five Mondays to plant around the acequia and in two wildflower ovals in order to clear the paths and prepare the acequia for the planting of winter rye. We are preparing the back fields for students to plant vegetables next season.

The double bonus program is underway through August. Anyone using EBT/SNAP cards will receive double bonus tokens. The WIC/Senior WIC checks will be distributed at the market starting August 1st and will be distributed each Monday.

Monday, July 11, 2011

Slow start for Espanola Farmers Market, but plenty of everything

Bad spring weather, the drought, and the wildfires that put a strain on the area's water supply. . .all of these added up to a slow start for the Espanola Farmers' Market. But don't let that stop us! There's plenty for everyone. Fire up the grill for veggies. And if you're too busy, stop by the market for home-cooked food prepared right there. It's the same as you can whip up at home and an inspiration as to what's possible. Work is ongoing in the market garden and a schedule for summer activities to be announced soon.
Edith Lopez visits the administration tent where articles about the Espanola Farmers Market are kept in a loose-leaf notebook. When asked, she points out her photo in the Espanola newspaper from as far back as 2005. Young people often come to the market with their parents and grandparents to hang out for the day.
Mmmm. There's nothing like speaking to the growers themselves. Chances are they'll tell you about getting up early on market day and all the work involved in getting the produce ready for sale. And a great deal of the offerings can't be purchased in any supermarkets around the area.

Thursday, June 9, 2011

OPENING DAY OF THE MARKET FOR 2011


Monday, June 13th is Opening Day for the Espanola Farmers’ Market’s 2011 season. Visit us every Market Monday through Halloween at 1005 N. Railroad Avenue from 10 am- 5pm and enjoy the first fresh fruits and vegetables of the season-quelites, sweet peas, lettuce, mixed greens, onions, garlic, herbs, and other fresh foods. We will have horno bread, pastelitos, honey, jams, USDA-certified grass-fed lamb, buffalo and beef, dried chile, beans, blue corn meal and other special treats. We invite our customers to relax at the Market tables under the shade canopies and enjoy lunch and occasional concerts with local musicians or browse among the thirty Market stalls.

This season, we will be cooking during various Market Mondays in the horno that students built last summer in the Wildflower Garden area and also cultivating a small vegetable garden with students in back of the Market plaza. Eleven vendors and customers have “adopted” flowerbed ovals in the Garden, so visitors will be able to enjoy colorful plants as they grow and bloom. 

The Market accepts WIC, Senior WIC, SNAP (formerly EBT) and Debit cards. In July we will host two weekly Market DaysFriday Market starts on July 15th and continues through September 16th from 2-7pm plus our regular Market Mondays. Each Market Day, children can select a free book at our Kids Book Exchange or customers can purchase a dollar raffle ticket for our Monthly Free Bag of Produce. We also have a colorful selection ofMarket aprons, tee shirts or post cards and issues of A Farming Chapbook from previous Market seasons. Come visit us! Every Market Monday and every Friday Afternoon are special events!