Take a moment to just breathe and appreciate this perfect rose-pink zinnia I saw in the garden this morning. Isn’t it beautiful?

Okay, let’s dive in.

Kicking off fall a little early, the Broadway Community Market will be set up for the entirety of the Broadway Autumn Festival this Saturday, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. The market will actually be open an hour earlier than the rest of the festival, so if big crowds aren’t your thing, come out between 8 and 9 a.m. to enjoy some quiet shopping.

I found some lovely orange and green yarn at Gift and Thrift yesterday and have been working up fun little pumpkin bookmarks to add to my table this week. I will also have some other crocheted items I don’t usually bring, as well as fresh veggies from the garden:

• cucamelons
• cucumbers
• jalapenos
• tomatoes
• chard
• garlic
• garlic salt
• dish cloths and scrubbies
• skillet handle covers
• Swiffer covers
• cup cozies
• flower, sprout, and pumpkin bookmarks

The garden grows tired as we near the autumn equinox, so you will notice a transition in vegetable availability over the coming weeks. Just in the last week, the cucumber vines have gone from green and lush to brown and crumbling. I’ve picked a pile of cucumbers for the market on Saturday, but those vines won’t be producing any more fruits. The cucamelons right next to them are still going strong, though! One bed over, the skeletal bean plants are also done for the year, and beyond them, the peppers and tomatoes are slowing down.

The perpetual spinach chard (a mild chard that tastes a bit like spinach) looks great and should continue providing us with fresh greens into the fall. And although it’s difficult to say for sure until I pull them out of the soil, I will likely have some beautiful carrots soon! The onions that have been curing in my attic are finally ready to clean up and bring to market too, so you might see those next week.

See you at the market!

Hello friends, just a quick note today to let you all know that I will not be at the Broadway Community Market tomorrow. I do have lots of veggies, though, and if you would like to arrange a porch pickup here in Broadway in the next couple days, please send me a Facebook message (quicker response) or email. Available this week:

• cucumbers
• cucamelons
• cherry tomatoes
• paste tomatoes
• beans
• zucchini
• garlic

Other great vendors will still be setting up at the Broadway Community Market tomorrow, so please do go see what they have to offer! I know there will be homemade ham potpie, delicious baked goods, an earring sale, and a new vendor with jerky and other snacks.

See you at the market … next weekend!

This evening (Wednesday), from 5 to 8 p.m., the Broadway Community Market is hosting a special Back-to-School Evening Market to celebrate the beginning of a new school year. We have an incredible 17 vendors registered, including two food vendors, live music, and a line dance demonstration in addition to local produce, fresh flowers, artwork, handmade gifts, and more! Make sure to pick up a bingo card to fill out for a chance to win some prizes too.

The garden seems to know I have two markets this week and has provided a bounty of produce (okay, it probably has more to do with the mild weather last week, but the timing couldn’t be better). Here is what you can find at my table this evening, and likely on Saturday as well:

• cucamelons
• cherry tomatoes
• slicing cucumbers
• tomatoes
• bell peppers
• jalapenos
• garlic
• zucchini
• beans
• garlic salt
• crocheted items

The cucamelons, cherry tomatoes, bell peppers, and cucumbers are great for make-ahead lunches for kids and adults. And I’ve been working up lots of crocheted bookmarks, both more flower bookmarks and new little sprout bookmarks, that make great gifts for students, teachers, and bookworms.

Our previous evening markets this summer were huge successes and a lot of fun, so come join us! Make sure to also follow the Broadway Community Market on Facebook and sign up to receive these farm updates in your inbox (see sidebar), if you haven’t already, to make sure you know about future special markets as well. We have the Broadway Autumn Festival coming up, and last year we had a fun trunk-or-treat style market in October, plus holiday markets after the regular season has ended.

See you at the market!