Farmer's/Artisan Market located on Third street behind the Marquette Commons building.

Saturdays

Gwinn Farmers Market

Peter Nordeen Park

Thursdays

Munising Farmers Market

Bayshore Park Pavillion at Munising City Docks

Tuesdays

Jackson Mine Farmers Market/Negaunee

Wednesdays

Skandia Farmers Market

Fridays

Skandia Township Hall/Community Center

Kreiger Drive

The new perennials and woodies are in....yahooo!

 Now we have flats of annuals ready to go....or so we thought. Most days sticking to the grand plan works, sort of, until we have to shift course because of the weather. Luckily we didn't get these babies in the ground before that last frost, and we aren't quite so sure there isn't another frost around the corner. It's happened before with this type of cycle, but hopefully we are wrong. So it's up to us to make it happen, get those tender little starts in, tuck them in mulch and cover them for protection against this now windy onslaught and hope Mother nature doesn't smack us upside the head.

Kay so.......we:

Planted 150 more Dahlia tubers, 500 more Gladiolas (1500 to go!), cut back the rest of the Hydrangeas, tested the wet fields for planting annuals, put out slug bait (fierce slug population this year), and managed to attend to other household items. It may not seem like much (and at times it doesn't to us either), however when you have 2 acres of flowers to grow every little victory helps.

The good news is there appears to be a reduction in the cut worm numbers this year. Digging the holes for tubers and corms, we found maybe two grubs.......hmmmmm. Lots of small grey/black spiders everywhere and tons of beautiful snakes. It's early, but it makes me think the predators might be up in numbers this year from the high cycle of pests last year and our careful use of natural pesticides. Hopefully once our internet is fully functioning I can start to post pics of bugs.

This is a general care guide when purchasing flowers from Farmer’s Markets or cutting your own flowers from a garden.

Farm Markets

 Bunches and single cut stems need to be put into warm water as soon as possible.  If you have any intention of possibly purchasing flowers at a market, try to make sure you either bring a bucket of water to put them in, or drive directly home and do so. Flowers do not respond well to being jammed into a carry all and hauled around the market with their heads bobbing.  Nor do they enjoy being locked in the car for hours on end in the heat of summer. If you wouldn’t leave an animal or baby in the car, don’t leave your flowers. If it is hot this rule applies 100%. Flowers, even in water, do not enjoy sitting in a hot car (think boiling).

 Gardens

Always cut flowers in the cool of the early morning or close to sunset. Make sure you bring a container of water with you as you cut and place stems immediately into water. It is not a good principal to cut flowers once the day heats up. There are good sound biological principals for doing this, but this is a general care guide not a biology class. Many flowers also require specific after cutting requirements for helping them with their water uptake, but here too for practical purposes following the general instructions helps tremendously. The intention is to enjoy the flowers without a lot of science. If inquiring minds would like to know, email me and I can fill you in on the reasons why flowers last best under these specific conditions.

 Once you are Home

Before you put flowers in a vase, make sure you have a clean vase. The vase does not have to be filled to the top with water, but do make sure the water is warm(approx 100 degrees), not ice cold. Many flowers do not like water high on their stems (especially if the stems have fine small “hairs” covering them).

  Unwrap the flowers, removing any foliage that will be below the waterline. Then find a very sharp scissors or better yet flower shears.  If you use a dull cutting tool you run the risk of crushing the stems. Put warm water in a bowl or sink, placing the stems of the flowers under the water in the bowl or sink and cut the stems in the water about ½” from the bottom on a 45 degree angle. Many times you will see small air bubbles escaping. This is air trapped in the stem which may prevent the flow of water from reaching the head of the flower. Place the stem immediately after cutting in the bowl or sink into the vase.

Whether you use a commercial floral preservative or straight tap water, the most important aspect is to change the water frequently, re-cutting the stems as you did when bringing them home. Cloudy water is loaded with bacteria and clogs the stems of the flowers. A clean vase is very crucial to longevity as well as changing water, so wash the vase before putting in clean water and reinserting stems. Better yet have another clean vase ready to transfer the stems you have just re-cut.

 Make sure your flowers stay out of sunny hot locations, and keep them cool as possible.  Moving flowers to a basement or cooler location at night also increases longevity.

 My attempt at blogging in November/December failed because our internet provider was having tower "issues". Dialup was not an option because we have no landline. This problem has been an ongoing issue, as connection is sporadic at best. We have to be patient and hope this will be worked out soon....as our provider has promised. There are no other options for other providers where we are located.

On top of this our laptop blew a Motherboard in February....it is still not fixed. Our new laptop is functioning beautifully but, yes, now we have connection problems. So I will be diligent in getting some postings online, when I can get online. I may have to go to the library, if this sillyness continues.....but with the price of gas escalating it will be when I HAVE to drive somewhere.

Enough about that irritating rendition of a sob story eh?  The weather has taken a turn for Spring, and we are transfering plants to the greenhouse this week! More seeds are starting and our tulips are pushing their rosy leaves through the soil. The Sandhill Cranes are back and today, Saturday, Geese flew over the fields. Every year I am always amazed how life tranforms virtually over night and I can't wait to get my hands into the soil and feel the pulse of the earth.

Right now I am going to finish cleaning up the greenhouse for the new kids and cross my fingers that while I was posting my connection didn't dissolve......technology is great, but Nature never loses it's connection, or it's ability to complete timeless cycles. Here's hoping.......

We have made progress here. New beds made for the coming year, success in planting bulbs for the spring.  Photos taken and not posted. Some acomplishments are still in progress....first hard frost so we can lift the dahlia tubers, digging gladiola corms, not to mention cleaning beds of spent foliage.

Many folks say...Oh now you must be slowing down...on the contrary....evergreens must be cut to make wreaths, swags & arches. Perennials put to bed, annuals pulled. The best result of this whole new experience this year is the process of learning, period. And we Thank our loyal customers for being there for us.

It hasn’t been for lack of thinking about what to write, it’s been an interesting summer. It is more the lack of time, energy & all those little fires that need to be put out....now. If you grow or raise anything on a larger scale with only two people you will know exactly what I mean. However, the lack of blogging leaves a large gap of history & memories about the adventure of starting this enterprise; the heat, the weeds, hosting a very special guest from Japan, the rain, and oh yes, did I mention the heat & the weeds? 

Heat, rain & weeds aside, we were very fortunate to host a sister city delegate from Higashiomi Japan for ten days. Lucky for us he had previously spent time in New Zealand and had very good command of the English language. Meeting other host families/delegates and being a part of the larger picture of International Friendship was a very enlightening & enriching experience for us. Our delegate grows strawberries in high tunnels in Japan, so Dan made sure he had a great agricultural experience traveling to many farms in the area and taking advantage of the Marquette Food Co-op’s Farm Tour. The Marquette Sister City Delegation also sponsered a Farm Day and took all the delegates from Japan on a series of farm tours in the area. It was with much surprise and humility that when the delegates were getting ready to leave, the Delegation Leader in his goodbye speech emphasized that they were most impressed by the farms in the area. He said “ A community is sustainable only if the community's farms are sustainable”.  Enough said :-).

Even though the Marquette Market,(silly isn't it?), has been open since May 22nd, the big kick off starts this weekend June 26th at the Commons area in Marquette. There will be plenty to see, do, and purchase! The Market has grown considerably this year with many new additions, so if you haven't been down to the Commons yet on Market Day stop by this Saturday to experience the local color & entertainment that will be provided by various groups.