In his book, In Defense of Food, author Michael Pollin includes a sound recommendation for consumer food choices: “Eat a variety of real foods, not too much, mostly plants.” For the vendors of the Presque Isle Farmers Market, these recommendations translate into a related adage: “Grow a variety of foods, produce as much as is sustainable on your farm, preserve your sanity.”
At this time of year, we are scrambling. Vendors have early seeds planted directly in the ground in their high tunnels. Gardeners use an expanding army of pots on the windowsills to coax their seedlings to produce strong established roots and dense foliage of a deep green, rather than sad, spindly, sun-deprived, sallow gashlycrumb tinies. Livestock owners carry out their own potions, lotions, and magic incantations to persuade spindly-legged lambs, calves, chicks, and pigs to thrive: “Grow, darn it all.”
Our learning curve continues to strain upward regardless of the depth of our experience. Last year’s pasture develops alopecia. Tomatoes may decide they hate marigolds. New varieties may or may not be improvements over old favorites. Hissy fits thrown by the weather during the growing season may make things better or they make things worse. No matter how many problems we “solve” in our fields or barns, new ones seem to appear as a major crop.
This year, it has been the reluctance of spring to do its job. Our usual habit to open in time for Mother’s Day is just not working out. Even the high tunnels are cold and dark “late” into this dragging season; soil temperatures out of doors are still making the tough seeds like peas want to crawl back into their envelopes.
We are therefore delaying our opening until May 20. But when you do come to visit the Presque isle Farmers Market in the Aroostook Centre Mall parking lot on that Saturday morning (8:30 a.m. 1 p.m.), you will be encouraged to share with us a slightly perverse, slightly stubborn, slightly optimistic outlook. A sense of humor is essential. No matter where the latest plot twist takes us in our Edward Gorey story, we will be glad to see you and to serve you. See you there.
The Presque Isle Farmer’s market’s president is Kevin Ehst of Hidden Meadow Farm in Bridgewater. For information about participating or visiting the market, contact him at 425-4050 or via email at kevins@ehst.com.
