This serves as advance notice for the remainder of September. We will be open both Thursday, September 18 and Thursday, September 25 from 2 – 5 p.m. at Hattie’s Garden. We will attend the the Historic Lewes Farmer’s Market (HLFM) this coming Saturday, September 20 from 8 a.m to 12 p.m., but Hattie’s Garden will NOT be at the HLFM on September 27. We are taking a Saturday off from the market prior to our opening of the fall market at Shields Elementary School parking lot on the first Saturday in October.

Additionally, please remember the market at Shields in October and November will open ONE HOUR LATER, from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.

It is getting darker and darker each Saturday as we prepare early in the morning to leave for the market – especially for those vendors who come from afar. We found the three hour time-frame is a good length for our fall market with a vigorous local clientele who are there to get plenty of wonderful vegetables and do their shopping for the week!

The parking is easy and close to the market and it is a great time to stock up on some heavier staples for the winter such as sweet potatoes and winter squash.

What’s Available This Week

The following items will be available on Thursday, September 18 at Hattie’s Garden from 2 – 5 p.m. and at the HLFM on Saturday, September 20 from 8 a.m. to noon. You can also email Hattie to make an appointment to stop by Hattie’s Garden at another time.

• Hakurei Turnips – We are awash in hakurei turnips! The new batch of turnips is better than ever and earlier than we planned because of a bit of warmer than usual weather in early September. We are offering a special of $1.00 off each large bunch.
• Pak Choi Joi Choi – all parts of the pak choi are edible; just cut off and discard the very bottom of the stems. Cooks quickly, great steamed or in a stir fry.
• Fun Jen Chinese Cabbage – the thick white ribs are tasty with a pleasing light tangy sweetness. Enjoy raw or slightly stir-fried or steamed.
• Loose Leaf Lettuce – cut at a young and tender stage of growth and includes a delightful variety of colors, shapes and textures.
• Young Arugula – it’s beautiful, clean and very flavorful.
• Mesclun – a mix of arugula and loose leaf.
• Rudolph Radishes – these are rich, bright red roots with a crisp and tasty flavor. Use the greens in stir-fries, soups, omelets, or any dish requiring “greens.” For a nice side dish, saute them for a couple of minutes with garlic and olive oil.
• Lemongrass – brings a distinctive, pleasant citrus aroma to a wide range of Asian cuisine, adding its unique flavor to everything from marinades, stir-fries, salads, curry pastes and cold drinks.
• Tomatoes – both cherry and medium-sized slicers.
• Hot Peppers – we have several varieties of hot peppers. Listed below in order of heat on the Scoville Heat Scale are:
  • Anaheim – a mild green hot pepper that ripens to a pretty deep red (500-2,500 Scoville units).

  

  • Serrano – pronounced: suh rah noh, this pepper doesn’t need to be steamed or peeled before using, making it the easiest chile pepper to use for salsas (10,000-23,000 Scoville units).
  • Thai Red Hot – add heat to curry pastes, enliven pastes and sauces. These peppers will be good for many months, if stored in the freezer. They should be washed and dried prior to freezing in a freezer bag. Once you are ready to cook with them, simply remove the peppers. They are so small that they do not need to defrost. (50,000 – 100,000 Scoville units).
  • Joe’s Long Cayenne Peppers – hang and dry in your kitchen for hot pepper flakes, as well as excellent for homemade hot sauce (30,000-50,000 Scoville units).
  • Habeneros – for those of you who dare, the habanero pepper is sure to bring the heat you crave in spicy recipes (100,000-350,000 Scoville units).
• Flowers – our Lisianthus are blooming again, the Gomphrena is very nice and we are still cutting Zinnias. These flowers are cut and conditioned to last all week for you and come with a packet of flower food.

What’s Ahead

What’s happening at Hattie’s Garden in late September? This is our chance to finish up fall plantings. We continue planting as much as we can through the month of September and into October. Our kale and our carrots are already up and growing, but there is still time to successfully plant our favorite Hakurei Turnips, radishes, Asian greens, arugula, lettuce and spinach. We will also plant Swiss chard and offer it to you in a young tender leaf in November. The fall is a marvelous time in the garden for growing lots and lots of greens and with a little protection, they can last well into the holiday season.

We also plant cover crops on as much of our garden as we can to keep soil healthy, and add biomass (organic matter) and nitrogen. Our Winter rye and Austrian winter pea can be planted up until November, giving us time to open up more space for these rejuvenation cover crops.

Did you know Larkspur, Bachelor Buttons and other flowers that prefer cool weather can also be planted in the fall for blooming early in the spring? We plan to plant these flowers as the fall progresses. We will want to get them up and growing just a bit before the colder weather comes.

Yours at the market and garden…