What's new? Lettuce tell you!

I know, first post of the new year and it's a pun.......sorry, I just couldn't help myself.

Thursday night, Bill got super-organized and busted out the seed trays, dirt & lettuce seed. I was allowed to help, 'cause it was late. So, six trays of yummy lettuce are off and running! The seedlings are up already and it won't be too long before we will need to put them in the ground.

We've been taking inventory of what we have and what we need to get started, touching base with our fantastic crew, getting equipment serviced and tuned up and attending pre-season market meetings. There are some exciting things coming up for both the Bloomington & Normal markets and we are glad to be back with both markets.


The Uptown Normal Trailside Market will again be on Tuesday afternoons from 3:30 to 6:00 in the Parkingson lot behind Wild Country. This should be the last year in this location--if construction schedules are on time, next year the market should be in a nicer location. As in the last two years, parking has been a concern in this area. There is parking over by the City Hall lot and on street parking to the east, so don't let a full parking lot keep you away!

There are more drastic alterations to the Downtown Bloomington Farmer's Market. We are still ringing the starting bell at 7:30 am, but some of the vendors will be in a different configuration. Farmers will still be on Main Street and on the adjoining block of Jefferson; however, the artists and a few other booths will be ACROSS Washington street to the south. While is isn't the best situation to have a major street run through a market, it's what we've got to work with, so we'll make it work! One benefit is that all the art and artists will be together. Sometimes the art gets lost in and among all us farmers; this new location will give them more visibility.

Another benefit of having the market extend a block to the south is the Lincoln parking deck anchors the end of the market. Already many market goers park here and walk up the short block to get to the market---now, the market will start a block closer, so take advantage of parking deck this summer.

In other news, we still have a few CSA memberships available for this summer. What's CSA? Short version is a CSA is an easy way to get top quality produce without having to visit a market or get up early on a Saturday morning. For a more detailed explanation, check out this page on our web site. I am also exploring ways for us to be able to accept debit and credit cards at the markets. We don't have all the details in place yet, but I'll keep you up to date on this development.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend and we'll see you at the market!