Test Your Local Farms Knowledge

Here at the Friends of Salem Saturday Market, we want to get people thinking about local farm and food connections. Yes, we know that butternut squash tastes better and fresher when it comes from the farm down the street. But what are some of the other issues related to getting food from field to table? Test your knowledge of local farms with this fun and informative quiz from American Farmland Trust – and get the real dirt on local foods!

Yard Sale was a success!

The weather could not have been better for the last Saturday Market of the season. Mild temperatures and an occasional burst of sunlight made for a magnificent day – not to mention the trick-or-treaters and others costumed for Halloween!

We raised just over $200 at our booth yard sale. Our thanks go out to all of the folks who stopped by to say hello and make a purchase, as well as those who donated items to sell.

The money will help to support the educational programming we have in the works. Our hope is to continue programs throughout the winter months, so be sure to check back here for more information as it becomes available.

In the meantime, be sure to put these dates on your calendar. We’ll be at both events!

• Sunday, November 22 – Sustainable Holiday Market sponsored by Friends of Straub Environmental Learning Center. It’s at Cone Field House, Willamette Unversity.
• December 12 & 13 – Salem Saturday Market Holiday Gift Market will be at the Oregon State Fairgrounds, in the AmeriCraft Center (formerly the Jackman Long Building). Friends of Salem Saturday Market will be hosting a “gift valet” service to hang on to your purchases while you continue shopping.

Both events have free admission and free parking. Hope to see you there!

Yard Sale at the Saturday Market

Hi Friends!

Saturday, Oct. 31, is the last day of the Salem Saturday Market for 2009!

Friends of Salem Saturday Market will be there holding a yard sale at our booth ~ our first big fundraiser. Swing by our booth on the northwest side of the Market to see the great stuff we’ve got for sale, at ridiculously affordable prices.

The money we raise Saturday will help get us through the winter months. Although the Market may be finished, our activities and events certainly are not! FSSM is a year-round organization, and we want to keep the momentum going that we’ve gained all summer. So come take a look at our booth, see what we’ve got for sale, or just say hi. We’ll miss seeing all of our great members & supporters every week!

We’re not the only ones with good deals Saturday ~ a lot of the vendors will be selling garage-sale items, too. You’ll find even more great stuff than usual!

Bring the kids, too, for trick-or-treating and a costume contest. There’s even a costume contest for dogs!

We hope to see you you down there – rain or shine! – to bid farwell to a wonderful Market season!

The Market’s Final 2 Saturdays

Can you believe Salem Saturday Market is already coming to a close? There are only 2 more Saturdays before it shuts down for the season. This summer flew by!

There are still a lot of dedicated vendors out there each Saturday, selling produce, meats, hot food, flowers, crafts and more. Come buy directly from the producer while you still can, & thank them for braving this October weather!

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The Market may be winding down, but Friends of Salem Saturday Market is a year-round organization, and we’ve got some fun events in the works. Here’s a sampling:

Oct. 31: Our first fundraiser – We’ll be holding a yard sale at our booth! All the proceeds from the sales at the FSSM booth go directly to supporting our mission and events. We’ve got a lot of great, gently used items for sale: MP3 players, purses, a scanner, books, home decor, baby stuff, and a lot more! Rain or shine!

November: Here’s another benefit for FSSM members! We’ve visited several farms, and now we’ve got a chance to see how crops are handled after they’re harvested. FSSM members are invited to take a tour of Ankeny Lakes Wild Rice Company. These local folks gather wild rice from Oregon, Idaho and Canada, and process, mix, season and package it in a facility south of Salem. We will email members soon with a date and invitation to this exclusive event!

Nov. 22: Sustainable Holiday Market - Straub Environmental Learning Center is hosting this second annual event at Willamette University. We’ll be there to educate consumers, explain our mission, and to sell gift memberships to FSSM.  A membership to FSSM makes a thoughtful gift and is a wonderful alternative to combat materialism.

Dec. 13 & 14: Holiday Gift Market - We’ll be at this huge event at the Fairgrounds. As another fundraiser, FSSM will be hosting a “Gift Valet Service.”  Our volunteers will hang onto your purchases while you continue shopping. All donations benefit FSSM’s msision.  And, you’ll again have another chance to buy gift memberships to FSSM!

Our Board of Directors is hard at work planning more events and activites. Thanks for your support!

Changing our look again

With the change in seasons, the Friends of Salem Saturday Market decided a more sleek, easy-to-read blog was needed. This change marks the end of our regular attendance at the Saturday Market, although you can find us there on Oct. 10 for the Discover Pink YWCA breast cancer walk and Oct. 31 for the annual market-wide garage sale.

Please remember, even though the Saturday Market ends Oct. 31, the Friends group will continue its work to connect you to local growers and artisans. Farm Tours are in the works, and we will be at the Sustainable Holiday Market on Nov. 22 at Willamette University and the Holiday Market on Dec. 13-14 at the Oregon Fairgrounds. Think about a membership to the Friends of Salem Saturday Market for a holiday gift!

A visit to Minto Island Growers

On Saturday, Chris Jenkins and Elizabeth Miller opened their farm, Minto Island Growers, to members of the Friends of Salem Saturday Market. More than 30 people came to hear about the many operations Chris and Elizabeth have going on their farm.

The most surprising (to this blogger, at least!) was that they also do a tremendous amount of work in the field of restoration. They are growing red alders, for example, for use in riparian areas on public land, for example. They are also experimenting with willows — trying to determine if the native willow can outcompete the nasty, invasive reed canary grass that takes over streams around here. Their native plants don’t just end up on other people’s properties – They teamed up with Marion County to plant about 3,000 riparian shrubs and sedges to restore the small creek running across their property.

“This keeps us really busy during the winter,” Chris said.

That’s when most farmers can usually get a break!

They also have many other plans for the future, including making local tea from their 1/2 acre plot of tea plants. Another surprise to me: black, oolong and herbal teas are all from the same plant. The different teas depend on how long you oxidize the leaves.

Chris and Elizabeth are experimenting with ginger as well. Perhaps next year we can all count on local ginger?!?!

Hmmm…. Seems we can learn a lot from our local farmers. Stay tuned for our other members-only farm tours.

Members of the Friends of Salem Saturday Market walk through Chris and Elizabeth’s tea plants.

Chris and Elizabeth dry garlic and onions in this greenhouse.

Chris talks about his ginger-growing experiment.

Despite their slug problem, Chris and Elizabeth have beautiful vegetables growing in their fields.

Chris and Elizabeth discuss what they love: their farm, their farming philosophies, and how to make organic farming easier (i.e. get a tractor!)

Beautiful, huge kale!

Bright color amid fields of green…

Give a book, get a book

This Saturday, Sept. 26th, the Friends of Salem Saturday Market is hosting the market’s book exchange. The idea is brilliant in its simplicity: bring a book you no longer want and exchange it for one you do want.

The book exchange runs from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. If you’d like to donate books beforehand, please email FSSM at info@friendsofsalemsaturdaymarket.org. We will try to help facilitate an early drop-off site.

Salsa

Just a reminder that Holly Berry of OSU Extension Service is teaching one more class this summer — SALSA! She’ll be there at 10 a.m. to give you the best tips on making this summer treat…

Rain or Shine

We had a great turnout today for our Chutney making class. Thanks to you devoted food preservationists who so eagerly braved the pouring rain to attend our event. It’s wonderful folks like you who make Friends of Salem Saturday Market a success!

Next week is our final food-preservation class for 2009:  Salsa! The free class is at 10 a.m., rain or shine!

Next week is also the final regular day for the FSSM booth. We’ll be back on these dates, though, so you can catch us then:

Sept. 26: Book exchange ~ Bring your old books & trade them for a different one.
Oct. 10: Breast Cancer walk ~ A fundraising walk will be making its way through the Market, and we’ll be there, decked out in pink to show our support.
Oct. 31: Market Yard Sale ~ Donate your gently used items to FSSM, and we’ll sell it as a fundraiser for FSSM.

Beyond the Market, we’ll still be doing some great things all year. We’ve got another farm tour scheduled for Sept. 26, at Minto Island Growers. We’re working on bringing Heather Flores of “Food Not Lawns International” to Salem for a seed swap & community building workshop. And, of course, we’ll be at the annual Holiday Market at the Fairgrounds in December.

Thanks again for all your support!

Food Preservation handouts are online

We’ve had a terrific response to our free food-preservation classes!

Now, you can download the handouts that our class attendees received. Thanks to Holly Berry of Marion County Extension Service for providing these detailed instructions on food preservation!

Go to our website to download the materials:
www.friendsofsalemsaturdaymarket.org/food-preservation

More will be posted soon!

If you find these classes and documents useful, we ask you to support Friends of Salem Saturday Market by becoming a member of our organization. Your support helps make these free resources available. Thank you!