[jeanniepep]

Chiroptera, since you live up that way, have you ever been to Blueberry Lane Farms in Otter Lake? They have a really nice setup, the blueberries are awesome, and SO CHEAP!

[chiroptera]

Oooh! Never heard of them -this sounds fabulous. I'm up in that area (Fostoria) once or twice a week. I will definitely stop by.

Blueberry Lane Farms

Twenty varieties of blueberries...OMG. Thank you so much for this tip!

Originally Posted by jeanniepep

Chiroptera, since you live up that way, have you ever been to Blueberry Lane Farms in Otter Lake? They have a really nice setup, the blueberries are awesome, and SO CHEAP!

[xz2y]

Originally Posted by thebreadlady

Michigan is second only to California in the diversity of things that are grown, though our season is short. This time of year, the farmers markets will be filling with Michigan fruits and veggies. Some markets allow re-selling, so out-of-state produce is sold also. Re-sellers can be tricky little devils. The guy next to me at market this week had a sign "Michign Grown" across the front center of his table. When people asked if everything on the table was from Michigan, he pointed to the four different items in quart boxes directly above the sign. The stuff filling the rest of the table was not Michigan grown. It helps to get a list of what is available and when. Stuff coming in from Ohio can add a couple weeks to the season.
Project Fresh coupons and Bridge Cards can only be used on Michigan produce, so look for farmers who have those signs up at their table. A big sign with the farm name and location listed can help, too.

I want to add a few comments about fresh local produce and farmer's markets in the A2 area: MI has fabulous produce starting in June and through September. I have found it hard to find outside of expensive farmer's markets, however. The farmer's market in A2 is very expensive and filled with all kinds of non-produce items (crafts, etc) which is fine if that's what's you are looking for, but not so good if you are looking for just produce at good prices.

The farmer's market in A2 is not only over priced, but the vendors are not very friendly, at least in my experience. They are hard core sales people and don't even give a discount if you arrive while they are closing up shop and packing their truck with the left overs late in the day. How ludicrous is that! It doesn't make me want to shop there at all.

It's become a "chi-chi" place and not a real place for buying inexpensive, in season farm produce. Some vendors (raspberries, for example) are not from this area, and just go and pick a huge amount of berries somewhere in the area, and then charge an exhorbitant amount for a pint or quart of berries at the market. They are just trying to cash in on local produce and are "pickers" not farmers who own farms and sell their own produce.

I drive to Windsor on Saturdays in August to their real farmer's market (not a chi-chi boutique farm market) with tons of local Ontario produce and find realistic prices. I also drive around the area south of Windsor and stop at farm stands on the roads which are also really cheap and fun. People are friendly and trying to sell their peaches, corn and tomatoes at good prices during the season, not trying to rip people off.

I've also driven down to the Toledo Farmer's Market which is much better than A2, if you are looking for good prices, friendly vendors and more vegetables than crafts.

I tried one so-called "farm market" on Ford Road near Canton one time last summer and found the produce old and wilted and the prices outrageous. Never went back. And the "Produce Station" in A2 is geared to the BMW crowd. I've never seen such outrageous prices on produce, local and otherwise. The Ypsilanti Farmer's Market is very small and also has mostly non-produce vendors. Prices are still too high for what is being sold.

If anyone has any suggestions for finding good inexpensive local produce in season: tomatoes, peaches, corn, etc., during August in the A2 area, I'd be very interested in hearing where to go. Thanks!!

U-pick places around this area are also over the top in terms of prices.

[Bydand]

Originally Posted by chiroptera

Oooh! Never heard of them -this sounds fabulous. I'm up in that area (Fostoria) once or twice a week. I will definitely stop by.

Blueberry Lane Farms

Twenty varieties of blueberries...OMG. Thank you so much for this tip!

They need to update their location on the mapquest map they provide though. It has them off the West Coast of Africa in the Atlantic Ocean. Don't think I'll be swimming by their location anytime soon if it IS correct.

Sounds like a nice place though. If I were anywhere near the Flint area I would check them out for sure. I usually go to a very small farm over here between Ludington and Mears. Older couple and they charge by the bucket, a few bucks a bucket and they want them overflowing or they top them off for you because "we don't want to cheat you". Going there this week in fact. Don't even know the name of the farm so I can't be much help. One of those out of the way, small Mom & Pop farms that you can get great produce for unbelievable low prices. I'll pick 2 or 3 buckets and be set until next year at this time, all for under $20 which includs the gas to get down there and back.

[Wingnatic]

Any Michigan sweet corn hitting the markets anywhere . I haven't seen any yet , but it shouldn't be too much longer .

I visit Chatham Ontario pretty often , and outside Chatham is an ethenol plant surrounded by a square mile of cornfields . Problem is the plant uses mostly Michigan grown corn Residents are not happy about it

[chiroptera]

xz2y - I'm surprised there aren't better farmers' markets and produce places in A2. I would have thought given the crunchy granola flavor of the place, there would be...

Haven't seen local corn yet....Bydand, haha I'll need to check the directions to that place! Otter Lake is a very small town so they should be easy for me to find without having to swim LOL. I used to go to a place in Grand Blanc with an un-spellable name - Syzmanskis, something like that - for raspberries. They were fairly pricey though.

[jmlowman]

Yeah, what's up with the corn crop in Michigan this summer? We were in Flint for July 4th and the week after, and it mostly looked stunted where it was being grown out in the townships.

I was really looking forward to some Michigan sweet corn.

[jmlowman]

Originally Posted by chiroptera

Flint Farmers' Market is awesome, and every year I pick raspberries at a U-Pick place and freeze them. Yum.

Darn, we missed that. My wife was just checking out a site featuring places where the locals eat, and in Flint they mentioned a place on the second floor of the farmers' market. What second floor? When I was a kid, there were only some rough stalls.

Also as a kid, my parents would drive out into the country and look for farms that had a small produce stand at the side of the road. Nothing like buying from the source.

[chiroptera]

It's been a really cool, damp summer...third coldest July on record, I think.
Personally I love this cooler weather, but it's probably not great for a lot of the crops!

Originally Posted by jmlowman

Yeah, what's up with the corn crop in Michigan this summer? We were in Flint for July 4th and the week after, and it mostly looked stunted where it was being grown out in the townships.

I was really looking forward to some Michigan sweet corn.

[jmlowman]

Originally Posted by chiroptera

It's been a really cool, damp summer...third coldest July on record, I think.
Personally I love this cooler weather, but it's probably not great for a lot of the crops!

True. We enjoyed it for most of the week, though. Then we were out at the Steam Institute in Owosso, looking over the vintage railway equipment on Friday and it was a bit on the warm side. Most of the museum is outdoors. And Saturday, when I dropped the rental SUV off at DTW, the walk from where I dropped it off to the tram was pretty warm on so much blacktop.