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We just moved to the Ballantyne area and I am looking for them by the bushel to can for sauce. The NC farmers market is about $40/bushel. I used to pay about $20. Any ideas where to find them less expensive? Thank you in advance, much appreciated!
We just moved to the Ballantyne area and I am looking for them by the bushel to can for sauce. The NC farmers market is about $40/bushel. I used to pay about $20. Any ideas where to find them less expensive? Thank you in advance, much appreciated!
No idea. And I have looked for 10 years since moving back here.
Unless you can find a local gardener who just wants to sell his/her produce out of their own garden . . . I don't know what to advise. I gave up. I can't even find a few decent tomatoes weekly for my own consumption at the farmer's markets in this region. They will TELL you they are locally grown, but they are actually trucked in from a distributer in SC - and are commercially grown - and they look/taste just like the waxy tomatoes typically found in supermarkets.
No idea. And I have looked for 10 years since moving back here.
Unless you can find a local gardener who just wants to sell his/her produce out of their own garden . . . I don't know what to advise. I gave up. I can't even find a few decent tomatoes weekly for my own consumption at the farmer's markets in this region. They will TELL you they are locally grown, but they are actually trucked in from a distributer in SC - and are commercially grown - and they look/taste just like the waxy tomatoes typically found in supermarkets.
Bummer!! Booohoooooo! Thank you though for your honesty!
Bummer!! Booohoooooo! Thank you though for your honesty!
I hesitated posting, b/c my hope is . . . SOMEONE OUT THERE will have a source for you!!! And I do still hope someone will post with this info (I would be interested, as well).
My other suggestion is . . . if someone is reading here and has tomatoes they would sell from their garden, they could just PM (private message) you and work out a deal. They may not want everyone in Charlotte bugging them, lololol.
I wish you luck! God knows I would love to be canning tomatoes every year - something I grew up doing, and did as long as I lived in NC and had my own garden! I moved back and quickly found - those home grown tomatoes still need to be grown in my backyard if I am to have them these days! Unfortunately, my home is not suited to a big garden . . . and the deer continue to decimate whatever I have tried to plant.
GOOD LUCK!!! Just thinking about the sauce you are planning on making makes me nostalgic!!!
I would go to the farmer's stands at Meeting street (marvin and ardrey kell) and Robinson Village shops (Rea and William Pond) and ask the farmers there if they have canning produce. Or even the one on Providence and Ballantyne Commons too. I would be surprised if they didn't. You can also contact some of the farms in Waxhaw and Weddington that have stands outside their farms. I do remember hearing of someone that did this and scored. Google farms in Waxhaw/Union/Weddington.
The excessive rain this year has made the tomato harvest small so if you find locally grown tomatoes, they are going to be more expensive this year. I grow my own and so far I've only managed to can 8 pints of crushed tomatoes and 7 pints of salsa. I probably won't get enough to make ketchup or sauce to make it worth it.
In regards to Romas, Southerners are not particularly fond of them so a good cheap supply is going to be tough to find. They are considered inferior to the types of tomatoes grown here that do quite well in sauces and canning. The long hot growing season in the South (usually) produces some very good varieties. Look for someone with locally grown better boy/better girl/etc.
I would try the Matthews Community Farmer's Market in downtown Matthews. It's a grower's only market (the market manager and board members actually visit the vendor's farms). As one of the posters above said, talk to the farmers to see if they have "rejects" that would be suitable for canning. I got a bunch of reject peaches for cheap that way, one year. They made fantastic preserves!
Personally, I've never had a great yield when I've tried to grow my own Romas. This year, with all the rain, none of my tomatoes have done very well. In one of the Matthew's Community Farmer's Market newsletters, it was stated that several farmers had lost much of their tomato crops to the extensive rains.
I would try the Matthews Community Farmer's Market in downtown Matthews. It's a grower's only market (the market manager and board members actually visit the vendor's farms). As one of the posters above said, talk to the farmers to see if they have "rejects" that would be suitable for canning. I got a bunch of reject peaches for cheap that way, one year. They made fantastic preserves!
Personally, I've never had a great yield when I've tried to grow my own Romas. This year, with all the rain, none of my tomatoes have done very well. In one of the Matthew's Community Farmer's Market newsletters, it was stated that several farmers had lost much of their tomato crops to the extensive rains.
Them too, it isn't far from Ballantyne at all.
And this is a stretch but you can check out stores like Grand Asia or Compare. Both are a bit of a drive but their produce is tons cheaper at times. I don't know thought specifically for Romas but it can't hurt to try there if all else fails.
Thank you all. Going to Audrey Kell in a few minutes, calling others after. Roma's are all my family ever used for sauce, so I don't know how the other types would taste, may have to try a bushel just o see!
Thank you all. Going to Audrey Kell in a few minutes, calling others after. Roma's are all my family ever used for sauce, so I don't know how the other types would taste, may have to try a bushel just o see!
Hope you find it there! Let me/us know if you do, I will head over there too next week and ask. Now that you got me hankering to make sauce!
As for why with Roma, I actually like em best. Thick with little juice/seeds, they are perfect for sauces. I find once they are roasted and cooked down (I roast first) it really doesn't make a huge difference in flavor. It's when they are fresh that I taste a huge diff from romas and heirlooms. Or if they are the star of the show with little else to deter from the taste. But that's for another board. Back on topic and sorry for the derail!
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