We bag our own!

We moseyed over to Corey Lake Orchards today to get pears and eggplants (and also some of the first apples just picked this week) when Beth saw me with my camera.  She asked me if I would take a picture of the guys bagging these onions.  People are asking, she said, where the bags of onions hanging in the market are from.  "Well, from here!  We bag our own onions!"  So here is the photo of the guys finishing up bagging onions for the day.  That is Beth on the right below and her arm and hand holding the onions above.  The market is full to bursting so don't miss out on the great fresh food here in our own backyard.  Next week Beth will have a special on tomatoes that are extremely plentiful this year.  Stay tuned for the date.

Accentuate the positive

For Michigan in July, here are three great positives: tomatoes, trees, and water, all in abundance!
The title of the blog comes from a Johnny Mercer/ Harold Arlen song "Accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative, latch on the affirmative, and don't mess with Mister In-Between."

For much more about the tomato, go to Ask.com and find the answer to whether it is a fruit or a vegetable.

And to buy these beauties and other great locally grown produce, visit Corey Lake Orchards.

And for more attitudes on A, check out ABC Wednesday!

I heard it through the grapevine

It is a rainy Friday in Fabius for Skywatch Fridays, but a lull brought Willow and I a chance to explore how the vines at Corey Lake Orchards are doing.  And here you see that all is well, despite a couple frosty mornings in the last two weeks.  Can you see the tiny clusters of grapes in the making?  Reaching for the sun that wasn't there today.
(Remember you can always click on the photo to enlarge it!)
Here is a better view, without the cloudy sky, of two more clusters.

Aspargus time at Corey Lake Orchards!

hmmm, hmmm, good!  Fresh from the fields is what you will get when you buy asparagus at Corey Lake Orchards.  Beth says "call ahead" as the recent cold nights have slowed the growth of asparagus.

These photos are from yesterday and show you the guys who get the asparagus out of the fields on this ingenious contraption built by Mr. Hubbard.

As you can see, we really need rain as well as warmer nights to help that asparagus grow.  Tonight asparagus, pancetta and penne!

What awaits

In the greenhouse at Corey Lake Orchards tomato plants abound and new fruit are forming from blossoms almost as you watch.  Oh, just the thought of the taste of homegrown tomatoes once more makes one's mouth water!

Rows of tomato plants in all their glory thanks to Mr. Hubbard who has already planted out 175 little ones in the field -- a sign of how far ahead we are this spring.  Or a sign of how far away we now feel winter cold is.  Keep your fingers crossed!

Corey Lake Orchards abloom

In the orchard it is the cherries in bloom; in the woods it is the Amelanchier or Shadblow or Serviceberry, call this graceful tree what you will.  Both have such delicate white blossoms, but yesterday Willow and I concentrated on the cherry trees at the Corey Lake Orchards, the place where you must go for the best fruits and vegetables all season long.  And for homemade apple brandy -- a close cousin of slivovitz.

Not too long a wait and those shelves above the signs will be loaded with good things to eat!  For directions and more information, visit their website: http://www.coreylakeorchards.com/