Farmers’ Market: Autumn colors
The shortness of the days, the sudden arrival of darkness in late afternoon (or so it seems), and the bit of a nip in the air before the sun has done its job at dawn presages the arrival of fall even before we consult our calendars to note the equinox.
Our fields and gardens whisper to us of change as well. The baby spinach has bolted and the spring mixes of greens are now acrid and bitter; fall harvests include potatoes and winter squash, apples and cabbages, onions and carrots, hardy crops all. Nightly we shroud our tender tomatoes and cucumbers with sheets or tarps, trying to eke out a few more days of ripening during bright, sunlit days without losing the fruit to white frosts at night.
Autumn colors of orange, rust, and shades of brown now replace voluptuous shades of verdant green enjoyed in the summer months, more the color of whole wheat toast spread thickly with orange marmalade than of deep green salad seasoned with slivers of orange peppers and cherry tomatoes. However, color bleeding from the land seems to appear in the sky. Brilliantly bright, clear skies of intense blue are found at no other time of year.
The golden glow of the autumn sun can be brought into your home in the form of long-lasting silk or dried flowers artistically arranged by Presque Isle Farmers’ Market venders Phil and Jackie Doak, owners of Sunrise Acres. A visit to their table immediately makes it clear to patrons why their greenhouse business in Caribou was successful for so many years. Their floral arrangements are balanced and artfully designed, blending the fall palette as skillfully as the changing maples complement a brilliant blue sky outside our windows. A variety of sizes and shapes, there is sure to be at least one that will fit in with your decor and lighten your mood.
Enjoy enhancements to your palate and your palette when you stop by the Presque Isle Farmers Market in the Aroostook Centre Mall parking lot on Saturday mornings between now and mid-October.
Editor’s note: This weekly column is written by members of the Presque Isle Farmers’ Market. For more information or to join, contact their secretary/treasurer Steve Miller of Westmanland at 896-5860 or via e-mail at beetree@xpressamerica.net.
