in season local produce [General]

2010 May 11
I'm starting this thread instead of using the Forum - the localvores' thread thread, because that other one is more of a "in general, here is where you can get stuff". Whereas the intent of this thread is "in specific". i.e. where can I get what local produce right now?

I was just at Parkdale Market, and am happy to report that Rochon Farms is back in their regular spot near the bottom of the market. Because of their green houses they have a number of things available right now :

- beets
- asparagus
- green onions
- big sweet onions
- cucumbers - look like English variety

So - please keep this thread up to date

2010 May 11
Or, you could just check out Foodland Ontario's website, which shows your what produce is in season in Ontario.

www.foodland.gov.on.ca

Of course, understanding that 'in season' in Leamington might be a bit different than in season here.

2010 May 11
That site won't tell someone where they can get what, right now in Ottawa. That is the intent of this thread - to keep people up-to-date on what has actually been sighted, and where.

Also - and I guess my own thread subject line is in question on this - but the onions I saw today are listed on that site as starting only in September. It does not account for green houses not having stuff that has been stored over the winter and brought back out now for sale. Still local - though perhaps not "seasonal".

2010 May 11
At the Byward Market today:

wild garlic (locally grown on the Ontario side of the border)
fiddleheads (from the wild garlic guy)
asparagus (Rochon Farms)
spring mix (Rochon Farms)

Just to add to the discussion: that Foodland Ontario site is pretty generalized to take into consideration the entire province. For example the growing season in Southern Ontario is much longer than it would be in Northern Ontario. The Lansdowne Farmers Market has a chart that is geared more to our growing conditions in Eastern Ontario: www.ottawafarmersmarket.ca As zy said these charts don't take into consideration the products grown in greenhouses.

One thing my Mom taught me when I first moved out is to shop for the season which is advice that I am really glad I adhered to. My dad used to also have a large vegetable garden so it gave me a good indication as to what is available when.

2010 May 11
Zym, I do see your point, although I think that Foodland Ontario's site is often overlooked. I'm just saying that to get an idea (since we won't all go to the markets everyday) the FO site is good.

2010 May 11
i'd love it if people would post the prices as well.

sunday
ottawa farmers market
asparagus $6
apples 2litre $5

2010 May 11
Does anyone think there would be merit in creating a Wiki for this? It could be organized by food, or by grower, and could include prices for things like eggs, etc? (This is a really rough idea right now, and isn't fueled by coffee, which might make it a bad one).

2010 May 11
the Ottawa FM website has whats in season, but not by who. Good idea. They are re-vamping their website...and just so happens I'm the chair of the website committee. I'll see if we can do something along those lines. Again, great idea!

2010 May 12
Rochon has radishes aswell. Terre a terre has beautiful white baby turnips. Had some awesome rhubarb from Acorn creek farms

2010 May 17
Rochon at Parkdale has some fantastic bags of salad mix. They also have all of the aforementioned stuff, plus now english cukes and "normal" cukes. Huge ones, in fact.

No other signs of local stuff at Parkdale.

EDIT: they also had some lovely looking tomatoes - huge ones!

2010 May 17
...don't forget Parkdale is NOT a farmers' market...

2010 May 17
No, but it is moving in that direction. Fortunately they got rid of that crazy colour system that some knucklehead designed a few years ago. Nowadays each stall has a clearly displayed certificate which declares what they carry and whether or not they are growers or resellers. It is a good move forward.

And there is lots of talk of restrictions coming in, and a move towards a proper farmers' market.

But even as it has been the time I've been here, when in full swing a good third to half of the stalls are run by the farmers who grew what they sell.

2010 May 18
Rochon farms are also selling baby spinach at the parkdale market. 4$ for a small bag equiv. to the mix salad.

2010 May 29
fiddleheads now at Parkdale

2010 May 30
rochon had sweet peppers today, at byward....delicious, made a roasted pepper gazpacho

2010 May 30
Rochon / Parkdale has the peppers there, too. And strawberries and carrots now too. Another vendor at Parkdale has local strawberries as well.

2010 May 30
Does Farm Boy sell local products?
I bought rhubarb from Farm Boy today, they are good...

Nothing better than fresh,local grown products!
My boss grows rhubarb in his garden and I use them at work.
So far I have made strawberry-rhubarb pies, strawberry-rhubarb crumbles,
and rhubarb cakes. So yummy. I will make some rhubarb compote this week.

2010 May 31
Aisu Kurimu If you mean local products as in products from Ottawa I don't recall seeing any at Farm Boy. (If anyone has please feel free to correct me...) They do sell some products from Ontario (Fifth Town cheese for example) but if you want anything from the Ottawa area you would probably have to visit the farmers markets. I saw some rhubarb at the Byward Market last week so maybe you can find some at the Parkdale market or the Carp market.

2010 Jun 1
Pasta lover: Thank you for your input!! Now I understand the difference.
I will try the farmers markets:)
Rhubarb I bought from Farm Boy was big and bright red, they tasted very good too. I am thinking about growing rhubarb in my garden!

2010 Jun 2
Rhubarb is ridiculously easy to grow and prolific. My parents have some near their compost and harvest a small fortune worth of the stuff each year.

2010 Jun 2
agree with jagash. rhubarb thrives on neglect and just gets better each year. i moved my plant and it isn't doing that well. next summer it will be better and i'd be happy to divide the plant and give you some for your garden.

2010 Jun 2
I have hard scientific evidence that you can get rhubarb not to grow. Just drop by at our place sometime :( Good thing our friends with prolific rhubarb don't really like it :)

2010 Jun 7
On a really quick trip to the Main Street Farmers market last Saturday I managed to score some garlic scapes. Also some white turnips, mixed salad greens, tomatoes, and basil.

2010 Jun 9
strawberries madame rochon. I also saw local blueberries at lansdowne on sunday.....didn't look to closely, now i'm very curious to know where they are from this early in the season. A lady i talked to says she will have cherries in 2 weeks.

2010 Jul 16
Has anyone seen zucchini blossoms at the markets?? I'm hoping to find some for this weekend.


2010 Jul 16
LWB,

Acorn Creek had them this week at the farm. You can call them and ask that they put some aside for you for pick up at the Ottawa Market.

FWIW

2010 Jul 16
Thanks HotFood. I was looking for some for tonight; props to Momomoto for pointing me in the direction of Byward, where they were 12 for $3.

2010 Jul 18
Not necessarily local, but the Ontario peaches I just picked up for $4 at Loblaws are f'ing delicious. Also, blackberries and black raspberries are wickedly ripe, I saw them being sold at the market but I've found tons of bushes around Ottawa so I pick & eat them when I'm not finding choice mushrooms!

2010 Jul 18
when is the best time to buy tomato? I am planning on canning an industrial quantity of simmering salsa, and would like to maximize the cost saving benefits of this endeavor...

2010 Jul 18
What type of tomatoes do you use for your salsa?

There are lots out now at Parkdale, but the cheap romas do not come out for a few weeks yet. Check my site for when I did my pasta sauce last year and use the date of the article as an indicator

2010 Jul 18
Locally, there are lots of cherry, grape and tomatillos that are in the markets along with some heirloom varieties & beefsteak tomatoes.

Otherwise, go to Nicastro's on Merivale and ask the owner re: acquiring boxes of roma tomatoes, he'll tell you when & how much. You can also do the same @ Produce Depot, they will cut you a deal if you buy wholesale produce off of them.

2010 Jul 19
Yan tomatoes are usually available at the farmers markets in August. Since the growing season started so early this year you can actually get them now. I saw tons of them at the Lansdowne Farmers Market yesterday but mostly in smaller quantities. You could always approach some of the vendors and ask them if they sell in larger quantities. Or follow Chimichimi's advice and check out Nicastro's on Merivale or Produce Depot. Their tomatoes might be quite abit cheaper than the farmers markets.

2010 Jul 19
I did my first batch of Pasta sauce last year in early September, at which point the tomatoes were just starting to come into quantity. Then a week later I did my next batch at which point it was in full swing.

urbanhippy.ca/pasta/sauce/2009

As noted above, the season started a lot earlier this year - 3 to 4 weeks in most areas. So I would not expect volume / cheap tomatoes for another 2 to 3 weeks, at earliest. We shall see.

2010 Jul 19
FYI - local corn is in now at Rochon. It is a bit smaller than the niagara corn at the moment, but every bit as yummy! It will soon be a lot bigger

2010 Jul 19
Everything seems to be a bit early this year--and I personally think tomatoes taste better this summer than they have for a few years...personal opinion...Just keep tasting and can when you think they are ready.

2010 Jul 21
Another very neat thing in the local food scene.
www.cbc.ca

2010 Aug 25
Dragon's tongue beans are now available at the Byward Market.

2010 Sep 7
>> That site won't tell someone where they can get what, right now in Ottawa. That is the intent of this thread - to keep people up-to-date on what has actually been sighted, and where.

It is a little early in the process, but we've launched a new site (Sept 1st ottawa.golocavore.ca) that helps you to find exactly what is available and when. We've started getting markets and producers on-board late in this season to give it a try. The idea is to give Ottawans an accurate idea of what is available right now - as updated by the producers themselves. We are in the midst of a sign-up campaign until the middle of the month, so please be patient as the producers will be be coming online gradually. We welcome feed at ottawa@golocavore.ca.

2010 Sep 7
I'd like to pickup some yellow fleshed watermelons, like the one I tried last year . . . apparently someone in the area grows them . . .

This year I'm getting a good crop of melons from my garden. Also abundant cucumbers. But beans and squash did not produce like in past years . . .

2010 Sep 7
Francis,

I picked up some yellow fleshed watermelons from the Parkdale market a few weeks ago. The stand closest to the gas station (from Drouin farm in Navan) was selling them. If memory serves, they were going for $3 each (although they were smaller than "regular" watermelons).

2010 Sep 7
Francis the Rochon stand at the Byward Market is selling yellow fleshed watermelons. They also have a stand at the Lansdowne Farmers Market and I think they are at the Parkdale market as well.

2010 Sep 8
Acorn Creek also has yellow fleshed watermelons, and orange and red and lots of other varieties of melons. The will also have more to come in the coming weeks. They are at the Carp Farmer's market on Saturdays, at the Landsdowne market and the farm gate is open 7 days a week right now.