Artist Crafter Visit February 26, 2015

During the spring and summer months I am so busy visiting all the vendors’ farms that I don’t usually get out to visit the Markets artist/crafter vendors. All new craft vendors must have their product verified before they can ever start renting a booth at the Market. For those craft vendors who have been at the market for years I try to visit them every other year but this is not always possible. There are just not enough hours in the day sometimes.

Larry and Connie Wenger have been crafting most of their lives; in fact this is how they make a living. They have been vendors at the City Market for many years, if I had to guess I would say close to 20. The three main items they sell are wine sap buckets, birdhouses and magnetic jewelry. The wine sap buckets take a seven step process before they are ready to bring to the Market and make a unique and versatile item for your home. The magnetic jewelry they make are said to have medicinal purposes and are made from lodestone which is mined in South Africa. Larry and Connie have a little bead stringing area in their home with box after box of various beads in a range of sizes. The Wenger’s magnetic jewelry can be special ordered to your specifications. They have also created rosaries made from these amazing stones which are very unique.

In years past Connie and Larry would head down to Canton, Texas the first Monday of every month to sell their items at a huge market there and were snow birds in the winter. Last year they gave up the road and decided to sell solely at the City Market and on line. This is when they introduced their tag art to their City Market booth. Although they have been doing tag art since 1995 they never brought it to the City Market before last year. Larry has been collecting license plates since he was 14 which is obvious by the number of plates they have from all 50 states. Larry has a wall of plates in their work area and a very cool piece of equipment to cut these plates. He also uses the license plates to add to the bird houses he makes. Larry and Connie are at the City Market every Saturday and Sunday, weather permitting. For more information visit their web sites at www.magneticworks.org and www.kctagart.com

 

Artist Crafter Visit February 13, 2015       

It has been months since I posted anything since I very seldom visit any vendors November through March. The winter months are all about getting vendor contracts in the mail and juggling stalls to make sure the City Markets, farmers market has a wonderful variety and quality of product. I really miss getting out in the big purple City Market truck to visit all the vendors and to catch up with all the vendors. I love farm/craft visit days.

On the 13^th I visited Patricia Carter at her home/work area. Patricia is just getting her “Royal Reign Bath Boutique” business up and going in addition to attending classes. Needless to say she is always busy. Patricia makes super cute bath bombs that you drop in your bath water which are guaranteed to make your skin feel wonderful. Some of the bombs are round and others look just like a cup cake, they do look good enough to eat.

In addition to bath bombs Patricia also makes scented wax melts used in warmers and handmade scented candles. Everything needed to make your home smell wonderful.

Patricia will be setting up her booth at the Sunday farmers market hopefully sometime in early April if the weather ever warms up. The Sunday market hours are 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 pm and will start filling up with vendors in the spring.

I had to switch up my schedule this week and visit a farm on Wednesday. I was in Columbia, Missouri for a meeting so decided to visit DanJo Farms while I was there. The drive to Columbia was not very relaxing; the rain was really coming down for at least half of the trip. At one point the rain was so heavy I decided to pull off at a gas station till it let up. Things dried out once I got east of Higginsville, thank goodness.

DanJo Farms is located in Moberly, Missouri, just north of Columbia. Dan and Joanne Nelson have been contracted vendors at the City Market since 2012 and drive over to Kansas City every Saturday year round. The Nelsons do a little bit of everything at their farm. They have a licensed kitchen and bake sourdough, sweet and artisan breads, rolls and cookies, which Joanne and her son were working on when I arrived. They also grow a variety of produce to add to their stalls including fresh herds. Their vegetable plants were still producing a little but like most farms this time of year summer crops are slowing down and the fall crops are getting rotated in. They had a terrible beetle infestation in their kale and since they opt not to use pesticides, the rows of kale were totally destroyed. Tucked away behind their vegetable rows are a few honey hives, I usually keep a large distance between the bees and myself, you never know when they are having a bad day. Dan also brings meat and eggs to the market. They raise beef, turkeys, pigs, sheep, ducks and chickens, a real menagerie. All of their animals are fenced but have plenty of room to roam, the chickens, turkeys, ducks and a pig greeted me when I arrived. I was afraid I would back over them when I left but they all stayed clear of the truck. Joanne told me they have about 30 turkeys which will be ready in time for Thanksgiving, once they put on a little more weight. They do take orders.

DanJo Farms is in the supplement category at the Market so they are allowed to purchase no more than 50% of the items they bring from another local farmer or from one of the local produce auctions. The Nelson’s supplement jams and jellies, pickles, salsa, mustards, fruits and some vegetables. You will find DanJo Farms at the City Market every Saturday year round in the middle farmers shed in stalls 78-80. For additional information visit their web site at www.danjofarms.com

 

Next week my schedule is a little crazy so I will not be able to do any farm visits but plan to get back on the road the following week. I visited with most of our vendors last Saturday and some of them plan to keep selling at the Market till at least mid to late October, the date of the first heavy frost will affect this. Many of the vendors plan to stay through Thanksgiving and others will stay till Christmas. The City Market is open year round so please continue to support our vendors and small family farms.

I was back on the road again today after taking a week off last week for a much needed break. I can’t believe I actually needed to wear a jacket this early in September, it was a little chilly.  I have a new crafter vendor to check today in Lake Lotawana, Missouri and a farm in Richmond, Missouri.

Jeffery Morlan lives just around the corner from one of our long time vendors, Gayle and Mike Pappas. I would have visited with them today since I was so close but they were working at their store in Zona Rosa where they mainly sell calendars. I will have to stop by another time. Jeffery prints photos on canvas stretched frames which he builds in various sizes. He will be working with his father to put some of his original art work on a few items. Jeffery also makes coasters, mouse pads, pet mats and plant pads out of material that comes in big sheets which he cuts to the desired shape. This foam material is covered in cloth so it can be printed on. Jeffery has a very large printer and other equipment so he can make a large number of items fairly easily. His equipment is spread around his basement, shed and back deck. Jeffery will be coming to the Market on Sundays starting this week.

After crossing back over I-70 I headed north to Richmond, this area is beautiful to drive through. I met Keith Calvert in his driveway when I pulled up, he was just getting in his truck to leave so our visit was short. Pulling into his drive it was obvious he is growing a lot of green beans and corn. His corn is pretty much done and he opted not to plant a late crop this year. He is happy he made this decision with the cold spell we are having. If he had planted another crop he might not have gotten much of a yield for all his time and money spent. He is hoping the rain in the forecast holds off so they can get in the fields and pick beans for this weekend. In addition to farming Keith also runs a bird hunting preserve on his farm. With the cold snap he is getting bombarded with calls for reservations. Keith sells at the City Market on Saturdays during the middle of the summer once his first crop of corn comes on and while he still has plenty of green beans. His stall is located in the middle farm shed in stall 68. For more information visit his web site at www.birdfeverhunting.com

I have visited most of our vendors in the farm category this year but still have a few more to get to. I am running out of time and have already driven almost 5000 miles since April. If we get the heavy frost which is predicted we will see some vendors start to drop out. It depends where they live and what they are growing. Let’s hope the weatherman is wrong, it is just way too early for a frost. 

Next week I am heading to Columbia, Missouri for a state wide meeting but should be able to get one farm visit in while I am there, DanJo Farms is located just north of Columbia.

Last week I went north to Nebraska, this week I changed directions and headed south. Weather wise it was a perfect day for a drive, not too hot and dry. Although the farmers who live south and east of Kansas City could really use some rain. Joe Waltman from Buffalo, Missouri told me he has not gotten more than a drizzle of rain for at least 8 weeks. It all depends where you live in the state.

If you follow my blog every week you might remember Matt and Nora Trammell who grew pink oyster mushrooms in their apartment in Overland Park. This year they have expanded their operation and moved to Warrensburg, which was my first stop today. I waited for Matt to come outside before I got out of the truck since they have to very large German shepherds who weren’t barking or moving, they were just watching me. I am not one to take chances so I just stayed in the truck. Turns out they were two sweeties who just liked to be petted. Matt’s mushroom operation has really expanded with the addition of more space. They now have a large shed which houses the mushrooms that are ready to produce. Matt explained that they have tried numerous containers for growing the mushrooms and have found that plastic ice bags and straw seem to work the best. They start the process in their basement which has the perfect amount of natural light and dampness. There is a lot more to growing these beautiful mushrooms than I can begin to explain but Matt and Nora are always more than happy to explain the process and even sell starter kits so anyone can grow these wonderful mushrooms at home. With the addition of more space they have also started growing Lion Mane and shitake mushrooms. For more information visit their web site at www.trammelltresures.com The Trammell’s are not at the Market every week since they don’t always have enough mushrooms ready to sell. You can reach out to them on their web site for possible days they will be coming to the City Market. When they have a bumper crop you will also find them at the Saturday Overland Park Market. The following recipe is off of their web site, it sounds like a keeper.

Kale Salad
Kale
1 pint oyster mushrooms, sliced
Feta cheese, crumbled
Avocado, sliced
Walnuts, chopped
Cucumber, slices
Red onion, slivers
Balsamic vinaigrette
Combine ingredients to taste, use as much or as little of what you want.
Tip: I like to braise my mushrooms with the onions and a little wine for extra flavor. Then I sauté my kale for a few minutes and toss everything together. Yummy!

Due to the long distance I was only able to check two farms today. The second and last stop was in Buffalo, Missouri which is located north of Springfield. Joe Waltman farms about 4 acres consisting of a variety of items ranging from vegetables, blueberry bushes, azaleas and ornamental shrubs, he has a little bit of everything. Luckily Joe has well water available for watering his vegetable crops, without it everything probably would have burnt up by now. Joe, like all farmers, are always experimenting to see what will work best for their soil and their growing preference. Joe has found that a black materiel similar to what you put down in your flower beds works best for him and unlike the black plastic you see in many fields is reusable year after year. The black cover helps keep the moisture in and still allows the air to circulate. The best advantage, it controls the weeds, Joe hates to pull weeds. This is obvious when we got to the blueberry bushes, but in Joe’s defense the weeds are helping to protect the young plants from the extreme heat from the sun, weeds are not always a bad thing. Joe’s vegetable field looked beautiful despite the lack of rain. He grows three varieties of cantaloupe, various tomatoes including heirlooms, eggplant, pumpkins, cucumbers, butternut squash, leeks and the list goes on. I did find out an interesting fact today, blue berry bushes can live for 100 years if taken care of properly. Joe will be a waiting list Sunday vendor who we hope to see at the market in the very near future. In addition to selling at the City Market Joe is also a vendor at the Greater Springfield Market on Saturdays.

I have decided to take a few additional days off next week so will not be visiting any farms on Thursday but will be back at it for the month of September. Have a safe holiday weekend and don’t forget to swing by the City Market for all your weekend supplies.