Healthy soil and sustainable growing

["Tradingpost" <tradingpost@lobo.net>]

I've listed some sources at the end of this post. Saw Lee's book but
haven't got it.  Glad you asked. Soap box coming ... 

Our own formula is simple but it seems to work since we outsell the others
at two markets. We're still beginners at this and on fixed income, so we
absolutely had to research how to make it profitable. So it's a good thing
to do from every angle. 

1. We retail all production to get the whole customer dollar, no wholesale
cut, no store overhead. To get the same net profit from stores or
restaurants we'd have to grow twice as much on twice as much land. With
twice as much work and expense. True, we have to spend time at the market
for retail, but that's a nice break from the garden. Customer reaction
keeps us fired up. 

2. Diversify. We've found that we need to have a good variety of produce
all season to get a sale from everyone who stops to look, and to sell more
to each one. If we just had squash or apples for example, then customers
would have to go on to someone else for tomatoes and basil.  Bag their
purchase so they can haul more home!

3. We focus on those common vegetables that people buy most in the store or
anywhere else. We don't try exotics or unknowns, or ten different kinds of
tomatoes for instance. It was hard getting rid of lemon cucumbers. Turnips
and bok choy bombed. Some places it might be different tho. 

4. We go for the single most flavorful variety in everything, and it's
invariably heirloom, and only grow that kind. We feel we can't afford to
waste garden space on anything less since we need a reputation for the
absolute best tasting produce anywhere, and to keep those repeat customers.
We're also developing a niche with European heirlooms to set us apart from
the competition. Italian tomatoes, French nantes carrots, etc. We grow some
basil among the tomatoes (Barb insists) and scatter basil flowers on the
tomatoes in the display. And customers follow their nose ;-)

5. We mostly avoid space hogs like vining plants, melons and such. Got
raves over little Charantais melons at $5.00 apiece, but they have only a
two or three day window for harvesting and selling to keep their
intoxicating perfume, so not this year. We're adding vertical growers tho
like snow peas followed by Romano pole beans. Again, only the best tasting.
We give some space to winter squash like Delicata and Lakota which get rave
reviews, and Moon & Stars watermelon. That's an old Russian variety from
the Volga region recently reintroduced. It helps to Google varieties.
Pumpkins end up livestock feed however. 

6. Display. Lacking permanent buildings we have canopies (a serious pain)
and tablecloths and full wicker baskets propped up to tilt toward the
customer. Stand up, smile and talk to people. Tell them it's fresh picked
today (it is) and it's heirloom and kids love it (the kids eat baby carrots
like candy). Give out samples and they buy. Nothing runs off customers like
a sparse table with a seller sitting there like a bump on a log looking
bored. 

7. And we keep telling ourselves you can't sell what you don't grow. Seems
obvious, but in the end if we run out then we wish we'd planted more. 

Our prices are a little above local stores on most items. After all ours is
fresher and better tasting than even Whole Paycheck. China-Mart can't come
close. They may get veggies cheaper there but if the kids turn up their
noses at it then it doesn't get eaten. $4.00 tomatoes are cheap compared to
tasteless $2.00 tomatoes that don't get used.

Corum, V., Gibson, E. & Rosenzweig, M. The New Farmers' Market: Farm Fresh
Ideas for Producers, Managers & Communities. 2001. New World Publishing.
Gibson, Eric. Sell What You Sow! The Grower's Guide to Successful Produce
Marketing. 1994. New World Publishing.
Hamilton, Neil. The Legal Guide to Direct Farm Marketing. 1999. United
States Department of Agriculture.
Ishee, Jeff. Dynamic Farmers' Marketing: A Guide to Successfully Selling
Your Farmers' Market Products. 1997. Bittersweet Farmstead.
Web Sites/Links
Appropriate Technology Transfer for Rural Areas (ATTRA):
http://www.attra.org
(pnone# 1-800-346-9140). USDA funded program offering publications and
assistance on direct farm marketing.

Also Google "Farmers Market Vendor Tips"
---------

paul tradingpost@lobo.net

*********** REPLY SEPARATOR  ***********

On 2/8/2008 at 6:39 AM TamesonOB wrote:

>Thanks Paul. I actually have most of those books - it wasn't the actual 
>growing I wanted to learn about so much as the marketing, pricing 
>strategies, how to make the most of your space at the market. Suggestions
>on 
>how to sell to restaurants etc. Any book suggestions on that? I've
>currently 
>got Andrew Lee's Backyard Market Gardening on my list but it's pretty
>scant 
>beyond that.
>
>
>TIA
>Tameson in NH
>http://tamesonsmusings.blogspot.com/ 
>