VonThun Farms of Monmouth Junction, NJ, is a regular vendor at the Highland Park Community Farmer’s Market every season. As the days grow crisp and fall is in the air, VonThun’s end their participation in the community market, even though the market is open for many more weeks. Did they run out of produce and […]
What’s in Season from the Garden State: What’s Behind the Tomato Name?
Mortgage Lifter, Brandywine, Ramapo, Supersonic, Cherokee Purple. How do tomato varieties get these unique and sometimes odd names? There may not be as many colorful stories as there are intriguing names, but some stand out, as in the case of the heirloom tomato, Mortgage Lifter. The story goes that in the 1930s a West Virginia […]
What’s in Season from the Garden State: The Bug That Moved Orchards
As the old Frank Sinatra song “High Hopes” goes, “anyone knows an ant can’t move a rubber tree plant,” unless, of course, “he’s got HIGH hopes.” So how could an insect move orchards? No high hopes needed, just piercing/sucking mouth parts that suck plant juices from twigs, branches, fruit and foliage. Such is the case […]
What’s in Season from the Garden State: Jersey Strawberries – The Breed Goes On
The season for strawberries in New Jersey is short but sweet – lasting from late May to mid-June. With the year-round abundance of California and Florida strawberries in supermarkets, New Jersey’s strawberry season goes by almost unnoticed, except by aficionados who seek out home grown varieties. While not quite scarce, the commercial production of Jersey […]
What’s in Season from the Garden State: Not All’s Backwards in the Backwoods
The New Jersey Pine Barrens – the backwoods of New Jersey, is contrary to all we consider standard “Jerseyness”. It’s the most unpopulated part of the most populated state. It is untouched wilderness on the urban fringe. The people that dwell there are known as “Pineys” – simple folk living off the land. It’s the […]
