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A Couple Of Pounds Of Reds, And Are Those Home Made Maine Bread And Butter Pickles?

By
Real Estate Agent with MOOERS REALTY ME Broker License 106759

The food you eat, when available at a local Maine farmers market is more than good nutrition.

When you buy corn, potatoes, fresh peas, strawberries or any other native grown vegetables and fruits, you get the freshest right from the field produce. Bought from a local vendor, farmer, grower helping support the local producer while socializing a bit in that open air Maine farmer's market.

Since the beginning of time, consider how agrarian our society initially was, and may be reverting, making maine family farm imagea big swing to in a big way again for health, economic and other reasons.

I grew up on this Houlton Maine farm that produced vegetables, planted, picked, harvested from the fields.

The fruit like strawberries  carefully planted in fields plowed under with organic material worked in. 

Strawberries have a four year stint and then you plowed them under, start over.

Training the runners, the shoots of the small "spider" strawberry plants that grow between the rows of straw to keep the grass down. Working as a family shoulder to shoulder.

Hot work under the sun, but something outdoors, wholesome, and actually fun if you have the bend to produce food to feed others. Destined to be put on local tables. Some shipped down country to help feed others out of state. 

Canada is next door to Maine on both sides and most local natives are at least a quarter Canadian lineage. And quick trips to buy Canadian stawberries to go with our other produce, vegetables was part of the "brokerage". To help supplement what we grew on the Maine family farm when the demand increased maine john deere tractor farm fieldbeyond what we raised ourselves.

Folks came to the Maine farm I grew up on a mile and a half out of town.

Looking for the eight foot ear of corn hand painted by a local artist Allison Britton and "planted" by the roadside of US Rt 2 to entice, make motorists turn in for some home grown food items.

A place where local raised food was fresher, cheaper, an experience to look over, select to take home to put on the table for dinner that night. With thoughts as it is prepared on how next year we're having a family garden out behind their home to plant, tend, pick from and enjoy.

Houlton Maine has a downtown farmers market in addition to the many roadside vegetable and fruit stands you see along the highway in Aroostook County. Here is a short Maine farmers market video put together from last Saturday morning's trip to check out the produce, baked and home made goods.

Our milk is the freshest too having one of four dairies in the state right in our backyard, Houlton Farms Dairy. What you grow to put on your family's table is very important in Maine, anywhere. Not just good eating habits, but the right stuff grown on your own land full of nutrients you just don't get in the processed, fast food fare needs to be part of the day to day in Maine.

I'm Maine REALTOR Andrew Mooers 

Comments (8)

Roy Kelley
Retired - Gaithersburg, MD

You are making us want to visit Maine! Thanks for sharing.

 Blooming for home buyers this summer.

Jul 19, 2010 10:59 PM
Andrew Mooers | 207.532.6573
MOOERS REALTY - Houlton, ME
Northern Maine Real Estate-Aroostook County Broker
You have to eat! On a family farm you see your parents, brothers and sisters a lot through out the day too. You talk, share, learning about the family, how to raise crops and critters.
Jul 19, 2010 11:27 PM
Norma Toering Broker for Palos Verdes and Beach Cities
Charlemagne International Properties - Rancho Palos Verdes, CA
Palos Verdes Luxury Homes in L.A.

Eating fresh, natural food is healthy and delicious.  I always seek out the farmer's markets and roadside stands wherever I am.  I like food in its natural state and am always trying to eat closer to the land. 

Jul 19, 2010 11:42 PM
Ed Silva, 203-206-0754
Mapleridge Realty, CT 203-206-0754 - Waterbury, CT
Central CT Real Estate Broker Serving all equally
Andrew, this is getting to be the best time of year for fruits and vegetables. In our area we still have a few working farms and all have their stands fully stocked. My wife just loves corn, and on her way home she will stop and pick up a couple of ears that were picked that day and just smile while chewing on them.
Jul 20, 2010 12:21 AM
Andrew Mooers | 207.532.6573
MOOERS REALTY - Houlton, ME
Northern Maine Real Estate-Aroostook County Broker
Norma..you are so right. Cheaper too as you deal direct with the producer...haggling over what's for supper tonight. In stores the organic section can get pretty pricey though. More expensive to raise, smaller yields without pesticides but better for you. Nothing genetically engineered or re-arranging the digester's chromazones. Ed....as a kid we grew three varieties of corn..large yellow ear Early King, white and gold Sugar & Gold, and another type big but not as tasty. Customers sometimes wanted quantity and would sacrifice taste. We gave them thirteen ears for a baker's dozen. That's what I was doing after school or summers, picking and peddling at the farm above's truck garden stand.
Jul 20, 2010 12:40 AM
Cal Yoder
Keller Williams Elite - Lititz, PA
Homes For Sale in Lancaster PA - 717.413.0744

Andrew,

Your creativity and quality exude from your posts. I hope business is great for you.

Cal

Jul 20, 2010 01:04 AM
Andrew Mooers | 207.532.6573
MOOERS REALTY - Houlton, ME
Northern Maine Real Estate-Aroostook County Broker

If you like what you do Cal, everything falls in to place with hard work, fire in your belly passion for your area, career, the people you serve in real estate through out the years.

Jul 20, 2010 01:05 AM
Ed Silva, 203-206-0754
Mapleridge Realty, CT 203-206-0754 - Waterbury, CT
Central CT Real Estate Broker Serving all equally
Andy for her it is the yellow and gold. She has even gotten the 17 month old grandson holding the ear and chewing on the corn.
Jul 20, 2010 01:06 AM