A bounty of fruits, veggies fills market

HUDSON — The ribbon was cut on the ever-expanding Hudson Farmers’ Market’s 11th season Saturday. Wielding the scissors was Mayor Rick Scalera, as a number of farmers, vendors, customers and friends looked on.

This year the market has 22 vendors already, two for every year of its existence.

Dale Baker of Don Baker Farm, County Route 14, Greenport is a manager and one of the founders of the market.

“It’s getting better every year,” he said.

It’s been a difficult year weather-wise for a fruit farmer. Baker said the early heat spell in April pushed everything along eight to 10 days ahead of time. Then a steep drop to 23 degrees May 1 killed some of the stone fruit blossoms, though the apples came through.

There was also a hailstorm that hit three or four farms in his area.

“We’re not going to have a full crop,” Baker said. However, “the plants are doing pretty good,” he added.

On his farm, Baker offers pick-your-own cherries and apples in season; he also grows peaches, plums, apricots, pears and blueberries.

The weather has been kinder to a vegetable farmer like Chris Cashen of the Farm at Miller’s Crossing.

“So far, so good,” he said. “We’ve been getting a little rain each week. The high temperatures are good as long as there’s rain in between. The tomatoes like the heat, the lettuce doesn’t — if you grow both, you cast a wide net.”

He held up a lettuce leaf that looked a little pale from last week’s sun, but said the tomatoes jumped three or four inches at the same time.

“We still irrigate a little bit,” Cashen said. “We pump a lot out of the Ockawamick Creek — we don’t count on Mother Nature providing, but when she does, it’s a free gift.”

The 23-degree day was “not a big deal,” he said. “A lot of our stuff is cold-hardy — arugula, lettuce, radishes, snap peas. You can plant them in the spring.”

A ground cover called Reemay affords protection against bugs as well as three-or-four-degree temperature protection, he said.

Miller’s Crossing has just finished the second planting of tomatoes.

“We’re still putting the majority of crops in the ground,” Cashen said. “It’s hard to get into the mode of harvesting when we’re still planting. There are multiple levels: What’s going in the ground, what’s coming out of the ground.

“Planting, weeding, harvesting,” he said. “If you stop doing one, you get behind.”

In addition to Cashen and his partner, Katie Smith, Miller’s Crossing employs six full-time workers and a driver.

“We never did woofing,” he said, referring to the practice of bringing in young people who travel around “working on organic farms,” or woofing. “We’re too Type A. We’re harvesting six days, driving five days; we need to know everybody who’s going to be there.”

Also at the Farmers’ Market Saturday was Bruce Robertson, a nutrition educator with Eat Smart New York, part of Cornell Cooperative Extension.

The free program targets recipients of WIC and Head Start, he said.

“They get six lessons,” Robertson said. “We usually go to their homes and cook nutritious meals.” Group lessons are also given.

Participants learn about food safety and stretching their food dollar by learning to shop better as well.

“If you’re getting food stamps, it makes sense to learn to use them wisely,” he said.

The program has been operating throughout Columbia County for 10 years. This year they’re hoping to graduate 100 to 120 students.

For those with a sweet tooth, David Ludtke of Churchtown Gardens was at the market with his selection of artistic pies. After 35 years in the restaurant business in New York, Ludtke moved to this area and worked as a chef for Carole Clark at the Charleston restaurant for two years until it closed.

Clark and Ludtke started Churchtown Gardens together, now he runs it alone.

On display were a rosemary-walnut-whole wheat bread, good for toasting, pecan tarts, large and small peach pies and strawberry-rhubarb pies, and scones.

The Farmers’ Market is open from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays from May through November. WIC/Farmers’ Market coupons and EBT/food stamps are accepted and debit and credit are welcome.