Vendors and Activities for July 24

Vermiculture is our market demo this week. (That’s worm cultivation for the uninitiated. See above for a handy info poster.) Jim Wood of Marlé Worm Growers will show you how to set up a bin for worm cultivation, how to “harvest” the worm castings and how to use them in your home garden. Worms are the best friends your soil can have!

Now in its third week, KERNEL’s free kids activity looks at composting. This will tie in with the vermiculture demo, and our younger participants will be able to get their hands dirty by making super soil with the help of their wriggly friends. And not only is the KERNEL activity free, kids get some Fresh Bucks for spending at the market once they’ve completed it.

Spokane Hope Christian Reformed Church, which shares the church building with Knox Presbyterian, will have freshly cooked authentic Korean food for takeout or eating at the market. They call it the best Korean food in town, and their many devotees would agree.

For music, we’ve got Matthew Hughes. He’s playing at the market for the first time.

R.P. Guerrero, our organic fruit vendor, had early peaches and nectarines last week, so we’re anticipating a nice-sized fruit harvest this week. Awesome Possum is going to be bringing some new up-cycled creations to the market too.

Here are all the folks who are joining us today:

Remember that you can get milk, eggs and meat at market! Jenkins Java sells gallons and half-gallons of milk from Spokane’s Family Farm. Petunia’s has meat from Ramstead Ranch as well as eggs.

By the way, each week we post the market as a Facebook event. If you’d like to show your support (or maybe just remind yourself to stop at the market on the way home), please click here and RSVP.

Vendors and Activities for July 17

This week the market has a follow-up to the composting demo that launched the season back in June. Master Composter and Master Gardener Ryan Herring will be demonstrating the process for making both compost extract and compost tea, and he’ll explain uses of each in your home garden. Stop by anytime during the market to learn how easy it is to make rocket fuel for your plants!

We’re also into the second week of our KERNEL program for kids. This week’s activity deals with companion planting. Kids will get to take part in hands-on learning about how to pair certain plants (like tomatoes and basil) to deter garden pests or avoid competition for soil nutrients. Last week’s transplanting activity was so successful we ran out of zucchini starts! We’ve braced ourselves for lots of participants this time.

Our musician today is Hannah Siglin, another market favorite. She sings and plays beautifully.

As most of you know, this summer’s hot weather has sped up the harvest. Our fruit vendors have said that early plums and peaches could be with us this week. We should also be seeing some new potatoes and possibly even the very first locally harvested tomatoes. Plus all that comes in addition to the fruit and veg we’ve been seeing for a few weeks now, such as zucchini, squash, cucumbers, broccoli and turnips.

There are still a handful of dump passes worth $20 each for Emerson-Garfield Neighborhood residents. First come, first served.

Jenkins Java will be selling gallons and half-gallons of milk from Spokane’s Family Farm. Petunia’s will have eggs as well as meat from Ramstead Ranch — and, better yet, Petunia’s will be joining us every week from now until the season’s end!

Vendors and Activities for July 10

Have we got a fun activity lined up this week — garden photography! Award-winning photographer Chris Wooley of Head and Tails Photo is going to show you how to put your best flower forward when showing off your home garden on Instagram or Facebook. He’ll go over macro settings, bokeh, filters and other ways to make your flowers and other plants look their best. So feel free to bring your camera, any questions you may have, and any photos you want to show off.

The Kids Eating Right: Nutrition and Exercise for Life (KERNEL) pilot program is launching today too. Organized by us and Catholic Charities’ Food for All initiative, this marks the start of a weekly kid-friendly activity that focuses on healthy eating and exercise. It’s safe, free and lots of fun, so bring your children and grandchildren! This week kids will get to transplant a zucchini of their own and learn how to tend and harvest it.

SafeLink Wireless is going to be joining us at the market today too. Through the federal Lifeline program, they’re able to give qualifying individuals free mobile devices and voice plans they need to to connect to jobs, family and emergency services at no cost. If you think you might be eligible (folks on SNAP, SSI, TANF and other assistance programs are good candidates), please stop by the market today and find out more at the SafeLink booth.

Our musician today is Hannah Siglin, another market favorite. She sings and plays beautifully. Andrew Kunellis, a songsmith from the Oakland area who’s playing our market for the first time. (Hannah is actually scheduled for next week!)

And, yes, today there will be Korean food from Spokane Hope Christian Reformed Church to eat in or take out. You’ll find them in the basement of Knox. Just follow the sandwich boards — or the heavenly scent of authentic Korean food.

Oh, and there are still a few remaining dump passes worth $20 each for Emerson-Garfield Neighborhood residents. First come, first served.

And without further ado, here are the vendors scheduled to join us today:

Planning on coming today? Please RSVP on Facebook here! We’re a grassroots market and rely on our patrons to help get the word out.

Jenkins Java will have a Italian sodas and cold-brewed coffee to complement your Korean food. They also have non-homogenized milk from Spokane’s Family Farm. Gallons are only $4.50 — that’s less expensive than the same milk at most supermarkets.

Looking Ahead: July Market Events

Every Friday morning we post a list of vendors who are slated to be at the market that day along with our scheduled musician and demo activity.

But we know that seems like short notice to some folks. So for those (like us) who live and die by what’s been blocked off in their calendar well in advance, here’s a list of confirmed upcoming activities we’ll be hosting at the market throughout July.

July 3: There’s no scheduled demo because of all the Independence Day activities, but we will have a limited number of dump passes available for Emerson-Garfield residents. That means anyone who lives in E-G can get a $20 credit the next time they need to dispose of construction waste or garage/attic/alley/yard clutter. That’s usually enough to cover most loads.

July 10 – Garden photography: Want to put your best flower forward when showing off your home garden on Instagram or Facebook? Chris Wooley of Head and Tails Photo (you might know him from his photography for the Civic Theatre) is going to show all budding shutterbugs how to get the best shots of their home garden. He’ll go over macro settings, bokeh, filters, and other ways to capture the natural beauty of, well, natural beauty. Bring your preferred D-SLR or smartphone for hands-on tips.

Also starting July 10, the Kids Eating Right: Nutrition and Exercise for Life (KERNEL) pilot program will be launching at our market. Organized by Catholic Charities’ Food for All initiative, this is a weekly kid-friendly activity that focuses on healthy eating and exercise. It will involve games, crafts, or light physical activity such as yoga. Participants will get a reward for completing the activities. It’s safe, free and lots of fun, so bring your children and grandchildren!

The first KERNEL activity focuses on gardening. Kids will get to transplant a zucchini and learn how to care for and harvest it when the time comes.

July 17 – Compost tea: No, you can’t drink it, but it’s like rocket fuel for your plants. Master Composter and Master Gardener Ryan Herring will demonstrate the process for making both compost extract and compost tea and explain uses of each in the home garden.

The second week of KERNEL deals with companion planting. Here kids will take part in hands-on learning about how to pair certain plants (like tomatoes and basil) to deter garden pests or avoid competition for soil nutrients.

July 24 – Vermiculture: That is, worm cultivation. Worms are the best friends your soil can have. Jim Wood of Marlé Worm Growers will show how to set up a bin for worm cultivation, how to “harvest” the worm castings and how to use them in your home garden.

KERNEL’s third week looks at composting. This will tie in with the vermiculture demo, and our younger participants will be able to get their hands dirty by making super soil with the help of their wriggly friends.

July 31 – Pickling and canning: One of our longtime vendors, Lois Musser of The Farm Yard, will show you how to can and pickle all those veggies that you buy at the market or that are growing in your home garden. Pickling expertise runs in the Musser family — Lois’ son Dave was interviewed by The Inlander last year on the subject.

The fourth week of KERNEL will tests kids’ knowledge of fruit and veggies. Sure, they can tell a carrot from a tomato, but do they know their zucchini from their cucumber? They’ll learn about all the visual and nutritional differences in this activity.

Vendors and Activities for June 26

Ever wondered what hydroponic gardening is? Or maybe you know enough about it to want to give it a try, but you’d like a step-by-step? Today the market is featuring the folks from 509 Grow, who will set up a basic hydroponic garden demo to show you what it is and how it’s done. They’ll also have some supplies on hand for purchase if you can’t wait to get started.

Ryan Johnson is our musician this week. If Ryan looks familiar, it’s because you might have spotted him at Fringe and Fray (here’s their Facebook page), the chic consignment boutique he and his wife own downtown. But he probably wasn’t on guitar at the time.

Today’s market will let you kick off your Hoopfest weekend right — with fruit and vegetables that have just come into season and are likely being harvested as this post goes out. Not to mention tons of prepared foods for any hungry basketballers you might be feeding.

Here are the vendors who are scheduled to join us today:

Alpine Bakery is sitting out this week because they had a massive bake order for local restaurants on account of Hoopfest. But Morning Sun should be bringing some traditional bread loaves, so you don’t have to go without. The Scone Ranger is also back from vacation, so he’ll have his addictive scones once again. We had a lot of people jonesing last week.

As for fruit and veg: R.P. Guerrero’s certified organic pears, apples, cherries and apricots were a massive hit last week. Vladimir’s bounty is growing by the week — he has enough Washington-grown variety to put most supermarkets to shame. He had some of the first green beans in Washington State last week, and at this rate it probably won’t be long before he’s got regional tomatoes too.

Word on the street is that Project Hope is going to be making their seasonal debut at today’s market too. Their summer crew started last week and their urban gardens are in full swing.

We want to remind senior citizens that SFMNP (Senior WIC) vouchers are being mailed out. When you get them, please come and use them at our market! We have a growing (no pun intended) number of produce and honey vendors who are authorized to take SFNMP vouchers. Get in touch with your local senior center for more info on SFMNP vouchers, or simply come by and see us at the market.