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Sunday, February 24, 2013

Community Supported Agriculture in Knoxville

Event Announcement:
Please join me on Saturday, March 2, at 10:30 AM at Stanley's Greenhouse for a special presentation on planning this year's vegetable garden and growing the most popular backyard vegetables.

Garden Talk Radio
I will also be back on the radio, beginning March 2. I will be joining Dr. Sue Hamilton and Andy Pulte from UT Gardens for "Garden Talk" from 8:00 to 9:00 AM on WNOX-FM 100.3. Call in with your gardening questions!

Community Agriculture Fair at Three Rivers Market

On Saturday, February 23, Three Rivers Market looked like Kroger's after Todd and Matt have predicted snow. In other words, it was packed. The event was the 2nd annual Community Supported Agriculture Fair, and by any measure it was a resounding success. One vendor said the crowd was at least triple the size of last year's.

In the parking lot, a large tent held tables with displays and literature for 16 local farms that offer various types of CSA arrangements. I threaded my way through the crowd, picking up literature and speaking with as many of the farmers as possible.

From the snippets of conversation all around me, I could tell that plenty of enthusiasm for local food and local farmers exists in this area.

Inside the store, Knoxville Bread Co-Op, a one woman operation offering CSA-type service for baked goods, was handing out delicious samples, along with other local and regional vendors, including Asheville's Dolci di Maria bakery, Flour Head Bakery, Haze & Co., Magpies Bakery, Roots and Branches, and Yazoo Brewing Company from Nashville.

If you've never tried the Hefeweizen from Yazoo, by the way, you are missing a beer lover's treat. This award winning brew has almost floral undertones and is smooth as silk. Cruze Dairy Farm had their food truck parked along the street, and were selling a remarkably reasonably priced thali meal as fast as they could serve them up. Judging from the looks on the faces of diners at the outdoor tables, the food tasted as good as it smelled to me. I did not sample Cruze's fare, but the Bread Co-Op cinnamon bread and the lemon poppyseed mini-cupcakes from Magpies were standouts. Entertainment was provided by local band Dixieghost. With beautiful sunny weather to remind us that spring is near, everyone appeared to be enjoying themselves immensely.

Here is the list of the participating farms, with web or email addresses where available.







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