Valentine’s Market at Confetti Party Place
MetroCard Mobile Van scheduled stop
BRONX TIMES REPORTER,BTR FEBRUARY 21-27, 2020 43
BY CHRYS NAPOLITANO
We had a great time at yesterday’s
Valentine’s Market at
Confetti Party Place. We love
to support local small businesses
and entrepreneurs! Plus
it’s always such a great time
when our customers stay and
chat and there is a wonderful
energy of community fl owing
in the room. Our next Winter
Market is Saturday, February
29 (LEAP DAY) from 11 a.m. to
3 p.m. at Confetti Party Place,
3190 Westchester Avenue.
Seed time! After using up
all the free seeds I received
from the Compost Project, it
was time to replenish our seed
supply.I had just received a
new catalog from Baker Creek
Seeds; quite a few of the free
seeds were from this company
and I was impressed with the
quality of the resulting plants.
My favorite seed supplier is
Fedco Seeds and even though
I didn’t have their most recent
catalog, it is really easy to order
online from them. Both orders
arrived a few days later
and I keep taking them out to
look at them and dream.
Like many vegetable gardeners,
selecting seeds is a
wonderful wintertime activity.
For me, it is the idea
of planning for the future.
Whether it’s at our property
in Connecticut or at the Garden
at Preston, I am trying
to create a permaculture environment
by planting perennial
herbs, fl owers, berries
and vegetables.
There were a few medicinal
herbs and meadow fl owers
that I want to naturalize
up here in Connecticut that
included St. John’s Wort, Feverfew,
Bee Balm and Echinacea.
Nasturtium is one of
my favorite edible fl owers, so I
got two varieties that did well
last year and were quite tasty.
Baker Seeds had a variety of
Chrysanthamum that was
supposedly delicious battered
and fried, so I ordered a pack
of those (how could I resist
that one?). I am trying a new
variety of zucchini to see if
they produce copious amounts
of blossoms while I try to fi nd
a new source for the Italian
seed ‘Zucchini de Fiore’.
We have a blueberry bush
growing at Preston, but it only
produces a handful of berries.
In Connecticut, we discovered
Wine Berry and Black Raspberry
vines. As we clear invasive
plants and prune the
berry vines, we seem to get
more berries each year. By the
end of last summer, I cleared
a large swath of one side the
wood chip path so that over 36
berry plants can thrive this
coming year. I resisted the
temptation to order any other
berry plants.
Deer are quite a concern
here in Connecticut, so the
thorny vines of the berry
plants seem to do a good job
of keeping them at bay. I had
heard that deer don’t like asparagus
and recalled how
much I loved the asparagus
beds we planted at our house
in Locust Point. I really wasn’t
interested in spending $50
on roots, so I decide to order
seeds and see what happens.
There is a beautiful sunny
quarter circle arc of space inside
the stone wall at the corner
of our property, a perfect
spot to furrow out a nice deep
bed and plant at least 40 plants
for $5. It might take an extra
year before we can harvest edible
spears, but I can deal with
the investment.
I noticed that we had a wild
form of rhubarb growing at
one side of the pond, so I ordered
a nice heirloom variety
of rhubarb to see if I can get it
established in its place. Both
asparagus and rhubarb are
perennial vegetables that can
grow in Connecticut. Artichokes
are also perennial, but
I am a little doubtful that I can
get it to grow here. I started
one artichoke plant at Preston
last year, so I am hoping that
it survives the overwintering
prep I did (buried it under a
huge pile of leaves). I ordered
a variety that supposedly does
well in this zone, and I will
get a bunch of them started to
grow at the school.
Permaculture doesn’t mean
I didn’t want to try a few annuals!
The seed order included
two varieties of tomatoes and
two varieties of peppers that
I have not been able to fi nd at
the market and that I have had
great success with in the garden.
One is a small cherry tomato
that I love to use for our
Tomato Jam called Principe
Borghese and another is the
variety I like to use for sauce
called Opalka Paste. I ordered
a paprika pepper and a Lipstick
Pepper that I will use for
our Red Pepper Powder.
They had a few varieties of
vegetables that I want to start
seeds for in August for a fall
garden. One was a Chinese
Pink Celery which is so pretty
I almost don’t care what it will
taste like. I have never been
successful with growing caulifl
ower, but I love it so much I
had to try a white Romanesco
variety just for kicks. A few
years ago I tried a Raddichio
de Treviso that I loved and was
able to fi nd the same variety.
I ordered seed starting
mix this morning and all the
seed trays are cleaned and set
up at the school. I have plenty
of transplant mix left and a
few bags of the compostable
4” pots. The only thing left is
patience. I need to wait until
the end of March to get things
started…well, maybe mid
March…
Having access to the CSA
and the Farmers Market does
make it easier to garden because
I can focus on specialty
plants and hard to fi nd varieties
that can enhance your
favorite dishes. At this time
of year, it is hard to fi nd vegetables
from local sources. If
you’re good at preserving via
freezing and/or canning, this
is the time of year when you really
depend on the contents of
your pantry. Winter Farmers
Markets are becoming more
popular. But even if you don’t
have access to one, keep seasonality
in mind when you are
shopping. Cabbages, winter
squash (pumpkin, butternut,
acorn), root vegetables and
hardy greens (kale, collards)
are all perfect for this time of
year. Look for the origin; at
this time of year, produce from
Florida, California and Mexico
can be your best bet.
If you would like to join our
CSA in Locust Point, we are
accepting members now. Go to
www.stoneledge.farm to sign
up. There is also a site in City
Island and Parkchester. If you
have any questions or need
a half share partner, contact
me at cnapolitano491@gmail.
com.
In the meantime, be the
change you want to see in the
world.
Assemblyman Michael
Benedetto, in conjunction
with Councilman Mark
Gjonaj, announces that the
MetroCard Mobile Van will
be parked at the curb in front
of the assemblyman’s offi ce
located at 3602 E. Tremont
Avenue, on Friday, March
13, between the hours of 1 to
3 p.m.
The MetroCard Mobile
Van enables:
• Senior citizens 65 years
of age or older to apply for
Reduced-Fare MetroCard
and receive a temporary
card on the spot (Bring
proof of age such as a Medicare
card and valid photo
identification);
• People with disabilities
that qualify, and who present
a Medicare card and valid
photo ID such as a driver’s
license to apply for Reduced-
Fare MetroCard;
• Daily riders to add money
to their Reduced-Fare Metro-
Card; and
• Everyone to get all MetroCard
questions answered.
For further information,
call Assemblyman Benedetto’s
offi ce at (718) 892-2235
FOR ADVERTISING RATES AND
INFORMATION CALL (718) 260-4593
/www.stoneledge.farm
/www.stoneledge.farm
link