A 4th of July Memory from the Pastures of Rose Creek

A Memory of a 4th of July Past…

Dated July 13, 2011

I went home last week to celebrate the 4th of July with the family. R and I left VA and drove all through the night- relying on Red Bull and Waffle House coffee to keep awake during the 11 hour drive to Georgia. We pulled into the driveway at 6AM, just in time to see the sun peeking out behind our big barn and hear the rooster’s crow from my grandparents’ house next door.

Sitting idle on a farm is a near impossible task. There are so many things to do that look like pure fun to a city girl who spends 12 hour-days pecking away on a laptop. Sleeping very little (because of the excitement) I awoke in the late morning and went out looking for my family. I wandered into the backyard with a cup of coffee in hand. Of course mom was out in the garden busy pulling at the weeds that have dared to encroach around her beloved flowerbeds.

Watching her hard at work, I couldn’t help but feel a little guilty for not already donning my shoes and gardening gloves to assist in mom’s zero-sum game against the weeds.

R slept longer than me, but as he surveyed the yard with his appraising eye he immediately seized on task #1 - the vegetables in the garden desperately needed picking. And so, Mom, R and I launched into the sweaty, yet satisfying enterprise of picking tomatoes.

Working in the noonday sun, the ones that were too ripe or the bugs had gotten to first were tossed in the compost bin, while many pristine tomatoes were placed in bins. We did this for most of the afternoon and by the time we finished we had three huge bins of large, medium, and small tomatoes. Each one ready to be devoured – it was a proud moment to see things that have been grown in your soil, that look so good and taste even better… 

To read more about the first 4th of July celebrated as the farm – “The Pastures of Rose Creek” and other anecdotal stories, and even recipes, check out our blog  http://pasturesrosecreek.blogspot.com .

This 4th of July…

This 4th of July weekend – let the farmers do the hard work for ya!  Stop on by the Oconee Farmers Market for all your grilling needs and more!  Located in front of the courthouse in downtown Watkinsville from 8 a.m. – 1 p.m., every Saturday until November.

And don’t forget to also check out the new time and location on Tuesdays, 4 p.m. – 7 p.m. at the First Christian Church, also downtown Watkinsville.

This Week’s Offerings include peaches, raspberries, blueberries, pork, beef, chicken, eggs, goat cheese, honey, zucchini, squash, bread, tomatoes, handcrafted items, flowers, plants, and much more!