New Braunfels Farm to Market...

For all the years I lived in New Braunfels, I didn't know they had a Farmer's Market...or a "Farm to Market" as they call it here. Or maybe they just started it...I don't know. First off, you have to know that they refer to the rural roads here as "FM" which means "Farm to Market." When I lived in New Braunfels, my house was just off FM 1044. Now you know a little bit about Texas roadways. And I guess that's why they call the market "Farm to Market." Enough about that.

I was expecting it to be a lot bigger...it was probably a total of about 30 booths, so it didn't take too long to go through. Orchids...

They really are beautiful...so perfect...


On to Texas pasta. They should put their little pamphlets of information right-side-up in the display case.

Mushrooms. These Shitakes seem a little pricey, but they probably don't weigh much of anything, so a pound would probably be about half of a box!

I can't remember the name of this variety, but they were very photogenic.

Then there was a guy selling cactus...or I guess that would be "cacti" since it was more than one.
This one was pretty...almost looks like the flower of a Hibiscus.

This was just a little guy about four inches tall. I liked it because it looks like little trees from "The Grinch" with sprayed-on snow.


You're always going to find the cowboy boot planter at these places.

Before continuing, I'll have to say that New Braunfels has a LARGE population of elderly retired people. You can definitely tell that in the craft fairs the city has throughout the year. Take these for example...

They are something that my grandmother would have had. Cute, but not an item on my list.

And here's what you do with those casserole dishes that you're not using.

Continuing on, here's all the popcorn you'd ever want to eat...

This kid is running the popcorn stand. He sees that I'm taking pictures, so when I come up to him, he asks, "So, who do you work for??" Now, he looks like he's about 10-12 years old and you'd think that he'd ask that question in a pretty innocent way. Not this kid. It was like he was a seasoned 50-year-old private eye asking where I was at 7:32 on the night of July 17, 2006. I told him I was a reporter from The Washington Post doing an expose on exploited children from New Braunfels at popcorn stands. (Haha...I kid.)

On to the breads. This booth had partially "raised" breads that you were supposed to take home and finish baking. Well, it was about a million degrees in south Texas today, and everyone was sweating up a storm and all these bags of bread were soaking up the heat. Besides that, there were a few booths that had jars of feta cheese, spaghetti sauce and pesto dips that were sitting out in this heat and I was thinking that this didn't add up to a real healthy equation. I tasted a few which were actually quite good, but passed on purchasing anything because of the high temps.

"Bubba's Smoked Meats." Between you, me and the fencepost, why would anyone intentionally want to refer to themselves as "Bubba?" Maybe that's just me, but then I'm not a big beef jerky person to begin with, so I'll just pass on this one.

Pretty girlie things...

Interesting bird feeder...

Painted wine bottles turned into olive oil jars...

The jewelry booths had a bit to be desired...

"Uncertain Farms??" Again...why would anyone come up with a name like this? So....they're not certain what they're doing? Uncertain of what the outcome will be? Uncertain of what's in the ingredients?? Hmmm...I'm thinking this isn't the best marketing strategy, but to each his own.

Mega bird houses. These were actually pretty cool. I want a house like this (which was priced at about $450). It's such a shame that the birds will not have little bird maids to clean them out periodically because you know what it's going to look like when the birds take it over. I guess you could hose it down every now and then.

I like the little propane tank...hahaha!

On to the grapevine lamps. This guy was very proud of his accomplishments, and I'll have to say they were very different...I've never seen this before. And the shades are made out of goat skin. Again, I don't think it's my style, but I'm sure there are people out there who have a decor to fit. I think he said this one ran about $350.00.

Then he also had lamps that did double duty as wine bottle holders. I think the grapes are included. Haha!

Lots of jellies in those 100 degree temps...

Then I finally got to the actually vegetables...which was only about five booths, and they only had about five different veggies each. Not a big variety.


So...did I get anything at the Farm to Market?? Yeah...I had a weak moment at the birdhouse booth. I got this little guy because I have a soft spot for rustic cabins...even if they have spiders in the biff.