Peaches from Tabone Orchards on the Old Mission Peninsula | Jane Boursaw Photo
Peaches from Tabone Orchards on the Old Mission Peninsula | Jane Boursaw Photo
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August is such a grand month for farm stands on the Old Mission Peninsula.

Sure, the farm stands are spectacular from the first strawberries in spring through the last pumpkins of fall, but August is when they really shine. There’s an abundance of fresh fruit and veggie goodness out there right now. Pretty much any sort of northern Michigan produce can be found at our local OMP farm stands.

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I am putting together a roundup and map of all the OMP farm stands, which is probably going to take me a day or two. Hopefully, I’ll get that on the Gazette this week. So if your farm stand isn’t listed below, stay tuned!

Until then, here’s just a small photographic sample of what’s out there and where to find it – tomatoes, plums, potatoes, corn, peaches and more. Most of the stands have a great variety of items.

If you have favorite OMP Farm Stand fare, drop a comment in the comments section at the bottom of this story!

Red Plums at Between the Bays – Warren Orchards. These little beauties are so sweet! This is my third box, and I’m going to keep getting them until they’re no longer available. The other day, I saw that Wendy Warren also had yellow plums, so on my next visit to the stand, I’ll be bringing some of those home, too. She has two stands – 8169 Center Road and 2705 Island View Road.

Red Plums from Warren Orchards' Between the Bays on the Old Mission Peninsula | Jane Boursaw Photo
Red Plums from Between the Bays – Warren Orchards on the Old Mission Peninsula | Jane Boursaw Photo

Potatoes at Between the Bays – Warren Orchards. Wendy has red potatoes, as well, and you can also find both red and white potatoes at Local Yokels’ farm stand. I’ve been frying up some of these every morning, along with some onions (from Local Yokels) and green pepper (from Tim’s little Covid garden here at our place), then scrambling an egg into the mix. Eating a good breakfast with local veggies seems to help with the night-time snacking! Also check out Nida Giles’ German Potato Salad.

Potatoes from Warren Orchards' Between the Bays on the Old Mission Peninsula | Jane Boursaw Photo
Potatoes from Between the Bays – Warren Orchards on the Old Mission Peninsula | Jane Boursaw Photo

Sweet Corn at Between the Bays – Warren Orchards. Is there anything better than local sweet corn fresh from the farm in August? I think not. We just steam these in our little steamer, then consume heartily with butter and salt. If our son Will is grilling, we’ll wrap them in tin foil and throw them on the grill. Holy smokes!

Sweet Corn from Warren Orchards' Between the Bays on the Old Mission Peninsula | Jane Boursaw Photo
Sweet Corn from Between the Bays – Warren Orchards on the Old Mission Peninsula | Jane Boursaw Photo

Tomatoes from Local Yokels. A freshly-sliced tomato that’s just been picked on the Old Mission Peninsula is a little slice of heaven. These are magnificent. Run by Ben and Jen Bramer, Local Yokels also has a variety of other tomatoes, as well. Everything at their stand, located at 13130 Center Road, is the best quality you’ll find anywhere.

Tomatoes from Local Yokels on the Old Mission Peninsula | Jane Boursaw Photo
Tomatoes from Local Yokels on the Old Mission Peninsula | Jane Boursaw Photo

Green Onions at Local Yokels. I wrote about the spectacular red and white onions from Local Yokels last week, and these little greenies are just as tasty. You don’t realize what a difference buying fresh and local makes until you’ve HAD fresh and local. Such a big difference. This time of year, it’s a sin – yes, a sin! – to buy trucked-across-the-country produce from the grocery store when we have so much of it right here on the Old Mission Peninsula.

Green Onions from Local Yokels on the Old Mission Peninsula | Jane Boursaw Photo
Green Onions from Local Yokels on the Old Mission Peninsula | Jane Boursaw Photo

Peaches from Tabone Orchards. I wait all year for these plump, sweet peaches to arrive at Mario Tabone’s farm stand, and that time has arrived, my friends! They taste just as amazing as they look. Mario’s stand is located at 14998 Peninsula Drive (his stand on Center Road out towards the lighthouse has not been open this year). They have a wide variety of other produce, baked goods and sweet things in jars, as well.

Peaches from Tabone Orchards on the Old Mission Peninsula | Jane Boursaw Photo
Peaches from Tabone Orchards on the Old Mission Peninsula | Jane Boursaw Photo

Blueberries from The Farm at Cherry Hill. I’ve been simply gobsmacked by these sweet and plump blueberries from the old Giles farm, now run by Annika and Nathan Lorenz as The Farm at Cherry Hill. Ever since these blueberries appeared on their little cart out by the road, I’ve made sure to have some on hand. Their cart is located at 13200 Center Road.

Blueberries from The Farm at Cherry Hill on the Old Mission Peninsula | Jane Boursaw Photo
Blueberries from The Farm at Cherry Hill on the Old Mission Peninsula | Jane Boursaw Photo

Flowers from The Farm at Cherry Hill. I remember my lovely sister-in-law Laura (married to my brother Dean) telling me once that flowers are food for the soul. That is so, so true. While you can find flowers at Cherry Hill’s roadside cart, they also offer subscriptions so you’ll be sure to have them all year long. Aren’t these beautiful?

Flowers from The Farm at Cherry Hill on the Old Mission Peninsula | Jane Boursaw Photo
Flowers from The Farm at Cherry Hill on the Old Mission Peninsula | Jane Boursaw Photo
Sunflowers from The Farm at Cherry Hill on the Old Mission Peninsula | Jane Boursaw Photo
Sunflowers from The Farm at Cherry Hill on the Old Mission Peninsula | Jane Boursaw Photo

Also Read…

SUPPORT YOUR INDEPENDENT LOCAL NEWSPAPER: I started Old Mission Gazette in 2015 because I felt a calling to provide the Old Mission Peninsula community with local news. After decades of writing for newspapers and magazines like the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Family Circle and Ladies' Home Journal, I really just wanted to write about my own community where I grew up on a cherry farm and raised my own family. So I started my own newspaper.

Because Old Mission Gazette is a "Reader Supported Newspaper" -- meaning it exists because of your financial support -- I hope you'll consider tossing a few bucks our way if I mention your event, your business, your organization or your news item, or if you simply love reading about what's happening on the OMP. In a time when local news is becoming a thing of the past, supporting an independent community newspaper is more important now than ever. Thank you so much for your support! -Jane Boursaw, Editor/Publisher, Old Mission Gazette

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