Or, you can go to the Fresno Master Gardner's Spring Garden Tour on April 26th, visit all the lovely gardens, and then buy their "A Gardener's Companion" which will give you a month by month list of what to start, plant, do. Sorry that I can't help otherwise. I have a Mac and had to create my own data base too.

Thanks - larger market wanted money and insurance certificate with application, I emailed them asking if they would hold my check until they guaranteed the space (since this is nonprofit run by volunteers I wanted to make sure 1 person didn't cash the check while another collected names & decided who to give space to!). Also asked if I could wait and have certificate sent to them after I was approved since it will cost me $50 to get certificate. I hope this didn't come across too much as PITA, but they also wanted "specific items to be sold" - so I started typing out a list of all my seeds for them, said in email "Some are guaranteed spots in the beds, but others I am not sure would be good sellers based on sales at X market last year, though they might be in yours. If you have any "must haves" please indicate those in your reply and I will be sure to plant those. Of course, I cannot guarantee that everything I plant will make it to market due to weather, pests, or disease losses." I also found last year that I didn't quite have enough of some things to support 2 markets, but I had enough of others (esp. tomatoes) to sell wholesale and to sell to people at DH's work, either the next day (leftovers) or midweek (with 3-4 days to go til next market!). So online orders, in addition to the Thurs/Fri deliveries at work and weekend farmstand, might work out well with a Wed night market. Last year was tough with Fri AM orders going to work and Fri night market. Of course I can do "preorders" to deliver at market too, that might work out esp. well with things in short supply, or eggs that need to be kept cool (if they pick up at the beginning of market). Oh, I just got email from town Ag commission - they're updating the farm map and want $25 to add (or keep) a farm, to go towards printing costs. I don't think I can get on the online map without being on print, though I MAY be able to get listed on website without being on the map (they haven't updated the listings yet). Think it's worth it since I'm on the outskirts of town? They'd have to redraw the map since they don't go far enough west to show the main road that I have frontage on (in another town). I don't want them to add a circle with a vague location on my "official" address where I don't have frontage. Everyone would get confused like the tax assessor did when they came out to see the house after we built!

PonderGuy, those 2 markets are likely to have quite different customer bases. I'm not sure if the urban core market where we sell could long exist without subsidies. The WIC & Senior FM Nutrition Programs are probably critically important. It wasn't that way the first or second year of the market's existence when these programs were not available but, honestly, I think the only thing that kept us going then was the hope that sales would get better. FM studies, and there are a few out there, have shown that something like 90% of the customers come from within 1 mile of the marketsite. Now, I realize that each market is different and there are tourist dominated markets where this wouldn't hold true but markets' tend to BELONG to neighborhoods - that seems to be what you are experiencing. Our experience here is that the suburban markets are dominated by resellers and crafters. The serious growers really tend to go downtown but they flat couldn't afford to do that if the neighbors couldn't afford to purchase their produce. It has taken the vouchers to make that happen. It is still a fairly small market but subsidized sales amount to about 30% of the market's total. Pray that we don't lose this under the current government plans to cut poverty programs. If that happens, we could just fold up our tents and head out to join the resellers in the suburbs. And, that should just about destroy the opportunity for growers to direct market in this area. Encourage, encourage, encourage the folks at your local WIC clinics and senior centers to get involved in bringing fresh fruits and veggies to their low-income clients. That is, if they are not coming down with vouchers already. If they are coming down, find ways, in cooperation with the social workers, to encourage more of them to come down. Having a 40% or 50% redemption rate will result in serious loss of potential income. Find ways to welcome these customers. They are our most vulnerable neighbors  usually young, single moms with babies and very elderly, frail folks. Having someone somewhere in the market to greet them especially and maybe with some free recipe cards will go a long way towards making them feel more comfortable. And, the just-regular-folks really seem to appreciate what is going on. TheyÂve got to worry about these peopleÂs well-being, also. Steve

Yes, yes, yes! That is ridiculous! I interviewed 5 realtors. All were very nice and had extensive experience in my neighborhood. But only 3 showed up prepared with materials. And only ONE of those actually pulled correct comps and knew what she was presenting to me (as opposed to having her assistant do it and not looking at it until she was showing it to me). That was the one I picked and boy, has she stayed true to her word. She's done everything I've asked. We've changed wording and photos multiple times and she always gets it done same day. She's got her own website in addition to the MLS and she has all sorts of things there as well. When I requested flyers, she had them done and printed within 48 hours! She had my floor plan done before I listed, photos up the day of, and professional photos and 360 views the first week (would have been sooner, but I wasn't ready yet!). Speak up, tell him you're disappointed, and ask him present a marketing plan immediately.