I moved with my family to Missouri when I was sixteen. It was to a little university town and we pulled in at two in the morning. I local officer pulled us over and asked us what our business in town was. LOL. We were parked in front of the general store (yes, they do/did exist). I fell in love with the village (they called it a city) instantly and stayed in love with it. I attended university there, married there, helped upkeep a farm there, had my kids there and moved from there twelve years later because of a divorce and relocating closer to family. I still call Missouri "God's country". It's hauntingly beautiful and yes can be brutal all at the same time. I did find it hard to be accepted at first. I found the locals distant at first, but once you fit in..........you are accepted. The employment opportunities outside the large cities are brutal. I found the taxes for everyday living (including tax on food and garbage cans) foreign. The rents were high, and it was hard to eke out a living. If I returned there today with my degree in nursing, I have no doubt I'd find a job about anywhere. It's not a posh place to live, but if you live a simple lifestyle and are interested in quality of life over quantity the areas away from the metropolises are very open to enjoying a good life. I would consider moving back in a heartbeat and miss it still.

T-mama I live just across the river from you in Union Co. Ill. You should be able to grow about any peach you want here, of course a late freeze, which we get every 4 or 5 yrs will wipe out any peach you have. Same for the apricots. Since apricots bloom before peaches they are very prone to late freezes. Cummins Nursery has a line of apricots which bloom later in the season according to Alan. They are familiar with our climate as they moved east from northern Union Co. yrs ago. I have ordered 2 different varities from them. I now have Wilsons and Goldcot and got my first crop on each last spring. Your big problem will be Brown Rot. It is very prevalent and is devastating to a crop. Good luck and let me know how you do. If you want any scion wood let me know RED

I think it's a great idea for you folks to use the site. However, keep in mind a couple of things. 1) Tourist traffic will not be a big buying market. People are not going to want to buy a great plant or wonderful produce only to put it in the trunk of their car to ruin while they are shopping or frolicking in the Nashville area. The only time you might get good tourist traffic is in the fall with pumpkins, gourds, etc. 2) If I were you, I might consider trying TWO days, if it's feasible. Bloomington has such a huge and well-attended market on Saturday mornings. Serious buyers travel from surrounding counties to buy there. So, if you could, maybe try Friday evenings to catch folks going home or BEFORE they head for Bloomington. Wish I were closer, I'd seriously consider joining your effort (I'm in SW Montgomery Co.)! Good luck and let us know how it goes! DD

As usual thanks a lot for posting this article violet. I try to buy local crops when i can and feel it's more important now than it was last year even, because of tainted food showing up.(its olives now) I'm hoping Clarksville, AR will sell more things this year too,they've been sold out by noon before. vickie