New to Texas

[jacksnonni]

Hi everybody!
I'm new to TX & I have lived in so many places throughout the country having always had access to outdoor farmers markets where farmers bring their beautiful crops throughout the week to different areas. They are hugely popular & everybody loves attending, however, I am told there are no such places here in the HEB or Ft. Worth area. I live in Bedford. The only thing next to going to these places would be to grow my own. I have had "pea patches" in the past that I belonged to due to lack of space at my home. I really want to grow organic but now I was told today that this area is not good for planting, only grazing. I'm kinda bummed out that these places do not exist or that I am forced to pay huge prices at high end grocers. I really want to find the freshest veggies I can. Can anybody give me any insight? I'd really appreciate your input.
Thanks
Jacks Nonni

[gardenmama]

I've always had a garden in this area. I don't know who told you this land was good for grazing only...Not true. At Common Ground, we grow organically in raised plots. If you have a small space, you might want to consided square foot gardening. Some of our gardeners are doing that this spring. You can grow a lot of crops in a 4' X 4' or larger spot. Depending on what room you have.
We will be having our 3rd Satruday work day at the garden on March 17th, starting around 9:00am. We are located at 5301 Davis Blvd. North Richland Hills, Tx 76180. Come by and we would be very happy to share information with you. There are a few Farmers Markets around where you can by fresh locally grown produce. Come by for a visit.

[tiredfromcoffee]

When I first moved to Texas I had the hardest time finding the selection and quality of produce that I was used to (and the cost was different). I eventually reliazed that you have to shop at different stores for different things- there are so many different communities here that grocerys tend to focus on a narrow target market. Central Market has a large selection, and has many items line priced with Kroger and Safeway- their organic carrots are sold in bulk and because of the way they are sold the yeild cost is lower than the convential carrots at Kroger. Fiesta has a really good selection of produce and herbs- just be sure you know what you are buying as they aren't great about removing the poisenous parts (e.g rhubarb with the leaves still on). Sprouts has the best overall prices on fresh produce- but their quality has gone down a wee bit. Also, greens (such as collards) tend to be local, high quality and cheap. There are plenty of foraging opprotunities as well- this time of year dandilion greens are plentiful- braise 'em like you would collards. Later there will be pecans, mulberries, and cactus fruit. It is very easy to eat a diet that is 100% Texan without raising the cost or sacrificing variety.

[ccchatterton]

There are just a few places to go for the farmers market, like, atmosphere. There are farmers market store, on hwy 26 north of loop of 820 in Colleyville. There is one on Rufe Snow at Hightower. The one that I like to go to, which is more like what your talking about, is in Dallas. I LOVE to go there. I'm not sure how to tell you how to get there but I'm sure you can google it.
Good Luck.
Carter