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Bridie's Garden Market |
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Farm Name: Bridie’s Garden Market, LLC
Primary Farmer: Mrs. Brigid McGeehan
Farm Location: Bay View, WI
Miles to Market: 6.5
Days at Fondy: Saturdays, Sundays, Tuesdays (May – November)
Fondy Stall Numbers: New Market, TBD
Fondy Farmer Since: 2011
About: My first memory is as a very young child working alongside my father in our garden in Ireland, growing tomatoes and potatoes for our large family, and also growing my favorite flowers – Nasturtiums and Pot Marigolds (Calendula). As I progressed in knowledge and expertise under the guidance of my father, he sectioned off a small portion of our garden so I could start my own seeds when I was just seven years old. This is where I cultivated a love for tending the soil and an understanding and respect for nature started to take root. My heritage lies in farming and my relatives worked farms in Ireland for many generations and still do. I spent many a summer holiday eating fresh eggs with home-made soda bread, picking fresh shelling peas and potatoes for dinner, rounded off with an organic chicken from the farm.
Since then, I have accumulated expertise and knowledge through hands-on experience, and extensive self-study and research. At the same time, I have learned to respect the natural cycle of the earth and our environment. Working in partnership with nature has lead to my success in growing vegetables for my family (and neighbors!), and growing herbs and flowers.
“Do what you love and love what you do” has been my mantra for several years, and early in 2010, after working at a well-known Milwaukee company for 20 years, and completing Master Gardener training, I made a career change to start my own business in urban farming.
Specialties: I have been attracted mainly to growing herbs because of their mystical qualities, their generosity as a food source in fresh and dried form, and their robust and versatile nature. The revival of herbs for their nutritious qualities has taken place in recent years and their value as a flavor enhancer in cooking has gained increasing popularity. My customers also love the aroma of herbs and there is an overall renewed interest in growing and cooking with culinary herbs. My customers love the aroma of mint and thyme, also they are interested in the lesser used herbs like Sweet Cicely as a sweetener and Winter Savory as an old favorite.
I cultivate flowers because of their healing and uplifting powers. There is nothing more pleasurable than the scent of Nicotiana on an evening summer breeze, or nothing more beautiful than an expanse of Morning Glory climbing up a front trellis when their profuse blossoms open to the early morning sun. Several years ago on a summer morning, a bus driver stopped his bus outside my home and knocked on my front door to ask what they were.
I cultivate all my produce using sustainable methods, and while I am not certified organic, I follow those principles and practices entirely.
Currency Accepted: cash, Food Stamps/SNAP, WIC and Senior Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program (FMNP) vouchers
Contact Information:
Phone: 414-215-6729
Email:
Website: www.bridiesgardenmarket.blogspot.com
Address: 2938 S. Delaware Ave., Milwaukee, WI 53207 |
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