God’s Little Acre Farmers’ Market, located on the corner of Market and Atwood streets in Galion, is open Saturdays from 9 a.m. until noon and runs from May through October, depending on the weather. First Presbyterian Church opened its parking lot to the market in hopes that the neighborhood could benefit from a market that was within walking distance of home.
In its seventh year, the offerings at God’s Little Acre vary from week to week depending on the weather and the seasonality of the produce.
Dave’s Produce, owned by Dave Burns, joined God’s Little Acre this year. Burns has been in the produce business for over 30 years and has been experimenting with jams and jellies in the last three years including red pop and root beer.
Burns has created over 70 different kinds of jellies, salsas, glazes and jams. He creates special orders and tries new flavors. His most popular jam is “Banana Split in a Jar” followed closely by rhubarb-strawberry jam. Seasonal jellies include dandelion, quince and crabapple. He carries canned pie filling, pumpkin butter, hot pepper butter, mint jelly and yellow tomato preserves.
Some unique offerings are FROG Jam (figs, red raspberry, orange, ginger), Monkey Jam (banana, lemon, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves), and Garlic Scape Jam (garlic scapes and peppers) which is great as a pork glaze.
Harold Richeson has supported God’s Little Acre since it began. He offers green beans, painted bird houses, zucchini bread and tomato jelly. His daughter, Cathy Ruffner, travels from her home in California to visit her father in Galion and helps out at the market frequently.
Mary Ellen and Jim Pauly also share their produce at the market. They offer white pumpkins, half runners (beans), black berries, potatoes, and when in season, strawberries, sweet corn and tomatoes. They sell their relish, jam and pickles as well, the most popular being strawberry and peach jams. “This was a bad year for our peaches,” said Pauly, which means few peach preserves for the winter.
Larry and Shirley Eckert share more than their produce. They share their knowledge earned by years of gardening. Peppers love acid, says Eckert. He suggests using the Miracle-Gro for acid-loving plants to aid in pepper production. He stresses preparing the garden by tilling in nutrient in the fall.
Among the Eckerts’ offerings are the famous burpless cucumbers, Mountain Fresh tomatoes, sweet red peppers, peppers brought over from Italy in the 1870s, and sweet banana peppers. This is their third year selling at the market.
The market is located at 240 South Market Street in Galion.
