In the depths of winter the green market at Union Square
is subdued with left-over apples,
a few potatoes, and
absurdly expensive little bits of mesclun salad.
Now zinnias blaze.
In midsummer there are wild traffic-light, traffic-stopping stalks.
Of what. Rhubarb? Salady stuff?
Someone will tell me.
(They did. Swiss Chard. Sue was the first!)
There are peaches that taste like peaches instead of those odd,
hard, fuzzy lumps they sell in the supermarket.
... plums for plum crumble.
Geranium leaves fall on the black-eyes susies.
There are snapdragons which long to be carried
by a flower girl at a summer wedding...
...and good snacks to be had.
Who knew that tea-cosies could be WILD?
You won't be disappointed.
Think that might possibly be chard doing an impersonation of rhubarb...
ReplyDeleteBeautiful pictures. The flowers are gorgeous! All of them.
ReplyDeleteJust what I needed to see this morning. It is a dreary raining day in upstate NY.
ReplyDeleteI also checked out the wild tea cosies. I think Buster and Lync need one to wear.
Thanks Elizabeth
Bees in NYC. I had not given any thought to that.
ReplyDeleteSue is right; the red, yellow and green is Swiss Chard.
So pretty. Where in NYC does one go to an open market? The peaches look gorgeous...
ReplyDeleteSalady stuff...heh, heh, heh.
ReplyDeleteI love the riot of color found at farmer's markets!
Thank you, Sue!
ReplyDeleteOh Dear, I wasn't aware of the green markets in NYC. Thanx for introducing. The Rhubarb looks very sturdy, is probably terrific sour/sweet and the Sunflowers look gorgeous. Gizmo and I just come home from wild berry picking....
ReplyDeletenice Thursday to you!
Beatrice *
You can almost smell the snapdragons - one of the most underrated flowers ever - I'm going to plant some now - you've made up my mind for me.
ReplyDeleteThose stalks did make a great picture with their vivid colours.
ReplyDeleteThey were some great tea cosies.
Will have to get out the atlas and check where All Cannings is. After yur post I did wonder if your post officewhere yu served was anywhere near to where we were. Beautiful county.
Lovely .. such colors!
ReplyDeleteI love the tough flowers of Dog Day summertime. and I love the word "zinnia."
ReplyDeleteFantastic pictures. You have captured the essence of summer and placed it here in the blog world. Bravo!
Absolutely gorgeous pix!
ReplyDeleteThank you!!! I needed that bright splash of color on yet another grey day in Maine. I’ve never seen weather like this except in England and it never rains that hard over there. It is at least good writing weather. I hope these gorgeous images are stimulating your imagination too. I want to bite into those luscious peaches.
ReplyDeleteFor those enquiring about Farmers' Markets, SquirrelQueen is hosting a challenge to blog support for these green markets where they live on July 25.
ReplyDeleteYes, Elizabeth, the peaches look juicy - I saw them, too, some hanging fresh from a branch ready for the picking! Your photo does justice to that nice furry surface.
It is wonderful that city dwellers can also enjoy the abundance of summer.
ReplyDeleteI took a lot of photos of Zinnias the other day...they certainly are photogenic.
These photos hold so much of what summer is! and yes, bees are back at least at our house - the lavender and thyme are absolutely covered with them all day here :)
ReplyDeleteIf only swiss chard tasted as good as it looks! Lovely photos :)
ReplyDeleteHere we call the multi-colored chard "rainbow chard." And it is good. Braise it a bit and it is wonderful!
ReplyDeleteLove the colors of these photos!
We have lots of bees in our yard this summer. Several different kinds, too.
I'm making some more plumb crumble this weekend. And I'm craving some rhubarb pie. Wonderful pics!!
ReplyDeleteI love zinnias. I really should plant some next year.
oh I miss the green market at Union Square. I am sure it helped keep my sanity when my son was a baby. I remember spending time there basking in the "nature". It was a little oasis in the middle of all the chaos of the city-at least to me! Thanks for the lovely pictures Elizabeth.
ReplyDeleteSnapdragons, zinnias,
ReplyDeletegeraniums, too, peaches,
and plums—just for you!
beautiful photos--plum crumble please!!! (i was there as well--how did we miss each other?!)
ReplyDeleteI agree with Sue - i think it is Swiss chard.
ReplyDeleteLovely photos - I particularly like the zinnias - I haven't seen any for years and years. Such hot colours Elizabeth (and I quite fancy a plum crumble too).
How I ADORE a farmers market..all the fresh color!!!
ReplyDeleteBEEautiful!!
Thanks for the dazzling post!! I've got plenty of zinnias growing here but try as I might, the buds are not as huge or brilliant in colours like those you shown. Time to top up some fertilizers I guess. Happy weekend :P
ReplyDelete*Clap Clap*
ReplyDeleteA riot of flavor and color: your blog!
Aloha-
Comfort Spiral
Ohhh! I love those flowers. They look so beautiful. Love the fruits, too!
ReplyDeletePaz
everything looks so delightful!!
ReplyDeleteWOW...I feel color-drenched from this post, Elizabeth...A dazzler indeed! Bring on the wild and dazzle any time! :o) I would love to roll around like a dog in all that color... Like Buster would--LOL! Happy weekend ((HUGS))
ReplyDeleteHi Elizabeth!! So glad to see you on Bangor Daily Photo.
ReplyDeleteLove the colors in your photos. They are similarly spectacular.
love all the bright colors
ReplyDeleteI know I don't comment much but I do visit every day, anyway, I got a blog award for you - here's the link:
http://collectingsongs.blogspot.com/2009/07/my-first-blog-award.html
gorgeous- those peaches and plums look fabulous
ReplyDeleteBeautiful ! NYC gives so much surprise ! This greeen inside the city is fantastic
ReplyDelete