Wednesday, July 6, 2011

An Update- and for the locals - Paradise Organics!



"A perfect summer day is when the sun is shining, the breeze is blowing, the birds are singing, and the lawn mower is broken."

 ~James Dent


Wow! Summer is really in full swing around here! A gorgeous 83 degrees is the temperature here and I'm loving it. I've taken some pictures that I thought I'd share. So here's an update in pictures.

 And if you live local to Yelm, Washington I have a great tip for you, which is my favorite place to shop for food, Paradise Organics. They are having a sale this week, so I thought it was a perfect time to mention it. Scroll down for that.


A picture of Mount Rainier I took. It was such a clear and sunny day today so the mountain could be seen well. Sometimes when it's rainy or foggy you can't even see it. So when it's really clear, it's like it pops up out of nowhere.


We've become bird watchers. Meaning we put out bird food and see who comes to dinner. This was a particularly beautiful visitor, I thought.




A blue Jay! I wish it was a better picture, but this was taken through the window screen.


I have lettuce growing in hanging planters. They are looking great I'm happy to report. Lettuce is easy to grow from seeds.


My rose garden in bloom


These are my favorite roses, they are called Blue Girl. They are especially fragrant. I've used them to make rose petal jelly. I plan to make it again this year.


This is one of my new chickens. I had purchased some chicks to add to my flock. They are about 2 months old now. Isn't she cute?


This is one of my chickens catching a break in the shade


I have lots of strawberry plants, and some are just starting to ripen.


 Paradise Organics

First I would like to point out that this is totally from me, absolutely unsolicited. I am not getting paid anything for this whatsoever. I told Bob I would like to write about his place, and he agreed.

Paradise Organics is a farm located in the Bald Hills area of Yelm Washington. Bob, the owner, sells vegetable starts, fresh veggies, and garden soil amendments/fertilizers along with many other items. (Get on his email list and he'll send you a full list of what's available weekly.) Here is his page on Local Harvest.              

They have a huge selection of plant starts
I'm a great shopper. Period. I know where the best place is to shop for almost everything. Of course there are different reasons to shop at different places, convenience, price, excellent product, etc. Paradise Organics has many great reasons to shop there.

1. Quality - Everything is organic and the best quality produce I've ever seen. Since I love food and love to cook, this is the most important for me. Check out the pictures of the butter lettuce below. His produce rocks. In a few weeks he'll have tomatoes. Imagine big bright red homegrown tomatoes that you didn't have to grow yourself! You can't buy those at any grocery store.

2, Customer Service- His plant starts are guaranteed. (ask him for the details.) He also has a no questions asked guarantee policy, meaning let him know if something isn't right and he'll work to make it right.


3. It's local. (I mean if you live near here.) But yeah, if you live a mile away, your lettuce is being grown a mile away. If you buy your lettuce at Safeway, who knows how far away it's being shipped from. Also you're helping the local economy and a small business.

4. Price- The prices here are amazingly low. They are about the same as the prices at Safeway.

5. Freshness- Since everything is grown there, it's super fresh. He picks lettuce and other items just for you in the upper garden. Imagine that!

(I have nothing against Safeway, I shop there myself, it's just where is a better place to buy produce than from the farm it's grown on?)

These are gorgeous starts. They even have a guarantee on them.


The lower garden where there is green houses and the chicken coop. They have ducks and chickens so they sell both species of eggs. The chickens have plenty of roaming space and are totally organic just like everything else here.


Have you ever seen a head of romaine so big and beautiful?


More delicious lettuce


Big tomato starts, some already have tomatoes growing on them, it's not too late to grow some.


Parsley starts here, they sell all kinds of herb starts


This is a head of butter lettuce I purchased there about a month ago. It was so gorgeous I had to take a picture!


Beautiful beets purchased at Paradise


They are having a sale right now, through July 13th, 2011. Below is an example of some of the great deals going on right now.

Vegetable Starts
* Large Tomato, Eggplant and Pepper Plants 6” - $2 ea.
* Large Tomatillo Plants 6” - $2 ea.
* All Herb Starts 4” – $1.50 ea.
* All Pony Pack and 4” Veggie Starts - $1 ea.
* Artichoke Plants 6” - $2 ea.
* Parsley Curled and Italian 6” - $2 ea.


Fresh Vegetables (while supplies last):

 
* Zucchini - $1 per pound
* Cucumber - $1 per pound
* Beets - $1 per pound
* Lettuce - $1.50 per head
* Red Cabbage - $1.50 per pound


So if you live in Yelm, Washington or the surrounding area, I highly recommend Paradise Organics. I live a bit of a drive away, but I feel it's worth the extra distance for the high quality products I receive there. Now is a great time to experience them with the sale going on till July 13th.

And if you don't live in this area, go check out Local Harvest. Where you can find a farm near you. Who knows? Maybe you'll find a farm that is equally great!

Paradise Organics


Location
18819 Sorenson Road SE
Yelm, WA 98597


Contact Information

Bob Foster

360.894.1328

paradise@inetsupermall dot com

Farm Stand Schedule

Open 10 AM til 7 PM - 7 days a week (April 15 - Dec 15) Other times by appointment.

4 comments:

Amanda said...

Wow, great pictures!

Paradise Organics sounds like an amasing place, I wish I lived close by!

Normgrhm said...

I'm with Amanda, great pics! Especially the ones of Mt Rainier and the yellow bird. I've never seen lettuce growing in a hanging planter before, and why not?
You are lucky to live near a nursery nearby that is great in all respects. Bon appetit

Helen said...

This post resonated with me. All great chefs find the best source for their ingredients. Many of them seeking out farms like this one. It is good to know we all can do this through sources like Local Harvest. We don't have to "make do"
with what's in the grocery store.

Thanks for bringing this to my attention, it's helped me.

Michelle Sparks said...

Bob are you back I went once a few years ago nothing growing it looked abandon