By Sue Davis

For the Farm Carolina

Favorite summer vegetables are available at the market this week. Every vendor has a selection of corn, tomatoes, peppers, green beans, squash and cucumbers freshly picked from their fields.

What is interesting are the new varieties of these favorites. Correll Farms has a wide variety of hot peppers, ranging from very hot to mild.

Be sure when you pick up a banana pepper you know whether you have selected a hot or sweet variety. They look the same but have very different flavors. The sweet banana peppers grow downward on the plant while the hotter varieties grow upward, look at the stem and ask your vendor.

There is also a range of colors for bell peppers this season, ranging from deep purple to bright yellow. Country Gardens and Correll Farms have the widest selection.

Every vendor has a good selection of three types of cucumbers: burp-less, slicing and pickling. Bluebird Acres Farm has a new variety called Little Elf, which is small, smooth-skinned and nearly seedless. It is a great cucumber for slicing into a salad. Because the skin is not bitter, you don’t have to take time to peel it.

For a good selection of German Johnsons and the darker varieties of tomatoes you might have to arrive early at your favorite vendor. Eagle Farm still has a selection of greenhouse tomatoes grown at their farm. These tomatoes have great flavor and are less fragile than some of the field grown varieties.

Berries, melons and fruits are beginning to arrive. Open stone peaches from Candor at the Bostian Farms booth have a rich peach taste and are easier to manage than the clingstone varieties. Freestone peaches should be arriving soon.

Some vendors have limited quantities of cantaloupes. They are in the fields waiting for the right combination of rain and warm nights that give them a good sweet taste.

The Bread Basket hopes to have gluten-free bread at the market on Saturday. Emma Martin has been working on the recipe for some time. The bread has flax seed, brown rice flour and honey. Emma’s family, including a grandchild with a gluten intolerance problem, are testing the moistness and taste to be sure the bread is appealing and will remain moist after slicing.

he Farmers Market allows you use Food Stamps, WIC and Senior Vouchers and to make a credit card or debit card purchases. For more information about the Farmers Market visit www.salisburyfarmersmarket.com. The Farmers Market is located in downtown Salisbury at the corner of South Main Street and Bank Street. Visit the Farmers Market on Wednesdays from 7 a.m. until noon and Saturdays from 7 a.m. until noon.

Wild Turkey Farms will not be at the Market this Saturday June 23 but will return on June 30.

Sue Davis is an Extension Master Gardener Volunteer in Rowan County.