Organic produce grown by Wild Carrot Farm in Canton can be purchased at the farm store, above, located at 541 Albany Turnpike. Photo: dotCANTON
The land along Albany Turnpike across from the Farmington River in Canton has been known as Bristol's Farm since the 1800s. Photo: dotCANTON
You can’t stop tasting the possibilities as your eyes drink in the colors, shapes and textures of the produce being offered by Wild Carrot Farm at the Collinsville Farmers Market.
And if you’re a Canton resident, you can’t help but smile with a bit of pride when you’re reminded that it all came from Canton soil … and that it’s all USDA certified organic.
Mark Palladino is the founder of Wild Carrot Farm, which operates on about 10 acres it leases from David Bristol Sr. directly across Albany Turnpike (Route 44) from the Farmington River. That land has been known as Bristol’s Farm since 1870, according to Palladino, who has been growing crops on an ever-increasing amount of the space over the last seven years.
Wild Carrot Farm founder Mark Palladino says he's growing 85 different crops this year. Photo: dotCANTON
What’s harvested there is sold at three farmers markets — the Windsor Farmers Market on Thursday afternoons, the Litchfield Hills Farm-Fresh Market in Litchfield on Saturdays and the Collinsville market on Sundays. It’s also sold at 541 Albany Turnpike in the farm store adjacent to the fertile field.
Palladino says he’s growing 85 different crops this year — all certified organic. “The season starts in March in the greenhouse, and we start selling in May through November,” he says. According to Palladino, Wild Carrot Farm is best known for the varieties of lettuce, tomatoes and potatoes it grows, and for its winter squash.
Garlic and onions are two of August’s hot items, according to Palladino. He says the garlic is hanging and curing now and will be available for sale this coming weekend.
During the summer, the farm store is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and on Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Non-certified organic items grown off-site — strawberries, blueberries, corn and apples among them — are also sold at the store, but, Palladino says, they are properly marked and segregated from the other crops.
But even when it comes to that produce, Palladino has set strict standards.
“It’s important that we get it fresh from local Connecticut farms,” he says.
The dotCANTON gallery below features a visual sampling of several of the items being sold by Wild Carrot Farm on Sunday, Aug. 1, at the Collinsville Farmers Market.
For a larger view of the images below, click on any of the 16 and use the arrow left or arrow right button at the bottom of the larger image that pops up. To return to this page, click on the full image you are viewing.
– dotCANTON
