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Hooray - summer is finally here!
Fresh new season Northland sweet corn, Oamaru jersey benne potatoes, Hawke's Bay cherries, Wairoa nectarines and berries from all areas are readily available in good quantities.
Your berry selection is impressive this week with beautiful strawberries and blueberries selling at reasonable prices, with your raspberries and blackberries still a little bit more expensive but as always we know as volumes increase the prices will decrease.
The early Hawkes Bay cherries are selling very well.
These early cherries are the earlise variety which is the pick of the bunch at present.
Hawke's Bay nectarines are improving daily and fingers crossed you will see a small selection of early apricots, peaches and plums appearing in the shops over the next few days.
The early sweet corn is from the far North area around Kaitaia with the main grower being Bells Gardens who I think has the best corn.
This early corn is the honey and pearl variety and is delicious eating. Just don't look at the price - it will get cheaper trust me.
Waikato-grown asparagus, Pukekohe broccoli, Kumeu courgettes and Katikati beans are the top selling green vegetables.
Other vegetables to look at will include eggplant, flat beans, green peas and baby spinach, all lovely seasonal eating vegetables.
The Oamaru jersey benne potatoes are absolutely superb potatoes.
They are not cheap and always considered a treat but for special occasions they are the best, butter and mint included.
Pukekohe carrots are still in short supply with very firm prices and the new season Pukekohe agria potatoes are the best selling potato in the shop at present, boiled, roasted, mashed or chipped - the agria potato will not disappoint.
Crown pumpkins and Northland kumara continue to sell well at reasonable prices and the first of the new season buttercup arrived from the far North over the weekend.
The first harvest of Pukekohe new season brown onions are now available, leaving you with a choice of old season or new season onions.
The salad lines are all abundant and prices remain quite low.
Nice big locally-grown hass avocados, Pukekohe hot house grown capsicums, cucumbers and tomatoes along with Levin-grown lettuces will make you a lovely salad for not a lot of money.
The fruit scene is changing quite quickly now that summer is here.
This season's supply of Hawke's Bay apples and pears along with Gisborne oranges, tangeloes and mandarins are slowly disappearing ready to be replaced by USA imports over the next fortnight.
The first shipment of Italian kiwifruit is due to arrive within the next two weeks.
On the import scene a new shipment of Dole tropical gold pineapples arrived last night from the Philippines and you will find a plentiful supply of USA grapes and pomegranates.
From Australia we have watermelon, rock melon, honeydew melon and R2E2 mangos.
Remember to buy what is in season and on special.
- David Stewart is the owner of The Fresh Market Gate Pa and home delivery service mygreengrocer.co.nz