Single Tree News: April 2024

At the Market

Selling at community markets has been a real learning experience, and I am very grateful for those who have helped me. Participation often requires the payment of fees, so it’s important to sell enough product to cover the fees while still turning a profit. That translates into appealing product displays, efficiency in taking payments, and plain old selling skills.

At my first market, I rented a tent, borrowed two tables from my neighbors, and covered them with some inexpensive green fabric. The wind blew the fabric around, as the only thing holding it down was some jars of jam. My only payment methods were cash and Venmo. Things didn’t go very well but I had someone to help me, and I learned a lot. I now own my own tables and cloths, and I have built my own product displays. I can take payments via Cash, Venmo, CashApp, and debit/credit cards via a blue tooth Square reader that accepts mag stripe, chip, and tap.

Another thing I have learned is that the sellers at a market often become a little community of their own. There is the man with his homemade bread, the woman with the aromatherapy, the man selling “Tallahassee’s Best Coffee,” and the woman who writes her own books and features other local authors, just to name a few. We help each other set up our tents, watch each other’s stations when someone needs to leave for a few minutes, and purchase each other’s items. We walk around, meet each other, and become familiar with each other’s products. Then, when a customer asks for something we don’t have, we can refer them to someone who does. The woman who sells her aroma-therapy products recently told me about the time when the vendor who makes his own woodworking products visited her tent. He saw that her product line was expanding and the next week he gave her some wooden display shelves he had made for her. Another time i saw a man helping a woman load up her truck with unsold wares after the market ended. She was struggling to walk and in obvious pain, and he stayed for half an hour to get her loaded up. This kind of interaction between vendors reminds me about all the good in this world.

I really enjoy the customers, all those curious people who have come to investigate this hodge-podge of sellers to see if there is something they can’t live without. In my case, I often get people’s attention with a friendly wave or a casual, “good morning.” If someone stops to look at my wares, I begin explaining about them: how I make it all myself from my own recipes, how the jams all come from a single tree, etc. When I see a spark of interest, I explain further and then offer a free taste. Often, the shoppers are in little groups, so when one person takes a taste, everyone else is watching. Whether its jam or granola, the shopper takes a taste, looks thoughtful for a moment, and then begin nodding their head. A friend asks how it is, and they enthusiastically reply, “It’s really good!” and the friend tastes it as well. Once they are hooked, they ask how much it costs and when I tell them, they always agree that its a good price. And cha-ching! Another sale to another satisfied customer.

If you live near Tallahassee, come and visit my tent at the downtown market! It’s open every Saturday from 10 to 2. If you don’t live near me, I would encourage you to visit whatever markets are in your area. Even if you don’t buy anything, you will enjoy the experience. And if you do buy something, you will have supported a person like me, who is trying to make a profit from their tiny business.

In Other News…

• I introduced a new flavor of granola – chocolate chip! With no nuts or seeds, this is a basic chocolate lover’s choice.
• My baby Satsuma tangerine is blossoming this year! Someday I hope to have enough tangerines to be able to make Satsuma jam.
• The peaches on my peach tree are about the size of a quarter now. I hope to get enough to make peach jam, but it turns out that the tree is self-thinning its fruit. We’ll see how many peaches I get.
• This year I would like to try my hand at making jam from wild, locally foraged berries. The earliest local berries I know of are Dewberries, so stay tuned!
• Lydia’s pear tree made zillions of blossoms, so I am hoping for a bumper crop of pear jam this year, hopefully around July.

Do you know anyone with a fruit tree that is producing more fruit than the owner wants? Please send them my way! I’d love to try making jam from loquats, persimmons, apples, or any kind of local fruit tree.