Days and Hours Open 

Thursday – 9 am to 6 pm
Friday – 9 am to 6 pm
Saturday – 9 am to 6 pm
Sunday – 9 am to 4 pm
Monday – Closed
Tuesday – Closed
Wednesday – Closed

Call us at (269) 244-5690 or check for updates on our website: www.coreylakeorchards.com
We are “all ears” this week as sweet corn is at its peak!  (And we will listen to any feedback you have for us this week or any other week!) We are having a summer sweet corn special on multi-dozens and bushels! This is the time to grill it, freeze it, or try a new corn recipe.  Exactly how good is sweet corn for your health?  Read about it below.

You will not want to miss our Flower Power 2024: Walk, Learn, Pick and Enjoy!  Join Sue this Thursday and Saturday as she walks you through and describes the various flora in our six gardens.  You’ll also be picking flowers for a bouquet to take home.  We also have a Paint and Sip on Thursday, and Yoga and Alcohol Sampling this Saturday.  See you this week!

We thank the guests from the Latvian Camp annual volleyball tournament for stopping by last weekend during their busy tournament.

Last Sunday, we had the pleasure of hosting the ardent riders of the Camp Tavor annual bike trek.  We were their last stop on a multi-day bike ride from Chicago to the camp.  They refueled with fruit, veggies, and baked goods, and then they were off!
Upcoming Special Activities
(see below for more information) 

  • Lavender Paint and Sip, Thursday, Aug. 1, 3:30-5:30 pm (only a few spots left)
  • Flower Power 2024 Experience, Thursday, Aug. 1, walking tours at 9:30 and 10:30 am
  • Flower Power 2024 Experience, Saturday, Aug. 3, walking tours at 9:30 and 10:30 am
  • Alcohol Sampling, Saturday, Aug. 3, 11 am to 1 pm
  • Yoga, Saturday, Aug. 3, 10:30-11:30 am (only 3 classes left!)
  • Book Talk on “This Sweet Earth”, Tuesday, Aug. 6, 4:30-6:30 pm at The Huss Project in Three Rivers
  • This Sweet Earth: A Day Retreat for Climate Conscious Parents and Caregivers, a community event, Wednesday, Aug. 7, 9 am to 2 pm
  • Sunflower Paint and Sip, Sunday, Aug. 11, 1:30-3:30 pm
Produce Update
Sweet Corn
Now in peak season!  We will be having sweet corn specials all weekend!  We sell it by the ear, half dozen, dozen, and 5-dozen bushels.  We try to keep a few bushels on hand, but if you can call in advance (269-244-5690) that helps us to have it ready for you.
Peaches
We will have peaches this weekend!  As you know, the peaches in SW Michigan were frozen out this year but we are getting some from an orchard in mid-Michigan.  We will have a few Red Haven but mostly StarFire, a newer variety with improved characteristics.  They are a high-quality fruit with an excellent flavor that keeps well.  They are almost all red with a little yellow background, similar in appearance to a Red Haven.  They are non-browning with golden yellow flesh.  Good for baking, canning, and freezing.  We feel you will like these even better than some of the traditional varieties!  And nothing beats a fresh, Michigan peach!
Early Bartlett Pears
We are picking our early Bartlett pears.  They are picked green, you need to lay them out in a cool, dark place to ripen.  Sold by the quart and quarter-peck bags.

Regular Bartlett pears are about 7-10 days away.  Watch the newsletter for updates or call (269-244-5690) to be added to our Pear Bulk List if you are looking for some to can.
Green Beans, Pickling Cukes, and Peppers – Bulk Quantities
If you need vegetables in bulk for canning, freezing, etc. please call the market for pricing and to preorder.  269-244-5690.  We grow several types of peppers for processing – bell (and variations in color), yellow banana, hot Hungarian, and jalapeno.  They are sold in half bushels and bushels; peppers are also available by the peck (quarter bushel).  Our pickling cucumbers are not small “pickles” like many of you want, they are at least 3 to 4 inches due to the heat making them grow so quickly.  They will work for bread and butter pickles.  We are no longer taking orders for green beans in bulk at this time.

Canning Tomatoes – Bulk Quantities
Our field tomatoes are finally coming in!!  Tomatoes will be available in bushels and half bushels, prices are TBD.  We will also have a limited supply of Romas available.  We expect the canning tomato season to run through August, though keep in mind that crops are starting and ending earlier this year.  We will start calling on orders later this week.  Please call 269-244-5690 to get on our bulk tomato list if you haven’t already.
Blueberries
We have already picked blueberries on the market from our long-term supplier, Brookside Farms.  They are available by the pint, quart, 5-pound box, and 10-pound box.

Our u-pick blueberry field is done for the season.  If you are looking for some to pick we recommend you contact Brookside Farms in Paw Paw.  They have many acres of u-pick blueberries and are very family oriented.  Call them at (269) 657-3500 or check their Facebook page for updates.  We expect already picked blueberries to continue through mid August.
Join us for Flower Power: Walk, Learn, Pick, and Enjoy!
Our flower gardens are at their peak right now with a dazzling display color!  Tour, learn and pick from annuals and perennials in varying colors, shapes, and sizes including an abundance of zinnias.  This is a special opportunity to stroll through our six gardens, most normally off-limits for flower picking.  See some of our flower photos here.
$15 per person, no advance registration needed.  Leave with more flower knowledge and a hand-selected bouquet.

  • Thursday, Aug. 1 at 9:30 and 10:30 am
  • Saturday, Aug. 3 at 9:30 and 10:30 am

Walking tours last about an hour.  Please wear appropriate shoes for walking hilly and uneven terrain.  Also bring a vase and scissors if possible.

Below is a picked bouquet and one picked and later arranged by attendees from last week’s tour.
Check in at the market first, then meet your guide Sue by the pollinator garden.  Sue is a flower enthusiast, creates the many flower arrangements planted in pots and antiques around the market areas, and is a member of the Three Rivers Garden Club.

What you will learn:

  • The proper way to pick a flower
  • How to care for fresh cut flowers
  • Ideas for choosing flowers for a bouquet
  • Ideas for types of flowers to plant in your own garden
  • Answers to your flower gardening questions
Paint and Sip Classes
$39 per person.  Open to adults and students 16 and over.  Register now, space is limited. 

Please call the market (269-244-5690) to register or use the link below each class to reserve your space.  (If registering through Facebook, press and hold versus clicking the link.)

Hard ciders, wine, and non-alcoholic drinks will be available as well as snack items while you work!  Both classes are taught by Kalamazoo artist Anna Barnhart.
Lavender Watercolor – Encore Class (only a few spots left!)
— Thursday, August 1 from 3:30 to 5:30 pm
— Leave with a set of floral notecards

Relax in the Michigan summer shade with an all-materials-included class and two favorites – lavender and watercolor!  Great for beginner artists or those who want to relax and play.  We will be using simple watercolor techniques to create a series of notecards!  You’ll leave with at least three 5″X7″ watercolor greeting cards (and envelopes) which you can frame, give away, or mail!

Registration link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0C44AAA82FA0FDCE9-50166226-whimsical
Sunflower Canvas
— Sunday, Aug. 11 from 1:30 to 3:30 pm
— Leave with a shopping tote and a small canvas zipper bag

Take home some blooms that won’t wilt in this painting workshop with iconic late summer Sunflowers!  You’ll paint a medium-sized shopping tote with 6 inside pockets as well as a small canvas zipper bag.
Registration link – https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0C44AAA82FA0FDCE9-painting
 What is on the Market
Apples – Jersey Mac, an early summer variety

Bartlett Pears – early variety, sold in quarts and quarter pecks

Blueberries – pints, quarts, 5- and 10-pound boxes

Watermelons and Cantaloupe – Our two favorite varieties grown here on the farm

Bankson Lake Produce
Fresh vegetables: Just Lettuce, Spicy Lettuce, Spinach, Arugula, head lettuce, kale, radishes, and mushrooms.  The lettuces are prewashed, bagged, and ready to use.

Vegetables this week – broccoli, yellow squash, zucchini, potatoes, cukes, cabbage, cauliflower, onions, peppers, green beans, sweet corn, and tomatoes.

The onions are continuing to grow from the rain and warmer weather.  Beth and Alicia show a large one just harvested.  We still sell them with their green tops that you can use in cooking.  We are starting to harvest and hang them to dry.
U-Pick Herbs – This is the best time of year to use those recipes that call for fresh herbs!  You will find the herb listing on signs in front of each row.  Herbs include: cilantro, dill, basil, parsley, mint, thyme, rosemary, chives, oregano, and others.

Flowers – Cut your own bouquet from the terrace garden of flowers next to the parking lot this week.  Check in at the market first for scissors and directions.  Flowers do better when picked in the morning, before the stronger sun and heat of the day.

Slushies- It’s late summer and it’s hot.  And starting this weekend we will have Peach slushies!  We are almost out of our frozen apple cider and must wait for the new cider season before we can offer it again.
Baked Goods
We have lots of wonderful baked treats available!

In our freezer section, just “bake and enjoy”:
— Fruit pies in assorted farm fresh flavors.  Rhubarb pies are available for a short time longer.
— Stromboli’s – various types in breakfast, sandwich, and pizza styles.  These make an easy meal, especially when combined with a side salad.

Freshly baked:
— Assorted cookies, breads, muffins
— Our specialty breads: blueberry zucchini and cinnamon
— Donuts in buttermilk, blueberry, and cherry along with iced yeast donut rings decorated with sprinkles and “googly eyes”
— Cinnamon rolls, a favorite of many of our customers, available Friday afternoons through the Sunday, or until we run out!

Our homemade focaccia breads are back, made with our fresh farm produce.
Alcohol
Hard Cider and Wine Sampling – this Saturday, from 11 am to 1.  Stop by the market and try a sample of our hard ciders and wines.  We feature different ones for you to try each week.

Check out our assortment of alcohol products – wine, hard ciders, and spirits.  Our products are made on-site in small batches.  We distill the brandies on the farm and use our fresh apple cider as the basis for fermenting our hard ciders.

Try Peach and Honey wine, one of our best-sellers.  It is a sweet wine, a perfect blend of sweet peaches with a taste of honey.
Grocery
We have a great selection of local products we know you will enjoy:

  • Brown eggs from local farms
  • Amish Fry Pies from Yoder’s Deli, Centerville.  These individual, hand-held size pies are available in Apple, Blueberry, Cherry, Peach, Strawberry-Rhubarb, Black Raspberry, and Red Raspberry.
  • Pork products from Jake’s Country Meats, Jones.
  • Gluten-free items from Gluten Free Sensations, Three Rivers.  Find cookies, brownies, cinnamon rolls, granola and more in the freezer section.
  • Oat Bites snacks and granola in several flavors.
  • Amish made jams, jellies, and salsas, made by Scherger’s Kettle, Shipshewana
  • Pure honey from bees buzzing just a couple of miles away at Babcock’s Apiary.
  • Maple syrup products including the new Barrel-Aged Bourbon Maple Syrup (non-alcoholic) made by Maple Row Sugarhouse using our bourbon barrels.
  • Olive oil, vinegar, and salad dressings
  • Snacking items: potato and tortilla chips, sweet potato chips, crackers, pretzels, flavored mustards, and snacking cheese.
  • Greek style freshly made yogurt in pints and quarts from Mattawan Creamery.
  • Locally made vanilla ice cream from Plainwell Ice Cream
  • Fresh, local, milk in gallons, half gallons, and single-serve bottles from Amish Country Dairy.  Blueberry milk in single-serve bottles.
  • Brown Butter Ghee and Salted Butter from Amish Country Dairy.
  • Dried cherries and blueberries, dark and milk chocolate covered cherries
Gifts
Check out our wide range of hand-crafted gift items and original artwork, most of it made by our local artisans.

  • Paintings
  • Jewelry
  • Kitchen items
  • Tote and shopping bags
  • Candles
  • Note cards
  • Seasonal lakeside living gifts
  • Corey Lake Orchard branded items – golf balls, insulated bags, notebooks, coffee cups, key chains, magnets
  • Corey Lake Orchard gift certificates
Get Healthy with Sweet Corn
This is the best time for sweet corn!  But how healthy is it for you?  According to the NY Times, corn sometimes gets a bad rap on the health front.  (It gives us high-fructose corn syrup, after all.)  But sweet yellow corn has little in common with processed corn byproducts, said Dr. Ana Baylin, an associate professor of nutritional sciences at the University of Michigan.  It’s a pretty healthy vegetable, whether it’s fresh off the cob in summer, or canned or frozen the rest of the year.

–It promotes digestion.  One cup of sweet corn contains about three grams of fiber.  It helps keeps you regular!
–It’s a good source of energy.  When it’s harvested early on, while its kernels are still tender and juicy, corn is considered a starchy vegetable.  (Corn used for popcorn, corn flour and cornflakes are harvested later, once its kernels dry out, and is considered a grain.)  Starchy vegetables generally contain more carbohydrates and calories than non-starchy vegetables and can be a healthier source of carbs and calories than those coming from sugar or ultra-processed foods.
–It contains a wide range of vitamins and minerals.  Experts said sweet corn doesn’t have especially high levels of any one vitamin or mineral.  But taken together, corn’s micronutrients can help your body function and keep you healthy.

And enjoy it!  Steam or grill ears of fresh corn.  Or try another corn recipe.  For more health facts on sweet corn, read the full article.  It also includes these recipes, which are found on our Sweet Corn Recipes webpage.

  • Oven Roasted Corn on the Cob
  • Corn Salad with Tomatoes, Basil, and Cilantro
  • Charred Corn and Chickpea Salad with Lime Crema
  • Creamy Corn Soup with Basil
  • Pasta with Corn, Mint, and Red Onions
We loved this recent NY Times article: How Healthy is Sweet Corn?  And here is another way to use fresh corn!

Corn crepes
These light, delicate crepes go well with either sweet or savory toppings. Serves six.

  • 1 cup cornmeal
  • 1 cup flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 2 tablespoons oil
  • 4 cups fresh corn, cut off the cob
  • 2 cups water
  • 2 cups buttermilk
  • Butter for frying

Mix the cornmeal, flour, salt and baking powder.  Add the oil, eggs, water, buttermilk and three cups of corn to a blender and liquefy.  Combine with the dry ingredients and remaining cup of corn and let sit for about an hour.  When ready to cook, melt butter on a hot skillet and pour small crepes (about 4 inches across).  Flip them when they start to bubble, about three to five minutes.
Inviting Spaces
While at the market, we invite you to take a moment and relax in our many outdoor spaces.  There are tables and chairs in the play area and tables set up in the “onion barn.  This is the time of year when so much produce is coming in you may have to share you space with tomatoes!

Find a place to savor our baked goods and beverages like slushies, milk, coffee, hard ciders, and sodas while conversing with friends or families, or just taking a much-needed “escape”.

We also rent out the space for private events.  For more information on reserving the space, please see our event space website page or contact Brenda@coreylakeorchards.com.
‘Yoga at the Farm’ – Saturdays @ 10:30am
Only 3 more sessions remaining of ‘Yoga at the Farm’.  Join us Saturday mornings through August 17!  Join us for a rejuvenating and beginner-friendly yoga experience presented by Harmony Yoga Three Rivers!  Ages 8 and up (with a parent), all yoga abilities welcome.

Saturdays, 10:30-11:30 am
$20 per person, includes a small slushy.  Class is free for Harmony Yoga members; Class Pack Holders – use one of your classes.

–Registration through Harmony Yoga is recommended but not required.  To register or learn more go to harmonyyogatr.com/events.
–Parking:  Park west of the market and farmhouse by the greenhouses, next to the yoga yard.
–Check in with the instructor in the area in front of the farmhouse, next to the red truck.
–Please bring your mats as they have a limited number to borrow, bottled water, a beach-size towel, and shoes for walking to the class.
Special Event – This Sweet Earth: A Day Retreat for Climate Conscious Parents and Caregivers
Wednesday, August 7, 9 am to 2 pm
See event Facebook page for more information.

A day retreat with Lydia Wylie-Kellermann! Lydia is the author of the forthcoming book This Sweet Earth: Walking with Our Children in the Age of Climate Collapse. Co-organized in partnership with the Huss Project in Three Rivers, MI.

Lydia will be presenting a book talk (with childcare provided) on August 6 at the Huss Project in Three Rivers from 4:30-6:30 pm. Find more information here: https://www.facebook.com/events/1599367547272156/

Corey Lake Orchards is a proud sponsor of this event.  Climate change  is one of our greatest concerns as we continue to feel the impact and mental stress of farming with extreme and erratic weather, and question our world’s agricultural sustainability for future generations.
Happenings on the Farm
This week’s happenings on the farm were another week of “heavy lifting” from harvesting a “heavy” crop of melons, onions, cucumbers, zucchini, and tomatoes!  None of these are lightweight or easy to carry!
Shallots
We harvested our entire crop this week.  We will be letting them dry and cure, then have them out for sale in a couple of weeks!
Melons
We harvested the last of our mini watermelons.  The Mini-Love variety is a seeded melon.
We are also harvesting our sugar cube melons. We have planted this favorite variety for about eight years now.

Both melons were selected because they are “personal size”.  You can enjoy all of it when cutting them open and not needing to find refrigerator room!
Annual Onion Harvest
We have started harvesting this year’s onion crop.  We pull them in the field, tie them into bunches, and bring them in to hang up to dry out in our market and onion barn.  After about six weeks, they will be “cured” and will last all winter.
Beth with a bunch of red onions.  Both these and the yellow onions are our famous, sweet candy onions.
Thank you for your continued support and for buying local.
Everyone at Corey Lake Orchards wishes you a safe and
happy summer!