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elibrown
May 29th, 2006, 01:50 AM
I noticed today that produce at the farmer's market is cheaper during the weekdays than weekends. I remember last Thursday, celery was .50 to .75 a bunch, and today it was $1 to $1.25. Other fruits, veggies, beans, nuts and stuff were the same way.

I also discovered a trick: when you buy a basket of something and ask to buy just one or two of something else, they usually will give it to you for free. I bought a $2 basket of green beans and asked to buy two nopales, and the lady just threw them in the bag and said, "Two dollars".

One last tip: go at closing time. They're too tired to haggle and will just let you pay what you want. I got 5 mangos for a dollar instead of 2 because I told the guy they were too small and he was just like, "Whatever, take five". I also salvaged a perfectly good cabbage, celery bunch, and cauliflower from a trash pile.
karenM
May 29th, 2006, 02:24 AM
I used to get free beet greens (my favorite!), and my friend would always get free greens for her turtles (tortoises?). Some [foolish] customers ask the vendors to remove the leafy tops of veggies (radishes, turnips, etc), so the sellers don't mind giving them away to people who ask.
*AHIMSA*
May 29th, 2006, 03:56 AM
Bring your own reusable bags!
elibrown
May 29th, 2006, 06:02 PM
Bring your own reusable bags!

I did! ;) The big stuff like cabbages I just picked up and put straight into my milk crate on my bike. It was funny, I handed a dollar to the lady and picked up a celery bunch and stuck it in my milk crate, and the lady STILL got a plastic bag and tried to hand it to me! Ridiculous. Oh well, I'm gonna be coming there a lot more now, so they'll get the hang of my non-wastefulness.
maggieG
May 29th, 2006, 10:17 PM
I also discovered a trick: when you buy a basket of something and ask to buy just one or two of something else, they usually will give it to you for free. I bought a $2 basket of green beans and asked to buy two nopales, and the lady just threw them in the bag and said, "Two dollars".
.

Thanks for that tip! I can definitely use it.

Here's a little tip of mine: If they have "pick-outs," buy them. I bought about five pounds of banan pick-outs for $1 and only two of them were overripe; I was still able to salvage half of each banana.