MARKET REPORT FOR MARCH 2024

March brings us spring produce such as wild garlic, Jersey Royals (starting with ware size), the first of the asparagus, peas and broad beans. Along with wild garlic we have wet garlic from Egypt, which will then move to Europe. Asparagus includes purple, wild and white. English asparagus is available but will come into its own next month in April. Forced rhubarb is still going.

Lots of artichokes including stunning Calibre 9 Calic - an artichoke on steroids! For citrus, Tarocco blood oranges are still available, plus Nardicotts and lovely mandarins. Gariguette strawberries and French strawberries are underway. We recommend Lovita plums from South Africa, which have a beautiful purple flesh.

Agretti and puntarelle is still good. It is the start of tomatoes from Provence such as Noire de Crimée, Pineapple, Marmande but they will be best when soil-grown later in the summer. Morels are still Chinese. For something a bit different, how about Celtuce? This is particularly good this month as early in the season. They are really beautiful. We even had some micro snow peas from Barcelona.

Foraged ingredients this month include wild garlic, three-cornered leek, sea beets, juniper and black mustard.