Peach, Nectarine and Peach (top row left to right), 'Sweet' Fig, Osborne Fig, Burton Prune Plum (bottom row)

Many fig varieties in market are no names, picked from trees that the grower can't positively identify.  The green one in the lower left corner of the photograph above -- which was labeled "Sweet Fig" -- is an example.  Burton prune plums, lower right corner, were a new discovery for me this year. They will become a regular seasonal purchase from now on.  Following the instructions of the grower from who I bought these, I cut them in half and pitted them before drying them.  But instead of putting them in the sun, I put them in a pan in the oven, which I kept at "warm," the lowest setting, for several hours, then turned it off and let the warmth of the pilot light finish them off.  In a couple of days, I had delicious home-dried prunes. The photo below shows what they looked like about half way through the drying process.

Price: $3/basket for figs; $5/5 pounds of peaches and nectarines

Half-dried Burton Prune Plums

Perilla and Grenoblas Lettuce

These are from the Coleman Family Farm stand, which has at least half a dozen varieties of lettuce year round, along with one or two dozen varieties of herbs and greens.

Price: $1/each for small head