Bob and Sharon Horsford run a 12-acre farm in Sennett where they grow a great variety of vegetables, flowers and fruit. Much of what they grow and how they grow it is just a little bit nontraditional.

At the Auburn and Skaneateles farmers markets, where they have a regular farmstand each week, they want their produce to stand out in the crowd.

“We like to try to get people to try something new,” Bob said.

The pair has developed a loyal following from a customer base who appreciate their diversity of offerings, exemplified by an heirloom pumpkin varietal called Long Island Cheese and Adirondack Blue potatoes. Instead of growing the usual large-sized cantaloupe melon that everyone else does, their variety is the “Littlelope” - a mini, single-person sized version that took off last year and that the Horsfords say is “really tasty.”

“People get a bad taste for (commercial) melons; they're picked too early and shipped. (Ours) have the true flavor of a melon,” the pair says.

Bob, who possesses a healthy sense of humor, markets his produce in early spring at the Syracuse Regional Market. His loyal customers can pick him out from the sea of booths, since he's sure to be wearing his trademark green-checked gingham shirt. Bob's not afraid to look a little silly - if it helps people to stop by the stand.

“I really appreciate that they bring new products like edamame (Japanese soybeans) to the Auburn market,” said Glenda Neff, a long-time customer from Auburn. “You can tell Bob's having so much fun trying new things and talking to his customers about it.”

In addition to field crops such as sweet corn, pumpkins, seedless watermelon, fingerling potatoes and summer and winter squash, the Horsfords use a type of shelter called a hoop house to grow spinach, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, beans and snap peas, right in the soil.

Their three hoop houses are unheated.

“We can't justify heating greenhouses with fuel costs being so high,” Bob said. “Besides, I like things to be low-tech.”

The cover creates its own warmth, thereby extending the growing time and allowing them to harvest certain foods much earlier (and later) than other growers.

This year, the Horsfords had lettuce available in March and spinach in April. They'll have tomatoes by early July. The plastic-framed shelters also offer protection from insects, rabbits and other hungry wildlife and allow the farmers to go about their work sheltered from exposure to wind and rain.

Out in the field, even their sweet corn is under wraps. They set up an enormous piece of floating white fabric called Reemay, which allows passage of light, air and moisture while offering protection from frost and insect pests. The Horsfords planted the corn the first week of April and expect to have their first harvest in early July.

Bob and Sharon figure the variety of produce they offer minimizes the risk that one or another crop won't grow or sell as well. Last year they tried eggplant, which they found was not in large demand.

“At first you get discouraged if no one wants it,” Bob said. “It can be a full-time job to convince people.”

But other experiments have yielded more success. With the Peacock Lily, for instance, they have found a niche. The scent is lovely, and no one else in the area carries it.

A current experiment has the Horsfords trying out a mulch product from an anaerobic digester operation from nearby Twin Birch Dairy (www.twinbirch.net ). In this oxygen-free environment, the cow manure is reduced to a soil-conditioning organic waste.

****Sharon comes from a farming family with her parents' farm right down the road. Bob is a fourth generation dairy farmer and was working in construction when they met, but had a lifelong dream to farm. He says, philosophically, “it was a waste of two heartbeats. You can't have two masters.”Both were previously married and divorced. The two joined forces to realize their dream of owning and running a successful vegetable farm. They also started a new family, which Bob affectionately refers to as his “second litter.”Now, the couple share the workload with Bob doing the harvesting, selling and fieldwork, while Sharon splits her time on the farm with her job at the USDA Farm Service Agency in Cortland.The couple have a tremendous amount of enthusiasm and pride in their work. “Each one of those leaves is hand-selected by Bob,” said Sharon, referring to their spinach harvest.Fans of the farm acknowledge and appreciate the care and attention the two lavish on their farm operation, along with the diversity of offerings.Some of the challenges the farmers face will probably sound familiar: cost of fuel for transporting their produce to market, increase in fertilizer costs - which has recently doubled - and animal and insect pests. The Horsford's farm is not organic, although they utilize integrated pest management and try to keep spraying down to a minimum.Whatever difficulties they encounter, Bob and Sharon say “it's all worth it when we bring (the produce) to the people and they are happy to see it.” They also place tremendous value on the friendships they've made at the farmers markets. “I hope to continue to do this till they throw dirt in my face,” Bob says with a wry smile.Julia Reich, of Scipio Center is owner of Julia Reich Design, a graphic design studio, and self-proclaimed “foodie,” with interests in cooking (and eating)

Where to buy

• Auburn farmers market, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, on Genesee Street in front of Wegmans

• Skaneateles farmers market, from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. Thursdays, at the Community Center Parking Lot, 97 State St.

• Central New York Regional Market, from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays, 2100 Park St., I-81 exit 23, Syracuse

Wilted Spinach Salad with Olives, Feta and Garlic-Balsamic Vinaigrette

After visiting the Horsfords, I attended a potluck dinner later in the evening. I decided to bring a dish using fresh-picked spinach from the farm. The following recipe comes from Rebar Modern Food Cookbook, a vegetarian restaurant I once visited in Victoria, on Vancouver Island, Canada. The restaurant is amazing, and the cookbook is unusual in that the vegetarian recipes are complex, with sophisticated methods and ingredients. This is one of the easier recipes I have ever tried from the book. And although the table at the potluck was laden with dishes, many people went out of their way to tell me how delicious this disappearing salad was.

Vinaigrette

Yields 1 cup

3 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

1 1/2 teaspoon honey

1 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon cracked pepper

3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Salad

1 pound spinach leaves, washed and stemmed (young, smooth leaves are best)

1/4 cup Kalamata olives, pitted and chopped

1 red pepper, seeded and julienned

1 red onion, finely julienned

1/4 cup chopped mint

1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted

1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

Thoroughly combine the first seven ingredients in a bowl. Slowly drizzle in oil, whisking all the while. Correct seasoning to taste.

Prepare the remaining salad ingredients. Combine spinach, olives, peppers and onions in a large salad bowl. Just before serving, heat dressing over medium heat in a small pot. When it begins to simmer, remove from heat and drizzle over the salad while tossing with a pair of tongs. Gently mix in the fresh mint and garnish with pine nuts and feta cheese.

Serve immediately.

What's a localvore?

“Localvores” are people committed to eating and learning about foods grown close to home. Localvores prefer to:

• Eat healthy, delicious food grown and farmed near where they live

• Establish relationships with like-minded food producers and consumers

• Ensure that farm animals are treated well while alive and humanely when processed

for food

• Reduce their impact on the environment