In the poem “After Apple Picking,” Robert Frost describes a simple scene, the essence of which is that, regardless of any fruit that may still hang on the trees, and in spite of the fact that a barrel may be left unfilled, the end of the harvest has arrived. So it is with the Portsmouth Farmers’ Market.

Like the narrator in Frost’s poem, the farmers speak about the end of the season with a mixture of resignation and relief. To be sure, it hasn’t been an easy one, arriving as it did in the spring with record-breaking rainfall and exiting on exactly the same note. But the consensus seems to be that the season was a success, with farmers reporting that slightly lower crop yields were tempered by higher-than-usual turnout at the market.

Although this coming Saturday, Nov. 5, marks the final week of the market, the farmers still have a bit of work to do to ensure that the farms are safely tucked in for the winter. The fields will be cleared of their current crops and plowed under, and a cover crop of hearty winter rye will be laid down. The rye seeds will have just enough time, before the snow and freezing temperatures set in, to sprout into a blanket of grass. In the process, the rye will leech and store nutrients from the soil and will also serve to prevent erosion. In the spring, the farmers will till the crop under, exposing the roots to sunlight and suffocating the green tops in the soil. The nutrient-packed grass will be harrowed deep into the soil, supplying plenty of organic matter on which the spring crops will thrive.

Once the seed for the cover crop has been sown, there’s little work to be done until February or March, when the greenhouses are started up, but few of the farmers rely solely on farming for their sustenance. Garen Heller, of Back River Farm in Dover, will be donning a chef’s toque (well, a ball cap, anyway) in the kitchen of Lindbergh’s Crossing, where he’ll work as garde manger (salad guy) a couple of nights a week. He’ll also be moonlighting behind the counter at Enoteca Italiana and doing odd jobs here and there. “I just get out and about, try to broaden my horizons,” he says.  Not surprisingly, Heller says that the only criterion for his piecemeal winter work ethic is that “it’s all about the food.”

Charlie Reid, of Stone Wall Farms in Nottingham, will be breeding springer spaniel puppies and working as a state-licensed auctioneer. He will also continue collecting and selling eggs from his chickens. John Wakefield, of Shagbark farm in Kensington, will be busy working the sawmill at Woodward lumber. Bob Wiggin, of Wake Robin Farm in Stratham, doesn’t need to elaborate when he says with a laugh and a shrug, “I have a snow plow.”

From my final farmers’ market purchase this past Saturday, I made one of my favorite snack foods: roasted pumpkin seeds. They’re simple to make, but are only truly delicious when done correctly. The key to craving-inducing roasted pumpkin seeds is to remember “low and slow” in the oven. This philosophy is actually a sound one to follow when roasting any nuts, but particularly pumpkin seeds, which can be tough and fibrous if they’re not allowed to completely dry out during the roasting process.

For roasted pumpkin seeds, scoop out the insides of a pumpkin and separate the seeds from the stringy guts. Rinse the seeds thoroughly in a colander under cold water, then soak the seeds for about an hour in salted water. Drain the seeds, place on a lightly oiled cookie sheet and roast in a low oven (200 to 250 degrees) for an hour or two, stirring occasionally. Taste one of the seeds every so often. If they’re not really crunchy, leave them in the oven; sometimes it takes a few hours. Once the seeds are completely crunchy, they can be toasted for a few minutes in a hotter oven (325 to 350 degrees) until golden brown. For variations, mix a tablespoon of honey and/or hot sauce into the seeds as they are soaking, or toss the seeds with spices (curry, chili, cinnamon, nutmeg, etc.) before they go in the oven. Also, the salt in the soaking liquid may be replaced with tamari soy sauce.

For those who are able to make it to the farmers’ market grand finale, there will be plenty of produce. Best of all, there will be a chance to shake hands with the farmers and say good-bye until spring, when they return with the spring crops. As we wile away the winter, visions of sugar snap peas will dance in our heads.