Even though vendors say that rainy days are busy, lots of smiling faces abound at the Homer Farmers Market when it’s sunny.
This week is National Farmers Market Week (and State of Alaska Farmers Market Week) so feel free to celebrate with some local recipes. Looking at what is stacked on the tables and in the bins at the market this last week, you can understand why everyone is holding up farmers markets at this time of the year.
The vegetables are coming in at amazing rates as well as wonderful diversity. Zucchinis, onions, radishes, carrots, Napa cabbage, turnips, flowers, greens. Keep an eye out; Hannah just started bringing in cherry tomatoes but says that the big tomatoes will start coming in this week.
When looking to the future, don’t forget Wednesday markets. The crowds aren’t as thick, and yet all the veggies are still there. And log onto the online farmers market, the Alaska Food Hub, to line up an order Friday through Monday that you will be able to pick up on Wednesdays at the Methodist Church.
At the Homer Farmers Market, this coming Wednesday is time for the August Kids Vending Day. Kids Vending Day is a great way to get the younger folks involved in the community atmosphere while testing their entrepreneurial prowess. They have to follow all the rules outlined in the policy handbook for vendors, so check out the market website to get all the details.
After 25 years, we can safely say that there are quite a few kids who have grown up with our market. When I saw that Miriam had returned as a vendor to the market after a few years hiatus, I asked her how old her son was now. I remembered that she had manned her booth for about a decade, starting with him in a basket under her table. She pointed to the young man next to her, 14 years old and going to be a freshman.
How time flies.
So come on down to the market this Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. or Wednesday from 2-5 p.m. to celebrate Farmers Market Week and support our local families.
Kyra Wagner is the board president for the Homer Farmer’s Market.
