Weekends With Winter

Farmers Markets For Dummies and My 12 Tips to Help you Feel Less Like One

in Inspiration on

Fresh and Local: Farmers' Market

I attend a local Farmer’s Market at my job every Wednesday. From about 12:00 P.M. – 3:00 P.M. vendors and farmer’s are on hand to sell everything from homemade soaps and candles to fresh produce and  hot meals. Every week I walk down to that market prepared to make my purchases. Ready to bring home locally grown food to prepare and enjoy, and pat myself on the back for supporting small businesses only to feel overwhelmed. Overwhelmed with the amount of people in attendance, the amount of choices I have to make. Feeling the prying eyes of the vendors who seem impatient and  want me to buy buy buy.  Depending on the day, I may  do a quick walk around the market trying not to make eye contact with anyone and go right back up to my office. I may buy a tamale if I’m hungry or sample something if I’ve accidentally caught the eye of some insistent farmer but other than that the whole production is one big anxiety fest.

I know you’re saying it’s a Farmer’s Market calm down, and yes I agree with you, but this is my “thing” and everybody has their “thing”, and what I’ve learned about “things” is that they usually stem from a lack of information, or knowledge. My fear of the Farmer’s Market isn’t the  market itself but rather the fact that I have no idea how to navigate it. There is a skill to purchasing those fruits and veggies just like there is a skill to shopping a flea market or a consignment shop. Learning the skill will  help you pick from the best that the market has to offer as well as how to best prepare your finds and knowing exactly what the best finds are!  Luckily for my Weekender’s I love learning and relaying to you anything that can make your lives easier so I did a little research and I’ve come up with some tips that will assist in making your Farmer’s Market experience enjoyable and fruitful (Oh how I love a good pun to go with my peaches 😉 ).

1.Know What’s in Season

It’s so important to know what grows in your area and the best times of year to purchase these items. Growers are usually really good about letting you know what will be coming to market and what’s in season so just ask. However knowing beforehand will be helpful if a stall is really busy or you don’t have time for the conversation. To celebrate the emergence of fall I’ve created a list of fruits and veggies that are currently in season

  • Bok Choy
  • Broccoli
  • Broccoli Raab
  • Brussels Sprouts
  • Cabbage
  • Cauliflower
  • Celery
  • Cilantro
  • Chard
  • Apples
  • Artichoke
  • Arugula
  •  Cranberries
  • Edamame
  • Chiles
  • Fennel
  • Garlic
  • Grapes
  • Green Beans
  • Green Onions
  • Kale

2. Go Early or Go Late

Timing is everything at the Farmer’s Market. Want to choose from selections that haven’t been picked over and beat the crowd? Get there early. Want to get a great deal from merchants who’d rather get rid of their stock then schlep it back with them? Get there late.

3. Bring Your Own Bag

A lot of times vendors only offer those flimsy plastic bags to pack your newly bought fruits and veggies, so if you’d like to avoid dropping all of that pretty produce I suggest you bring your own bag. Not only will you save yourself a headache but you’ll also contribute to saving the environment. There are a ton of places to get sturdy shopping bags from however my favorite place to go is trader joe’s. They have leak proof bags that hold quite a bit. If you don’t have a trader joe’s near you, head over to your local grocery store they’re sure to have a nice selection of cloth grocery bags to choose from.

4. Come With Cash

Remember you’re working with small business owners here so some merchants will only take cash, and in a lot of cases they don’t carry big bills. So come prepared with enough cash to make purchases and make sure you bring change.

5. Buy in Bulk

Costco isn’t the only place you can buy in bulk, the Farmer’s Market also allows it’s patrons to buy in bulk for good deals.  Plus you’ll enjoy the flavors and best prices when you buy lots of whatever is at it harvest peak. So if you go through a few packages of strawberries a week you may want stock up on those. Who knows you may even try canning, freezing and drying your finds for use later on down the line.

6. Ask For Advice

If you find a veggie that’s new to you at the Farmer’s Market and want to give it a try ask the farmer how to prepare it. For best tips you may even want to ask them how they like to eat it. Don’t be afraid to ask for advice, a lot of times farmers like to talk about their stock. You may even create a ongoing relationship and learn what is currently in season and on sale.

7. Get Interested

Look, people love to talk about what interests them and  Farmers Market’s are interesting to begin with, so spend some time chatting up local farmers about how their food is grown, ask them how they like to cook it or about foods you don’t recognize. You can also ask about their growing practices. It take a lot of hard work to be a farmer so get interested in the practice and you’ll learn how to better shop for what you need.

8. Dress Comfortably

This may go without saying but it doesn’t hurt to mention it- dress comfortably. You’ll be walking quite a bit so wear comfy shoes and ladies bring a bag that won’t interfere with your shopping. Fanny packs though hideous were invented for places like the Dress Barn and the Farmer’s Market.

9. Know When To Hold’Um Know When to Fold’Um

Buying fresh produce and getting a bargain is kind of the objective of the Farmer’s Market however you’ve got to know when it’s proper to haggle. You don’t want to bargain for small amounts of produce but rather greater amounts. It’s an insult to haggle with workers who have worked very hard to provide fresh produce by underwriting their price. So save your masters of persuasion for those items that are more expensive and come in larger amounts.

10. Take Your Time

Walk around, check out each stall, talk to the grocers, ask questions. This all takes time, so make sure you’re not too quick on the draw when you make your purchases. A lot of vendors are in competition with one another so you may find that while 2 vendors may be carrying the same product one may have it at a lower price. I’ve seen vendors offer samples of products as well so have a good time tasting what they have on hand. Plus the Farmer’s Market is an experience in itself so enjoy it!

11. Organic Isn’t Everything

While organic is the new black, try not to ignore non organic owners. In some locals, organic certification can get expensive and can be too bureaucratic for small scale farmers to deal with. If you’d like to know what chemicals are used just ask, you may also find low spray products are better priced.

12. Buy the Ugly Stuff

You can reduce your costs even further by purchasing #2 fruits and veggies. #2 means the appearance may be marred but not the quality. Cases of #2 produce can be disconnected by as much as 50% so take the time to look at the #2 produce, however know that some farmers have been known to pass off moldy peaches or maggot filled sour cherries as #2 fruit so be careful when purchasing.

The Farmer’s Market really is a great experience, the rewards for both customer and vendor are limitless. I hope these tips helped and if you have any you’d like to impart please feel free you know I love hearing from you 🙂 Until next time remember to, keep the party goin!

WWW

Comments

  1. These are great tips. I love going to the farmers market just for the crepes alone but everything seems to be so expensive, especially the cakes which are sold at my local one, they’re delicious though. Can I just say too that I absolutely love your name 🙂

    Fiona @ http://www.dollydowsie.com

    • Girl! Stuff can be REALLY expensive at the Farmer’s Market where I live too, another tip I’ve learned is that if you go to smaller ones you may get better deals because a lot of the shop owners are smaller and just starting out 🙂 Thank you for the comment about my name, I hated it when I was younger!

  4. I love Farmer’s markets (I go to them at least once a month!) I definitely agree that knowing what’s in season is key! Great tips <3

  6. What a great article! I usually try to go to the local road side produce stand instead of the farmer’s market….for one, I have no idea where the farmer’s market is….for two, it’s much cheaper. One problem, though, is that I have no idea where the fruits and veggies come from because the people that run it don’t speak english, but the tomatoes are amazing….so I’m going to keep going. I do appreciate the tips though, these even apply to the little road side markets.

    • Thank you for reading! You’re right it does apply to those small markets, maybe even more so because you would frequent them more often than a Farmer’s Market 🙂

    • Oh no bueno!!! I always forget to pack my own bag when I got to the grocery store and I kick myself every single time! Now i just leave them in my trunk 🙂

  10. These are great tips. The farmer’s markets are different in AZ, in that most farmers aren’t there over the summer since it’s way too hot. I can’t wait for the market to reopen! I love my local produce!

    • AZ has some intense heat man so that’s understandable. Have a great time shopping for stuff in the fall though I know you guys will be stocked!

    • RIGHT! You can’t be fooled by the beauty, sometimes it’s what’s inside that counts! That goes for food and people!

    • I love that – ugly = more character! I think that saying could be true for a lot more than fruits and veggies 😉 Thank you for reading!

  14. These are awesome tips, Winter! I love Farmer’s Markets and we frequent them since we live in beautiful California! Tons of yummy stuff year round!

    • I’m from Cali too and we have it SO good here! I swear there’s a market around every corner! Thank you so much for reading!

  15. I love Farmer’s markets, but don’t usually shop at them just because of the time involved. So bad, but it’s much easier to buy it from the supermarket all in one go!

    Katie <3

    • Yeah I can see that, it’s so much easier because where I live it’s right at my job! Seriously every Wednesday I can go and get stocked up 🙂 I hope they become more accessible because they’re so cool once you get the hang of it.

  17. THis is a brilliant post! I am sharing on my FB page right now! Bravo for putting together and organizing what can feel really overwhelming to a newby market goer. ALthough I am not one, I do recall feeling that way when I first went. It’s competitive, noisy and you do need to know a little bit on how to work a market! Good job. Meeting you from BLog it Forward comment love from http://www.fruitfulvinewife.com

    • YOU’RE AWESOME! Thank you thank you thank you!! Can’t wait to read your blog as well 🙂

  18. I totally needed this info! I went to a farmers market a couple months ago and had no clue what I was getting into. I ended up buying carrots but when i got home I noticed they had those carrot flies on them. =/ Idk if they are good or not but I didn’t eat them.

    • OH NO! That sucks! Well hopefully now you can go back there more prepared. If you remember the farmer who sold you the crap carrots i’d let them know, they may give you a free batch.

    • Whoa I didn’t know you all had a one of the biggest markets in the nation! That is so cool! Thank you for reading!

  20. These are all great tips! I really don’t like to sacrifice organic for non-organic, even if it means spending more. I understand certification is expensive but to me it’s more trustworthy than just taking someone I don’t know’s word for it.

    • I totally understand that it’s def a personal choice 🙂 Thank you for reading and your comment!!!

  23. Great tips! The farmers markets are the norm here and they are definitely where you can get the best fresh fruits and vegetables. But they are also a quite the cultural experience.

    • Yes there are so many different cultures represented there that’s an aspect that I also love about the Farmer’s Market. I get the best greek food from the one at my job so I know exactly what you mean. Thank you for reading!

  25. Thanks for all the great information. I have been really interested in going to a Farmer’s Market. I have never been before and didn’t know what to expect.

    • Oh you HAVE to try it out! It’s really fun when you know what you’re doing 🙂

    • I love taking my camera as well! The fruit and veggies are like works of art, they’re so colorful and pretty 🙂 Thank you for reading!

    • Yes and these folks don’t always have the resources to apply. I think organic is important however and I hope there can be an initiative to help those that want to grow organic do so. At the end of the day it’s good for everyone involved.

    • Thank you for reading! Not all Farmer’s Market’s are the same either, especially if you have a lot to choose from. Check which ones have the items you like by going on the Farmer’s Market website where you live.

  29. Great tips! This has always been a fun past time for me! It’s always soo many cool things and great samples. Before I moved I was in walking distance to two! and could ride a bike or walk. Now I drive and only know of one and that one only has produce which is great but I also like the special homemade tip products that farmers market offers!

    • The Farmer’s Market by my job has a great mix of both! I love the fruits and veggies but I also love the greek dip I get as well as the guacamole and ceviche. It’s the other mom and pop vendors that make the market a great experience 🙂

  32. ABSOLUTELY great post and tips. I too find it be an anxiety ridden experience. You have 12 farmers all selling similar things and you feel a need to buy to satisfy their presence..urgh. But in reading this article, I can see how these tips might make the experience a little different for me.

    Thrifting Diva
    http://www.thriftingdiva.com

  34. Great tips. I love buying locally produced stuff and i also love a good haggle, i always struggle and end up buying more than I can eat in time before it goes bad though!