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Local Gardeners Open Summer Market

By Beacon Staff

“We’ve had rain and wind,” lamented Ann Donahue of the Dirty Hands Garden Club. The club opened their farmers market on May 1, but with wintry weather lingering on, the market was small and sparsely attended.

But today brought a different story. With sunny skies and temperatures in the 70s, smiles bloomed down the row of 12 or so vendors lined up in the Pin and Cue parking lot. Within minutes of its four o’clock opening, shoppers arrived, plucking up fresh lettuce and spinach for dinner as well as herbs and flowers for the garden.

The Thursday afternoon market is known for its plants—seedlings, annuals, perennials, bedding plants, vegetables, and herbs. North Fork Naturals sells their heirloom tomato and pepper plants. Terrapin Farms brings out the artichokes, eggplants, kales, Swiss chard, and basil. A rainbow of blooms lights up the stalls of several local gardens. “With the weather looking better, we all can start putting some flowers out,” said Donahue.

While this market attracts gardeners, it also has its share of farmers. Even though it is too early in the vegetable season for red ripe juicy tomatoes, Gray’s Home Grown brought in lettuce, spinach, chives, onions, and broccoli. Purple Frog Gardens sold its big bags of mixed organic greens.

Other vendors selling jewelry, elk and bison leather products, and jellies joined the farmers and gardeners. The Polebridge Bakery loaded up trays of fresh-baked cinnamon rolls for the event.

The number of vendors fluctuates throughout the summer depending on what’s in season. “We’ll build more each week as the season gets stronger and we have more decent weather,” noted Donahue.

Catch the Whitefish Farmers Market on Thursdays in the Pin and Cue parking lot from 4-6 p.m.