May 31, 2014 at 5:13 p.m.
Hodag Farmers' Market kicks off 2014 season
Hodag Farmers' Market kicks off 2014 season
Some might have been worried about the impact the long and brutal winter had on the growing season, but organizer Jasmyn Schmidt said the first day of the market went as smoothly as could be expected.
"It went good. You can tell people are off to a slower start because of the winter, but we've got asparagus, rhubarb, lots of plants for the garden, syrup, honey, and it will get bigger every week," she said, adding that there are currently 26 vendors committed to the whole season and around 10 more who are planning to bring their goods to the market on a week-to-week basis. The winter may have had some effect on the vendors' ability to get things ready, but not much, Schmidt said.
"The winter played a part, of course, but with the sun coming out more and more now things are getting back on track. People can go to our website and we have a page that says when each (vegetable) is normally ready in Wisconsin. I would say all of that's about a week and a half behind right now, but with this weather that we're having right now, I expect it will all catch up pretty quickly," she said.
The information Schmidt mentioned can be found at www.hodagfarmersmarket.com.
As for the vendors, they are making the most of it.
"Things are going pretty good," vendor Lynne Dalka said. "The winter affected us some and we had that frost when it was first starting to come up out of the ground, but it's doing good now with the heat. It's even getting hard to keep up with."
Other vendors echoed Dalka's statement, insisting they weren't going to let the brutal winter stop them from sharing their products with the community.
"Things are going very good," Baker Branson said. "Our plants are a bit spindly and tall because of the winter, but with this weather we've been having lately things are getting back on track."
"We're thinking it will be much better from now on with the weather, as long as we don't get another frost, so let's all hope we don't," Fran Branson added.
Customers were out in force Saturday looking for fresh vegetables for their tables.
"Some people fret and fret about the winter, but I'm coming every week. These guys here, the vendors, they know what they're doing, they know how to adapt, and they know how to produce amazing stuff each and every year," Jean Staple said.
"If anything, the winter gives you more variety because you never know what's going to be here from week to week. It's exciting. I love coming to see what's ready and available each week. These guys are amazing."
Marcus Nesemann may be reached at [email protected].
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