With spring’s official arrival yesterday, outdoor farmers tailgate markets can’t be far off! Most area markets start their season during the months of April and May.
Coming up in a week and a half, Asheville City Market-South (at Biltmore Park Town Square) and Weaverville Tailgate Market (next to Reems Creek Nursery), start up Wednesday, April 3. The following Saturday, April 6, North Asheville Tailgate Market begins on the UNCA campus, and Asheville City Market moves back to North Market St. after spending the winter months at the Asheville Masonic Temple. West Asheville Tailgate Market reopens at 718 Haywood Rd. on Tuesday, April 9. Find a full list of market opening dates across the region our website.
The final two Asheville City Market-Winter Saturdays should delight with more glimpses of early spring. Carolina Flowers brought the first tulips of the season to market last week, and sold them with bulbs still attached for long-lasting charm. Daffodils may follow this weekend.
Lee’s One Fortune Farm continued to have a spring trifecta of snap peas, snow peas, and pea tendrils, as well as an assortment of greens, including bok choy, Chinese broccoli, and a hybrid variety of spinach with an arrowhead shape, more similar to lamb’s quarters in appearance and dense nutrient content.
Jake’s Farm introduced creasy greens (also called upland cress or winter cress), a commonly wild-harvested Appalachian green that heralds the start of spring. Its peppery flavor is a great addition to sandwiches or in salads.
Vestiges of winter’s storage crops persist. Ten Mile Farm reported still having plenty of sweet potatoes to bring to market. These season-end tubers are often the very sweetest, as the sugars have slowly continued to develop in storage.
Winter farmers markets across the region also offer an abundance of eggs, meats, fish, cheeses, breads, sweet treats, and preserved foods, such as ferments and pickles. As always, you can find information about farms, tailgate markets, and farm stands, including locations and hours, by visiting ASAP’s online Local Food Guide at appalachiangrown.org.
Fresh at Farmers Markets This Week
