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It’s hard to believe, but the Lawrence Farmers Market opens this Saturday (April 10) for the 2010 season, and an interesting season it’s sure to be. Among the challenges and opportunities:

• Weather is always a challenge. The enduring cold and damp winter means many farmers have little to sell as the season starts. The moisture has delayed planting, and the mostly cool temps and gray skies don’t encourage growth the way sunshine does. Mother Nature no doubt has other challenges in store for later in the season.
• Three markets, three locations, two opening dates add up to one informational challenge and three marketing opportunities.

Pop quiz

1. Where’s the Lawrence Farmers Market?
2. What date does the market open?
3. What are the hours?

If you answered “it depends,” for all three, you have a perfect score. (Details below.) That means the Lawrence Farmers Market operators need to do a bang-up job of informing the public. So far, we—the board, which includes me, and the market coordinator—haven’t done such a great job. Blame it on winter listlessness or on spending a lot of time planning for the long term (such as by incorporating and revising bylaws) if you will.

Fortunately, the Lawrence Journal-World is on top of it. It posted stories last week announcing the new market location on the west side, noting the decision to continue to allow pets at market, and, today, applauding the plan for a new west market.

Most of the farmers I’ve talked to don’t have much fresh produce to sell—hardly a surprise given recent weather. In fact, many farmers are just now getting their crops in the ground. Still, I’m hoping to see lettuce and other early green things such as herbs (those are chives at right) plus eggs, meat, baked goods, pickles and jellies, and prepared foods.

The answers

And the answers to the quiz are…

1. The Lawrence Farmers Market is located at:

• Downtown on Vermont, between 10th & 11th on Tuesdays
• Downtown on New Hampshire, between 8th & 9th on Saturdays
• West side, just off 6th Street west of Wakarusa on Thursdays

2. The market opens…this Saturday, April 10, for “early season” (Saturdays only), and May 1 for the official grand opening, which will include the weekday markets the following week, May 4 and May 6.

3. Hours are 7-11 a.m. Saturdays and 4-6 p.m. weekdays.

Hope to see you this Saturday. I’m going to count on good weather. Hope Mother Nature agrees.

About the blog

Yes, I reviving this dormant blog. I let it go quiet while I finished my book, Teach Yourself Visually WordPress, and then I guess I lost interest during the endlessly gray winter. But spring finally IS here, and my thoughts are going to good food again. No promises on posting, but I have a feeling you will be seeing more of me.