For some the day starts at 6 a.m. and even the day before. All begin work with the backbreaking chore of gleaning from fields the fresh produce that urban dwellers crave.
The one thing this diverse group of farmers has in common is that, together, they transform the city streets of Edmonds and the parking lot at Lake Forest Park Towne Center into vibrant markets for one day a week. They bring from local farms, not more than 200 miles away, the seasonal bounty along with their stories of how that perfect peach was raised, where the crispy celery comes from, and what it is like to feel the passion for working with the land. It’s these details that make farmers markets a special environment in which to buy food.
Preparing for market day takes careful preparation and planning.
For Bill’s Fruit, coming from Wapato, south of Yakima, it means picking the day before and leaving the 98-acre, fifth-generation family orchard in time to set up in Edmonds by 7 a.m.
“Have a taste,” encourages Bill Davidson, who operates the fruit stand.
Sampling the goods is expected, even encouraged at the farmers market. By 3 p.m., the market is over, and Davidson packs up, ready to do it all over again. He sets up at seven markets per week.
Perhaps the closest farmer is Evert Broderick of South 47 Farm in Woodinville. Broderick farms 30 acres, focusing on row crops (lettuce, broccoli, beets) plus tomatoes, squash and cucumbers. Hearty items — carrots, beets and squash — are picked on Saturdays. Delicate items — basil, lettuce — are harvested about 7 a.m. Sunday for the 11 a.m. market opening. At about 4 p.m., whatever is left plus the display items are packed up and Broderick is back to the farm about 6 p.m. The Maltby Food Bank comes to collect his donation of unpurchased food and he is home by 7:30 p.m.
Darren Wright of Gypsy Rows Co. in Silvana, in North Snohomish County, begins his Edmonds market day at 5 a.m. with a little porch time, sipping coffee and surveying his 20-acre farm.
“It’s like runners at the starting line as we wait for first light,” he said. “Then we pick. It’s all about freshness. I’m particular about that.” More sturdy items, including beets and potatoes, are hand harvested the day before. With more than 10 years on his own farm, and a dozen working for others, “I can practically pick corn by Braille,” Wright said.
Produce is picked, trimmed, washed, bundled or boxed, then loaded into a converted yellow school bus for the trip to Edmonds. By 8 a.m. Wright and his team have set up tables, erected the awning and artfully arranged their offerings. “The rush is a thrill. It’s like being a Marine, taking the beach. Our lettuce is out of the field, into the (customer’s) bag and into their refrigerator before the sun is down,” Wright said.
Gypsy Rows participates in four markets, and Wright said he favors Edmonds. “The people appreciate produce and they treat us farmers right,” he said. “It encourages me to put in the extra effort.”
Nate O’Neil at Frog’s Song Farms concurs. “Edmonds is our best market. The theater is good,” he said.
O’Neil’s 10-acre family farm is located in the Skagit River delta. “I used to do it all myself,” O’Neil said. “Now I have two workers. On market day we get up and start harvesting about 5:30 a.m. Another family helps us. Then we cut the tops off onions, prepare broccoli and kohlrabi and load two trucks for two markets.”
Arriving at the Edmonds market, the day of the Enterprise visit, O’Neil and a helper set up tables, covered them with vintage tablecloths and took out lug boxes of produce from the adjacent truck. Then the Frog’s Song Farms’ display was built from the content of the boxes. As O’Neil was stacking items, Chef Michael Young of Edmonds’ Olives Café &Wine Bar came by for his weekly restaurant order and to chat about what was coming out of the ground next.
“I like to plan my menu around what is fresh,” Young said. “The care Nate puts into growing his produce is amazing. You can taste the difference. I sold out of beets by Wednesday last week.”
In addition to fruits and vegetables, farmers markets are deepening their assortment and broadening their appeal by offering other foodstuffs. From bread and pastries to meats, cheese, salmon, shellfish and eggs, there is everything one might need to craft a complete meal.
Young has been curing bacon for sale at the Edmonds market, the same he has prepared for uses in his restaurant. The pork comes from a small producer of Duroc pigs in Idaho. Following a week of smoking, they are ready for sale. He crafts six or seven bellies a week. “When they are gone, they are gone,” said Young.
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