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Farmers' markets set to reopen

Local
By Laura Ruby
Source: Fauquier Weekend
SUNDAY, APRIL 12 2009

Preserving history, making ends meet

Orlean resident Kathy Carter began selling her wares at the Wednesday farmers’ market last year. But, the jellies, jams, breads, cookies and cakes that she offers are not your run-of-the-mill variety. They are all made from heirloom recipes that are at least 100 years old, Carter said.

“Most of my recipes have come from family and friends and a few I have come across on my own,” she said. “I love to buy really old cookbooks and there will be an old piece of paper with a recipe on it. Funny, they always seem to have dated it.

“My oldest recipe goes to the early 1600s and my youngest is from 1905. I will always collect these recipes. It’s a shame to lose these treasures from the past. I have always loved baking, knitting, sewing, and canning. My husband has often said I was born 100 years too late.”

Carter credits her grandmother, Mary Lucille Seville, with her interest in baking. Born in 1901 and mother to three children born in the 1920s, Grandmother made use of everything at her disposal.

“Whenever she came to visit she would save everything and create a dish from it. Sometimes it would be most unusual,” Carter recalled. “I started bugging her for recipes, like her Queen Ann Lace Jelly. According to her, this recipe has been made in my family since the middle 1700s.”

While Carter clearly treasures history, it was the here and now that motivated her to start selling at the market. Her husband, Al, works in construction and Carter works as a waitress at Claire’s at the Depot. When both industries were hit hard early in the recession, Carter began looking for ways to boost the family’s income without taking time away from her children, Jacob, 17, and Erin, 14.

Between working at the restaurant and homeschooling her children, Carter’s “hands are pretty full,” she said. She found that baking and making preserves not only added money to the family coffers, but also offered lessons in business, economics, math, and cooking for her students.

“I have found that being at the market is one of the most rewarding things I have done, meeting the people of Warrenton, giving samples of our products. Most of all, I love it when we start talking about an old recipe they have or recipes their own grandmother would make,” Carter said. “My son helps at the market and really loves it.”

Though the recipes are key, Carter also is careful about the ingredients that she uses. “I only use organic and all-natural ingredients. I find the flavor and quality is superior,” she said.

Carter will be the head vendor at this year’s Wednesday market and is considering participating in other area markets this season.

It’s that time of year again. The birds are chirping, the grass is greening, and the Warrenton Farmers’ Market is preparing to reopen for the season.

The Saturday market will open for the season April 18, from 7 a.m. to noon, in the parking lot at Fifth and Lee Streets in Old Town Warrenton. The Wednesday market opens April 22, from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m., in the parking lot near the Branch Drive entrance to the Warrenton Shopping Center.

Established in 1978, the market will welcome about 30 vendors this season with myriad new products, according to market manager Mickey Rhoades. Shoppers can find locally grown — products must come from within Virginia — vegetables, fruits, flowers, meats, and honey, Rhoades said, noting that the market will offer more educational information this year with booths manned by the Virginia Cooperative Extension office and the Master Gardeners. Prepared foods like baked goods, salsa, soap, and animal treats will also be available, she said.

“This year we have a bigger variety of fruits coming in as a result of the Virginia Grown Market concept,” Rhoades said, noting that the market began participating with this Virginia Department of Agriculture program last season. Through the program, all Virginia farmers can sell their products at participating markets.

“It’s a great program. It’s so important to have fresh fruit, vegetables, meats, cheese, whatever you can get,” Rhoades said.

Increased attention on healthy eating and supporting local agriculture may mean that the markets enjoy thicker crowds this year, Rhoades said. Farmers who participate, she said, are “staples of the community’s agriculture base. If we can’t feed ourselves, what kind of trouble are we in?”

Asked about the perception that prices are higher at farmers’ markets, Rhoades pointed to the superior quality and freshness of the product.

“These are small, local farms. They’re not enjoying the [financial] benefits that large corporate farms have,” she said, adding that the support of the community is crucial if family farms are to survive. “For many vendors, this is their livelihood.”

But, Rhoades added, the economics are only one aspect of the market.

“A farmers’ market is much more than selling produce and fruits. It’s stopping and catching up with each other,” Rhoades said.

Even with all of the excitement of a new market season, faithful market shoppers are sure to notice the absence of some long-time vendors who have retired.

Saturday shoppers will miss Billie Douglas, a New Kent County farmer who brought “beautiful displays of produce and a real country style” to the market for years, said Rhoades.

“I was a vendor there for 14 years and I loved every minute of it,” Douglas said, noting that she participated in the Warrenton market because her sister, Faye Digiulian, lived in Warrenton and worked as her helper. “I could not have done it without her,” Douglas said, though she credited her fellow vendors with helping her be successful.

“The vendors I worked with were wonderful and were my mentors. They taught me so much about set-up and pricing. My customers at this market were the best. Being there for 14 years, I did develop strong bonds of friendship with many of them. I will miss my customers the most. They were always so kind and friendly and seemed happy to get up early and come to the market. It was a wonderful gathering place,” she said.

Douglas said she may open a stand at a small farmers’ market closer to home, “but it will never be the same as in Warrenton. To use an old song lyric, ‘I had the time of my life’ at the Warrenton Farmers’ Market and a little piece of my heart will always be there.”

Sumerduck farmer Eugene Swartz has been a staple at the Wednesday market and was instrumental in moving that market to its current location. He was head vendor on Wednesday until his retirement at the end of last season, Rhoades said.

“This man has kept that market going for a number of years with dedication and determination,” she added.

For his part, Swartz said he loved “meeting lots of people and seeing them come back from week to week.” Involved with the market off and on for about 20 years, Swartz said he’ll miss his customers. A f farmer for about 40 years, Swartz said he won’t miss the work that goes into running a stand each week.

“It’s a lot of work. I just got out of the hospital for heart problems. I was there for nine days so I’m not going to miss carrying those heavy tables in and out twice a day,” Swartz said, adding that he’ll enjoy being able to sleep in a bit as opposed to hauling his wares to Warrenton in time to be set up by 7 a.m.

“The older you get, the worse it is on you. I’ll be 73 this year,” he said, adding that he’ll still put out a big garden on his 20 acres in Sumerduck and 109 acres in Stafford County. Swartz, who said he may participate in the Wednesday market from time to time if he has excess produce, is coordinating the Remington Farmers’ Market. Because it’s smaller and held in the afternoons, that market will be easier for him to manage, Swartz said.



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