Watauga County Farmers' Market

The folks at Watauga County Farmers' Market enjoyed a beautiful Saturday morning this past weekend, and hopefully the rain that fell later helped out all the area farms. Some areas have been much more fortunate than others recently, and rain is something we all need.

We will be celebrating Red, White and Blue Day this coming Saturday at the market. We are very pleased that the popular band Southern Exposure will be on hand to provide entertainment. Come on out and enjoy the bluegrass and old time, with some reggae, blues, and folk tunes thrown in for fun.

The variety of produce at the market continues to expand. Bill Moretz will be harvesting fresh raspberries, huckleberries, snow peas, and the first of his wonderful, fragrant basil. Jason Roehrig and Shiloh Avery of Tumbling Shoals Farm will have an exciting lineup of veggies for this Saturday, including Red Dale, All Blue, Carribe and Corolla potatoes, red and white sweet onions, zucchini and yellow squash, and okra.

Don't miss the ripe homegrown tomatoes and peppers grown by Don and Roger Owens. They sold out of them early last Saturday and also on Wednesday, but we can only hope that the supply will grow!

Rene Donker of Mixed Produce Farm, Inc will have fresh Shiitake mushrooms this weekend along with potted landscape plants such as blue fescue, mountain mint, coral bells, and ferns. Erik Selvey has a great selection of flowering perennials. Plan ahead for winter time blooms with one of his healthy Hellebores or enjoy instant gratification with spiderworts and yellow Stokesias in full bloom.

Serve up your fresh vegetables in style and enjoy the shapes of summer with one of Caron Baker's yellow squash pottery leaf bowls. Caron and husband Jim Wike are also the ones to see for fresh cut lavender.

Watauga County Farmers' Market is continuing to work on the parking problem. We will be having assistants to help you find a parking spot. We also ask that everyone enter the parking lot through the entrance closest to the native gardens, and exit the lot near the stop sign. The entrance is just too narrow for cars to pass in both directions. We do hope to provide parking for everyone, and we are also looking into the Appalcart routes for possible relief.

Watauga County Farmers' Market will be open on Wednesday mornings through September 10 at the same location as on Saturday mornings, the Horn in the West in Boone. Turn next to First Citizens Bank on Highway 105 Extension and go to the top of the hill. Call WCFM manager Karen Bauman at 1-828-355-4918 or visit http://wcfm.info for more information. We will be there rain or shine!