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How to Find the Best Farmers’ Markets {Guest Post}

Published on January 10, 2017 By Emily. Updated on October 22, 2016

Hi Relishments readers! I’m on maternity leave, but some awesome blogger friends have volunteered to step in and keep new content coming your way. I may be popping in occasionally, but I really appreciate the opportunity to take some time off with our new addition.  Please show my guest authors some love and check out their sites and social media!  Today’s post is from Lisa of lisavalinsky.com


A step by step guide to finding the best farmers' markets near you.
One of the top questions friends and family regularly ask me is: How do you find the best farmers’ markets?
I currently have two favorite markets I shop at regularly: the Saturday market in our town, and the Forest Park Farmers’ Market in Springfield, MA, which has about 30 vendors and where I can get almost anything we need. (Including Berkshire Mountain Bakery, which was featured on the Netflix series Cookedand has some seriously delicious bread. Their Bread & Chocolate sourdough loaf is to die for. Really. I can eat the whole thing in two days.)
There are a bunch of factors to finding the best and right farmers’ market for you. Go through the list below, see what’s available in your area, check them out, and hopefully you’ll find some gems too!
I should also mention that as far as farmers’ markets go, we are very lucky. We live in northern Connecticut, which is not only a historically agricultural area with lots of farms nearby, but we also have many markets to choose from. I’m not sure what it’s like in the rest of the country (or the world), but in our region we can truly have our pick of some great markets.
SEARCH ONLINE
One of the best ways to find farmers’ markets near you is by looking online. While a market may not have its own website, you can do some detective work to find out the dates and times of markets closest to you.
Look to see if your state has an organic farming association in the list provided.
If that doesn’t bring up any results, enter your zip code into the USDA’s local food directory. Take your results and do a Google search of the exact farmers’ markets.
If that doesn’t result in anything, type your town or city, state, and “farmers market” to see what comes up.
For farmers’ markets that have websites, even better! Once you’ve found your local markets, check their sites for a list of vendors, market information, and news and resources.
And if all else fails, try contacting your town hall or Chamber of Commerce to ask about the local farmers’ markets.
LOCATION
During college I found myself at the Saratoga Farmers’ Market nearly every week because I could walk there from my apartment. When Josh and I lived in New York City we regularly attended the two Greenmarkets closest to our place — Tucker Square Greenmarket and 79th Street Greenmarket. And now I like to stick to markets that are within about a 20 minute drive, since I find myself at farmers’ markets multiple times a week.
Decide what is reasonable for your trip to the farmers’ market. 10 minutes? 20? 30? This will depend on whether you take public transportation or bike or drive, and how often you plan to shop at a given market.
Usually the farthest I’ll travel to a farmers’ market is about 30 minutes, unless I hear about a special market that is worth a longer trip (Coventry Farmers’ Market — I’m looking at you!).
SELECTION
When I go to a market I know what I want — lots of veggie and fruit options, dairy, eggs, a bakery, and maple syrup and honey. I’m not into crafts and handmade stuff (unless it’s the holiday season, then maybe). My farmers’ markets need to have items that we eat regularly, and also have some fun speciality or heirloom items that I’ll either buy or just check out to learn about them.
What items do you want to buy at a farmers’ market?
Some possible ideas include:
Vegetables
Herbs
Fruit
Dairy
Eggs
Maple syrup
Honey
Meat
Plants and flowers
Baked goods and grains
Crafts

Click here to read the rest of Lisa’s tips for finding the best farmers’ markets AND get a Find the Best Farmers’ Market Cheat Sheet!


Lisa Valinsky lives in northern Connecticut with her husband and young daughter. She seeks and shares ways to simplify life as a new mom.
Follow Lisa!
On her blog: lisavalinsky.com
On Instagram: @lisavalinksy
On Pinterest: lisavalinksky

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Filed Under: places Tagged With: farmer's market, guest post, maternity leave

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Emily
Spring has finally come to the Berkshires! It has Spring has finally come to the Berkshires!
It has been such a joy to finally spend time outside regularly and see everything in bloom.

I bought myself a bike and, after the initial adjustment of learning how to ride again after a nearly 25 year hiatus, it's become one of my favorite ways to experience the outdoors. (None of these photos was taken while riding. I barely stay upright with both hands on the bike.)
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#igers413 #InTheBerkshires #WesternMA #WesternMass #Berkshires  #VisitTheBerkshires #AshwillticookRailTrail
Last week Brian and I finally got around to hiring Last week Brian and I finally got around to hiring a sitter for a rare night out. We went to dinner at @publicna and took advantage of the opportunity with drinks, appetizers and dessert.

Pictured:
- Citrus Braised Beef Tacos
- "Chicken and Waffles"
- House Fries with Garlic Aioli
- Fried Chickpeas
- Blood Orange Cheesecake
It was no surprise that Public was close to full on a Wednesday night - everything was so good. 

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#igers413_food #igers413 #BerkshireFoodies #InTheBerkshires #EatLocal #WesternMA #WesternMass #Berkshires  #VisitTheBerkshires #NorthAdams #NAmazing #PublicEatAndDrink
New year, new theme word! This year's word is "enr New year, new theme word!
This year's word is "enrich" and I'm really excited about it.

I've written more about this year's theme on the blog. Click in the link in my profile or follow the link below to read the post.
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https://www.relishments.com/blog/my-2023-theme-word-enrich/
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#YearlyTheme #MyOneWord #2023 #enrich2023 #NewYearsResolution
It's not New Year's Eve without a Top 9 post. It's It's not New Year's Eve without a Top 9 post.
It's almost all #Berkshires content this year, which is great.
1. A pasta salad reel that took longer to create than the recipe took to make.
2. A reel from North Carolina where I could have watched birds all day.
3. The @thelazygenius book giveaway.
4.@plantconnector 
5. @berkshiremuseum 
6.@sculpture.now at @themountlenox 
7. @massmoca 
8. @mountainviewfarm413 
9. The #AshuwillticookRailTrail
New on the blog: My 2022 reflections on last year' New on the blog: My 2022 reflections on last year's theme word - resume. 

I was able to get back to many activities that were meaningful to me this year and I'm calling this theme a success. Follow the link below or click the link in my profile to read more.
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https://www.relishments.com/blog/reflections-on-resuming-in-2022/
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#resume2022 #newyearsresolution #myoneword #yearlytheme
New on the blog: My Favorite Recipes of 2022. For New on the blog: My Favorite Recipes of 2022.

For the fourth year, I've recapped the best new (to me) recipes I made this year in the hope that they'll give you some new dishes to try. This year's list is short, but delicious. It includes @budgetbytes My Favorite Recipes of 2022
Published on December 30, 2022 By Emily. Updated on December 30, 2022

It’s hard to believe that 2022 is basically behind us. Though overall this year found me getting back to the person I want to be (post-babies and “post”-pandemic), I did not try nearly as many new recipes this year as I used to. In fact, I was pleasantly surprised to see that I’d made note of any new-to-me recipes I wanted to share in this post. This year’s list is short, but delicious. It includes recipes from @budgetbytes, @smittenkitchen and @howsweeteats.
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Read the post by visiting the link in my profile or 
https://www.relishments.com/blog/my-favorite-recipes-of-2022/
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#RecipeRoundUp #BestRecipes2022 #FavoriteRecipes
@coastalmainebotanicalgardens continues to be one @coastalmainebotanicalgardens continues to be one of the highlights of all my return trips to Boothbay and their annual Gardens Aglow event continues to impress. It was great to be back to walking the gardens instead of the pandemic drive through and there seemed to be more lights than ever.  I'm already looking forward to next year.
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#Boothbay #BoothbayMaine #CoastalMaineBotanicalGardens #GardensAglow #BotanicalGarden #MidcoastMaine
It has been a while, but there is finally a new CS It has been a while, but there is finally a new CSA menu plan on the blog! Visit the link below or in my profile to see how I plan to make use of some of the @mightyfoodfarm produce seen here.
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https://www.relishments.com/blog/welcome-to-winter-farm-share-csa-menu-plan-148/
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#MightyFoodFarm #EatLocal #EatSeasonal #VermontGrown #CSApickup #CSAshare #KnowYourFarmerKnowYourFood #MenuPlanning #MealPlanning #igers413 #igers413_food #BerkshireFoodies
Fall in the Berkshires is always incredible, but t Fall in the Berkshires is always incredible, but this year we've had weather that has also been outstanding. The past 2 weekends have included time at Jaeschke Orchards, the Greylock Glen, and the Ashuwillticook Rail Trail as well as stopping to photograph any random foliage I see. 
Check out the last slide for video of some feathered friends we saw on a walk.
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#igers413 #InTheBerkshires #EatLocal #WesternMA #WesternMass #Berkshires  #VisitTheBerkshires #FallFoliage #FallColors #autumn #AshuwillticookRailTrail #JaeschkeOrchards #GreylockGlen
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