Farmers tailgate markets are readying tents for a new season with a few shifts in location and hours coming up over the next few weeks. Below is a rundown for what to look for at Buncombe County markets, but you can also find opening dates for markets across the region at asapconnections.org/farmersmarkets.
At these early spring markets, you will find much of the produce we’ve seen through the winter, like cold-hardy greens, salad mixes, turnips, and radishes. But you can also start to look for spring alliums and more root veggies coming in. As always, you can also get mushrooms, eggs, meat, cheese, bread, and prepared foods. A wide variety of plant starts will be available over the next few months.
Tomorrow, March 26, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., is the final date for ASAP Farmers Market at A-B Tech. After two pandemic years in the alternate location, Asheville City Market will return downtown on April 2, from 9 a.m. to noon. N. Market St. will close each Saturday between Woodfin and E. Walnut streets. Free parking for customers is available at the HomeTrust Bank lot and at the Family Justice Center lot across from the YMCA at 35 Woodfin Street.
Expect more than 40 vendors each week, including many from at the winter market as well the return of several more produce farms, including Bear Necessities Farm, Jake’s Farm, and Velvet Morning Farms. Carolina Flowers will be back with vibrant blooms, and you can shop for plants from High Country Nursery and Finally Farm. More farms will join later in April and May as new crops come in.
Weaverville Tailgate Market’s final winter market is March 30, 3 to 6 p.m., but its regular season will continue at the same address, beginning Wednesday, April 6, with the same hours. The market will move outside at the new Weaverville Community Center at Lake Louise, 60 Lakeshore Dr. In addition to many of the winter season vendors, several regular season farms, like Ivy Creek Family Farm, will return.
River Arts District Farmers Market will continue with its winter hours (3 to 5:30 p.m.) on Wednesdays, indoors and outdoors at Plēb Urban Winery, 289 Lyman St. Its spring season officially begins May 4, when more vendors will return to the market.
East Asheville Tailgate Market will reopen on Friday, April 1, from 3 to 6 p.m., at 954 Tunnel Rd. This market continues to grow, with an expected 30 vendors each week all season. Look for familiar faces, like Lee’s One Fortune Farm, The AppaLatin Farmstead, and Buggy Pops, as well as several new vendors, like Asimina Acres and Your Mother’s Medicine.
North Asheville Tailgate Market returns to the UNC Asheville campus next Saturday, April 2, from 8 a.m. to noon., with a full lineup of returning vendors and a few new faces. Stay tuned to the market’s newsletter and social media for more information.
West Asheville Tailgate Market will reopen at 718 Haywood Rd. on Tuesday, April 5, from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. In May, look for openings from Enka-Candler Tailgate Market on Thursday, May 5, from 3 to 6 p.m.; Black Mountain Tailgate Market on Saturday, May 7, 9 a.m. to noon; and Southside Community Farmers Market on Sunday, May 8, noon to 3 p.m.
WNC Farmers Market operates daily from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 570 Brevard Road. Farmers Truck Shed #1 is designated for farmers who sell only what they grow.
There are more than 100 markets throughout the Appalachian Grown region, which includes Western North Carolina as well as surrounding counties in Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia, and South Carolina. Find a full list at asapconnections.org/farmersmarkets or use ASAP’s online Local Food Guide.
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Community in Action:
Lunch and Learn
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Do you have questions about project proposals for our Farm Fresh for Health: Community in Action funding? Not sure whether your project is a good fit for the program? Have a project in mind, but need some help identifying potential partners? Come to a virtual lunch and learn Wednesday, March 29, at noon on Zoom to workshop your ideas and ask questions.
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ASAP's mission is to help local farms thrive, link farmers to markets and supporters, and build healthy communities through connections to local food.
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The Asheville Citizen Times featured ASAP's 20th anniversary and the changes in Asheville's food and farming scene over that time. “That transparency and being able to know and meet that person who’s growing that food on your plate it pretty unique. You don’t have to depend on a label to tell you about that farm or how it was raised," said ASAP executive director Molly Nicholie.
The Mountain Xpress food news roundup includes a foraging class co-hosted by Root Cause Farm and Red Moon Herbs on March 27.
“We want people to take away an appreciation and knowledge of the edible plants native to Western North Carolina,” says Becca Malloy, outreach and development coordinator for Root Cause Farm.
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