Farmer's Market Makes Annual Return to O'Fallon for Another Season

Last weekend may have been a chilly start for it but Justin Knoll was stoic about the uncharacteristically brisk weather.

“I think we’ll get through it,” said Knoll, bracing himself against morning temperatures in the low 40s as he carried potted plants back into his truck. “We’ll just hold it down and wait for sunshine. It’ll come.”

In a way, Knoll’s very presence in O’Fallon is a sign that warmer temperatures are on the way. Saturday marked the return of the annual Farmer’s and Artist’s Market to the municipality. It will be the third year of the tradition which attracts growers and craftsmen from far and wide to show and sell their wares.

Knoll of Seven Cedars Farm traveled all the way from Jonesburg almost 40 miles away. He said the cold may have slowed customer traffic a bit, but even so there were plenty of buyers about.

“I think they still enjoy getting out, talking to folks and seeing all the unique products people bring to the market,” said Knoll who represents the third generation of his family to work at Seven Cedars.

Carl Saunders, a spokesman for the market, said roughly 500 hardy shoppers made it out to the event to see about 15 or 16 vendors. When peak season hits between July 4 and Labor Day, he expects those numbers could triple.

“It’s a good window for what’s going on locally for arts, crafts and small-scale agriculture,” said Saunders, who is also a vendor in the event.

Saunders oversees the Yellow Dog Farms table which offered an array of vegetables and foccacia bread from the Warrenton-based business. He called volume “surprisingly good” for the weather conditions and said his table sold out of asparagus and spinach.

Admission is free for consumers. Vendors pay fees based on the number of times they wish to set up and sell at the market, which will run on Saturday mornings through Oct. 15 on T.R. Hughes Blvd., across from the . In addition to the products, live music  will be on tap on some weekends and yoga is available for every session.

There’s also a community “gatherings” event, an opportunity for local groups from civic associations to gardening organizations to beekeepers to talk about what they do. Last week’s scheduled guest was the Missouri Wine Club.

The gatherings program exemplifies some of the ethos of the event.

“The interesting thing about it is that while it’s certainly a market and people come to buy food and crafts it’s also got its own special sense of community,” Saunders said. “You see the same people week after week. People stop and talk to one another. It’s as much a community event as an open-air market.”

Saunders said the market is strictly for producers. That means selection is influenced heavily by the time of year and what’s in season. Right now salad greens, radishes, kale, and Swiss chard are big items, he said, but tomatoes and watermelons will likely appear when summer arrives.

Food isn’t the only thing on the menu however. Custom designed jewelry and woodworking, furniture, photography, pottery and other items will also be on sale. He’s even seen more unusual items like custom flutes and obsidian wind chimes. It's all part of the uniqueness of the event.

“You can’t be a reseller. You can’t go to a wholesaler and buy something to bring to market,” he said. “You actually have to raise it or, in the case of craftsmen or artists, you have to make it. That’s one thing that sets our market apart from others in the area.”

Saunders said O’Fallon has been very supportive of the effort.

“People are literally waiting for the market to reopen since it closed last season in mid-October,” he said. “They are just chomping at the bit to get back into the routine.”

So are some of the vendors. Wes McGowan of Good Times Adirondack Chairs, traveled all the way from Hannibal for the event. O’Fallon is one of only three such markets his outdoor furnishings company does.

“The thing I enjoy about the farmer’s market venue is that it’s just such a nice bunch of people,” he said. “It’s just a good experience.”

His wife and company co-owner Cheryl agrees.

“We wish the weather were a little better but we always look forward to coming down here,” she said. “We enjoy the people and we’ve made many friends from last year. It’s just a nice setting.”

For more information on the market, visit www.ofallonfarmersmarket.com.