Our Endless Thanks
Beautiful dried flower bouquets and wreaths from B's Honey
Our Endless Thanks
Tents, signs and tables all nestled into their winter homes, a Friday night not spent packing for market and alarm clocks set much later for Saturday morning. All signs of the end of the outdoor market season.
It's bittersweet, but after a successful season, a well-earned rest is needed.
Our 19th season started in a new home, inside University Research Park (URP). Thanks to their open arms, the market landed safely in our new home and didn't skip a beat. The native plantings inside URP gave us a beautiful setting among wildflowers, oak trees and the occasional wild visitor in the form of turkeys, sandhill cranes, foxes, hawks and more.
We extend all our gratitude to URP, especially Managing Director Aaron Olver and Executive Administrative Assistant Grace Maass, who helped plan and facilitate the market inside the park.
The market move in 2023 would also not have been possible without the continued support of longtime market fan Barry Orton, who aided in meetings, communications with the city and planned internally to make the WCM at URP a reality. Beyond his work behind the scenes, Barry helps at nearly every market providing breaks for vendors, ringing the sold-out bell as he guides our vendors safely out of the lot and more.
Our many thanks are also due to the WCM Board of Directors, who not only volunteer their time to help plan and guide the market year to year, but went above and beyond this past winter to ensure the success of the market in a new location.
To our vendors, we are so thankful for making the season a success. Adapting to the new space, our vendors continued to deliver the best in local food, flowers and more that we've come to expect each week. While we said goodbye to some who retired in 2022, this season welcomed many new faces and products to the market.
Saturday morning market strolls would not be the same without that pleasant music in the air. To that end we want to thank the Market Ramblers and the Starr Grass Band for plucking their tunes this season and keeping our steps light.
For the tenth year in a row the market has been fortunate enough to participate in the Double Dollars program, which helps our FoodShare shoppers bring home more each week in fresh local food. We are so grateful to the Community Action Coalition of South Central Wisconsin for coordinating this program that helps so many local farmers markets be accessible to all.
Of course the FoodShare/Double Dollars programs would be nowhere without the help of our amazing crew of volunteers. Helping shoppers at the Info Tent each week, our volunteers give directions, answer all the buzzy market questions and are simply all a pleasure to talk to.
Lastly, we want to thank all of you, our loyal supporters! You keep us coming back year after year, no matter what gets thrown our way. Even two moves in the last decade.
Seeing the community of market fans come together each week, rain or shine, is heart-warming. We all are so fortunate to bear witness to this gathering of folks who love and support our local famers and food artisans.
And with that, we'll say our goodbyes for now. We look forward to seeing you next spring back inside University Research Park at 505 S. Rosa Road. Until then, a healthy and happy winter to you all.
See you at market April 13th, 2024!
Ben Zimmerman
Market Manager
A Round of Applause
A new season in a new home took a lot of hard work. We want to recognize the following people for helping us land safely at URP and made the 2023 season a real success. To all the following, please take a round of applause and then some for all the help you gave this year.
University Research Park:
Aaron Olver, Managing Director
Grace Maass, Executive Administrative Assistant
Market Staff, Volunteers & Double Dollars Program Support:
- Sue Brown, Info Tent Volunteer
- Margit Moses, Info Tent Volunteer
- Sandi Estep, Info Tent Volunteer
- Carrie Riessen, Info Tent Volunteer
- Barry Orton, market relocation planning & support, bell-ringer extraordinaire, vendor breaks and all around helpful guy
- Andrew Hirst & The Community Action Coalition for South Central Wisconsin, Double Dollars Program
- Mary Zimmerman, Newsletter editing
Musicians:
- The Market Ramblers
- Starr Grass Band
The WCM Board of Directors:
- Kevin Oppermann, President, Highland Spring Farm
- Mary White, Vice President, Honey Bee Bakery
- John Shadle, Secretary, Community Board Member, SAS Institute, Inc.
- Jason Bynum, Treasurer, Urban Gourmet
- Diana Murphy, Dreamfarm
2024 Season Schedule
Saturdays April 13th - November 2nd/9th* 7:00am - 12:30pm Located at: University Research Park 505 S. Rosa Road Madison WI 53719
*Please note this is the tentative schedule, market dates subject to change.
A bonus market may be offered on November 9th, weather/vendor permitting.
Winter Market Options:
It's not easy to say goodbye, but at least there's options to connect with some of our vendors over the winter months. Check out the details on winter indoor markets below and don't forget to check your favorite vendors websites and social media pages for online ordering, on-farm pick-ups, and special event options.
Dane County Farmers' Market:
Holiday Market:
Saturdays - November 18th, December 2nd, 9th & 16th
7:30am - 12:00pm
Late Winter Market:
Saturdays, January 6th thru April 6th, 2024
8:00 am – 12:00 pm
Participating WCM Vendors include:
- Alsum Sweet Corn
- Atoms to Apples
- Bryant Family Farms
- Don's Produce
- Fungi Farmers
- Murphy Farms
- Natalie's Garden & Greenhouse
- Savory Accents
- Stella's Bakery
- Wetherby Cranberry Co.
& More
Fresh made corn tortillas from Tortillas Los Angeles
Produce List - November 11th
Even in the last week of the season we had an amazing array of fresh produce!
Vegetables/Mushrooms:
Beets (Chioggia, Golden, Red)
Bok Choi
Broccoli
Broccolini
Brussels Sprouts
Cabbage (Green, Napa)
Carrots (Orange, Purple)
Cauliflower (White, Orange, Purple)
Celeriac
Celery
Chard
Fennel
Garlic (Multiple Varieties)
Kale (Curly, Purple, Toscano)
Kohlrabi (Green)
Leeks
Mustard Greens
Onions (Sweet Yellow, Red, Green, White)
Pac Choi
Peppers (Bells-Multiple Colors, Sweet Italian, Poblano, Jalapeno, Habanero)
Potatoes (Blue, Red, Purple, Yellow, Fingerling, German, Russet)
Pumpkins (Jarrahdale, Mini, Orange, Pie, White, Cinderella)
Radish (Daikon, Red, Watermelon)
Shallots
Sweet Potatoes (Orange, Purple)
Tomatoes (Heirlooms, Slicers, Cherry)
Winter Squash (Acorn, Buttercup, Butternut, Carnival, Delicata, Honeynut, Hubbard, Kabocha, Mooregold)
Fruit:
Apples (Ambrosia, Braeburn, Cameo, Cortland, Empire, EverCrisp, Fuji, Gala, Galarina, Gold Rush, Granny Smith, Harrelson, Honeycrisp, Ida Red, Jonamac, Keepsake, King David, MacIntosh, Macoun, Pinova, Regent, Ruby Jon, Snowsweet, SunCrisp, Sundance & more!)
Cranberries
Ground Cherries
Pears (Asian)
Quince
Herbs:
Cilantro
Lemongrass
Mint
Parsley
Thyme
North, south, east or west; it's a breeze to get to our new market location
with easy access off of both Whitney Way and Mineral Point Road.
Our many thanks to Snaggle Tooth Arts of Wayward Tattoo for the market rabbit graphic!
