Here’s where to shop 8 farmers markets this season
Across the Sioux Falls metro area, farmers markets pop up as summer arrives, bringing crowds to buy garden tomatoes, free-range chicken eggs and handmade goods.
Many of the markets turn into small festivals with live music, food trucks and family-friendly activities.
Three farmers markets kick off their season Thursday night, joining Brandon and Falls Park, which started at the beginning of May. Yet to come are farmers markets in Harrisburg and Dell Rapids.
Downtown Hartford Market
Almost 40 vendors are signed up the Downtown Hartford Market, which kicks off June. 1.
Booths will be set up along Main Avenue on the first Thursdays of the month from June through September and on the last Thursday of September. Hours will be 5 to 8:30 p.m.
“We are expecting our biggest year yet with a record number of participating vendors and huge crowds that will fill Main Street. It’s really exciting to see this event take on a life of its own,” said Callie Tuschen, market co-chair and president of Downtown Hartford.
Fresh food items will include seasonal produce, baked goods, farm eggs, pasture-raised and organic meats, spices and seasonings, canned and pickled items, and honey. Some of the handmade crafts will be soap, dog treats, yard games, woodworking, crocheted and sewn items and home decor.
Tuschen expects a few more vendors will join later in the season.
Each market will feature live music and supper from Creekside Meats and two food trucks. Family-friendly activities range from Touch-a-Truck opportunities starting with a crane this week, petting zoo animals later in the season and an appearance from the 605 Magic Art Bus.
The market’s growing success comes from the hard work put in before the season starts, she noted.
“Our farmers market committee works really hard starting in early February to ensure we have a high-quality event for the community to enjoy. We want the vendors to be happy, we want the patrons to be happy, and we want our city to really shine with the high-quality products that are showcased here,” Tuschen said. “Our motto is ‘Eat Local. Shop Local. Grow Local,’ and we have definitely seen this event continue to grow as we enter our fifth year in the downtown space.”
Sponsors include Golden West Telecommunications, Midco, Travis Electric, Ace Hardware, Luden’s Inc., Sunshine Foods and Buffalo Ridge Brewing
Find updates on Downtown Hartford’s Facebook page.
Canton Open Air Market
In its fourth year, the Canton Open Air Market is held every Thursday night from June 1 through Aug. 10 in Jack Fox Park, which is north of the Lincoln County Courthouse.
Hours are 5 to 7 p.m. This season, 10 to 12 vendors are expected, said organizer Jenny Gubbels of Good Life Farms, which she and her husband started in 2019 on the west side of town.
In addition to produce from their farm and another one, vendors offer a variety of handmade goods and other products. A popular booth that sold egg rolls two years ago will be back, Gubbels said.
A food truck is booked for every week, and groups like the Boys Scouts sell hot dogs or other food.
Live music is offered every week, and some market-goers bring lawn chairs to enjoy the music and visit with friends, Gubbels said.
Vendors pay $10 per night and can email cantonopenairmarket@gmail.com to get signed up. The full-season fee is $135. Nonprofits can set up for free.
This year, the market is starting a junior vendor program. Kids younger than 18 can sell handmade items for $2 a booth.
Find updates on the market’s Facebook page.
There’s also a Harvest Festival from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sept. 23 with vendors, kids activities and a Boy Scouts pancake feed. That vendor fee is $20.
On Wednesday evenings, there’s an informal farmers market that pops up starting in June in the parking lot of The Canton Depot, 600 W. Fifth St.
Lake Lorraine Farmers Market
The weekly farmers market at Lake Lorraine on the west side of Sioux Falls is back for its fifth year.
Hours are 4 to 7 p.m. Thursdays from June 1 into October “as long as the weather permits,” said Amy Smolik, community director for the development between Marion Road and Interstate 29 south of 26th Street. The market will be in the same spot as last year – in the parking lot south of Hobby Lobby. When October comes, hours shift to 4 to 6:30 p.m.
She’s expecting 15 to 20 vendors each week, selling veggies, meat, eggs, honey, dried fruit, arts and crafts, candles, woodworking, plants and hydro dipped pots, pet products, baked goods, Pampered Chef and more.
“Our market is perfect for the west-side commuter or people who can’t make a weekend market,” Smolik said. “We’ve got easy parking and a variety of vendors to shop from and stock up on fresh items for weekend meals, as well as snack items or gifts.”
Each week also features one or two food trucks.
Community organizations including Siouxland Libraries and SDSU Extension’s food, family and wellness programs will attend the market to connect with shoppers.
“Our partnership with Game, Fish & Parks continues, and we’ll again offer pop-up fishing events on some farmers market nights,” Smolik said. Because Lake Lorraine is privately owned, fishing is allowed only through events with the GFP.
Other special events returning this year include the Acton Academy Children’s Business Fair with about 40 young entrepreneurs selling their products and services on June 29 and Pumpkin Day on Sept. 28 with free pumpkins that kids can decorate during the market.
Find updates on the farmers market’s Facebook page.
Brandon Farmers Market
The expanding farmers market in Brandon runs every Saturday from May through the end of October.
Hours are 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the parking lot at 915 N. Splitrock Blvd.
Vendors aren’t required to be there every week, so a typical Saturday averages 35 to 40 booths, said organizer Julie Lanoue of Lanoue Gardens of Garretson.
About 20 new businesses are among the 70 producers, crafters and product vendors who have signed up so far, she said. The market started six years ago with less than a dozen booths.
She’s hoping to add vendors offering coffee, bread, lamb and goat meat, and dairy products. The fee is $15 per Saturday.
“Many of them are just starting out, so I don’t charge a lot,” Lanoue said. “I want to make sure they don’t get in over their heads, so they can make it.”
Each week features two food trucks, and two picnic tables have been added this year thanks to local businesses, Lanoue said. Sometimes, there is live music, and the aerial and circus group Cirka Peformance Arts will be there a couple of times.
Each week’s vendors are listed on the Brandon Farmers Market’s website and the market’s Facebook page.
After October, the farmers market operates once a month inside a nearby church.
Salem Chamber Downtown Market/Salem Garden Market
Salem is expanding its farmers market to include a more festive gathering downtown once a month.
The Salem Chamber Downtown Market starts June 14 and will be the second Wednesday of every month through September, said Charlotte Roesler, the city’s assistant finance officer and secretary for the Salem Chamber of Commerce.
Salem Garden Market organizer Val Westhoff suggested adding the downtown event after selling her cookies, breads and jams last year at the Downtown Hartford Market.
The events, which will run from 4 to 8 p.m., will include live music, food trucks and activities for families in addition to vendors offering homegrown or handmade items and others selling products like Tupperware and Scentsy. The Salem Police Department is hosting a bike rodeo for the first downtown market and will have a patrol car there for a “touch-a-truck” experience, she said. TrioTel Communications is hosting an outdoor movie night after the first market, and those might continue throughout the summer.
The Salem Garden Market will start July 19 in Salem City Park, continuing every Wednesday through Sept. 6 or 13 — except for the downtown market nights. Hours are 4 to 7 p.m.
Vendors pay $25 for the entire season or $10 per market, Westhoff said.
The Colton Market
Back for its second season, The Colton Market will hold its first event July 8. After that, it’s every other Saturday from 10 a.m. to noon until Oct. 14. Vendors can choose to attend once, occasionally or for the whole season.
The market also plans to offer bounce houses, yard games, kids activities, face painting and food trucks.
Harrisburg Market at The Orchard
A new farmers market is coming to Harrisburg this summer. The Country Apple Orchard is organizing Harrisburg Market at The Orchard.
The event will be from 4 to 8 p.m. Fridays starting July 21 at the orchard, 27249 SD Highway 115.
There will be live music, along with a beer garden and a featured food truck every week. Picnic tables will be set up for people to enjoy the event.
Starting Sept. 1, the market — minus the live music — will be incorporated into the free portion of the orchard’s Fall Festival, which runs through Oct. 27.
“We’re looking for anything homegrown and homemade,” said Amber Halvorson, general manager of the orchard. Along with fruits and vegetables from the orchard, vendors already signed up will be selling salsas, jams, spicy candy, freeze-dried treats, microgreens, leafy greens, herbs, locally roasted coffee, plant-based foods and fresh-cut flowers, she said. Locally made items include custom laser-cut and etched items, stained glass, cold-processed soaps and custom graphic t-shirts and accessories.
The fee for vendors is $50 for the season, and they don’t have to be there every week, Halvorson said. Send an email to morethanapples2021@gmail.com for an application.
Find updates on the orchard’s Facebook page.
Dell Rapids Farmers Market
The Dell Rapids Farmers Market will be open on five Saturday mornings in August and September.
The market is moving this year from the city park to the parking lot of Ace Hardware, 1108 N. Highway 77. Hours will be 8 to 11:30 a.m. Aug. 5 and 19, and Sept. 2, 16 and 30.
So far, the market has almost 20 vendors committed, with about half offering produce, organizer Whitney Hoekstra said. Other vendors will sell baked goods and handmade items featuring skills such as crocheting, woodburning and jewelry making.
There’s no fee to set up a booth, Hoekstra said, noting that the market is intended for local growers and makers. Interested vendors can call her at 605-413-5139.
The final Saturday will be the traditional pumpkin festival.
Find updates on the market’s Facebook page.
Share This Story
Most Recent
Videos
Want to stay connected to where you live with more stories like this?
Adopt a free virtual “pigeon” to deliver news that will matter to you.
Are you a little bird with something to share?
Delivering news that matters to you
Years ago, homing pigeons were used to bring us news we needed. Today, your virtual “pigeon” will deliver what you want to know about the place you call home.
All pigeons are free to good homes!
Our Partners
