This week, a trip to the local farmers' market, might look more like a trip to the farm.

The South Anchorage Farmers Market, open from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday near the intersection of O'Malley Road and the Old Seward Highway, will feature a display of antique tractors for visitors to admire.

After you see a bit of farming history, grab some fresh Alaska produce.

Items to look for at the SAFM this week include:

• Glacier Valley Farms will be bringing zucchini and tomatoes. The tomatoes are deep red and full of flavor.

• Vern Stockwell will have more of little new potatoes. They are tender and cook up much faster than regular potatoes.

• The Red Beet will be bringing all kinds of breads and crackers. One to try is the slow rise, Swedish whole wheat with flax. The Red Beet will also have farmer's cheese and fresh plain yogurt, homemade salad dressings and pork meat pies.

• The Rempel Family Farm will have more carrots, at least four kinds of new potatoes, cucumbers, pickling cucumbers, green onions and a wide variety of greens. Mark hopes to have some immature winter squash, which he describes as "surprisingly tasty and much easier to cut into." The Rempels will also be at today's Northway Mall market.

• Arctic Choice Seafoods will have salmon and side-stripe shrimp.

At the Anchorage Farmers Market on 15th Avenue and Cordova Street, Sarah Bean from Arctic Organics will have a expanding pallet of veggies to pick from. Items this week include green cabbage, radicchio, daikon, kohlrabi, zucchini, broccoli, snow apple turnips, radishes and many greens, including, broccoli raab, collards, mustard, turnip, rainbow chard, four varieties of kale and various leaf lettuces. Items are also available at a farm stand from 5 to 7 p.m. Fridays at the farm; visit www.arcticorganics.com for directions.

Other items of interest at the market this week include tomatoes; fresh shelled peas from Hett's Farm; fresh rustic breads and baked goods; local Matanuska Creamery dairy products (including cheddar cheese, cheese curds and ice cream); fresh oysters, frozen rock cod and halibut from Nikiski; jams and jellies; and, for gardeners, compost tea.

The Dinkels will have green beans, strawberries, zucchini, tomatoes, potatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, sugar snap peas and other items at a variety of markets this week. They will be at the today's Northway Mall market, the Friday Fling, Saturday and Sunday's Anchorage Market and Festival, and the Center Market on Saturday. They hope to have corn available next week.

Alex Davis from A.D. Farm will be at the Northway Mall today and at the Center Market on Saturday. He will have fresh eggs, strawberries, tomatoes, cabbage, lettuce, fava beans, sweet breads and jams. And probably more because, Davis says, "I'm sure something else will jump up and beg to go to the market."

Where to get your birch syrup

Last week, we highlighted Patrick Hoogerhyde's recipes from the Great American Seafood Cook-Off. One of the ingredients was birch syrup.

If you're not inclined to tap a bunch of trees on your property and spend hours boiling that thin sap down to make syrup, then visit the Anchorage Market and Festival this weekend. Stop by the Kahlitna Birchworks booth and pick up some syrup, birch confections, mustard or wild jams. Dulce and Michael East have been part of the downtown market for 17 years and they offer free samples too.

Visit the markets

If you're looking for markets, check out these:

Today: South Anchorage Farmers Market, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., south side of the Dimond Center; Wednesday Market, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Northway Mall parking lot; Wasilla Farmers Market, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., behind the Wasilla Public Library.

Friday: Friday Fling, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., pavilion across from the Visitor's Center in Palmer.

Saturday: Anchorage Farmers Market, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., 15th Avenue and Cordova Street; South Anchorage Farmers Market, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Subway/Cellular One Sports Center at the corner of Old Seward Highway and O'Malley Road; Anchorage Market and Festival, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Third Avenue between C and E streets; Center Market, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., University Center Mall.

Sunday: Anchorage Market and Festival, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Third Avenue between C and E streets.

Tuesday: Eagle River Farmers Market, 3-7 p.m., Eagle River VFW Post parking lot.