Memorial Day weekend signals the start of summer.
What's on your to-do list? Camping? Hiking? Fishing?
Be sure to squeeze in some time for some wandering around your favorite farmers' market or two or maybe three. And there also is fresh salmon coming in from the Copper River, so get the grill ready too.
South Anchorage Farmers Market
Market organizer Arthur Keyes says the start to the season has been outstanding, including last Saturday's market, which "felt more like June than May."
Head to the market for your favorite honey, hanging baskets, pasta, fresh vegetables and other needs. New vendor Mat Valley Meats joins the market with Alaska-grown beef and pork, including steaks, hamburgers and sausage.
Gray Owl Farm will have a huge selection of hanging baskets, annuals, herbs and other items. "Spring weather has definitely arrived, and planting baskets, containers and gardens are in high gear," Kathy Baker says. "It is all about color, texture and the unique elements as you create your designs. Our hanging baskets and container gardens are created one by one and are designed with flair and excitement to guarantee that you won't be displaying the same hanging baskets or containers that you will find in abundance from mass producers."
Earthworks Farm will be back with their skin and body care items along with new raw-spun honey. According to Dee Barker, raw-spun honey is a natural, "soft serve" honey. "It's the result of a highly controlled process that both our bees and we developed ourselves," she says. "This is predominantly sunflower and aster honey that we carefully crystallized while keeping the honey below hive temperature, so that the enzymes and other important molecules are not 'denatured.' This all-natural, smooth-textured honey isn't crunchy -- more like a cross between butter and taffy and has the great taste for which our honey is known. Our process of crystallization overall takes about three days."
La Grassa will be at the market with fresh pastas, including lemon pepper noodles, vegan basil strozzapreti, and feta and kale ravioli. Other vendors include: Glacier Valley Farms, Arctic Choice Seafoods, Northern Flowers, The Blue Poppy, Flattop Farm, Pam's Produce, Drool Central and others.
Spenard Farmers Market
It's the second week for the Spenard Farmers Market, and Rene Haag, one of the market organizers, says it's the right time to get everything for gardening season.
"This week you will again see a large amount of plant starts -- perennials from Woolwood Studios from Palmer, the Alaska Flower Lady is back and Sharon and Steve with Xanadu Gardens will have some beautiful showy blossoms to sell," Haag says. "In the produce department, you'll find fresh lettuce and chives along with other herbs and early crop veggies."
Sweet Caribou will be at the market with cupcakes, bar cookies and gift boxes of assortment of Parisian macarons. Alaska Black Cod will have smoked black cod, along with raw black cod fillets and whole fish.
Other vendors will have bread, cookies, breakfast burritos and other items. Saturday is kids' day at the market with sidewalk chalk, face painting and story time.
Center Market
A.D. Farm will be at both Wednesday and Saturday markets with last fall's harvest of potatoes and carrots, along with pork items, fresh eggs and Alaska Flour Co. products, including barley cereal and whole barley.
Country Health Foods will have scallops, coon-stripe shrimp, beef, yak, Alaska Sprouts items, local honey and tomato plants.
Drool Central will be at Wednesday's market with dog treats and meals. "We are part of the farmers' markets because we use Alaska grown barley flour and barley grains, Alaska grown potatoes and Alaska grown vegetables," owner Daisy Nicolas says. Also look for Drool Central at Sunday's Anchorage Market and Festival.
Farm 779 will be at the market with a large selection of items including karnivore and sunny lemon kraut, red and golden beet kvass, coconut kefirs and magnesium body butter.
Alaska Vegan & Gluten Free will be at Wednesday's market with a variety of foods including quinoa edamame veggie layered salad, pico de gallo, lentil vegetable soup, spaghetti sauce and chocolate pot.
Sweet Caribou and Alaska Black Cod (both Wednesday and Saturday) and Mosquito Mama (Wednesday only) will be at the market too.
Anchorage Farmers Market
For many, Memorial Day is the time to plant. Sarah Bean of Arctic Organics says this is the week to get the best plants.
"Now's the time to pick up our cold-hardy tomato plants and get then transitioned into their permanent spot so they can hit the ground running when the weather settles, usually at the end of May," Bean says. "We'll bring a large selection of tomato plants, many Siberian types bred for growing outdoors in the far north and classic greenhouse types as well."
Arctic Organics also will have vegetable starts, hanging baskets, sprouted potatoes, and fresh arugula and basil from the greenhouse.
Other vendors include Bushes Bunches, Matanuska Gardens, Northern Flowers, Persistent Farmer, Rivergarden, Seldovitsch Farm, Turkey Red baked goods, Magpie Sue farm to table fare and ACAT compost tea.
Friday Fling
The Top Shelf Artisan Market is joining the Palmer Friday Fling for the summer months. Look for Country Health Foods, Farm 779 and Local Bounty in front of the Visitor's Center in downtown Palmer.
Steve Edwards lives and writes in Anchorage. Contact him at akmarketfresh@gmail.com.
Local farmers markets
Monday: Depot Farm Market, noon to 6 p.m., Palmer Depot
Wednesday: Center Market, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Mall at Sears, Benson Boulevard and Denali Street
Friday: Friday Fling, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., across from the Visitor's Center, Palmer
Saturday: Anchorage Farmers Market, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Central Lutheran Church, 15th Avenue and Cordova Street; Anchorage Market & Festival, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Third Avenue between C and E streets; Center Market, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Mall at Sears, Benson Boulevard and Denali Street; South Anchorage Farmers Market, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., O'Malley Sports Complex at the corner of Old Seward Highway and O'Malley Road; Spenard Farmers Market, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Spenard Road and 26th Avenue
Sunday: Anchorage Market & Festival, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Third Avenue between C and E streets