Shoppers respond to farmers market offerings at Lakewood Ranch
From fresh organic produce to gourmet Italian cheeses and meats, local honey and eclectic clothing designs, The Market at Lakewood Ranch seemed to have everything this week.
The farmers market also had customers.
Lots of them.
The grounds of the Sarasota Polo Club were bustling with shoppers eager to find fresh produce, pasture-raised chickens and ducks, unique gifts and more.
An unconventional day and time – it will be held from 3-6 p.m. each Wednesday through mid-April – for a farmers market, perhaps, but it was working, and Monaca Onstad seemed delighted.
“We have a lot of cool things,” said Onstad, director of community relations for Lakewood Ranch.
“Behind us over there we have prepared foods, all the way down the market lane we have honey, candles, canned deliciousness, pickles, jams, breads, seafood and a makers fair. We have Etsy vendors all the way to the clubhouse,” Onstad said.
This cool weather has slowed certain crops. But it has really helped the lettuce and the beets. It makes them sweet and crisp. It gives them a good shelf life when you get them to your refrigerator.
Chris Worden
of Worden FarmsEtsy features handmade and vintage items and supplies.
For the first time, Worden Farms brought crates of produce to sell to anyone looking for fresh-from-the-farm root and leaf vegetables.
“It’s always a challenge,” Chris Worden said of the growing season. “Every year is different. This cool weather has slowed certain crops. But it has really helped the lettuce and the beets. It makes them sweet and crisp. It gives them a good shelf life when you get them to your refrigerator.”
Alaina Starr of Starr Mentality brought racks of her clothing designs and set them up on the porch of the polo club.
“I do markets all over Florida and specialize in taking apart T-shirts and sewing them onto other clothing. I collect T-shirts and then I cut the image off the T-shirts in really fun ways. I’ll find a shirt or a jacket or a dress, or kids wear that I think the colors match and I sew it on the back,” Starr said.
“So that way you’re reusing fashion and keeping it out of the landfill. It is up to date, it’s trendy, it’s on point. You’re taking past fashion and turning it into fresh fashion”.
The Market at Lakewood Ranch continues Wednesdays through April 18 at the Sarasota Polo Club, 8201 Polo Club Lane.
James A. Jones Jr.: 941-745-7053, @jajones1
This story was originally published December 14, 2017 at 1:23 PM with the headline "Shoppers respond to farmers market offerings at Lakewood Ranch."