Above: Area Farmers Markets have all reopened or will within a week. (Photos L-R of Westborough’s from Facebook and Ashland’s by Beth Melo)
Farmers Market Season is here — including an Opening Day this afternoon in a neighboring town. And since this is the only day for the next week with no rain or showers in the forecast, you may want to make the most of it!
While Famers Markets offer a way to get fresh, local produce without growing it yourself, they tend to focus more on small businesses offering baked/prepared foods and artisan goods. Some add entertainment to make it a fun, family-friendly outing.
Southborough’s market at a farm
There aren’t any Farmers Markets currently offered in town. (Occasionally, Fay School offers a series – but that’s during the school year.) But we do have a market at a farm.
Chestnut Hill Farm is conveniently located on Chestnut Hill Road. They’ve spruced up the shopping space this summer, and it’s been rebranded from a Farm Stand to Store. But you can still find fresh, organic produce grown right there. Plus, the farm sells prepared foods from local vendors, and sometimes even farm raised meat.
The schedule is limited to a few days per week. Current hours are Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 12:00 – 6:00 pm and Saturdays from 9:00 am – 4:00 pm. (The farm also offers a CSA program you can learn about here.)
Neighboring Farmers Markets
For more communal markets, you don’t have to drive far to find one. There are Farmers Markets three days per week in a bordering town. Below are the area options listed by day.
Thursdays:
Westborough Farmers Market – Opening today! Thursdays from 2:00 – 6:00 pm, through October 12th at Congregation B’nai Shalom at 117 E. Main St, Westborough. (Check out today’s info right, listing 20 exhibitors – including Alpacas.)
Live music accompanies vendors selling prepared foods, jewelry, gifts, and more. Plus monthly dates with an extended hour to allow Dinner at the Market (7/13, 8/10, 9/7, and 10/5).
Framingham Farmers’ Market – (Opening next week) Thursdays June 22 through September 28 from 3:00 – 7:00 pm (and food trucks starting at noon) through September 29th on the Village Green/Center Common (60 Edgell Road).
Expect about 60% of the booths to be dedicated to food products and farmers. The city has again waived vendor fees. That helped them sign up four farms and over 70 food vendors, bakeries and artisans with more on a wait list. (But I can’t say how many are there on any given week.)
Saturdays:
Ashland Farmers Market – Open Saturdays from 9:00 am – 1:00 pm through October 14, on 125 Front Street.
This market was voted the Best of 2022 by MetroWest Daily News readers. Each week there are over 20 food vendors on site (many are weekly, others rotate). A long list of Artisans also rotate through the market. There are special themes and performances throughout the summer. (You can find those in their calendar.)
Marlborough Farmers Market – (Opening this weekend – see vendors right.) Open Saturdays from 9:00 am – 1:00 pm through October 7. This year’s location is the parking lot at the corner of Weed St and Court St.
The weekly event is hosted by Lost Shoe Brewing & Roasting Company, and “will feature fresh produce, specialty food vendors, artisans, family friendly activities and live music”.
Sundays:
Eastleigh Farmers’ Market – Open Sundays 11:00 am – 4:00 pm through October 29th at Eastleigh Farm, 1062 Edmands Rd, Framingham. (They also note plans for a winter market in their refurbished barn.)
In addition to the farm’s own goods, vendors are “local artisans, farms, food purveyors and local organizations”.
Hopkinton Farmers Market – Open Sundays from 1:00 – 5:00 pm through October 15, on the Hopkinton Common (corner of Marathon Way and Ash St).
The website offers a link to a weekly list of which food vendors and artisans are scheduled to show, along with occasional musical acts. (This is Sunday — Father’s Day — has the lowest number registered for the season.)
Further Flung
There aren’t any nearby on Mondays or Fridays, but there are markets in secondary neighboring towns to fill the gaps on two other days of the week.
Tuesdays:
Hudson opens next week and runs from 3:30- 6:30 pm through September 27 at Town Hall/78 Main Street.
Wednesdays:
Shrewsbury runs from 2:30 – 6:30 pm through September 20 at the Shrewsbury Senior Center Parking Lot)G
Grafton runs from 2:00 – 6:00 pm through October 4th at Grafton Common.
