Skip the Big Farmers Market. Go to a Tailgate Market Instead.
I saw a Facebook comment this week that made me put down my coffee.
- Tailgate markets are smaller, lower overhead, and more likely to have the actual grower selling authentic local produce.
- Use ASAP and its map at asapconnections.org to find nearby tailgate markets across the region.
- Seasonal guide shows spring berries and greens, summer peak produce in July, and fall apples plus winter squash.
- Markets vary in schedule and hours; check listings before you drive to confirm the market is running and farmers are present.
Someone was venting about a large farmers market — the kind with a parking situation and a long walk and a certain expectation of what you're going to find. His complaint was simple: most of the booths were resellers. Not growers. Not farmers. People who bought food somewhere else and set it up under a tent with a chalkboard sign.
His conclusion was hard to argue with. If someone's just reselling produce, he can get the same stuff at the grocery store closer to his house for less money.
The comments lit up. Turns out a lot of people have had the same experience and came to the same conclusion — the booth fees at these big markets have gotten so high that the actual farmers can't afford to be there anymore. The people who can afford it are the middlemen.
So who do you go to instead?
Tailgate Markets Are What You Were Looking For
The commenters had an answer: tailgate markets. Smaller, lower overhead, and far more likely to have the person who grew the food standing behind the table.
Finding them used to be the hard part. It isn't anymore.
ASAP — Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project — runs a site called asapconnections.org that includes a searchable map of local markets across the region. If you want to find a tailgate market near you, that's where you start. The map is straightforward and actually useful, which is more than you can say for most of these things.
What's Actually in Season
ASAP also maintains a seasonal produce guide so you know what to expect before you show up. Here's a rough breakdown for the spring through fall window when these markets are running:
Spring brings the stuff people get excited about — strawberries, asparagus, spinach, lettuce, green onions, radishes, and snap peas. It's also when the markets shake off winter and start feeling worth the trip again.
Summer is when things get serious. Tomatoes, corn, cucumbers, squash, zucchini, peppers, blueberries, peaches, blackberries, green beans, okra. This is the season tailgate markets were made for. If you're only going once, go in July.
Fall shifts into apples, sweet potatoes, winter squash, collards, kale, broccoli, cauliflower, and turnips. The crowds thin out a little, the temperatures drop, and honestly it's a good time to go.
One Thing Worth Knowing
These markets vary a lot. Some are weekly, some are occasional. Hours differ. Not every market on the map will be running every weekend. Check before you drive.
But that's a small ask for produce that actually came from a field nearby, sold by the person who planted it.
The big markets aren't going anywhere. Neither is the grocery store. But if what you wanted in the first place was the real thing, asapconnections.org will get you there.
