Getting ready for the new market season

Now's the time when markets are getting together to go over rules and making some decisions about the upcoming season. I encourage everyone to make their rules work for you instead of the other way around.
I hope every market is putting together their promotional plan and budget for the season. Planning now means your plan will be a plan rather than a last minute thing. Events bring more customers to the market but they take time and work. Who in your community can be a partner with the market? When you approach potential partners be specific about what you want from them. That is, don't just say we want your support, tell them you want market notices in their newsletters or you want them to cost share on your bags and know what that sum is or whatever your market needs to be successful. Be that specific when asking for help and you just might get it!!
What is your market doing to prepare for the season?

Getting Ready for Spring

Let's admit it - the ice storm followed by heavy snow and very low temperatures and then a wind storm gave us a big challenge this winter. Most folks I talked to kept their greenhouses and suffered only damages to their trees. Fruit trees seemed to fair pretty well since last summer had prepared them for heavy loads with record fruit set. The next thing is whether the ice coating was enough to protect the trees from the very low temperatures. Like everything else, we'll just have to see.

Time for starting those plants and getting up the unheated high tunnels for those early tomatoes. Those with heated greenhouses have already put their plants out - hoping the cost of fuel doesn't spike back up and take all the profit.

It is also time for farmers' markets to get toether and decide on the days and times of the market. Some of you are struggling with finding new locations. Most of all each market should be putting together a strong promotional plan for the upcoming year. Promotion is not just about ads in the paper. Promotion means who will be your market's community partners and what do they bring to the table for the benefit of the market? What can the market give back to them? What events are you having this year and who will be responsibile for all the work that goes into each of these? To help you out the Ky Farmers Market Association has published a worksheet for markets to use to get this promotional plan together. You can find it on their website at http://www.kentuckyfarmersmarket.org/ and go to the "Links" page. Take a few minutes to print this out and go over it with your market folks. You'll be glad you spent time promoting your market before the weeding, picking, spraying , etc. is calling you.