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The season ends

Farmer's Markets move indoors

HOUGHTON -- A familiar sight on the Houghton Waterfront Pier each week, the Houghton Farmer's Market, closed for the season Tuesday. After a successful summer and early fall harvest, many vendors are looking forward to the upcoming cool season market next week.

From the Ground Collective has been managing local farmer's markets for five seasons. It currently runs Houghton's and Calumet's markets. Director Rebecca Matuszak said as the summer season wraps up, the next place where people can still buy fresh produce and hand-crafted vendor items will be in Calumet.

"This Saturday is our last outdoor market in Calumet," she said. "After this Saturday, we'll move indoors. Then we will be running every Saturday indoors until the week of Thanksgiving at the Drill Shop [Copper Country Curling Club]."

Co-Founder Rachel Pressley said the Cool Market generally offers more of the same fresh, local produce, but also some fall specific items residents ask for. "The Cool Season Market brings a lot of everyone's favorite vendors indoors into a cool, fun, Calumet-specific place with a historic vibe," she said. "You can still get some of your favorite vegetables, your maple syrup, some crafts, great bakery -- it's all fall themed."

Many vendors at Houghton's market Tuesday said they are able to participate in the Cool Market season due to grants which extended their harvest seasons. Matt Boersma of Boersma Family Farm in Calumet said he uses his hoop houses earlier in the year so he can get a jump on selling popular produce early.

"We try to focus heavily in the spring and then have it extend out a little bit towards the end of the year," he said. "Mostly lots of squash, shallots, garlic ... We'll have bell peppers and hot peppers still coming out of greenhouses. We'll have large amounts of kale, brussels sprouts and possibly some late broccoli."

Another late-season farmer, Gina Kerr of Whispering Wilds in Toivola, said the season extension with her hoop house additions will help with the upcoming Cool Market. "We've got quite a bit in our hoop houses now that we've got that season extension," she said. "We haven't had the Cool Season Market for very long. It's only been a few years, but it's all coming together with the extension and just being able to bring the best of the fall."

While local meat vendors do not directly benefit from the season extension and Cool Market season, Lorren Griffis of Smith-Creek Farm in Alston said residents want locally sourced, farm-raised meat almost any time of the year.

"There's really not a lot of avenues up here for people to get nice, pasture-raised meat. There's really not a lot of them at the farmer's markets up here," he said. "So, we do a lot of sales at these markets up here and it's great to be able to provide those meals for so many families every year."

The Cool Season Market will be every Saturday, running from Oct. 17 thru Nov. 21, at 57189 Mackinac Trail in Calumet. More information about the upcoming Cool Season Market can be found at fromthefroundfmc.org.