The Language of the Farmers Market

Walk among the stalls of freshly picked carrots, zucchini, tomatoes and dewberries, breathe in the fragrance of brightly colored baskets of flowers and enticing aromas of freshly baked pastries and dance to live music. Know where you are? The Farmers Market!

Have you ever tasted olive oil freshly pressed from Texas Hill Country olives? Let the grower drizzle some on a piece of fresh bread. Look at the surprise in your child’s eyes when he realizes he likes it. . . . or doesn’t.

If you can’t get to France this year, check out the lavender offerings at the market. The scent of lavender perfumes oils, candles and soap. Children will love hearing from the farmer how the soap was made and looking at photographs of his lavender fields in bloom.  

Urban Harvest’s Eastside Farmers Market (www.urbanharvest.org) has live music and sometimes baby animals to pet. Children are always welcomed. Check out their website for additional locations and times.

“Living on Farms,” a series of books by Allen Fowler, offers children an inside look at a variety of farms, crops, machinery and farmers. The Harris County Public Library has “The America Family Farm, a Photo Essay” by George Ancona. For young children, “Farming,” by Gail Gibbons is a good choice. For children aged 10 and up, “Our Farm” by Michael J. Rosen offers a one-year look at life on a 130-acre Ohio farm.