New Farmers Market To Open in Rockville

The King Farm Farmers Market, a fresh food and crafts market hosted by the King Farm Conservancy, debuts on Wednesday in Rockville.

The biweekly market will be held outdoors on Wednesdays and Saturdays through Oct. 29.

On Wednesdays, the market will be open from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Four Irvington Centre between 805 King Boulevard and Ingleside at King Farm. Beginning May 28, the market also will be held from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays at on Pleasant Drive.

“The nice thing about this market is that it’s producer-only, which means that only farmers and vendors who produce their own growth and food and art can participate,” said Marni Dacy, the farm administrator of King Farm Farmers Market. “This has a real community feel to it.”

Vendors are mostly from Maryland and Virginia. The market is open to people who live outside the King Farm community, Dacy said.

“We’re pretty full as far as vendors go as this point, but we’re still looking for volunteers,” she said. “Anyone who wants to be involved, we’re not turning anyone away. This is what King Farm is all about.”

Items that will be sold at the event include handsoaps, pastries, breads and ice cream. Some vendors, like Frederick Wine Cellars and All Jazzed Up, will sell products on both Wednesdays and Saturdays. Other vendors will only be at the market on Saturdays, like French Fry Fusion and Bay Soap of Maryland. Still others will appear exclusively on Wednesdays, like Atwater's and Palmyra Farm.

Oscar Ordonez, invoice manager of Canela Bakery in Gaithersburg, said the appeal of the King Farm Farmers Market was customer familiarity.

“We like it where it’s a place where everybody knows and likes farmers markets,” Ordonez said. “Because we already know the people coming know what to expect, so we get more business out of it.”

Ordonez said Canela Bakery will sell pastries, gelatin flowers, empanadas, churros and possibly other breads and pastries at the market on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

M&M Plants will have a variety of products available, including bedding plants, perrenials and herbs on Wednesdays and flowers later in the season.

Dacy said that although none of the producers are organic certified, they practice Integrated Pest Management (IPM) or sell pesticide-free products.

“I think people in general are making a movement to whole foods, foods that aren’t processed, foods that are freshly-made,” she said. “I think it’s really an appeal for people who are starting to look at what they eat and where it comes from.”

A mother of three children, Dacy said she loves the idea of buying food that is locally grown.

“[My kids] are eating rhubarb and things from this area,” Dacy said. “So it’s a nice way to experiment with other kinds of food and produce.”

In addition to buying fresh produce and other items, customers can also donate food and money to the Manna Food Center, which will be at the market every Saturday. The market also will hold a number of events, including a demonstration by . Throughout the season, six raffles will be held, beginning with an Opening Day raffle on May 28. Winners will receive gift certificates from such King Farm businesses as

“We love the idea that people can walk up or drive up or just be in the park and have a family day and do something with the kids if they want to,” Dacy said.