All of the wet weather that has produced record flooding and crop trouble for farmers has turned into a mixed-bag for the people who hold farmers’ markets in central Arkansas.
“The early rain has knocked out a lot of the early crops, so people are having to replant,” said Chris Amoury, a farmer who regularly sells at the downtown Conway market held three times a week. “I bring heirloom tomatoes, hybrid tomatoes, squash, zucchini, and green beans.”
Between soggy soybeans and flooded rice fields, it's been a rough stretch for big crop farmers in Arkansas, but they are still working hard and putting food on the farm-to-table table. Amoury says selection is down and while some things like special types of peas are not available, other markets are faring well.
“Everybody's just been positive. There's been no hesitation. It's been full steam right now,” said Neva Collier, the owner of Me and McGee market on US 70 in North Little Rock.
Collier says the family business had flooding in June. The ducks who roam through the stand unhindered loved it. They are open five days a week, so their suppliers have been steadier and all that rain even had a positive effect for one popular piece of produce.
“This year we got the watermelons a lot sooner,” she said. “Usually, we're waiting for the Fourth of July and a lot of times it was after the Fourth.”
Between the ducks, chickens, and other fowl around the stand and the steady supply of honey on hand, they have the birds and the bees covered. It’s been bugs that have bothered farmers like Amoury.
“My squash died off really early from the bugs,” he said. “So last year I still had squash and zucchini, but that stuff's pretty much gone.”
Organizers say that varying selection is actually part of the charm of farmers’ markets and there’s more going on than just fresh fruits and vegetables.
“It's a community thing,” said Wendy Mytar, a baker who helped found the Conway market as a way to showcase her business. “Our farmers' markets like a family. It's not walking into a box store.”
And even with a tropical storm on the way, everyone involved says they would rather have all this rain than no rain at all. It has them encouraged heading into the dry summer months.
“Sometimes the squash isn't as pretty as in the store, but it doesn't stop anybody,” Collier said. “They'd rather have that than store-bought where they get the fresh taste off the farm.”
Saturday’s market in Conway will be “EMT Day,” honoring first-responders and holding a fair with all kinds of fun stuff for the kids.