Ripe, juicy tomatoes, fresh cheese and fruit pies that are so tarteach bite is devilishly tasty. These are just a few reasons why many foodies spring to farmers markets.

But the farmers have their reasons for being there.

Merrill D. Marxman, market manager, is the general wrangler for eight farmers markets in the south suburbs, including in Manhattan, Homer Glen and Frankfort.

Born and raised a cattle and produce farmer in Effingham, Marxman believes in the importance of buying locally.

?When youre buying locally, youre buying fresh and you get to know the farmer who is growing what theyre selling, Marxman said.

Farmer Diann Moore can tell customers how much longer theyll have to wait for their favorite veggies or explain the difference in her grass-fed beef and lamb she sells each week at the Frankfort Country Market.

The asparagus is peeking through, she said earlier this month during an afternoon break on the farm.

Moore is often the face behind the market table, selling fresh meats, eggs and produce picked from the family farm in Watseka. She, along with her husband and their oldest son, Wes, manage the family farm. In the late 80s, the family transitioned to sustainable, natural farming selling direct to consumers, which include restaurants, community supported agriculture groups and farmers markets.

I fully believe you need to know where your food is coming from, Moore said.

While buying direct from the farmer may not always mean a cost savings for the consumer, for the Moores every dollar goes directly back to the farm and sustaining the family business. With the three of them working the farm, and no outside help, Moore describes their work as more of a lifestyle.

When the outdoor market season begins, Moores day can start as early as 12:30 a.m., when she or her son gets up to begin loading the trailer with ice, meats and produce. Then theres the hour-long drive to market, followed by setting up the table for the booth.

Then after the market ends, its time to load the trailer, head home and begin on the days chores on the farm.

The hens dont stop producing, she said. There are a lot of demands.

While some vendors will travel an hour or more for a market, its just a short drive from Paul Koremans greenhouse at Steger Road and I57 to downtown Frankfort.
While the south suburbs seem to have sprouted subdivisions overnight, there are still areas to cultivate the land.

My wife and I started farming after we moved here from the family farm in Michigan, Koreman said.

Koreman calls markets, like the Frankfort Country Market, a social occasion, where he sees neighbors and the customers hes come to know each season in the nine years hes been a part of the market.

I have loyal customers who have been coming to me for nine years, Koreman said. I have seen their kids grow.

The Frankfort market opens Sunday, April 25, making it one of the first outdoor markets to begin the new season.

While the tradition in these parts is planting should fall after May 15, or what is considered the last opportunity for a hard frost, Koreman said late April and early May is the time to get out and get working on the yard. Hardy pansies, shrubs and trees are ready for the outdoors.

Its time to go and get the garden growing, he said.

And just one can ask questions when buying direct from a farmer, Koreman welcomes questions, from how to care for plants to what to do with clay soil.

Were the growers, he said.

There is a web site for the Frankfort Country Market, www.frankfortcountrymarket.org, complete with a list of vendors, their contact information as well as a calendar of the weekly events and specials.

We have new farmers this year and we want to support them enthusiastically, said Lynne Kincaid, a member of the Frankfort Country Market Steering Committee.

Visiting the market each week, gives the visitors a chance to get to know the farmers and their products.

You get recipe ideas and you get knowledge from the experts who grew it and know it, she said.

And today’s markets are more than meats, produce and plants. There are vendors selling olive oils, salsa and even homemade baked goods.

Abi Salazar of Park Forest plans to return for her second year at the Frankfort Country Market, bringing her homemade pies, scones, and breads.

Salazar said she bakes with old-time recipes, using fresh ingredients. She works with some of the growers she’s met at the markets for her fresh, seasonal fruits.

“What you’re getting is really worth the value,” Salazar said. “I use fresh eggs, milk, fresh fruit and vegetables.”

Salazar is on maternity leave now and plans to be at the market, starting June 5.

By Melissa R. Riske, Amy Alderman
Triblocal.com reporters

Here’s a rundown of local markets: 

Frankfort Country Market
Opens Sunday, April 25
10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sundays through October in Breidert Green, Kansas and Ash streets in downtown Frankfort.
www.frankfortcountrymarket.org/

Mokena French Market
Opens Saturday, May 1
8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays through Oct. 30.
Front Street Metra Lot, Front Street and Wolf Road.

New Lenox Farmers Market
Opens Saturday, May 22
8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays
Village Hall Parking Lot, 1 Veterans Pkwy.

Tinley Park Farmers Market
Opens Saturday, June 5
7 a.m. to noon Saturdays through Sept. 25
Zabrocki Plaza, 174th Place and Oak Park Avenue

Manhattan
Opens Tuesday, June 8
4 to 7 p.m. Tuesdays through Oct. 12
Wabash Street, between Manhattan-Monee Road and State Street
www.merrillsmarkets.com