Until my parents purchased their artificial tree a few years ago, my family would always pick out our Christmas tree at a local farm each year. We’d typically go the day after thanksgiving, which gave us the weekend to set it up and decorate. A lot of people seem to like the idea of an artificial tree these days because of the low-maintenance, but I personally think there is something special about picking out a locally grown tree with your loved ones each year. Since my friend Alex just recently bought her first home in Marquette and the holidays are approaching fast, a few of us friends decided it would be fun to get together Thanksgiving weekend and help her pick out her very first (and real) Christmas tree at the Downtown Marquette Farmers Market.
While traveling throughout Michigan over the years, I’ve noticed how nice the farmers markets are in this state. I’ve been to a few in the Upper Peninsula along with a couple in the Lower Peninsula, and I’ve never been disappointed by what I see – every city is unique with their own local businesses. If you’re ever traveling in Michigan and want information about nearby farmers markets, you can use this Find a Farmers Market feature which enables you to search for farmers markets across Michigan. You can filter your search by specific county, city, days the market is open, and if food assistance is accepted or not.
Another great way to stay informed is signing up to receive the Michigan Farmers Market Shopper E-Newsletter. It’s an easy way to stay updated on seasonal recipes, shopping guides, and events happening at farmers markets in Michigan. You can sign up here!
While living in Marquette for college, I only went to the Farmer’s Market during the summer months. It was just a short walk from our house at the time, and it was a great activity to do every now and then on Saturday mornings. Since last weekend was my first time visiting during the fall, I decided to go a little earlier before meeting the girls to check out what type of seasonal items there were. Let’s just say that I wanted to take everything home!
One display that instantly caught my eye were these wreaths and centerpieces by Jeff Heidtman, a local floral designer located in Skandia. If you’ve ever made a wreath, you can imagine the amount of work that went into every single one of these pieces. Some of the most beautiful wreaths and centerpieces I’ve ever seen – and they’re made right here, in the Upper Peninsula.
Right when you arrive at the Downtown Marquette Farmers Market, you’ll see a display of Christmas trees for sale, locally grown in Skandia by Ever Yielding Acres Farm. Charles and Miriam started their farm about five years ago now and sell items such as produce, eggs, meat, maple syrup, pumpkins and Christmas trees.
Once the girls arrived to pick out a tree, we decided to go with the second largest one Ever Yielding Acres had for sale. During our discussion about how we were going to load the tree on top of Alex’s jeep and haul it to her house, Charles and Mariam’s friend and helper, Terry, offered to deliver the tree for us free of charge. How sweet is that? Yoopers really are the nicest people out there. ☺️
Terry dropped the tree off and told us to shake it to remove loose pine needles. After we shook the tree, we carefully carried it in and (surprisingly) got the tree standing in minutes. We were pretty proud since we were sure this part was going to be a mess! Once the tree was up, we cleaned up pine needles, turned on the Christmas tunes, and started decorating. It was a blast getting together to help Al decorate her first Christmas tree in her new house!
What are your favorite items to purchase at your local farmers market during the holiday season?
This post was sponsored by the Michigan Farmers Market Association (MIFMA). All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that support this blog.
Photography by: Emma Tembreull
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