Opening Day for the Catawba Valley Farmers Market is May 10, the Thursday before Mother’s Day.

Local vendors will have wonderful gift ideas for your Mother’s Day shopping – many hanging baskets plus bedding plants and native wildflowers, shrubs and trees. If you’re planning a special meal, you’ll find grass-fed beef, sausage and bacon, spring produce, rhubarb and eggs. Don’t forget the breads and desserts, including fried apple pies! Need pickles and jams? Vendors will have those as well.

If you’re looking for that special non-food gift, such as something in the arts and craft line, choose from goat-milk bath and beauty items, pottery, sewn items (purses, table runners, placemats, quilts and more), wooden crafts, scented candles, barn wood-framed photography and notecards.

Specials for opening day include a free plant for each visitor, free drawing (with a purchase) for two meals at The Homeplace Restaurant, free shopping bags, free recipes and music by Guitars for Vets.

The Catawba Valley Farmers Market is located under the picnic shelter at Catawba Community Center, 4965 Catawba Creek Road (Rt. 779), just off Rt. 311 in Catawba. The Market is open every Thursday, from 3:30 to 7:00 p.m., from May 10 to mid-October, rain or shine. This site is a Roanoke County Park, with playground for the kids and indoor restrooms. The Market is handicap-accessible, with plenty of free parking and beautiful farm & mountain scenery to enjoy as you shop. Come out to meet and get to know the local farmers, gardeners, cooks and craftsmen who are producing the fresh foods, baked goods, plants and crafts!

To keep up-to-date on happenings at the farmers market, follow the Catawba Valley Farmers Market on Facebook. The page includes a weekly newsletter during the Market season, news of special events and many photos. For more information, contact Ann Harrell, Market Manager, at (540)864-5913 or send an e-mail to: catawbafarmersmarket@outlook.com.

-Submitted by Ann Harrell