BENTONVILLE — The city has plenty of activities to draw residents outdoors Saturday.
The Farmers Market will kick off its season, the city will host a tree giveaway, and the Parks and Recreation Department will offer its second Saturday morning yoga session of the year.
The Farmers Market will be from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the downtown square where more than 60 vendors will offer wares ranging from vegetables to cheese to crafts. Vendors will set up around the square and on Northeast Second Street.
Downtown Bentonville took over management of the market in 2008 and has since grown sales from $91,000 the first year to $540,000 in 2012. Several restaurants including market sponsor Tusk & Trotter, River Grille, The Hive and Eleven all use the market to buy their ingredients.
Daniel Hintz, director of Downtown Bentonville, said the way the community has responded to the market the past few years has been the biggest success story in its turnaround.
“The community owns it,” Hintz said. “That’s something that has shifted over the past years. They’re proud of it. They tell others to come down and check it out and are bringing tourists. It’s part of the fabric of who and what Bentonville is now.”
Nicki McNelly, market manager, conducts site visits to each of the farms that participate to make sure all items are grown or produced by the seller. All meats and cheeses are inspected and certified by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Food and Drug Administration, according to a news release.
At A Glance
Two Trails Open
The Wishing Spring Trail and Bella Vista Lake Park and Trail opened Thursday. The trails were closed late last week because of flooding and unsafe conditions. The Wishing Spring Trail can be accessed at 3802 N.W. Wishing Springs Road. The portion of the Bella Vista Trail that crosses the dam remains closed. Bella Vista Lake Park is at 4900 Bella Vista Way. For more information, call Bentonville Parks and Recreation at 479-464-7275.
Source: City Of Bentonville
The market accepts vouchers from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Women Infants and Children and the Senior Farmer Market Nutrition Program. Participants in SNAP may come to the Downtown Bentonville information booth to purchase SNAP tokens to be used to purchase products from individual vendors.
In addition to market sales and food truck vendors, this year’s market will include special programming days. Programs will include VetIQ Dog Days, a Yarnell’s Ice Cream Festival, special chef demonstrations, Benton County Master Gardener seminars, children’s art events, live music, yoga and elements of the June Art and Culinary Festival.
The city’s Tree and Landscape Advisory Committee will host its spring tree giveaway at Lawrence Plaza northeast of the square in coordination with the Farmers Market on Saturday. The group will have 150 trees available on a first-come, first-served basis to Bentonville residents.
The giveaway will begin at 9 a.m. and includes 5-gallon autumn blaze maples, 3-gallon shantung maples, 3-gallon Chinese pistaches, 3-gallon willow oaks, 5-gallon northern red oaks and 5-gallon musashino columnar zelkovas.
All recipients must prove Bentonville residency with a driver’s license or utility bill listing their address. Only one tree is available per household.
The Bentonville Parks and Recreation Department will continue its free Yoga in the Park series at Orchards Park from 9 to 10 a.m. Saturday. The department started the program two weeks ago with about 25 participants turning out in chilly weather to start their weekend with the outdoor yoga session, according to Josh Stacey, recreation programs supervisor.
Yoga is offered the second and fourth Saturday of the month from April through September. Stacey said certified instructors offer yoga for all skill levels at Orchards Park gardens.
“It’s geared more toward creating a relaxing way to start your day,” Stacey said.
Participants should bring a yoga mat or towel for the class, he said.
Web Watch
Farmers Market
To read more about the Farmers Market, visit downtownbentonville.org and check out the