The leaves are falling, the temperature has finally dropped below 80 degrees, and the Claremont Farmers Market is in full swing! The market is held every Sunday between 8 am-1 pm, with vendors selling local produce, food, flowers, and crafts. If you’re looking for a cozy (and sustainable!) Sunday activity to take your mind off of midterms, a trip to the Farmers Market followed by a picnic is the perfect way to spend your morning.
The Farmers Market has everything you need for a relaxing picnic with friends! First, pick up a loaf of sourdough bread from one of the multiple vendors selling baked goods. One of these is The Rustic Loaf, located in Upland. For toppings for your sourdough, look no further than Drake Family Farms, which sells goat cheese that’s produced locally in Ontario. You can buy local wildflower honey from Aunt Willie’s Apiary, based in Bellflower, CA. Gaytan Family Farms, located in Mira Loma, CA, makes jam, salsa, and salads. No picnic is complete without produce, and you’ll find a wide array of local fruits and vegetables at the Farmers Market: figs, peaches, plums, all kinds of berries, fresh tomatoes, and much, much more. To round out your picnic, pay a visit to The Almond Guy, who sells delicious roasted almonds in different flavors and is based in Mission Viejo.
Finally, while arguably not essential, fresh flowers contribute a lot to the ambiance of any picnic. The Farmers Market has a wide array of vendors selling beautiful freshly-cut flowers from around the area. To make your bouquet last, you can hang the flowers upside down and dry them once they start to fade.
Set up a blanket, soak up the autumn sun, and enjoy some of the local food and flowers that Southern California has to offer!
Gina Yum is a Pomona sophomore from Bakersfield, CA majoring in Public Policy Analysis/Environmental Analysis. She currently enjoys making matcha chia seed pudding.