Ironton In Bloom has annual flower sale

The Ironton Farmers Market had humble beginnings and Tammy Hanshaw, also known as the “Produce Lady,” was there.

“The farmers market started out on the parking lot of Citibank,” the Pedro native recalls, explaining how the vendors set up at various locations before finding a home on Depot Square. “It went from there to the splash park, from the splash park to this lot and then they built this pavilion for us so we could all sit together.”

The Ironton Farmers Market began as an experiment by Ironton aLive in 2012 to see if people wanted to buy locally produced produce and goods.

And it worked. Sam Heighton, who took on the task of being the market manager has always said that it was the vendors who make it a success, bringing in people from all over the Tri-State on Fridays and Saturdays.

“This is a good location,” Hanshaw said. “People have a place to park.”

Hanshaw brings produce and flowers to the market.

She said she doesn’t have one particular item that sells best.

“We sell a lot of what we have — tomatoes, beans, potatoes, onions, apples, squash,” she said, adding that she also carries watermelon and cantaloupe, once they are available. “Right now, we have flowers and other plants. We have a little bit of everything.”

And what brings Hanshaw back summer after summer?

“The customers, it gets me out of the house and I meet people,” she said, adding she is retired. “I’m my own boss. I can come and go when I want, I don’t have to punch in on a time clock.”

Another group that spends quite a bit of time working at the farmers market is Ironton in Bloom.

This past Friday and Saturday, they were selling flower and hanging baskets in the parking lot next to the splash park. It was there annual Mother’s Day sale that helps fund their mission of beautifying Ironton.

“We started this in 2008,” said Carol Allen, a member of Ironton in Bloom. “The money from this goes totally to the maintenance costs of the flowers we plant around the city.”

And they have a lot of flower pots to fill, over 150 Allen said, adding the pots are located from Park Avenue to Callihan’s Restaurant. Ironton in Bloom pays several thousand dollars to hire four teenagers to water the plants during the summer.

“They take it seriously,” Allen said. “Without them, we have no way to maintain all the pots we have. The flowers really do add some beauty to the city.”

Ironton in Bloom also feeds people on the second Saturday of the month.

“We buy things from the vendors and then make the food,” Allen said. “So, it is something different each time.”