From Garden To Table

On Main Road, not far off Savannah Highway, a tall, hand-painted sign beckons drivers to stop for “tomatoes”, “goat cheese”, and “hydrangeas.” On Fridays, a smaller sign declares, “Maine Lobstah.” This is the Main Road Farmers Market (MRFM), the brainchild of Charleston Petal Pushers’ Chris DeStefano and Lindsay Dickson. Now in its second year, MRFM operates March-December. It operates in a large yellow-striped tent and two neighboring sheds chock full of plants, produce, and refrigerated and shelf-stable packaged goods on a nearly three-acre lot.
“I was surprised how many people come from all over Charleston for this beach (Kiawah). It’s great for us because they stop by on the way in or out. Vendors have also found us just by stopping by with their produce or other products,” says DeStefano.
Because it’s mid-spring, the plant inventory is a virtual rainforest under the big top. There are flowering plants in all sizes, with blooms in all the colors of the rainbow. There are also hanging plants, hanging and potted non-flowering plants, grasses, herbs, natural fertilizer, and GMO-free seeds.
For customers without greenspace, MRFM carries the Sock Full of Dirt, a long, knitted roll with sewn ends that’s ideal for growing small plants or herbs in a windowsill. For customers who need help picking plants, Dickson is full of ideas and advice.
Current produce includes squash, avocados, cucumbers, sweet potatoes, onions, ears of corn, and tomatoes. By the end of May, the plants are gone and produce takes over. Crop yields arriving very soon include peaches, pickling cucumbers, plums, okra, artichokes, onions, shelled field peas, beans, hot peppers, sweet peppers, garlic, summer squash, creamer potatoes, mangoes, grapefruit, lemons, limes, and oranges.
As school season returns, muscadine grapes and all sorts of pears and apples will appear. All produce is labeled by type and state of origin. By November, the produce is gone, but Christmas trees, wreaths, and gift items are for sale.
Next to the register are refrigerators stocked with Rio Bertolini’s pasta, pasta meals, and Italian butters, locally-made goat cheeses, herbal and bacon cow cheeses, raw milk in half gallon jugs, Amish roll butters, thick-cut pepper bacons, bagged ice chips, bottled waters, sodas, and DeStefano’s own boiled peanuts. There’s also Johns Island free-range eggs, delivered from a farm just minutes away.
Shelf-stable foods include local honey, cider, grits, hush puppy mix, sauces, marinades, extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar, homemade ketchup, relishes, pickled veggies, salsas, and chowchow. [Chowchow is chopped cabbage, peppers pickled in vinegar and spices; hotter varieties contain fiery-flavored peppers.] A bounty of Amish jam flavors include apple, peach, damson plum, hot pepper, and all kinds of berries. There are some seedless and sugar-free varieties. F.R.O.G. is fig, raspberry, orange and ginger; T.O.E. jam is tangerine, orange and elderberry; and Black bear is a triple-berry treat. Fruit or vegetable-based butters are apple, sweet potato, pear, and pumpkin.
MRFM’s suppliers are local farms, local food companies, and farms from Florida to Michigan. As local growing seasons pass, colder climates’ growing seasons are just getting started. Furthermore, apples and citrus are not grown locally, so having a vast farm network really helps keep both a steady stream and a bigger variety of produce coming in.
Dickson and DeStefano both have New England roots, but they prefer Charleston’s warm seasons. Before launching Petal Pushers, Dickson worked for Rio Bertolini’s Pasta Co. and Joseph Fields, Thackery Farms, and Lowland Farms. DeStefano is also a food business veteran. “I love everything about it. Every day you’re in touch with Mother Nature’s creations,” says DeStefano. “We always work hard and just when you’re ready for something new, there’s changes with each season. We’re always open to new ideas.”
The Main Road Farmers Market is located at 155 Main Road. They open at 11 am Sundays-Fridays, and Saturdays at 9 a.m. They close about an hour before sunset. Find them on Facebook at “mainroadfarmersmarket.”