MADISON, Wis, — Saturday marked the opening day of the Dane County Farmers’ Market at Capitol Square.

Sunshine and warmth had people packing the area for the first outdoor market of the year.

“It’s really awesome to see our regular customers again and interact with our awesome community here in Madison, Wisconsin,” said Patty Grimmer, owner of Wonka’s Harvest.

Grimmer had a variety of pork products as well as several types of greens and flowers for sale. She said the weather over the past year made things a little more complicated.

“It becomes more difficult to plan cold weather crops if it suddenly gets really warm,” Grimmer said. “On the flip side, if we’re planting warm weather crops, and we suddenly have a late frost, that also really impacts our planning.”

She said because Wisconsin’s climate is changing, farmers are also having to adapt.

“Varieties that have historically been good for our climate are no longer optimal for our climate,” Grimmer said. “So, adjusting what we grow, when we grow it are things that we have to consider as we just keep having to battle the inevitable, which is unfortunate.”

Compared to a lot of farms that have been coming to the market for decades, Wonka’s Harvest has only been in operation for about four years.

Manager Anna Gebarski said that’s an asset as conditions are changing.

“I think what’s nice about being a newer, younger farm is that we are not super set in our ways,” she said. “So, I think that we’re really adaptable with these sorts of things.”

Despite a very unique season, many growers chose to look on the bright side. That included Kyle Thom, the owner of Roots Down Farm in Milton.

“We have a kind of an early spring so we’re just getting a good, great start this year,” he said.

After weathering a lot of ups and downs, being back at Wisconsin’s largest farmers’ market brings back a sense of normalcy.

“Even when the weather isn’t as beautiful as it is, people come out every single week, which is really special,” Grimmer said.