Jimmy the Prognosticator might have been off, but there's a sure sign that spring has arrived in Madison. The Capitol Square filled quickly this morning for the beginning of the 25th year of the Dane County Farmer's Market, which runs Saturdays from April 22nd through November 4 and Wednesdays from April 26th through November 1st. Check out dane101's flickr photostream for all of the pictures.

Begun in 1972 by then mayor Bill Dyke as a means to connect city dwellers with local agricultural growers, the Farmer's Market has evolved into a mixture of local agriculture, art and activism.

The Capitol Square hosts vendors selling good ranging from flowers to meat to honey to bakery items and everything in between. Since it is rather early in the growing season, many of the vendors today sold flowers (plants, fresh-cut and dried), herbs and early yielding vegetables such as watercress and onions. The staple bakeries, selling either their wonderful pastries or bread varietals were in full force, providing a snack to accompany the walk around. That could be washed down by some coffee or a smoothie from one of the local shops or with some locally made apple cider. Lamb was one of the more prevalent meats on the market today, along with beef, and of course, beef and venison sticks! Cheese from bricks to curds was another hotspot along with the local honey and maple syrup vendors.

The interior of the grounds provides a space for a variety of political, non-profit, or general public information booths. PFLAG had its normal booth up on the South side of the grounds while the West side, had WORT presence, a veteran's healthcare booth, as well as a representative from The Epoch Times handing out copies of their April 21st-27th edition. This side also had artistically embellished bikes as advertisements for the upcoming Art Bike Rally on May 13th (check out the Bicycle Federation of Wisconsin's website for the complete line-up of Bike to Work Week events).

Across the street, at the both State Street and on the East side by The Flat Iron Tavern, vendors sold various art products. Jewelry was aplenty as well as a build your own address sign vendor. As the weeks press on, musicians will begin to fill the air with their varying sounds, ranging from hip hop to folk to salsa.

Stayed tuned to dane101 as we pick up from last year with our interviews of the local vendors at the Dane County Farmer's Market.