Well here we are, battered and bruised from a wet wet wet winter, mud being the bane of our farmers whose life has descended into never ending quagmires with each new rain storm.

And suddenly it is April, and the evenings are light and, well, it feels as if Spring is in the air at last.

With the field veg hungry gap starting about now we bid adieu to Adeline Farm, with this being their final week. It is planting time for them now and they will be back in a few months. Luckily for us Stroud customers, we also have tunnel growers, and they can keep us going until the first summer crops arrive. The first tunnel tomatoes have appeared at Styan’s Produce last week and Westland’s Nurseries should have their first toms next week.

Our old favourite, The Lavender Garden, returns for the season on Saturday, with culinary herb plants alongside the untold Lavender varieties. They will be with us on the first and third Saturdays of the month until October.

Elsewhere, first Saturday of the month stalls this week include Baked by Beth from Nailsworth, Escento Soaps, Penny Campbell Ceramics, and the very excellent Bath Soft Cheeses, with their really unique range; a great Brie type, the Wyfe of Bath is the closest thing I’ve eaten to a Gouda type Dutch cheese, and their Blue is crumbly and very tasty! We hope to see Neil Griffin Leatherwork back too, after the birth of a new baby on Good Friday.