The History of Norman’s Farm Market
In 1987, the Norman brothers began a career selling local fruits and vegetables along the roadsides of Montgomery County, Maryland.
The idea to create a local farmers market had been given to them by their uncle, Robert Kay, who twenty years earlier had operated his own produce stand out of the trunk of his car in Potomac. During his freshman year of college, Steve Norman thought this was a grand idea for a summer job and enlisted the efforts of his younger brothers, John & Jeff.
Throughout the 1990’s the Norman brothers, along with a small army of high school and college students and a fleet of a few of the ugliest used pick-up trucks ever assembled, operated as many as ten roadside markets in a single season. This endeavor was named Norman’s Farm Markets.
Over the next decade Norman’s continued to forge relationships with many local farmers, customers, and food enthusiasts. They opened a gourmet market in Bethesda; a garden center and country store in Reston, Virginia, and farm markets in Potomac and Olney.
In 2006, Norman’s began our own farm in Woodbine, Maryland. This small 5-acre farm allowed us the opportunity to experiment with growing unique varieties of vegetables, herbs, and flowers. We were able to develop sustainable farming techniques f, and explore new trends. Today, it serves as a central produce depot that supplies our produce stand CSA program
In 2016, Norman’s Farm Market purchased a 60-acre farm also in Woodbine. This much larger property has permitted us to scale up our production and provide even more of our own produce to our ever-expanding customer base. We are excited to explore new opportunities for our farm and begin serving customers in Howard County, Maryland.
Today, Norman’s Farm Market continues to be family owned and operated by Jeff and John Norman, and John’s wife Eris. Norman’s provides a local farmers market open daily with three roadside stands in Montgomery County as well as a rapidly growing CSA, (community supported agriculture) Program. We are dedicated to championing the cause of the local foods movement and supporting local farmers.
How We Grow on Our Farm
Norman’s Farm uses integrated pest management, (IPM) to provide you the highest quality and safest food possible. We are not an “organic” farm, although we employ many organic methods. Our crops are protected from insect and fungus problems by using primarily organically approved spray materials.
We are not able to claim to be organic, in part, because some of the fertilizers, applied through the irrigation system, are not available in “organic form”. We try and minimize the need for spraying by selecting varieties with the highest disease resistance and by monitoring our fields, applying pesticides only when necessary. It has always been our policy to use organic options whenever possible and are always looking to adopt new and safer practices.
Our aim is to provide you with the best quality and safest food that we can possibly produce.