Peaches a sell out at Chattanooga Market

Heat, humidity and a brief downpour of rain didn’t stop the peaches from selling out at the Chattanooga Market’s second annual Peach Festival on Sunday at the First Tennessee Pavilion.

“It was just fantastic,” said Paul Smith, general manager for the Chattanooga Market. “Chattanooga really showed up for it.”

In the festival’s second year, Mr. Smith said the amount of peaches brought by regional farmers doubled compared to last year. The four farmers, from Soddy-Daisy, Sale Creek, Alabama and Georgia, began selling peaches at 11 a.m. and had sold them all by 2:30 p.m.

Around 1,000 baskets of peaches were sold, Mr. Smith said. He estimated 75 percent of those came from Hazelrig Orchards in Cleveland, Ala.

“There wasn’t a peach left in the market after about three hours,” farmer Michael Hazelrig said. “They went fast.”

Mr. Hazelrig said tree crops, such as peaches, are a lot different than row crops. Maintenance of the trees, he added, is quite difficult because of winter conditions and the constant effort needed to keep bugs away.

“It’s a tough way to make a living,” Mr. Hazelrig said of peach farming. “You’d better enjoy it because if you go into it just for the money like a lot of people do, it’s challenging.”

Mr. Hazelrig was one of many farmers, vendors and marketgoers that hung around during 30 minutes of rain. By the time the sun returned and the festival was drawing closer to an end, the pavilion was packed as though the rain had never come.

“After the rain was over, it just filled back up,” Mr. Smith said.

Next Sunday will be the one day of the year that the Chattanooga Market allows dogs inside the pavilion. “Bark for Life” will raise money for the American Cancer Society.

The same event raised $7,500 for the ACS last year, Mr. Smith said.

The top 12 dogs picked out of a competition will be placed in the ACS’s calendar for next year. Those wishing to register their dogs can do so by visiting relayforlife.org.

“Bark for Life” begins at 11 a.m. and ends at 4 p.m.