This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Community Corner

Fresh Produce at Anderson Farms

The local Montgomery roadside stand brings farm fresh offerings.

Fresh produce doesn't get much easier than Anderson Farms at 251 Montgomery Rd. in Montgomery.

You can pull up to the just-off-the-roadside stand, step out of your car, grab some onions, peppers and tomatoes for dinner and be on your way.

The open-air stand has been a sign of summertime for almost 30 years.

Find out what's happening in Montgomerywith free, real-time updates from Patch.

So what is Anderson Farms Produce? Farm stand employee Matt Gillingham, of Aurora, takes us on a tour.

When the farm stand opens in early July, the produce is mostly trucked from Klein's Farm along Route 20 in Burlington. Vegetables are delivered on a non-refrigerated truck to keep everything farm fresh.

Find out what's happening in Montgomerywith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The tomatoes come from Georgia until they can pick them fresh at the Montgomery farm starting in August. Tomatoes and pumpkins are the two items still grown on the adjacent farmland. 

A big box of melons comes from a Midwest farm and peaches hail from Michigan and southern Illinois.

Gillingham works the seasonal stand from July to it's closing day on October 31. It's his ninth season at the stand. One of only three employees, Gillingham does it all, from tending the stand to cultivating the field. 

Gillingham grew up in Oswego and started at the stand when he was a sophomore in high school. He recently graduated with a teaching degree.

Corn and tomatoes are the most popular fresh produce at the stand, Gillingham says. The tomatoes are "doing well out there," he told a customer. They should be ready to harvest in the first of second week of August. In October, the stand welcomes fall by providing hayrides and a straw maze for kids. 

The Anderson Farm name goes back to Jerry Anderson, who owned acres of land at Douglas and Montgomery roads. The farm was subdivided years ago and now includes Anderson Farm Apartments. Anderson's daughter, Karen, took over for her father.

Oswego Township Assessor Dave Maher owns the farm stand. 

Visit Anderson Farm Produce on the north side of Montgomery Road from 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. daily. Call them at 630-896-8835.

Crops are usually available in August and September. "U-Pick" tomatoes begins early August and runs through September. Michigan apples and cider on sale September through October.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?