Colorful Country Farms has brightened this Edmonds intersection for 60 years

YOU CAN’T MISS the Country Farms market banner when you drive southbound toward Edmonds on Highway 99.

On this cloudy afternoon, the flags that decorate the roofline are waving in the wind, as if showing off for my sketch.

Customers wearing face masks roam the open-air market, filling their bags with Honeycrisp apples, Rainier cherries and strawberries, while carefully cradling watermelons.

Owner Cynthia Delp says the pandemic delayed the shop’s opening in the spring, but business has been good. “People are staying home and cooking more, rather than going out to the restaurants,” she says.

July and August are the busiest times at the stand, which opened in 1960. Delp says people like to shop for peaches and nectarines from Yakima, where she grew up. Local hot peppers, pickling cucumbers and kraut cabbage are other customer favorites.

Country Farms has been a bright spot at the southwest corner of 228th Street Southwest for 60 years, adding color and flavor to the sometimes-drab Highway 99 landscape. It’s open seven days a week, from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.