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PAWTUCKET - David Schwartz didn't know exactly how he was going to prepare the robust turnip he had just purchased at the Providence Wintertime Farmers' Market, but he just couldn't resist.

The Brown University student was prowling the market last Saturday with fellow student Meg Weeks, who was experiencing it for the first time. They had already picked up fresh-baked bread, cheese made on a Rhode Island farm, nuts and a grapefruit.

Schwartz said he attends the weekly market in the Hope Artiste Village on Main Street because he feels he's purchasing better food by getting it directly from a local farmer. In addition, he enjoys the atmosphere of the marketplace.

His turnip came from the stand run by Four Town Farm in Seekonk, one of 37 local farmers, bakers and others at the Wintertime Farmers Market, now in its first year of operation in Pawtucket.

While during the summer there is an abundance of roadside vegetable and fruit stands and farmers' markets, the Providence Wintertime Market is the only one of its kind in the area. And its popularity is growing as more people seek their food direct from the source. Jennifer Huntley-Corbin, the Farm Fresh Rhode Island market manager, said more than a thousand people have attended each Saturday the market has been open this season.

It is actually the second year of the wintertime market, but it was previously held at AS220 in downtown Providence, an arts space that could accommodate only 12 vendors and where parking was scarce.

"We outgrew it the first week," Huntley-Corbin said this past Saturday as she passed a jug of apple cider to a coworker.

The market currently has a waiting list for certain categories. Items must be from local growers, with first preference going to Rhode Islanders followed by those from Massachusetts and Connecticut.

There are some exceptions, she said. On this particular day, there were heirloom beans from Maine "where we source directly from the farm."

There were also "ortanique oranges" from a grove in Florida that belongs to the market development director's parents. The huge oval orbs were going for 75 cents each.

Local chefs also buy local and participate in the "marketmobile" program where orders are placed online, filled by local farmers and then delivered, Huntley-Corbin said.

Most of the booths are operated by the vendor's family members, like Kim and Bill Coulter. They, along with their son Joshua and her sister Nina Luchka, operate Stoney Hill Cattle Co. in Charlestown, R.I., where they turn out homegrown beef and pork, free range eggs and Thanksgiving turkeys. They typically sell out of eggs at the Saturday market.

The couple said the market gives people a chance to meet the growers face to face.

"They want to know where their food comes from," Bill said. "You see the farmer and if you have questions they can answer them," his wife added. It's also good exposure for their farm which predates town records and was purchased by Kim Coulter's grandparents in the 1950s.

"People have been very supportive," she said.

David Webber, coordinator of farmer's markets for the Massachusetts Department of Agriculture, said there are currently no wintertime markets like the one in Rhode Island in the Bay State. But there is growing interest in Massachusetts and New England overall to start them, he said.

Winter farmer's markets were one of the topics at a recent New England marketing conference, he said. Year-round farmer's markets have set up shop in Seattle and San Francisco, among other locations.

"I see some growing interest, especially as more farmers are able to extend the growing season," Webber said.

The expansion to year-round markets is a natural, he said, noting that the most recent agricultural statistics show large increases in the number of farmer's markets in the state, from less than 100 five years ago to 166 in in 2007, the latest figures available.

The number of farms themselves increased by 27 percent between 2002 and 2007, from 6,075 to 7,691. Total production value related to direct sales - which includes pick-your-own, community-sharing agriculture, roadside stands and farmer's markets - rose from $31 to $42 million over that time. The trends have been similar in Rhode Island.

Huntley-Corbin said the Providence Wintertime Market's experience "has shown that a permanent year-round farmer's market is viable."

Products at the market include: lettuces, arugula, bok choy, kale, collards, cabbage, chard, apples, cider, potatoes, sweet potatoes, onions, leeks, garlic, radishes, chilis, fresh herbs, beets, carrots, parsnips, turnips, winter squash, oysters, beef, pork, cheese, eggs, honey and maple syrup.

In addition, there are jams, jellies, artisan breads and pastries, gluten-free breads, tortillas, chocolates and fair-trade coffee hot or by the pound. There are also some local purveyors of prepared food, including Tina's Jamaican-Caribbean cuisine.

Chris Craven of Norwood and Michael Lepore of Providence had already purchased three different kinds of apples, blue cheese, and onions, and were headed back for kelp when they stopped to talk to a reporter.

"Everything's local, fresh and it's personal," said Craven.

Lepore, who just moved to the area from Atlanta, said he couldn't wait to get back to the kelp, where samples were being offered.

If you go ...

WHAT: The Providence Wintertime Farmers' Market

WHERE: Hope Artiste Village, 1005 Main St., Pawtucket

WHEN: Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Dec. 7 to April 25

DETAILS: There are currently 37 vendors offering locally-grown vegetables and fruits, meat, dairy and other products.

MORE INFO: farmfresh.org

SUSAN LaHOUD can be reached at 508-236-0398 or at slahoud@thesunchronicle.com.