To Market, To Market: It's May, and farmers' markets are bustin' out all over!

The month of May heralds many things: the end of school, the beginning of barbecue weather. At Gut Check the big news is that area farmers' markets have begun to open for the season.

The Kirkwood Farmers' Market, located at the intersection of East Argonne Drive and Taylor Avenue in downtown Kirkwood, has been open since early April. The market is open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mon.-Fri. and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sat. (Sunday hours are dependent on individual vendors.) New to the market this year is Babalu's Snack Shack, featuring Latin American street food from local chef Dana Holland. The popular Tropical Moose stand opens this Saturday, May 10.

The Ferguson Farmers' Market opened on Saturday, April 26. The market is located at 20 South Florissant Road and is open each Saturday 8 a.m. to noon. The market often features live music and special activities for children.

Opening this (Thursday) afternoon is the Maplewood Farmers' Market at the Schlafly Bottleworks (7260 Southwest Avenue). The market is open every Wednesday from 4 to 7 p.m.

This Saturday the Tower Grove Farmers' Market opens. The market is located just west of the pool pavilion in Tower Grove Park and operates every Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. This weekend's "Kickoff Celebration" runs until 2:30 p.m. and features live music.

Also opening this Saturday is the Land of Goshen Community Market, located on St. Louis Avenue (next to the courthouse) in downtown Edwardsville, Illinois. The Goshen Market operates Saturdays 8 a.m. to noon.

The Clayton Farmers' Market will open for the season on Saturday, May 24. Located in the parking lot of the Clayton Straub's (8282 Forsyth Boulevard), the market runs Saturdays from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

St. Louis also has farmers' markets that are open year-round. The granddaddy of them all, Soulard Market (730 Carroll Street), is open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wed.-Fri. and 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sat. The farmer-owned Sappington Farmers' Market (8400 Watson Road) is open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Mon.-Sat. and 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sun.