The weather was perfect and the Marietta Square bustled with shoppers Saturday morning as the Farmers Market opened for business for its ninth year.

Customers meandered through a maze of vendor booths lined along North Park Square, stopping to taste and smell the plethora of produce, foods and goods offered by local vendors.

"We always shop at the market," Lisa Blejwas, of Acworth, said. "I like the fact that especially in the summer things are locally grown and we're supporting local businesses - that's important."

Toting a canvas shopping bag, Blejwas, 53, said she planned to buy things such as lettuce, fresh vegetables, cheese and bread Saturday. She said she tries to visit the Farmers Market on a weekly basis when it's open, from April until November.

"Everybody's thrilled that it opened up a month earlier this year," she said.

Shopper Darla Rubalcava, of Marietta, said she was visiting the farmers market Saturday morning in search of fresh basil and to support the local vendors.

"I love the open air concept so I like to support it," Rubalcava said of the farmers market. "I'm from the West Coast so this is very common out there. I'm glad it's taking off here."

Vendor Yvonne Robinson, of Robinson Family Farms and Nyrle Real Goats Dairy, said her family drives more than an hour to Marietta from their farm in McDonough every week because of the market's customers and its atmosphere.

"This is the friendliest, busiest and most professionally run market we have ever attended," Robinson said. "We used to do four or five (markets) a week, but we dropped all of the others ... They're really accommodating. That's why we drive so far."

Robinson, who calls herself "the goat lady," sells raw goats' milk for pets, farm fresh eggs and whole dressed rabbits. She said this is her family's second year at the market and they plan to stay.

Just down the street, Belinda Wernau of Little Red Hen Farms, said she drives more than two hours each week from her farm in Concord just to sell at the Marietta Square Farmers Market.

Wernau, who sells farm raised chicken, pork, turkey and free-range eggs, said this year will be her first full season at the market. Her husband, Chris Wernau, drives up with her every Saturday to sell at the Roswell Farmers Market.

"This is a huge market and it's worth the trip," Belinda Wernau said. "We're having a good day already."

Customer Sasha Asumaa, of Marietta, said the beautiful weather is what brought her and her husband and their dogs out to the market on Saturday. The local produce also had a hand in the reason for their trip.

"I really love organic, local foods so we figured we'd come out and see what we could find," Asumaa, 34, said. "I've been here a couple of times but it's been years and it's grown so much."

Asumaa, who had already bought and enjoyed a muffin from one of the vendors, said she plans to come back to the market on a weekly basis this year.

"There's just some stuff that you can't get in a store," she said.