Zucchini, oregano, cabbage and beets are part of the winter harvest at the Truly Living Well Wheat Street Garden in downtown Atlanta.

Three days before Christmas, the Forsyth Farmers Market in Savannah was open for business and full of the bounty of Georgia's winter harvest: stacks of broccoli, piles of greens, an assortment of breads, jams and jellies, and maybe an occasional hothouse tomato.

The market is part of an uptick in winter farmers markets open around the state and around the country. In December, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reported that the number of markets in the National Farmers Market Directory operating at least once between November and March rose from 1,225 in 2011 to 1,864 in 2012, a 52 percent spike. With 55 markets keeping winter hours, Georgia was number nine on the USDA's list of states for winter farmers markets, the first time the state reached the top 10.

In the past, the Forsyth Farmers Market has closed by early November, but this year, organizers decided to stay open during the winter months, closing down for just a few weeks between Christmas and Feb. 2, 2013. Market manager Ben Baxter said vendors and customers urged them to stay open later in the year.

"We're going to try it out and see how it works," Baxter said. "We wanted to try to keep the market going for consistency's sake. A lot of folks out there are kind of depending on us."

Georgia has an obvious advantage over many other states in the country -- relatively temperate weather that makes offering fresh produce year-round easier for growers and market organizers.But markets that stay open for more of the year also play a role in increasing access to healthy foods, particularly in areas where fresh food is sparse.

"If the farmers markets are only operating from February to November, there are two months where access to fresh fruits and vegetables is limited," said Cristina Gibson, director of health promotion and disease prevention in the Coastal Health District. "If there is a local farmers market with regular hours and residents get used to seeing and buying fresh produce, including fruits and vegetables in a daily diet becomes more achievable."

Currently, Americans aren't doing very well meeting those daily diet goals. In a 2009 survey by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), only about one-third of adults reported eating fruit two or more times per day, and just 26 percent said they ate vegetables three or more times per day. The USDA's Dietary Guidelines recommend a daily minimum of five servings of fruits and vegetables.

With nearly two-thirds of Georgia's population overweight or obese, increasing consumption of fruits and vegetables is one part of a solution to improve the state's health. Farmers markets with longer operating seasons could be part of that solution.

Even in the urban sprawl of Atlanta, shoppers can find locally grown winter produce at Truly Living Well (TLW), an organization that operates two gardens and markets in East Point and at the Wheat Street Garden near downtown Atlanta. In the winter, shoppers at the TLW markets can buy carrots, golden and red beets, collard greens, kale, mustard greens, bok choy, radishes, cabbage, potatoes, garlic, onions, turnips and more.

Both TLW locations have been open year-round since they launched in 2006. Carol Hunter, chief administrative officer, said the decision to stay open all year was based on a desire to help the community be healthy.

"People need to eat good food every day, in all seasons of the year," Hunter said. "And there are benefits to eating seasonally. The winter crops are giving you the kind of sustenance you need in the winter."

Many foods harvested in winter are packed with nutrients that help the body confront wintertime troubles. Foods such as citrus fruits, cabbage, broccoli, pumpkin, sweet potato and spinach, are high in beta carotene and vitamin C, both essential in boosting the body's immune system for the winter fight against cold and flu viruses. Eating sweet potatoes, squash, pumpkin and whole grains can help boost the body's levels of serotonin, the hormone that helps regulate mood and sleep, which dips during the dark months of winter.

Both Baxter and Hunter said their markets are not as busy in the winter as during the warmer months. But they hope that as winter farmers markets become more widespread across the state, more Georgians will see the benefits of eating fresh, local food year-round, no matter the temperature outside.

"We have heaters and warm tea, so it's not that bad," Hunter added.

-Story by Carrie Gann, DPH Communications