(This article was written by Inti Salas and appeared in the March 2024 issue of Explore Harlingen Magazine.)
Wild August was officially founded in 2015 by Jimmy and Jennifer Wilson. Originally begun as Lucy’s Garden in 2005, the small retail nursery specialized in heirloom roses and locally native plants. Jennifer began creating rose bouquets in 2013 and selling them at a local farmers’ market. Her hope was that customers would see the roses in the bouquets and want to grow them in their own yards and gardens. But that’s not what happened at all. Requests for more bouquets began pouring in, and in 2014 Jimmy and Jennifer decided to cultivate a plot of land specifically for cut flowers. The experiment was successful beyond their expectations, and in 2015, Wild August was reborn as a nursery, cut-flower farm, and flower shop, named after the Wilsons’ first two sons, August and Wilder.
One year later, Jennifer left her career as an elementary-school teacher to pursue Wild August full time. Today, Jimmy and Jennifer have just under one acre of land in cut-flower production as well as the small, heirloom-rose nursery that started it all. Their vision at Wild August continues to expand to meet customers’ wishes, and now welcomes guests to its very own farmers’ market each weekend. What began as a dream has quite literally blossomed into a beautiful and thriving operation, and the Wilsons hope to continue to share the beauty of God’s creation through their flowers and gardens. It’s been referred to as “a little piece of heaven”: a place where all are welcome to come as you are; a sweet escape right here in the city of Harlingen.
The Market at Wild August is a local market that strives to showcase the diverse talents in our Rio Grande Valley community by offering vendors a space to sell their artisan products, homemade goods, decadent food, and locally grown produce. Featuring more than 30 unique vendors a week along with a varying selection of local food vendors, the Market at Wild August offers a space to experience our community at its finest. The market is located at 16802 Garrett Rd, Harlingen, TX, 78552. Markets are held weekly on Friday nights during the months of May through August from 6 pm to 9 pm and on Saturday mornings during the months of September through April, from 9:30 am to 1 pm.