This summer will be the last for Fiddlehead Farm, a staple North Tisbury stop for foodies and families alike. Owner Robert Skydell said his lease will not be renewed come October, and the market’s last day will be shortly after Labor Day.

“It was not a decision I made voluntarily,” said Mr. Skydell, who leases the property from Kristen Kinser. “It was a surprise.”

Mr. Skydell and his former partner Rose Willett opened the roadside market in 2007. Both had experience in the restaurant business, opening The Sweet Life Cafe, Obie’s Barbeque, The Dry Town Cafe and The Offshore Ale Company. After years of feeding people, at Fiddlehead Mr. Skydell focused on providing quality ingredients so people could feed themselves. For the past 10 years he has sold homegrown vegetables and herbs, produce from other Island farms, freshly baked breads and pies and imported meats and cheeses.

The land Fiddlehead sits on has a long history with agriculture. In 1938 Louis Greene took over the tiny three-acre farm that his father had bought in 1915, growing and selling vegetables. Under Mr. Greene, Donald Mills started working the land in 1974, when the three acres had grown into 40. Mr. Mills took over the operation in 1981 after Mr. Greene’s death, operating as Hillside Farm. In 1989, 37 acres of the farm were preserved in a joint effort of the Martha’s Vineyard Land Bank,the state Agricultural Preservation Restriction program and the town of West Tisbury. Later the agricultural use of the land faltered. For a while, Neil Flynn of Katama Apiary sold honey at the stand and Bananas gallery had a shop on the property.

Fiddlehead Farm marked a second turn back toward agriculture. Mr. Skydell planted a large garden in the back, growing greens, tomatoes, squashes and herbs, and opening the market. Speaking to the Gazette Monday, he recalled that at first he expected to be in the background doing the gardening (he’s adamant about being a gardener, not a farmer). But quickly he found himself in the front of the shop, where talking to the customers became his favorite task.

“I like to get to know my customers, I know them by name, know the type of cheese they like, know the ingredients they are trying to find,” he said. “People have made it so rewarding.”

In 10 years at Fiddlehead, he said he has watched a vibrant community grow around Island-sourced food, and has felt his own place in supporting farmers on the Island. For example, he said, a farmer who grows cucumbers will do better if they can pickle some of the crop and not just sell wholesale. Mr. Skydell wants to provide shelf space for both the pickles and the cucumbers. He is also interested in the community that builds around food. He spends half the year in Nicaragua where his favorite place to be is the central market.

“When I travel I always find the market, that’s where you reveal the culture of the people,” he said. “Food more than anything builds viable, vibrant communities.”

Intent on continuing to build community through a farm market, he said he is hopes to stay in North Tisbury.

“I’m looking to join forces with one of the legitimate farmers on Island,” he said, adding: “It’s been a very tough thing to digest, but I’ve moved beyond that and am excited to look for opportunities down the line.”

Meanwhile, Kristen Kinser and her daughter Kendra Mills said this week they plan to open their own farmstand on the property, where they live and have been growing a garden non-commercially for years. They will bring back the name Hillside Farm.

“My mom and I have been thinking about this for awhile,” Ms. Mills said.