By Richard Price,
Grafton News Editor –
The Lee Knowlton Grafton Community Garden is enjoying a bountiful harvest season.
Thanks to a dry and sunny growing season, there are tomatoes everywhere — more then one knows what to do and all seeking a pot to be turned into sauce. During a recent trip, a visitor noticed hundreds of the red fruit sitting on vines waiting for their owners to fill their baskets.
But many growers, who purchase a 20 foot by 20 foot plot for the spring, each grow to the beat of a different drummer. Some plant wild flowers, pumpkins or herbs. In one corner of the field are corn stalks. In another, sunflowers touch the sky, swaying in the breeze. Some plant certain flowers to attract honeybees and butterflies. Generally speaking, whatever inspires the gardener so long as it doesn’t infringe on another plot.
One grower chose to plant almost all okra, an edible green seed pod known to some as “ladies’ fingers,” because the grower can’t find it anywhere, said Dick Krejczyk, one of the participants.
Although this season is winding down, the Grafton Garden Club, who organize the plots, are sending a notice to all those with a green thumb to join them next season. Annual plot fees are $20, plus another $20 for a one-time new member fee.
But the community garden also has a mission: to promote and support local horticulture for residents, to encourage the local production of food, to encourage the educational benefits of agriculture, and to aid a beneficial community experience.
The garden itself is a hard to find gem. It’s located at the Hennessey II, town-owned property. Turn off Old Westborough Road at Estabrook, a country road that bobs and weaves along farmland. Follow a stone wall then look carefully for the dirt path on the left. The garden is gated and fenced to keep critters out — or at least try to.
Lisa Anderson, a self-described serious gardener, leased a plot because she said her backyard is too shady. “I’m out there everyday since May to weed and garden,” she said. Now, the crops she is pulling include baby pumpkins and big boy tomatoes, which she showered a reporter with.
Now, although the season is winding down, the Grafton Garden Club wants residents to know that it is never too late to plan for the next growing season. For more info, or to apply for a garden plot, visit graftongardenclub.org. For questions, call Dick Kirejczyk at 508-839-4867.
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