Growing veggies, and community






It's that time of the year again, when you can't give away your zucchini fast enough.
But at the Wareham Community Garden on Tihonet Road, large squashes, zucchini and new potatoes are not the only things that organizers hope will grow.
"We need more people," said Chief Planter Dick Paulsen, expressing hope that the garden not only a sunny spot for those familiar with producing produce, but that it will also help build community and knowledge by interaction among the experienced and novice gardeners.
And while Paulsen is still eager for more participants, the two-season-old garden has had some notable success at community building.
The garden sits on land donated by A.D. Makepeace, who also installed pipes for watering.
Alan and Sandy Slavin donate most of their vegetables to the Council on Aging or some of the homeless shelters.
"Vegetables aren't a big item in our diet" said Sandy, who leaves a basket by their garden for others to add their contributions, and adjusts donations depending on the size of their crops - the particularly large zucchini and squashes go to shelters where they can be baked into breads or used in soups.
Others make less dramatic gestures like watering thirsty plants while their regular tenders are on vacation.
Perhaps the garden's most notable aspect, however, is that so many of the participants are politically active in the town. Paulsen is the former chair of the Finance Committee. Dick Wheeler spearheaded the Vote April 6 campaign, a campaign whose signs sprouted around town nearly as prolifically as his pole beans. The Slavins have a rectangle (not a plot, Paulsen said he's too old to tempt fate by constantly referring to them as "plots") and among the two are involved in the Planning Board, the Historical Society, the Charter Review Commission and members of several other boards. Current and former Selectmen also have rectangles.
"There was no conscious effort to keep people apart [in assigning the 8 by 20-foot rectangles] and everybody played "nice," Paulsen reported.
And although Paulsen is always looking for new gardeners - he is particularly anxious to get some youth groups involved in maintaining a rectangle - conversations involve tomato blight, rabbit-proofing and fertilizers rather than politics.
"We're just here to play in the dirt," said Wheeler. "We need more of that!"