It's that time of year again when people are enjoying locally grown vegetables.  People are stopping at roadside stands or they're harvesting their own.  

Harvesting his own is what Phil Zaczyk is doing at his home at Brevillier Retirement Village in Harborcreek.  He invited me to Brevillier Village to take a look.  Phil moved here in June 2023. . He immediately noticed there was no designated spot for him, or anyone else, to grow vegetables. It’s something he always loved to do.  He began to look ahead to the 2024 growing season. He received permission from administrators at Brevillier to use a spot beside Conrad House for a nice garden.   Then Phil, a longtime union carpenter, began to build wooden beds to place the buckets where the vegetables would be grown.

"It didn't take that long. I moved here in June and by March I was building these the following year,” says Phil.  

Phil invited his fellow residents to join him in growing vegetables. They loved the idea.

"Each tenant has their own bucket.  They have different numbers on them. Everyone has their own plant.  They take care of their own plant.  Grow whatever they want,” explains Phil.  

The residents are growing various kinds of tomatoes. They're growing cucumbers, peppers, eggplant, and beans. The raised wooden beds allow even those in wheelchairs to tend to their crops.  However, there are some traditional folks who still want to get on their knees and plant in the ground.

"Some of the residents still want to play in the dirt. So we tilled the soil if they still want to play in the dirt,” says Phil with a laugh. 

Phil is a happy man. He's already harvested radishes and peas. He plans to grow some spinach later this season. His project is a success. He comes here every day to check on all the plants.

"I like reaching in here. Grabbing some lettuce.  Nothing like fresh lettuce right out of the garden,” he says.

Phil shares his harvest with anyone who shares his love for vegetables.  It's now time to pick some nice green jalapeno peppers. The cherry tomatoes are nice and ripe. The larger tomatoes are also ready and Phil will be picking those for weeks to come. 

"There's nothing fresher than taking a tomato and eating it like an apple,” he says.  “There's nothing better in the world than a fresh tomato off the vine.  Right off the vine.  Can't get any fresher."

Phil says some residents did not plant any vegetables this year and wish that they had.   He says those people have already indicated that they want to get involved next year.  It looks like the garden space may have to be expanded.