By Dean Vaglia
Leader Staff Writer
The community garden at Seymour Lake Township Park received a donation of raspberry and asparagus plants on Tuesday, April 5.
“Our neighbor, Dusko [Marinkovski,] has a garden of his own and has a lot of crops that he was willing to donate to us,” Dawn Medici, Oxford Township Parks and Recreation travel and senior coordinator, said. “He offered some everbearing red raspberry bushes and some asparagus. Our parks and maintenance staff transplanted about 100 everbearing red raspberry bushes and some asparagus. He was very generous and we greatly appreciate Dusko’s donation to our community garden.”
The berries and asparagus are not the only new additions to the community garden this year. Medici says there are new tomato varieties, pepper varieties, kale, spinach, herbs, peas, beans and pollinator-attracting flowers in the garden. Medici expects to begin planting soon.
“Last year we did your basic green pepper and red pepper,” Medici said. “This year we are doing more sweet peppers.”
Oxford Township Parks and Recreation plants and maintains the garden, which it has done since 2021. Food grown in the garden is used in cooking classes held by the township and distributed to food assistance programs based in Oxford Township, as well as possibly being distributed at the Oxford Township Farmers Market once it is established. The garden produced about 2,300 pounds of vegetables and herbs in 2021.
Medici is currently looking for volunteers to help plant, water, weed and harvest in the garden. Interested parties can contact Medici at 248-628-1720 ext. 101 or send an email to dawnmedici@oxparkrec.org.