Senior center garden is spring mainstay in Davis Square

By George P. Hassett

For the last two years, spring in Davis Square has meant Charlie Vazzino in the courtyard of Ciampa Manor planting vegetables, herbs and roses. Vazzino is a steady sight for commuters coming and going from the College Avenue train station — he says he is out there from 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. greeting passerby from his wheelchair.

In between, Vazzino, 59, passes his days cultivating the soil of West Somerville. He says he started his garden outside the Davis Square senior center as a way to stave off boredom.

‚ÄúIt’s like therapy,‚Äù he says. ‚ÄúI come out here, talk to my plants and enjoy the day. If I didn’t, I would be thinking and thinking and that’s no good for you, you know.‚Äù

So far his garden has been a hit with residents of Ciampa Manor, neighbors and people who just walk by.

“Everybody comes by and comments on the flowers,” says Jeanette Wiltshire, who lives at Ciampa Manor.

Vazzino, who came to Somerville as a child with his family from Augusta, Sicily, said his green thumb is inspired by his mother, who died in 1998. She was known for having the most beautiful garden on Rogers Avenue in her day – so beautiful, Vazzino says, the normally rowdy neighborhood kids made sure not to trample on it.

‚ÄúI feel like it’s my mother doing all the work [on the garden],‚Äù he says. ‚ÄúI never knew how to do it but it gets done, and I think it’s her doing it through me.‚Äù

But it’s not just Vazzino who produces the tomatoes, peppers, string beans, radishes, roses, oregano and basil that grows from the ground. On one day this week, three other Ciampa Manor residents worked to get the seeds and tools Vazzino says he needs. ‚ÄúWe do a lot of business at the dollar store,‚Äù Wiltshire says. And  Department of Public Works employees stopped by with some top soil, which Vazzino says is needed for the cherry tomatoes.

Vazzino was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis the same year his mother died and most of the time uses one hand to complete his gardening tasks. ‚Äú[Having multiple sclerosis] don’t stop me from doing anything I want. I still come out here, do my little work with the plants and the flowers and enjoy the day.‚Äù