Weeds to wildflowers: A garden grows in West Acton

Anita Opitz opened Anita’s Shoe Boutique in West Acton in March. She loves the location and her retail neighbors, which remind her of her native Europe. 

What she didn’t love was the weedy patch of dirt next to her shop. 

“Initially, it didn’t bother me that much, because it was all short and it looked green,” she said. “Then there was a day [when] I said, ‘Well, I don’t have a yard at home. I could do something here.’”

With her landlord’s blessing, Opitz set out to improve the little plot. 

“It’s like my life always comes about,” she said. “I have an idea, then I’m kind of moving forward with my idea, and then all of a sudden, things fall into place.”

Neighborly help

A friend offered to lend Opitz a weed whacker but warned her there was an issue with the trimmer line. Opitz knew who to consult — Billy Crosby of Crosby Design, whose shop is around the corner from hers. 

“Whenever there is a little problem lately, I’m asking Billy,” she said. “He’s the one who made my sign, and he has been so incredibly helpful with so many other little things.”

Opitz asked him to look at the weed whacker and, a couple of hours later, heard Crosby outside. He and a friend, landscaper Tim Bartkus, were cutting down the weeds. 

Bartkus “happened to be free,” Opitz said. “He just told me, ‘Oh, Billy is making me do this.’” 

“It was no big deal,” Crosby said. “She’s really sweet, and she’s trying to run this new business.” 

Opitz visited the Acton Flower Shop to ask who had planted the pretty sidewalk gardens on Commonwealth Avenue. She was directed to Janet Anderson, whom she already knew, as Anderson helps manage the village’s social media account, along with the flower shop’s Helen Halloran. 

Anderson is part of the West Acton Green Thumbs, whose mission, she said, is to “beautify West Acton.” The garden group established planters and hanging baskets along Commonwealth Avenue and other West Acton parks and locations. 

Anderson had noticed both the overgrown space and the landscaping work and offered to help. The women dug up and prepared the soil, and little by little, the garden took shape. 

The flowers include catmint, black-eyed Susans, helianthus, and hollyhocks. There are also partridge peas, which Anderson said are “big pollinators.” 

Sharing blooms

The all-volunteer Green Thumbs group is always open to new members. For this project, Anderson and others contributed time, knowledge, and flowers. 

Some plants came from Anderson’s yard, and another Green Thumbs member, who saw the transformation happening, offered to contribute.

“She dug up some plants, and she and I put them in here one Sunday,” Anderson said. 

“It’s a combination of different people’s plants that were all donated to make this little strip look nicer,” Opitz said. 

Anderson added mulch from the town transfer station, and Opitz bought a hose to water the new garden. 

“I got a plant from a friend that I put in, so I can say I have one plant in there that I actually planted,” Opitz said. 

Opitz said she’s a “very visual person.”

“I feel much better when things around me look nice, and flowers just make us happy,” she said. “I’m so happy that West Acton is so colorful, and now this spot is [too].”