- [Narrator] On this "Volunteer Gardener", Annette Shrader takes us along to Memphis for a tour of a residential garden that is sure to inspire.

It gets your attention at the front curb with tall spikes of dependable bloomers, carries us through the front yard with a mature living privacy fence bordering a delightful water feature, and a backyard with moss-covered paths.

There are vibrant blooms of pollinator-pleasing plants, striking aquatic plants in containers, and a cozy retreat area with showy shrubs.

We'll learn about this garden's evolution and the plant choices that make it shine.

Come along.

(upbeat music) Thoughtful and creative garden beds are filled with good performing plants with diverse textures, dynamic color, and year-round interest.

(upbeat music fades) - There's nothing like streetscapes where beauty abounds.

And I have to say that we're standing in what I call a break tester.

And we're in the front yard of Bill and Ann Schultz in Memphis, Tennessee.

And what is before us and beside us are the most amazing varieties of plants that anyone could experience and just drive by and enjoy the beauty.

So Bill, I know that you've already told me, this is your labor, your work.

Give us an overview of your concept of why you started out here at the street.

- Well, it started five or six years ago, and I did this bed here.

Kind of surprised all the neighbors that I was out here digging.

And then more recently, within the last two months, I did all of this because I had significant wash.

And all the turf came down here, and this was more swampy.

The plants weren't doing really well.

And it was hard to get down here.

The drop off, I was having to come down the driveway.

So I made this path, I called it a switchback path to get down here.

- And then you curved it- - Yes.

- Instead of trying to make it something that was straight.

- Well, I couldn't, it was so steep.

- That's right.

- I could have put staircase, but then I would have to dig into the roots of the crepe myrtle.

- [Annette] This is more user-friendly than a staircase.

- [Bill] Yeah.

- Well, I know I see lots of amazing plants as we stand here.

You wanna point out a few that you'd like for us to talk about?

- Well, some of 'em are very common, but I love 'em and I do have to control them.

But the tall specimens are goldenrod.

- Wow.

- And I love goldenrod.

But if you don't control it, it will be everywhere.

So I like the linear, you know, and the height of it.

Also, this- - I know what you're looking at, the verbena.

- [Bill] Verbena is, what's nice about it is, you have it in your garden, you will have it forever.

- [Annette] I know.

And, you know, excuse me, the bees like to light on it.

The butterflies like to light on it.

And, you know, even though we might think things, some things are invasive, but it's just a yank away from being gone.

It's not something that digs in and sends out runners.

A lot of things are just this.

- Yes, exactly.

And the other thing that I love in the garden are hydrangea.

And so I added three hydrangea.

- A good choice is hydrangea.

- Yeah.

- [Annette] This is such a beautiful natural setting for your pond, Bill.

Tell me about how do you take care of this?

- It almost maintains itself.

I mean, it does take some cleaning up.

And I have a device that actually injects some beneficial bacteria that helps keep it clear.

And the goldfish actually keep it pretty clean.

I don't feed the goldfish.

They feed on the vegetative material.

And if you feed 'em, it gets too proteinacious and you get more sludge.

So, you know, but the goldfish have been here for 20 years.

- [Annette] So you keep it this way in the winter?

- Yes.

- You keep it running, or do you winterize it?

- [Bill] Oh no, I do put bird netting over it just to keep the leaves out.

- Yeah.

- [Bill] And then the bird netting comes off in the spring.

- So now as I look at the surroundings of this pond, what makes it so aesthetically pleasing to me is how you have built a backdrop that gives it, it's in a natural place.

Tell me about your selection of these plants.

- Well, it's the only thing in the garden that I didn't do myself 'cause of the heavy boulders and such.

But I told the landscaper, I needed it to be a living fence so that people couldn't see right into our house.

And I didn't want the people on the street knowing there was a pond up here.

So the trees were really meant to provide that living fence.

And it turns out this piece that dropped across here, Mother Nature did that.

It used to stick straight up, and then a ice storm caused it to bend over.

- [Annette] And it's given it such a wonderful curve.

And again, it completed your sense of needing privacy and not being able to see to the street.

And it's a perfect setting.

It's like you're almost in a mountain scene, isn't it?

- Yeah.

- It's wonderful.

- Yeah.

- I think your front landscaping shows that we don't have to go for adding big old color blobs, do we?

I love the selections of the foundation plantings that you have here.

So is there anything particularly that you're more fond of in this grouping?

- Well, I guess the only thing that was here in the front yard when we bought the house was that azalea.

- Yes.

- And I've never pruned it.

I let it do what it wants to do, and it's just glorious in the spring.

- And I love this plum yew.

- Yeah.

- [Annette] It's a spreader one.

And, you know, there is another yew that's upright.

And I have these in containers, and I love them used that way.

And you don't really see them very much, yews.

- [Bill] I know, and they do require some pruning.

- [Annette] Yeah, tell me about this Japanese maple.

It has a story, doesn't it?

- [Bill] It has a story.

That belonged to my next door neighbor.

And her father after she had to leave her home asked if I would take any of her gardening things including plants and such.

She had this maple in a pot.

And it had rooted through the pot.

And I dug it up because he said he needed all the pots removed.

And it found its new home here.

And that's only been in the ground about two months.

- I'm in love with what happens when you decide to grow moss instead of grass, Bill.

I know that you spend some time in this garden, don't you?

- I do.

- Yes.

So tell me where to start first if you decide to do this.

- Well, it takes overhead irrigation and shade.

And Mother Nature puts down the moss for you as long as you can eliminate any sod that you might have.

And then really to keep it looking like this requires hand weeding.

So you're on your hands and knees picking.

- I'll let you show us.

- A lot of this- - You don't use a buggy or anything?

- No.

- You just get down there.

- And you have to get the root.

- Yes.

- And that stuff would be everywhere if you didn't hand weed.

So to do this one patch right here would take 12 hours.

And I only do it two times a year.

- Okay.

- So I do it in the early spring when the first flush of leaves- - A thorough pulling of weeds.

- And I get it looking like this.

And then I let it go until midsummer, now.

- Yes.

- [Bill] So like this was groomed the last time about a month ago.

Well, maybe three weeks ago.

- [Annette] So when you started this, like, somebody will use sod to start a lawn.

Did you bring in any little patches of moss?

Or it just spread on its own from what was here?

- I didn't bring any patches, but it did start actually it turns out in this area right here.

And I did like take sections of it and moved it around.

- Oh, you started growing from the mother's plant and took it?

- Yes.

- [Annette] 'Cause I know it abounds here.

- [Bill] Yeah, so I did transplant pieces of it.

You know, and moss doesn't have a root system.

- [Annette] No, it's fibrous.

- [Bill] Alls you have to do is take a very shallow, you know, like a trowel.

Just lift it up and move it someplace else.

- We've had enormous amounts of precipitation.

Has that affected in a good way or a bad way on your moss?

- Good way.

- It's a good way.

- [Bill] This area, there's runoff from the driveway and it goes through the garden.

And after a rain, there's like little pools.

And they stay maybe an hour and then disappear.

The moss always looks more radiant after a rain.

- [Annette] Yes; well, and it has that dewy look.

Well, and another aspect that I'm thinking about is that this is a little bit of an incline here and so it flowing downhill.

This moss might keep you from having a washout in your lower part of your garden.

- [Bill] I think so.

- Well, as beautiful as moss is, you really have some nice specimens plants along here in this bed.

This creates a golden halo, doesn't it?

What is this hosta?

- [Bill] That's a Coast to Coast Hosta.

- [Annette] Is it?

- [Bill] It's one of the larger ones in the garden.

- [Annette] Does it come out emerged chartreuse?

Does it stay chartreuse all summer?

- [Bill] All summer.

- Sometimes they lose them.

- Yeah.

That one stays that way.

There's another variety right over there that's different.

- [Annette] Oh, I see it, yes.

Anytime we do lose a plant in our garden, we sort of grieve.

But you've taken this and made it a sculpture.

What was this in its first life?

- It was a red tip photinia.

- Those are beautiful, yes.

- And you can tell it didn't completely die because it's surrounding up there.

- Oh, I see it.

- [Bill] You know, it's gonna eventually return to the earth.

But until it does, I'm using it kind of as yard art.

(Bill chuckles) - [Annette] I have never seen the tree that you have planted here in the midst of your garden.

What is this?

- This is a understory tree.

It was actually a discard by a nursery.

I rescued it out of their dumpster.

But it's a Chinese parasol tree.

And it initially had very large leaves and didn't bloom.

And then after about 10 years, it started to bloom and the leaves shrunk.

But it's in full bloom right now.

- It was getting in its mature stage.

It was putting in its energy into the leaves, immature stage.

And it has matured now, so its energy is going to making the... That's a reproductive manner too for them.

Well, that is quite interesting.

I love a bench where you can sit and reflect, Bill.

I'm reflecting behind us.

And you have created somewhat of a secret area.

And along the way, you've lined the path with what I call some interesting plants.

For instance, you have a beautiful hosta there.

And that one is June, I believe.

- [Bill] It is.

- It's for this month, right?

- Uh-huh.

- [Annette] And just past that, I'm looking at a leaf that has a pattern in it.

It had some blooms on it.

Now what is that?

- [Bill] Well, the leaf is interesting.

It looks like a lance corporal's insignia, in the army?

- Okay.

- [Bill] So the common name is Lance Corporal, or Persicaria.

And it's a self-sowing woody perennial that is very difficult to control.

And it's hard to pull as well.

So if you want it in your garden, be prepared.

- Forewarned.

- [Bill] Forewarned, you will have lots of it.

- [Annette] I know.

I've got some plants I wish someone had.

Now then, we know that this is the season of the hydrangea.

And you have a beautiful lacecap back there.

- [Bill] That shrub has been in the ground probably 15 years.

- It's beautiful.

- [Bill] But I always just call them a serrata.

- Yes, it is.

- Or a mountain hydrangea.

The one behind it- - Oh, I see it.

- [Bill] Was actually a gift from the Mid-South Hydrangea society.

- A great organization.

- Yeah.

They had the garden on their tour years ago.

- [Annette] And you know, this one almost favors the foliage of Lady in Red.

- Yes.

- Those red stems.

- That could be it.

- [Annette] I do have that one.

But what I really like, in conclusion, is back behind your little pergola that you lighted, I love that forest of bamboo back there.

Do you struggle with controlling that?

- [Bill] Well, it has a subterranean barrier that keeps it out of the garden.

All along that perimeter and going back around the greenhouse which is behind it, there's a probably three-foot-deep ditch made with cinder blocks and concrete.

And I installed that eight years ago.

This bamboo came from my neighbor.

- It's visiting you.

- It's visiting.

And I liked it so much.

My wife thought I was crazy to let it come in, but I had a plan.

I needed it to shield my utility area I call it.

- It's another barrier.

- Another barrier, right.

But this is a nice spot.

It has heat.

It has a fan.

- [Annette] Wow.

- [Bill] During the pandemic, Ann and I spent probably most of our time sitting in that area.

- And you know, sitting here with you, I do know that Ann plays tennis and you garden.

And both of those what we call extracurricular things in your life are creating a life that's so well balanced.

'Cause both of those things work on you mentally and physically.

- Yeah, yeah.

- It's very special to see all the vertical and height that you have back here in this garden.

And it's covering over some of the... I love this yellow.

What did you say this is?

- It's a Cut-Leaf Rudbeckia.

- Cut-Leaf Rudbeckia.

- Or Coneflower.

- Yes, and I love the reflexing petals from that.

And I suppose that really attracts a lot of pollinators, - doesn't it?

- Yes.

Yes, it's normally loaded with butterflies.

- This is a penta, isn't it?

- Yes.

- [Annette] And people overlook this.

In fact, I'm not sure I've ever seen one growing this tall.

A lot of times, they're low in container gardens.

But this is a hummingbird attractor.

They love this plant.

- Yeah.

- [Annette] Then I can't say love enough because I admire that yellow bloom back there.

- [Bill] It's called a Lemon Meringue.

(chuckles) - Lemon Meringue.

- Water lily.

- [Annette] And you know what, that's not the only one you're gonna have.

I see one right in there.

See it?

- Oh yeah.

- [Annette] It's ready to come out.

Now do you have, like, mosquito larvae get in any of these?

- I use dunk.

- Oh.

- [Bill] Do you know dunk?

- [Annette] Yeah, is that a little round... - Mm-hmm.

- Okay.

- [Bill] It's a dehydrated microbacterium that actually kills the mosquito larvae.

- [Annette] It's user friendly, I guess.

- [Bill] Yes, pet friendly, bird friendly.

- Okay, and then you've also done the same thing as we go back up.

We're going up the path now.

We've come down, but now we're gonna go back up and see what you have in here.

Wow, you're about to have a great another variety of hydrangea.

- Yeah, that's the, was it paniculata?

- Yes, yeah.

- [Bill] It was huge and was damaged.

So you can see how big the- - Yeah, I do.

- [Bill] So it's much smaller now than it used to be.

- You know, it might be the PeeGee hydrangea.

You think?

- Yes, I think it is.

- I think it is.

- I think it is.

- But look how beautiful this begonia is, how it shows off underneath all of that.

So I'm looking at this, but you say it's different.

- [Bill] It's a water lily and it's probably in the wrong spot.

It needs more sun.

But I love the foliage.

- [Annette] So we switch from water lily to water lotus.

- [Bill] Yes, much bigger blossom.

It is an invasive aquatic.

So you don't wanna put it in your pond.

Otherwise, it'll take over the whole pond.

But in a barrel, it's very suited.

- [Annette] Well, yeah.

Now, is this the one after it blooms, it makes a pod that has little round balls in it?

- [Bill] Yeah, yeah, it looks like a shower head.

(chuckles) - [Annette] Oh yes.

Well actually, they are lovely, but I do know that they are invasive.

- [Bill] Yeah.

- [Annette] I think this is a good example of how wide a working border should be, Bill.

It's about four feet, isn't it?

- [Bill] Mm-hmm.

- [Annette] And access to it, of course, you have the fence behind.

But what a wonderful specimen you have in this hosta right here.

I think people really like that.

Guacamole, is it?

- It is, yeah.

- [Annette] And, you know, this is probably a plant that I've tried.

Are there different kinds of St John's wort?

- [Bill] Yes, there's a ground cover that I actually am more familiar with.

But this is called a shrubby St.

John's.

It's a shrub form.

And it self-sows, so this was the original.

But all along the border, you'll see it because the seeds have spread.

- [Annette] Yes, I see there.

The seed's starting to form right there.

And, you know, this has medicinal qualities too, doesn't it?

They say it does.

- Yeah, it does; right.

- [Annette] You know, I love this plant because I know what it is.

And I tried it.

And what is the name really of this?

- [Bill] It's the evergreen clematis.

- It goes where it wants to.

- It does.

So it's attached to this shrubby.

I should put it along the fence.

And it blooms early, early spring.

- [Annette] And you've used this another time to spotlight it with color from your hydrangea.

I love that color.

- That is a BloomStruck.

- BloomStruck.

- [Bill] But you've noticed how few the blossoms are this year.

- [Annette] Yes, and that varies from place to place.

- [Bill] Yeah, absolutely.

- [Annette] And it's hard to figure that out.

And of course, right here, we still have this large St.

John's wort.

And do you trim it to the ground in the fall or does that just- - No, I leave it alone.

Sometimes, you'll see I tie it up.

- Oh, I see, an anchor.

- 'Cause it falls over.

- Now this to me makes me think I'm in the depth of the jungle or something maybe where there was a dinosaur.

You think?

What is that fern?

- [Bill] I've always called it a Southern wood fern.

And I didn't plant it there.

It came from that stand over there.

- Oh, somehow it got here.

- Yeah.

- [Annette] Well, they put out little spores is how a fern propagates.

- Yeah.

- And it's got 'em on the back there.

But what is speaking to me as I stand here with you is this tree and how even though there's a fence there, it completes a look of the wonder, I'm gonna say, of your garden.

Because look at the wonder of the size of this tree and the angle of this fence and how it flows, and how I would say that maybe in your gardens how your knowledge, your nurturing spirit, and everything about what I have experienced here with you today began a long time ago.

- It did.

- And it echoes through your life work.

It echoes in your relation, your partnership with your wife.

Everything about you speaks to me is that your heart is full of nurturing.

And you can't have a garden like this unless you take care of it.

And that's what you've done all of your life is to nurture and take care.

And I'm very humbled at what I've seen here and what you've accomplished.

Because I know the work and the knowledge that you put in it.

Thank you.

(upbeat music) - For 20 years, I've been growing tomato plants on red plastic.

This is what I use.

It's commonly available at any garden supply place.

What you mainly want to look for, and I buy it by the roll, but you wanna make sure that it's nice and thin, this red plastic.

They make it in different thicknesses.

So get the thinnest one that you can find.

And let me tell you why we use this.

One of the things that's really important about plastic is that it holds moisture into the soil.

It also heats up the soil.

So I can plant my plants earlier than normal because I've heated up the soil underneath.

Another thing that it does, it deters weeds and insects.

And then the best part about this is that it will hold moisture in the heat of the summer.

But you'll see that this reflects light up onto the plant.

And the reason we want this to happen is the red tricks the plant into thinking that it needs to grow faster so it'll grow fast and strong.

And research shows that you'll get about a 20% bigger yield on your crop by using red plastic on it.

You can also use red plastic mulch if you want to.

But I've just found that the roll of red plastic works the best and it's the easiest to use.

Now let's talk about our cages.

Cages are very important because you've got a lot of plant and fruit that you're going to need to give some support to.

What I like to use is concrete wire.

This is really inexpensive.

It's less than $10.

You can find it just about anywhere.

And what I like to do is buy it in six-feet lengths.

And what I do is cut it so that I can make this round circle.

So I'll cut it to six feet.

And what I do at the bottom is I just cut all of these prongs so that I've got a wire I can stick down into the ground.

One of the things this will do is it supports your tomato plants all year long through the whole growing season.

It's also easy for you to get to and harvest the product out of.

So it's just the perfect thing.

I've been using these particular cages for about 15 years.

So for that $10, you really get your money's worth as far as a cage goes and as far as support for your plants.

My tomato bed is three feet by 25 feet, and I have eight plants in it.

The determinate varieties that I have are Celebrity, Mountain Pride, and Mountain Fresh, which are wonderful tomato plants that are resistant to disease.

That's the reason I picked them.

The indeterminate variety that I've got, which means that it can grow and grow and grow not really to a specific length, is my Sweet 100s that are the cherry tomatoes.

So that's what I've got on the end here.

Now, very important to label your tomatoes.

You think that you'll remember them through the season, but you don't.

So if you have really good success, you wanna make sure you know the variety of that.

And I just use a regular plant marker with a Sharpie, and that will last through the whole season.

The variety that I plant every year that is my favorite is Mountain Pride.

The reason I like it so much: it's perfect for sauce, it's perfect for ketchup.

And at the end of the season, it's perfect for green tomato relish.

So I'll start harvesting these probably in July, and that will go until frost.

So it's got a nice long harvest, a great tomato to use in the kitchen, and it's delicious on a sandwich.

(upbeat music) (playful theme music)