Published: July 18, 2008 02:00 pm         

Step into gardeners' paradise

Couple creates peaceful retreat

ATTICA, Ind. — If you’ve always longed to be that inspired gardener whose lawn and garden are the envy of the neighbors, then read on.

Carolyn and Leonard Sells of Attica, Ind., shared some practical advice on how they’ve gone about developing their flower gardens since they built their home in the country about eight years ago.

The couple lives on property that belonged to Leonard’s grandparents, Leonard and June Hildenbrand. Even though the Hildenbrands’ home burned to the ground 10 years ago, the Sellses have salvaged a few items that Leonard remembers from his childhood. They include a set of windows that inspired their whimsical garden shed, and a wooden sign, which they found in the barn rafters and had restored for their own bird sanctuary.

The Sellses have not always been expert gardeners. Carolyn moved to Indiana from California, where she worked as laboratory supervisor in a hospital. Leonard is originally from Williamsport, Ind., and considers himself a jack of all trades. He also has a proven track record based on his carpentry skills.

Carolyn said over the years she and Leonard have taught themselves about gardening by paging through a lot of gardening books. “We’ve also learned through the process of trial and error,” she added.

LITTLE AT A TIME

When they moved to their Attica home, the couple used their creativity and love for the outdoors to initiate a landscaping project on their 8 acres of grassy terrain. By working on one major garden project each year, Carolyn and Leonard have made enough headway to showcase their beautiful gardens in last month’s Attica Garden Walk.

Even though they have 8 acres available to them, the Sellses have created their numerous flower beds close to their house, within easy reach of their extra-long garden hose.

They have a number of sitting areas, with different types of lawn furniture, wrought iron occasional tables, and oversized sun umbrellas — because they have practically no established shade trees. Most of the existing trees were planted by Carolyn and Leonard when they moved to the property.

Nearly all of their annual flowers are confined to containers of all shapes and sizes, which are grouped on the patio adjacent to their house.

“The patio is where we spend most of our evenings,” Carolyn said. “Even though I need to water the containers every night if it doesn’t rain, it only takes me about half an hour.”

The assorted flower pots are overflowing with colorful petunias, million bells, trailing verbenas, and red geraniums. The Sellses were creative in selecting their floral containers. For example, they used a number of galvanized milk pails (with holes punched in the bottoms), and a quaint old washtub with two sinks that they found at a junk store.

Carolyn uses potting soil mix only in the top one-third of her containers and fills the rest of the pot with inexpensive soil. “Don’t waste your good potting mix in the bottom two-thirds of your container,” she said.

Because they have virtually no shade on their patio, the Sellses have strung up a shade sail in a corner of the area. That way they can grow some shade-loving plants that they especially enjoy, including lush ferns, fragrant gardenias and a variety of hostas in containers.

Leonard has built a fire ring, as well as an attractive gazebo that serves as a focal point for cookouts and other gatherings. The bamboo wind chimes under the gazebo sound continuously in the breeze, and add a nice touch to the otherwise quiet setting.

On the opposite, or front side of the house, there’s a porch that runs its entire length. Their home is situated on a high hill, so that on a clear day one can sit on the porch and see the skyline of Attica.

UNIQUE LAYOUTS

Moving away from the concrete patio and into the back yard, a visitor to the Sellses’ home will find a variety of flower beds, each with a unique configuration. Carolyn said they’ve discovered a foolproof method of laying out their flower beds to get the exact configuration that they want.

“We lay out the garden hose into the shape that we want our flower bed to take, and keep moving it around until it looks right,” she explained.

One of the flower beds is edged with sandstone bricks that were salvaged from a home that was torn down in Attica. Most of these beds are landscaped exclusively with perennials, including such varieties as sunny yellow coreopsis, perennial geraniums, and blooming spirea bushes.

The Sellses confine their perennials to tidy groupings, separating each variety by large sections of mulch. “When planting perennials, always remember that they will spread and eventually take over your garden if you don’t thin them out,” Carolyn said. “In the fall or spring you should move some of your abundant perennials to flower beds that are sparse and need filling in.”

The tool shed that Leonard built serves as a focal point for one of their perennial gardens. They have secured old bed rails around the outer walls of the shed to form a trellis for the deep purple clematis. Showy stella de oro lilies and a hedge of boxwoods encircle the shed.

Other flowering plants have been carefully selected so there is something in bloom during every season. There’s sedum and Mediterranean pinks in the spring, lavender and Veronica (or speedwell) in the summer, and gaillardia and sundrop daisies that will bloom until the first frost.

In the spring, the Sellses have a resplendent display of irises that came from the Hildenbrands’ garden, as well as an abundance of tulips and daffodils.

FOR THE BIRDS

The Sellses are especially pleased with their bird sanctuary. They have attracted birds of all varieties, including a pileated woodpecker. In addition to the many bird feeders, this garden area displays purple cone flowers, butterfly bushes, blazing star lianthus, red pokers, balloon flowers, and a plum tree that bears lush fruit in late summer.

They have used their open yard area for the more invasive vining plants, including the trumpet vine and honeysuckle, as well as some flowering bushes and trees.

At the end of the couple’s driveway is a showy bed featuring orange and yellow zinnias, statuary, boxwoods, knockout roses, and other varieties of roses, with an impressive blue spruce tree as the centerpiece. This colorful area provides an inviting entranceway into their garden of paradise.

A noteworthy landmark at their driveway entrance is a 6-ton rock that was unearthed when the land was excavated to build their home.

“This rock isn’t going anyplace soon,” Leonard said.

These ideas will help you enjoy your garden

GARDENING HELP

Here are some gardening tips from Carolyn and Leonard:

— Plant annuals in containers that you can place close to your house for easy watering.

— Use good potting soil only in the top one-third of your container and fill up the rest of the pot with inexpensive soil.

— Thin out perennials every year and transplant them into an open flower bed.

— To create a new flower bed, first scrape off the ground with a weed eater. Lay down a coat of Preen, fill in with a good soil mixture, and surround your plants with 2-3 inches of mulch to control weeds and keep in the moisture.

— If the border around a flower bed is uneven, add a couple feet of mulch or ground cover beyond the border. You can mow right up to where the mulch or ground cover begins.

— Create a natural border by digging a trough that is several inches deep around your flower bed, and fill it in with mulch. This will help to prevent grass from creeping into your garden.

— Find old containers at junk yards and flea markets to use as flower pots. Make sure they have holes in the bottom for proper drainage.

— Buy flowering plants that are drought tolerant and that bloom all summer.

— Try to have something blooming all through the growing season.

— Place stepping stones or pathways in your flower beds so you can easily access your plants.

— Take the time every day to sit back and enjoy your garden.

FYI

Carolyn and Leonard Sells have a lawn care and landscaping business, which they have operated since 1992. They can be reached at (765) 762-0539.