the garden of
Bill Radler
The
name Bill
Radler may be familiar to some gardeners.
Bill is the creator of the Knock Out®
rose. Bill is a
rose breeder with an extensive
collection of roses of all types.
Bill’s
goal is to develop roses that are showy, disease free, and easy to care
for. Thus far, he
has developed seven
varieties of Knock Out® roses.
While much of his garden is dedicated to roses and
his breeding program,
he loves all types of plants.
His two acre
garden is extensively landscaped with all types of interesting plants. There are many interesting
and unusual trees
and shrubs, both deciduous and evergreen.
He primarily uses perennials, but grows many
interesting and unusual
annuals as well to fill in the garden. In addition to
unusual plants, the garden includes ponds, waterfalls, sculpture, and
an
extensive stream that meanders through the yard.
The sloping garden uses stone to create
terraces, raised garden beds, waterfalls, and a very large outdoor
fireplace
and seating area. There’s
even an
outdoor shower. This is truly a
gardener’s garden that we all enjoyed. |
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White's Creek, TN
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Upon closer inspection, I observed an incredibly striking multi-colored rose that I later learned was called Rosa ‘Tutti-fruitti.’ This stunner has not yet been introduced to the market, so I felt especially privileged to have had this first glance. Then
something else
beautiful caught by attention. Located
just behind these rows of roses was a shady spot that was home to H. ‘Fortunei Aurea’, H.
‘Happiness’, and H.
rohdeifolia ‘Bill’s
Selection’. The
hostas provided a nice
segue from the sunny rose beds to the grassy, treed, shade just behind
them. Then
to my pleasant surprise, Zack returned with Mr. Radler, who graciously
welcomed
me to his garden. As
we conversed, he
shared some interesting facts with me. He’s
been on the property since 1992. No
doubt, an awful lot has been accomplished in twenty-one years. I also learned that the
property is located on
a flood plain, and that it is occasionally under water.
That gave a practical application for the
raised planting beds on the lower elevations of the garden. I
asked Bill the usual questions about how his interest in gardening and
passion
for roses began. Like
many of us, he
started as a child (at age 9), planting with his mother. Later, he desired to develop
an easy care rose
that was less labor intensive. After
many trials and a passage of years, the rose we all love, the Knock Out®
was produced. Now,
the moment of truth – hostaholic meets rosarian. The
Loaded Question: Have
you considered hybridizing hostas? Bill
admitted that he had already, in fact,
experimented in crossing some varieties. He
said that although he hasn’t yet ventured
into the arena of hosta hybridization, he doesn’t exactly ‘close the
door’ on
the idea. “Anything’s
possible,” he
said, smiling. I
guess we’ll have to
wait and see. At
this point I was given a map of the entire Radler garden property. The specific locations where
hostas were
planted had been marked (how thoughtful). The
names of the hosta varieties were also
listed, along with their locations in the garden. I
was then able to proceed easily on my hosta
hunt. I was
surprised to find some 103
hostas, of which eight plants were identified with numerical
designations,
likely those hybridized by Radler. What
an unforgettable experience the Radler garden provided! Undoubtedly, the rose was
center stage here,
but it was obvious that the gardener has no lack of admiration and
appreciation
for many other evergreens, deciduous trees, shrubs and perennials,
among them
the beloved hosta. The
selection and
placement of hostas in this garden was carefully and masterfully done. So much so, in fact, that
they glowed in their
“supporting” roles. There
was one area
that displayed large varieties of hostas, such as ‘Big Daddy’, ‘Big
Mama’, and
‘Blue Umbrellas’. Another
area showcased
a grouping of small hostas, which included
‘Blue Mouse Ears’, ‘Country Mouse’, ‘Curly Fries’,
‘Little Sunspot’, and
‘Mighty Mouse’. I
overheard Bill say to another visitor that we should all do what we
love and
that gardening (even to the extent that Bill Radler has taken it)
should be
fun. He went on to
say that when it
ceases to be fun, we should find a way to make it fun again. Ergo, the Knock Out®
rose. Actually,
that pretty much describes the
entire Radler garden-a knockout for sure! |
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