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.
  

Garden Tour Photos




 Radler home - garden entrance House and garden H. 'Great Expectations' H. 'Night before Christmas'
 




H. 'Pacific Blue Edger' H. 'Remember Me' Meandering Stream Bill's mutation of
H. 'Sum and Substance'
   




Rosa 'Tutti-fruitti' Rosa 'Tutti-fruitti' Test Area Trial Beds

 
My Visit: Donna Priester
White's Creek, TN
H. 'Night Before Christmas'
Climbing Rose - 'Can-Can'
 
Front Walkways
Although hostas hold top billing in my garden and are my plant of choice, like most plant geeks, I am stimulated by all things foliage and flora.  So, I was especially excited when I learned that I’d be visiting and reviewing the garden of the guy who’d developed the Knock Out® rose, and who was named the 2008 Great Rosarian of the World!  When the online photos of the Bill Radler garden included aerial views, I had a clue that there would be a lot to experience in this tour garden.  Indeed.

Approaching the plot of ground between the street and the entrance to the front yard, I observed several clumps of hostas, including Hosta ‘Sun Power’, ‘Praying Hands’, ‘Guacamole’, and ‘Remember Me’, affording a nice first impression.  Upon entering the property along a central pathway flanked by stately brick columns, I saw roses (of course), lots of roses in many colors and forms.  There were clumps, bushes, limbed-up rose topiaries and vigorous climbers espaliered against the front walls of the large home.  Zack, an energetic, personable, young man, who currently works as an intern on the Radler property, suddenly greeted me.  Without hesitation, he walked a few feet away to point out the shrub that he proudly informed me was the original Knock Out® rose plant.  Wow, I thought: imagine that.  Just then, a small voice in my head reminded me that I was there to see hostas.  I didn’t have to look far.  Directly in front of the original Knock Out® rose plant was an intermittent border of lovely golden H. ‘Little Aurora.’  As the border continued to the other side of the entry pathway, ‘Little Aurora’ was joined by several more hostas, including ‘Summer Fragrance’ and a H. plantaginea, simply labeled "Fragrant Plantain Lily."  This front area was actually dominated by hostas, namely ‘Sagae’, ‘Stained Glass’, and ‘Blue Ice’, used repeatedly in a bed closer to the front of the house.  Tucked in this area was a hosta labeled with a numerical designation.  Hmmm … I wonder, does Bill Radler cross more than just roses?  (I’d get the answer to this question a bit later.)  The front yard garden also displayed an interesting mix of other plantings, among them a Magnolia ‘Ann’ tree (a member of the “Little Girl” series of hybrid magnolias developed in the mid-fifties), a Tri-Color Beech tree, mounds of ginger and sedum, and a dense ground cover of golden Lysimachia nummularia ‘Aurea’.  The manner in which the perennial combinations were assembled made them all appear to be naturally, even randomly, occurring and not the least bit contrived.  This made for a calm and pleasant beginning to the dramatic beauty about to unfold just beyond the large gate leading to the rest of the property.

Passing through the opening, one immediately experienced sensory overload – the sight of a two acre expanse of gardens, creating a sprawling vista, luring you to explore the vision of evergreens and other plantings in raised masonry beds; the smell of roses, flowering plants, and blooming annuals; and the sound of running water from a large, fish-populated pond with a waterfall that flows into a manmade stream meandering through much of the property.  I then noticed to my right three hostas:  a H. ‘Night before Christmas’ and two clumps of ‘Pacific Blue Edger’. 

The back of the Radler home was skirted by a large patio that was buzzing with the activity of several workers in green T-shirts.  Other workers were scattered around the entire property.  Clearly, this was a working garden.  A massive outdoor fireplace anchored the patio.  Looking out beyond the patio were the stars of the show, row after row of roses in all colors.  Each plant was numbered and labeled with specific information about its characteristics.  

While slowly strolling through the rows of lovely roses, my eye was suddenly drawn to a sizeable bush at the back of this area.

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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