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Community Corner

Garden of the Month Features Retaining Walls, Koi Pond

Passionate gardening is apparent in the Manzer's yard on Dauphine.

If you have ever driven on Dauphine Road heading out toward Highway 40/64 you may have noticed this back yard. It has several stone retaining levels built up a slope toward the house and each area contains shrubs such as Burning bush, Boxwood, Coreopsis, Daylily, a variety of Hosta perennials, Hydrangeas, Knock Out roses, a Weeping Cherry tree, and several Boston Ferns hanging under the deck. I look at it every time I drive by.

Given the heat and lack of rain we have had this summer, I’m quite impressed that this yard still looks really good, which is a testament to Vince and Tommye Manzer’s hard work trying to keep everything alive. I have seen it when the Coreopsis and Daylilies, Roses and Hydrangeas are in bloom. But even now, without flowers, it’s a quite interesting yard. Vince said that there used to be more trees, but they lost a few to disease and some had to be removed when the retaining walls were installed.

I brought this yard to the attention of the Garden of the Month committee of Jardin du Lac garden club and thought it deserved recognition, which it received.

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It wasn’t until I drove around to the front yard that I discovered the wonderfully hidden Koi pond and beautiful landscaping around it. Vince and Tommye said that when they moved in 17 years ago, the pond was already there in addition to a four-foot wall around it which blocked their view of the street. This renovation of removing the wall was one of the first things they changed.

The shrubs of Azaleas, Euonymus and Boxwood and perennials were brought in to create a small amount of privacy from the street. This is one of those surprise elements I’ve mentioned before. It’s best not to be able to see everything in one glance. I only saw the pond as I approached the front door. Then my reaction was, “Oh wow, I didn’t know that was there." The original gravel around the pond was replaced with larger and more colorful rock.

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The west side yard started with hybrid tea roses that were eventually replaced with the Knock Out Roses which grow much better. As the rose garden grew, so did their ideas surrounding it. Vince then built the gazebo and the garden grew even larger.

The east side yard was really the first to be renovated because they had to deal with a large erosion problem. Vince built the stone wall to solve that problem and it created another small hidden garden with a bench and a Lilac tree, Hostas, Hydrangea, Yew and Azalaea shrubs.

Vince and Tommye have done most all of the renovation work themselves, except for the retaining walls in the back yard. It certainly shows that they both have a passion for gardening. They both believe that a landscape should always be evolving to keep it interesting. Tommye uses different annuals each year for just that reason.

Their love of nature isn’t limited to plants but also wildlife. They have several bird feeders, hummingbird feeders, bird houses, bird baths and one very large water dish. They have watched a family of raccoons drinking and fishing in their pond.

One day they noticed a hummingbird lying on one of the lily pads in their pond. It was unconscious from flying into their window. They picked it up and moved it to their front porch and sat out there with it until the bird moved but it became apparent that it couldn’t fly. As evening approached they brought it into their screened porch and sat it on a hummingbird feeder to eat, which it was able to do. Tommye checked on the hummingbird every half hour through out the night to make sure it was ok. By morning it still couldn’t fly so they took it to the Wildlife Bird Rehabilitation Center in Maryland Heights where it could be taken care of. A few days later they found out that it was doing well. Now that is a true love of nature.

 

If you are interested in gardening, learning about gardening or joining a garden club, stop by the Community Association Clubhouse, the second Monday morning of each month and sit in on a meeting of the Jardin du Lac Garden Club.  Meetings start at 9:30 a.m.

If you have a beautifully landscaped yard or have unique garden ornaments that you are proud of and would like to see featured on Patch.com, or have any gardening questions, contact Peggy at Bahrmasel@msn.com.

 

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