Sunday, September 07, 2003

By Lynda Guydon Taylor, Post-Gazette Staff Writer

When a Peters group tapped Bob and Dorothy Schultz to be part of this summer's "More Than a Garden Tour," the couple decided it was time to make more of their yard.

They'd always dreamed of incorporating a pond into their plan. That and a deck became a major part of the makeover.

The Schultzes simply expanded on the nautical theme they chose for their garden years earlier when their daughter wanted to be married in the back yard. She wed a man from New Jersey, and the Schultzes capitalized on the shore connection.

So began the nautical-themed garden.

The result is a garden realized through a variety of innovative touches: a boat sunk into the front yard and filled with wax begonia; tropical plants throughout in deference to the nautical theme; and, of course, the newly installed backyard pond and waterfall.

Dorothy, who recently showed the garden to visitors, called it a nice learning experience although a harrowing one, with the Schultzes working long and hard to finish the project.

"The proceeds went to the Women's Shelter of Washington and Peters Township Library. So we thought it was well worth it," Dorothy said of the fund-raiser sponsored by The Peters Township Newcomers Club.

At first, her husband considered using the boat to contain the pond but decided against the idea when told a free-form shape would work better.

"So I said, 'Great. We've had this boat for five years. What are you going to do with it?' He said, 'I'm going to take it in the front yard and sink it,' and that's what he did."

Bob, a landscaper, cut the boat in half, planted it in the ground and filled the cavity with wax begonias and surrounded them with geraniums and coleus. The effect is a mass of show-stopping red. The white of nearby dusty miller and variegated vinca provide contrast.

To further convey the nautical theme, the Schultzes drew heavily on tropical plants, stocking up during a trip last winter to the Florida Keys. With colder weather on the way, Dorothy is looking for homes for the plants.

"We knew we were going with a nautical theme, and palms are nautical, so that's what we did," a laughing Dorothy said of their decision to include plants better suited to a warmer climate.

Among the tender tropicals are fuchsia-colored bougainvillea, palms, purple-leafed Persian shield, bird of paradise, banana, Key lime and lemon trees. Baskets of Mexican heather, silver mound and a firecracker plant hang from overhead. It all works to set the beach mood.

A mini-lighthouse also suggests the shore, as does a small wood sign marked Tyler Beach, after the Schultzes' 3-year-old grandson, who enjoys playing in the pond.

Beds elsewhere in the landscape feature plants and trees more suitable to zone 6 such as Japanese maple, cleome, daylilies, cotoneaster, roses, weeping cherry and a variety of grasses. Humongous Norway and Colorado blue spruce provide a natural arbor to the rear patio area.

A tub filled with parsley, ornamental peppers, mint and cool-weather ornamental cabbage make up a "vegetable bowl."

Another area of the yard showcases a teepee from which hanging geraniums are suspended and contrast with rudbeckia on the ground.

The piece de resistance, however, is the 20-by-25-foot pond, a major undertaking requiring about 20 tons of fieldstone and 3 tons of gravel. It is topped by a waterfall that feeds a "stream" leading to the pond.

Goldfish swim in the pond among water lilies, pickerel rush, cattails, dwarf papyrus and black fountain grass. A goldfish vine, whose tiny flowers mimic the fish shape, pokes from stone surrounding the pond. A dolphin "plays" among the real fish as a flamingo statue "wades" into the water. The deck where the couple sometimes has dinner in the evening serves as a backdrop.

"I definitely would not change anything. I love it," Dorothy said.

If you'd like to have your home featured in Home Showcase, contact Lynda Guydon Taylor at 724-746-8813 or e-mail ltaylor@post-gazette.com

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