Park Hill Garden Walk 2019: Reflecting Lifetimes Of Experience
Gardeners Pour Passions Into Their Soil
By Jean Ercolani
Garden Walk Organizer
A multitude of gardeners will open up their spaces for public viewing at this year’s Garden Walk, and I recently had the privilege of talking with three of them. I was expecting to tour their yards and talk a little about their gardens in terms of what inspired their design, what they they like best and what frustrations they experience with their gardens. What I got was much more. The depth of sharing tapped into childhood memories, vacations, family experiences, relationships and some deep emotional feelings that connect them to their gardens.
Christina Saetta – Influenced By Travel
As the conversations with gardeners progressed, the catalyst for their garden design became quite evident. For Christina Saetta, it was her love of travel combined with her love of entertaining. Her goal was to extend an indoor entertaining space to the backyard while incorporating some of her favorite things from her numerous trips to Italy and Hawaii. You’ll see evidence of both throughout her landscape design, including the use of vines, an abundance of colorful flowers and tiki lights.
Christina has also created a multi-functional space that includes a living room, dining room, bar and lounge area. Her creative repurposing of various materials is another passion. Recycled, reused and repurposed items are scattered throughout. For example, she made a coffee table and a fabulous bar out of wooden pallets. The bar also happens to be a favorite gathering spot for Christina and her guests.
Christina’s yard was in bad shape when she bought her house. She solicited the help of professional landscaper to get things started, and then put her own personal touch and creations into this inviting space.
Danielle & Eric Young – A Family Affair
The garden of Danielle and Eric Young is a celebration of their entire family. For Danielle it began as a child. Her mother has been her most influential gardening mentor, and Danielle cherishes the shared affinity they have to feel the dirt on their bare hands. Even some of the plants in their yard have been precariously transported from her parent’s Minnesota home. When these plants begin to emerge from the soil, Danielle is comforted by the physical reminder of her family roots.
When the Youngs bought their house, the outdoor space was in horrible shape. Weeds were the primary inhabitants of the front yard. With two small children, the couple’s gardening time was limited. After putting the kids to bed, they would put on headlamps and start digging up weeds at night. Eric’s father, Gordon stepped in with some ideas and assistance. Danielle refers to Gordon as the ultimate facilitator of their garden. She is clearly grateful for the tremendous amount of help he provides with not-so-fun work such as sprinkler repair, cleanup, soil tilling, lawn mowing and building. When the Youngs share their landscape vision with Gordon, he finds a way to use his own creativity to make their dreams a reality.
Even the couple’s two young children get in on the gardening. They are often playing restaurant in their bistro, fixing up their fairy garden or creating masterpieces in the sandbox.
Their yard offers a bit of an international experience as well. The front is reminiscent of an English cottage with the white picket fence and interesting gate design. The side yard is an Indonesian serenity space with white and green plants and Indonesian art scattered about. The vegetable garden is designed as a French Potager, which means it is intermingled with vegetables, fruits, flowers and herbs.
“Our garden can be a celebration of our entire family,” Danielle says, “from my mom’s influences/gardening advice and Gordon’s hard work, my vision, Eric’s insightful input, and the cute touches from the kids, it truly is a space created from generations in our family.”
Becky Peters-Combs & Keith Combs – It All Started With A Small Fish
Becky Peters-Combs went to the Botanic Gardens for the first time after her sister’s boyfriend died of bone marrow cancer at the age of 19. She found the gardens mesmerizing, with the waterfalls and tropical plants, particularly the banana trees. These two experiences got her thinking about heaven. She’d never given much thought to the idea of heaven before then, but as a result of these events, she ultimately decided that is was her job to create her own.
Jumping forward several years, Becky and her husband Keith Combs decided to put in a small 300-gallon preformed pond. They bought some small koi fish for $3.99 each from PetSmart and thus it began. One of the fish, Whitie, was only about 3” long, but he got bigger, and bigger and bigger. So, they expanded to a 650-gallon pond, and then to three ponds totaling 2,700 gallons. Whitie is now 14 years old and quite large. As a result, they have three separate ponds that total 3,400 gallons. Let me say, Whitie has a magnificent home.
The Combs now have a total of 34 koi fish. The 300-gallon pond is now the home of bullfrogs. Another pond houses seven smaller koi fish and the big pond accommodates the remaining 27 koi, including Whitie. Although the ponds are a significant part of the yard design, there is a lot more to this incredible space. Their entire yard was dug by hand and each stone was hand picked and placed throughout this yard. The rocks that shape the ponds are softened by the plants used in and around the ponds. A quaint seating area with a re pit in the center is accessed by a small bridge. Other colorful flowers dot the yard and the roses were each selected for their fragrance.
I asked each of these gardeners a handful of questions about these special spaces and here’s what they said.
JE: What is your favorite place in your garden and why?
Christina Saetta highlighted several aspects that make it to the list of favorites. She did a lot of work to open the yard up and bring connection between the patio and other areas in the yard. She particularly likes hanging out in the hammock or lounge chairs next to the fountain. You can see various areas of the yard from there. Plus, it is a great place at night for watching the moon and stars. She calls this area her “zen zone.” It makes her feel at peace and provides a mini vacation in her own backyard. She also likes the bar area when entertaining. It’s a favorite gathering place for guests. She also has a table that seats four, but expands to seat eight. Between that, the bar area and the lounge, she has plenty of comfortable entertainment space.
Danielle & Eric Young: For Danielle, the veggie garden is her favorite. It goes from dirt to plants reaching over 7 feet in height from May to August. She can see the veggie garden from her kitchen window and loves watching the change from day to day. Other favorite areas include the dining area in the serenity garden and the back deck, which is like another living room that looks out at the perennial garden, the children’s bistro and their sandbox. Danielle and Eric frequently find themselves looking over their garden and sharing a silent nod, grateful for all the beauty around them and the gift that their outdoor space has given them, a thread tying together the generations of their family.
Becky Peters-Combs & Keith Combs: This was an easy question for Becky. She and her husband love sitting at the table on their back porch. It overlooks the entire yard and brings peace and tranquility. They eat breakfast, lunch and dinner on the back porch throughout the summer. Keith uses this area for his office as well. Becky explains her yard as her own creation of heaven. “When I am there with my friends and family, I am in my heaven. For me, it couldn’t get better than this.”
JE: What are your biggest frustrations with your garden?
Christina Saetta: The grass. Keeping a nice healthy lawn is a constant battle when you have a dog.
Danielle and Eric Young: For Eric it’s the environmental frustration. How do you balance the beauty of a garden and water usage? How do you balance enough water, but not too much so that it is wasteful? The other frustration is sprinklers. Enough said.
Becky Peters-Combs & Keith Combs: Worrying about the health and wellbeing of the fish. This is particularly true in the winter. The pumps, filters and stock tank heater all have to be working properly at all times or the fish will get sick and die. The last time the electricity went out, Keith had to go buy a battery operated aerator to keep the water flowing and keep the ponds from freezing on top. Becky has also been known to put hot water in the ponds to keep them from freezing.
JE: What do people notice most about your garden?
Christina Saetta: People always congregate in the outdoor living room, bar and patio area. They also enjoy the ambiance that all the tiki lights provide. The veggie garden is another area that people admire.
Danielle and Eric Young: A crowd favorite is the trellis and purple cabbage out front. They get tons of comments about the purple cabbage. It gets huge and the color is amazing. Another favorite is the vegetable garden.
Becky Peters-Combs & Keith Combs: People are mesmerized by the whole yard and the relaxing feeling the water features provide. It is total serenity.
JE: What words of wisdom can you share with people who would like to create their own special garden space?
Christina Saetta: Don’t be afraid to experiment and be creative with different elements. She sited the garage art as an example. She is big on using recycled furniture and sprucing it up. She also recommended playing with different elements that aren’t necessarily outdoors items.
Danielle and Eric Young: Just start! If you have a big space, don’t be afraid to ask a gardener for help. Have a professional landscape designer draw up a plan. It’s worth the investment. Don’t get frustrated. It’s an evolution. Work the soil. You cannot skip this step. Good soil is the foundation of a successful garden. As Danielle said, “plants vote by their roots.” Danielle also talked about the lasagna gardening method. She swears by it. Google “lasagna gardening method” for more information.
Becky Peters-Combs & Keith Combs: Specifically to ponding, you have to love fish, you have to love slimy things and you have to be willing to ask for help. Becky also referred to herself as having a “blue mind,” meaning she loves water.
The Park Hill Garden Walk committee is a group of volunteers working to raise funds to support the Greater Park Hill Community mission. Greater Park Hill Community, Inc., is a volunteer-based registered neighborhood organization that promotes the character and vibrancy of Park Hill through its resources, information and advocacy, all while preserving the quality of life and the history of the neighborhood through community participation. Learn more at greaterparkhill.org.
A Few Gardening Tips
Hang, Soap, Sleep, Creep, Leap
Danielle Young reads a lot of gardening books and shared a few gardening tips.
Fill, Thrill and Spill: Hanging baskets should have three primary elements. The fill is the primary flower that makes up most of the basket. The thrill is an attention getter like a spike plant. The spill is a plant that flows over the side of the basket like sweet potato vine.
Fill Your Fingernails With Soap: Scrape your fingernails on a bar of soap before you start working in the dirt. This keeps the dirt out and then you just wash out the soap.
Sleep. Creep. Leap: Perennials need three years to get fully established. Think of it like this. The first year they sleep. The second year they creep. The third year they leap.
The Fine Print: How To Get Tickets
The 19th annual Park Hill Garden Walk is Sunday, June 23 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Advance tickets are $15, senior tickets (age 65+) are $12 and children under 12 are free. Tickets available online at parkhillgardenwalk.org or at these Park Hill locations.
• City Floral: 1440 Kearney St.
• Spinelli’s Market: 4621 E. 23rd Ave.
• Cake Crumbs: 2216 Kearney St.
• Park Hill Community Book Store: 4620 E 23rd Ave.
• Park Hill Library: 4705 Montview Blvd.
• Pauline Robinson Library: 5575 E 33rd Avenue
• Ace On The Fax: 7100 E Colfax Ave.
With the exception of the libraries, the locations listed above will sell tickets the day of the event for $18. They will also be available at all garden locations which will be listed on the website (www.parkhillgardenwalk.org) the day of the event. (Note: Check out last month’s issue for a story detailing the Dahlia Campus for Health and Well-Being, which is also on this year’s tour of gardens.)