Landscaping Vignettes

Stunning curb appeal is your first thought as you view Jeff and Barb Wendorf’s front yard. Perfectly balanced with a variety of interesting focal points and a spectacular array of perennials and annuals of every type imaginable.

Best of all, the excitement doesn’t stop there because it is extended throughout the entire yard, even the side yard and curbside where groupings of personal items near and dear to Barb’s history are featured amidst plantings that pay close attention to form and function.

Their front yard features an oasis of perennials and annuals, grouped together in sets of three, a parameter most avid gardeners adhere to quite closely, contrasted with different ground levels and hardscaping providing continuous interest.

This oasis area was created to hide the septic system cement and covers that are above ground, a creative solution indeed!

Above: The front yard spotlight feature shown above and on the opposite page, offer many eye-catching components such as the arbor, a quaint, raised seating area and a washtub filled with coleus & nasturtiums. Right: Fairy gardens are always popular, but Barb raised the bar when she installed this “magic mailbox” in which she inserts presents for the grandchildren when they visit. If the red flag is up, they know they have a present! Creeping thyme, morning glories and succulents anchor the setting.

Barb, a first-class gardener and retired nurse, never attended any gardening classes or programs but rather learned like a lot of us, from her closest relatives.

Barb’s mother, her grandfather and her great uncle were all avid gardeners. She worked with them in their various gardens from the time she was quite young.

Her grandfather had a vegetable and flower hobby farm with rabbits and a nanny goat. She spent many summers learning how to weed, grow and cultivate plants.

Above: The white basket with petunias, morning glories and Dusty Miller, is from Barb’s great grandmother, Catherine, a florist, who made wedding and funeral arrangements from her own garden’s flowers. Barb’s granddaughter, Catherine, her great grandmother’s namesake, gave her the flower pot with handprints, for a Mother’s Day gift. The metal table was her husband Jeff’s maternal grandmother’s kitchen table. Barb’s Great Uncle Walter, Catherine’s son, made the wood stand, originally a workbench. The rain chain was a gift from Barb’s daughter Pam. Other items came from antique stores and flea markets. Left: Barb loves the aged toolbox filled with trowels, all made by her grandfather, a former Industrial Arts teacher. A small collection of McCoy pottery holds a variety of lovely succulents. Hanging below the lamp is a Dutch shoe purchased in the Netherlands while visiting Jenna, her daughter, studying abroad. Antique flower frogs add further interest to the entire scenario.

However, what sets Barb’s landscaping vignettes apart is not just her interesting annuals and perennials weavings, but rather, the way she mingles new and old items from family members who are special in her life, into her displays.

When Barb and Jeff moved into their home in 2006, there were few landscaped areas and the soils were rather sandy, so they knew they had a lot to do to transform the yard. Additionally, a large cement slab, used for a trailer home before the new house was built in the 1990’s, took up the middle of the back yard. They removed one-third of the slab and paved it with brick to create a firepit and seating area.

Barb then began designing the gardens around the paved area, eventually moving outwards to the perimeter of the property, down the lake banks and onwards to side areas and front yard.

Above: Old watering cans hang from the fence, full of Pistachio Petunias. An old cast iron sink is filled with trailing Coleus and Gaura. Border plants include Caesar’s Brother irises, Gloriosa Daisies, Obedient Plants and Ladies Mantle. The antique pump is from Barb’s great grandmother, Catherine. The old wood duck house on the ground in the photo middle, came from their previous home. An antique seeder, in the corner by the two old birdhouses, is also from Barb’s great grandmother. Barb’s Dad built the bluebird house, which has a planter on top, holding Nasturtiums (started from last year’s seeds) for a pop of color. Right: Old skis, a gift from a close gardening friend, are flanked by a tacklebox with succulents.

Barb and Jeff were happy to be able to keep the slab and could do so only because it was pre-existing. Marathon County’s regulations don’t allow slabs that close to the water today.

Do check into your local regulations when lakeside landscaping because they do vary sometimes from county to county, especially important for any hardscaping projects.

Barb focuses on continuous seasonal interest in her plantings for color throughout the year. While snow is an inhibiting factor, there are ornamental barks like dogwoods that can introduce color in the winter landscape.

Like most avid gardeners, Barb is a seed saver, collecting each year’s seeds for next year’s plantings. She also propagates many new plants from cuttings of existing plants. She separates plant clumps, which grow together over the years, like Irises and Hostas. This keeps them healthier as well.

Above: Pavers, rock and landscape cover what was once a cement slab for a trailer and is now home to a lovely seating/firepit zone. The red pump is from one of Barb’s grandparents. There are other stumps planted with Begonias and Lobelia. Hanging jars (one for each grandchild) have “twinkle lights” inside them. Barb’s grandchildren check to see if Tinkerbell will show up with the “fairy dust” that lights up the jars. Left: Climbing Hydrangea cover a tree split for exactly that purpose. A bird house was added to the top of the tree but that is now also completely covered. Splashes of bright color are achieved in front of the tree with Barberry bushes and three barrels filled with Begonias and succulents.

Throughout the yard, Barb also likes to introduce a bit of whimsy and fantasy to make it appealing to her grandchildren, which is another important element.

Fairy gardens are a perfect way to achieve this. There are a ton of sources on the web if you want to find out exactly how for ideas. Here is a good starting point for 15 fabulous kinds: https://www.familyhandyman.com/list/15-breathtaking-diy-fairy-gardens/

Barb also likes to use a lot of ornamental grasses, which add unique texture to the landscape. Whether mass planted as a hedge; grouped together with complimentary plants; or used as a large specimen plant in the lawn or garden, grasses are often overlooked as a beautiful landscape plant.

She maximizes the effect by planting varying ornamental grasses in the same landscape. These grasses can soften the look and feel of walls, paving, benches or other hardscapes. To obtain the most dramatic effect, choose unusual grasses in contrasting colors, textures, shapes and sizes like blue grasses in a yellow pot.

Above: This whimsical lineup includes an old tricycle basket filled with Pansies and Lemon Thyme and an old wagon with Alyssums, Red Snapdragons and Dusty Miller. An antique birdcage from Barb’s great uncle, Walter, who raised all types of birds, is filled with red Calibrachoa. The tilted “bench” was made with rocks from a quarry on Jeff’s hunting ground. Barb made the cement leaf as a craft project with some of her gardening friends. Right: An old oilcan from an old antique store perches in this lakeside tree’s crook. Red Honeysuckle vine climbed up the tree and into the can. Barb was hoping for a bird to nest in the can instead!

Barb and Jeff have been repurposing antiques and other items for use in their home and yards for years before it became fashionable to do so. It’s something everyone can do and a perfect way to put your personal stamp on your home.

Don’t be afraid to try something different. Most of us are gardeners and handymen at heart and from what you can see on these pages all it takes is a little imagination and some good old dirt digging.

There is a plethora of information on the University of Wisconsin Master Gardener Program, https://wimastergardener.org, if you are really serious about getting into gardening. Ask around and you may be surprised at how many of your friends and neighbors are willing to help you in your ventures, especially those with beautiful yards like Barb and Jeff’s. One thing about flowers and shrubbery is that if you don’t like something, it is easily replaced! ###

Above: The back of the house features a barnboard fence built by Barb’s Dad, which serves as a backdrop for the border area. The white Hydrangeas are from Jeff’s grandfather’s cottage, which at the time Jeff got them, the cottage had passed to Jeff’s Dad. Together with the stately Golden Rod, they both stand out as focal points for a wide variety of smaller plants like Ligularia, white Begonias, Bergenia and Astilbes. Left: An old rake head serves as a prop for a Black-eyed Susan vine emanating from a galvanized bucket. The stump in front is planted with pink Lobelia and a perennial succulent. Turtleheads and Goldenrod bloom in the background.

Often the first impression tourists form about an area is centered on the condition of its highways and roads. That’s why highway cleanup programs are so important.

Seven volunteers showed up at Meyer's Landing parking lot on Saturday, October 3 around 8:30 a.m. to pick up garbage bags/ties/safety vests and get assigned an area for cleanup. The weather was comfortable and dry with a slight breeze and some sunshine. The volunteers worked hard collecting 12 bags of debris to help cut down the litter on Highway 34.

Unlike previous years, the most numerous objects picked up were blue plastic disposable gloves and disposable facemasks and curiously, even a blue swimming noodle.

A big “Thank You” to our Volunteers: James Edwards, Mike Downs, Laurie Kallstrom, Dave Kallstrom, Riley Alcoba, Lori Zimmerman and DBPOA board member, Sue Zimmerman.

Above: Eager volunteers kick off the Hwy 34 cleanup. Sue & Lori Zimmerman and Riley Alcoba. Left: Trash picked up at the north end of the DBPOA sponsored area. This is DBPOA’s 15th Year sponsoring the cleanup of this two-mile section that starts just north of the Hwy 34 Knowlton Bridge and ends just north of County Trunk C by Dancy.

After many years of successfully managing the Highway 34 Clean-Up Committee, Lori Zimmerman is retiring. The DBPOA Board is seeking a volunteer Chairperson to head that position. This person sets bi-annual dates for May and October cleanup sessions, organizes volunteers the morning of the cleanup, disseminates materials needed and is the one who delegates a highway section to each group.

The Chairperson also reports to DBPOA at the DBPOA Annual Meeting. If you would like to volunteer for this position, please contact any DPBOA Board member. This is your chance to make a difference for your community.

Above Left: James Edwards has served as a dedicated volunteer at every clean up we’ve organized over the years. Thank you, James Edwards! Above Right: Laurie and Dave Kalstrom are supreme debris collectors in progress. Someone is missing their blue swimming noodle. You wonder if it flew out someone’s car window or perhaps off the back of their boat! Right: We Love Newbies (first time volunteers)! Thank you, Mike Downs!