Captain of the Gardens

Couple’s hard work pays off with eye-popping garden and yard setup

IF JEFF AND LINDA LAINE had a theme song, it likely would be Dahlias Are a Couple’s Best Friends

Anybody who drives by or visits their Westerville home will immediately understand. Dahlias – 150 of them in about 90 varieties – are prominent in the Laines’ extensively landscaped halfacre yard, all of it their own handiwork.

The natives of the New York City area and childhood sweethearts have lived in Westerville since 1980. They designed their home and had it built in 1992 off Sunbury Road, not far from Hoover Reservoir. Later, they added a gazebo, a deck and a patio.

The patio, Linda says, went where “there was nothing but mud” so she could hang out the wash to dry on collapsible lines she had installed. That’s very important because, she says, “I like the fresh air feeling of bed sheets and clothes.” She quit drying outside in winters after ice cracked as she shook a sheet.

Otherwise, the yard was wide open and “I could see about 12 neighbors’ yards,” Linda says. Now, because of all the plantings and structures – such as arbors, lattices, trees and bushes – “I can see almost no yards.”

Jeff does most of the building and digging.

“I plan and delegate,” Linda says with a laugh. Over the years, the Laines created a variety of gardens, an effort that became easier and more successful after they added fertilized topsoil to deal with the dirt in the yard, which was mainly clay. “I was used to the soil we had on Long Island,” Linda says.

A few years ago, the Laines devel- oped a “wedding garden” for the first marriage of their son, Jarrett. There’s a parents’ memorial garden for their ancestors, a fairy garden in mostly green and white that’s an attraction for children, and a trellis garden at the front of the home.

Admittedly, Linda wasn’t schooled in planning or planting. “I taught myself,” she says, recalling that she began by transplanting dandelions when she was young. “Sometimes I amaze myself,” she says.

Four years ago, they had a swimming spa installed in their rear deck. That meant taking out the deck and rebuilding it, a project Jeff and Jarrett took on. The 8-by-16-feet spa is 4 feet deep and has jets all around. It allows a person to swim against a current and stay in one place. The couple’s grandkids like to play in the swirling water.

Over the winter, the Laines grew 450 dahlias indoors. In May, they sold 250 at their annual garage sale. Another 50 went to the Westerville Garden Club, priced at cost to sell at its fundraiser. Some were given to friends or neighbors in exchange for favors they had done. The 150 in their yard is up from 125 last year.

The dahlia craze started when an acquaintance saw and appreciated their yard and presented them with 16 of the tubulars. The Laines were admonished not to become part of the “dahlia cult” but, Linda says, they are now very much part of it.

Each variety of dahlia has a name, many of them eye-catching and reminiscent of the names one might see at a horse race – I’m a Hottie, EZ Duzzit, Hissy Fitz, Lucky Ducky and Outta da Blue are among them.

Last year, the Laines wanted an alphabet of 26 varieties, but couldn’t find an “X.” Finally, they found one – Xenon – in Canada and ordered it. It cost $40 to ship because of agriculture and quarantine regulations.

Linda’s reputation for flower and garden knowledge has spread as passers-by and visitors see the array of hydrangeas (19 plants, nine varieties), honeysuckle, lamb’s ear, daisies, petunias, hollyhocks, roses and much more. Once, when walking with her husband, she was critical of a yard they were passing. He suggested she knock on the door and tell them. “I don’t know half (of) what I’m doing,” she recalls saying.

A friend offered to pay for her advice. She agreed and spent the fee on lunch for the pair. One thing led to another, and now Linda is the Garden Angel, helping a variety of clients plan their gardens. She takes them to a plant store or nursery and, “By the time we’re done, their car is full.” That’s the way she buys for her own yard, too.

The Laine deck or gardens have been in on the WesterFlora Garden Tour nine times and often win, as they did last year. Winners have to skip a year, so they’re not in the event this year.

But the gardens that are on the tour will have musicians at least part of the day. That’s a feature Linda organized last year and is in charge of again this year.

Meantime, most of her time will be spent in her own yard. “I like successive plantings,” she says, so the yard is in bloom and colorful all year. “It’s really taking off in August and September” and lasts until about November, she says.

Once she starts working on the beds, she stays at it for hours, sometimes placing metal sculptures the couple has begun making. “I guess I’m addicted,” Linda says.

Duane St. Clair is a contributing editor. Feedback welcome at gbishop@ pubgroupltd.com.

Bloom Town

The Laines won’t be be on this year’s WesterFlora Garden Tour, but the tour still promises a wealth of gawk-worthy gardens.

Set to run 1-7 p.m. Sunday, July 22, this year’s WesterFlora is the 21st since the event started in 1992. It was created to run concurrently with Columbus’ huge AmeriFlora show, but while that event’s lack of success kept it from returning, WesterFlora remains a big draw in Westerville to this day.

This year’s theme is “Bursting with Blooms.” The gardens are the stars of the show, but they offer more than just fantastic plants and décor – tour stops will also have artwork and live music for the enjoyment of visitors. Music will include a small brass band, a keyboard player, a violinist and several a cappella singing groups.

The final decision on which gardens would be on the tour was made in mid-June, but one early confirmation for the tour this year was First Responders Park. For the full line-up, visit www.westerflora.com.