Following along the meandering Confederate Drive in Spanish Fort, through the brilliant azaleas all along the way and up and down numerous hillsides, one can't help but picture troops of Confederate soldiers hunkering down and seeking protection in numerous trenches scattered along the way over 150 years ago.

The tall trees and mature azalea and camellia shrubs seem to whisper hauntingly through the wind of those long-ago times.

Retired Spanish Fort gardener Linda Brock and her garden helper/husband Skipper have gardened and lived in this historical area for more than 20 years.

Linda, a retired university professor with Auburn roots, has fashioned a beautiful yard following the example of lush gardens that she and Skipper have toured around the world. "Since our retirement, we've loved to travel, and I really enjoy viewing the lovely gardens we find in such locations as Hawaii, New Zealand and Australia,” she says. “I enjoy trying to make my garden look like those I see in my travels."

She particularly enjoys the enclosed, walled-in gardens she found common in Scotland and Ireland.

"Stepping into one of Ireland's historic walled gardens is like entering a secret, magic world," shares Linda.

These refuge-like green retreats are hidden within chunky stone walls and are remnants of the Irish Big House era, which flourished from the early 1800s to the beginning of the 20th century.

"In that enclosed environment," Linda says, "they grow beautiful flowers and delicious fresh food. It is always an inspiration to me, and I try to bring back ideas that I can try in my own garden."

While in Ireland, Linda also learned about the Miracle Grow Garden.

"You slit open the bag of garden soil and stick in your plants and keep watered,” Linda shares. “The bag keeps the soil warm and helps in blocking weeds."

When Linda, who retired from teaching more than 20 years ago, realized she "wasn't on holiday all the time," she indulged her joy of being outdoors with her love of beautiful gardens and began adding favorite shrubs and flowers to create her home garden paradise.

Starting with a few day lilies that came with the house, Linda has added more varieties over the years and expanded her love of those colorful blooms. She has learned to cross pollinate the seeds to create new varieties that begin their blooming show in late April and last into summer.

Although her family did not do much gardening, Linda wanted to improve her yard, which was once full of weeds and now is a showplace of lovely garden beds as well as showy container plantings. Along with her beloved day lilies, Linda loves mop-headed hydrangeas, marigolds, impatiens and grows several leafy fern varieties in canopies of shade around her yard.

In the backyard, a Confederate War trench has been layered with stones and surrounded by interesting shrubs and statues. Fittingly, a large, fragrant Confederate Jasmine shares its early flowers and sweet smell as we pass by. Azaleas, mature camellias, hydrangeas and kiwi plants all surround and accentuate the family pool area.

When the early days of spring beckon, Linda enjoys walks through her garden, checking on what is blooming, mulching, and watering. She is often accompanied by the family cat, Mikey, who Linda says "thinks he's a dog."

Linda and Skipper do have a sprinkler system to handle the heavy watering needs of summertime in the South.

Gardening in her Spanish Fort location has not been without its challenges.

"When I first moved here," Linda says, "I would yank out this weed with a large white root system that went on forever! I later learned it was called snakegrass and that I would never be able to get rid of it. So, I dug as many beds as I could and fill them with pretty flowers to help keep it at bay."

The soil of Linda's yard has a heavy clay base, so she does amend the soil to make it more hospitable for the flowers and plants she loves. Linda is adventurous with her garden amendments — using fertilizers, eggshells and banana peels — "anything that will help me grow beautiful flowers. I will try anything," she says.

On some of her travels, Linda has admired beautiful container gardens and brings home ideas to try herself. She grows ferns in containers, as well as herbs such as rosemary and parsley, and pots of marigolds and tomatoes thrive in their contained environment. Linda's porches and patios are filled with charming container plantings which provide a cheery welcome to the visitor.

Laura Ingalls Wilder once shared this bit of contemplation: "Did you ever think how a bit of land shows the character of the owner?"

The character of this great grandmother-to-be (of twins, no less) provides ample evidence that she has taken gardening ideas gleaned from around the world and, with imagination and persistence, transformed her historic Spanish Fort landscape into a welcoming reincarnation of cool greenness and exhilarating color for herself, her family and her friends.