A note from the garden...

Shelley Ryan, master gardener and producer/host of WPT's The Wisconsin Gardener, drops in to Be more Tuned In today for a guest post about her newest show, airing at 7:30 p.m., Thursday. She wanted to share a bit of her behind-the-scenes perspective from the production of this episode, titled "Secret Gardens and Living Fences."

After 15 years, standing in front of the camera is no big deal to me. Frequently my guests remind me that it's not always the case for them! On the newest edition of The Wisconsin Gardener I discovered a lovely -- almost secret -- garden just off Whitney Way in Madison. Its owners, Victor Wayland and Ted Stresemann, were most gracious and didn't seem to mind us tramping around to tape a segment.

Vic in particular was very excited about us featuring their garden on The Wisconsin Gardener. That is until he realized he would be on the show too. Then he got nervous.

But, like a real trooper he kept with it and we ended up with a lovely interview and a beautiful segment, except for one small part. Due to his nervousness, Vic kept forgetting the names of some of the plants. No matter how many times we'd practice, when we got to one particular plant, Vic would forget its name. We came up with an amusing solution. When we got to that part of the interview Vic would walk up to the plant and say, "Well Shelley, I know you know what this is." I would smile and say, "Yes Vic, it's ligularia."

That worked like a charm. Vic and Ted's garden has become one of my favorite spots in Madison, but every time I see a ligularia I have to smile.

Shelley Ryan has been the producer/host of The Wisconsin Gardener since 1992. Ryan and her guests have been a valuable resource for WPT viewers, presenting gardening tips specific to Wisconsin. Click here to learn more about this episode, or sign up here to receive the monthly The Wisconsin Gardener Notebook in your e-mail.