Transplanted garden-lovers

When Marcia and Richard Tyrell moved to Bucks County from Chicago in 1995, they looked to lease a farm where they could keep their horses. They found one in Washington Crossing, but it might have been serendipity when the lease was up and they quickly had to find another.

This time, they rented a century-old Langhorne dwelling that would allow their two dogs.

A Georgian born and bred, Marcia Tyrell loves gardening and has a penchant for homes that already have mature trees. The circa-1850 house had them, plus lots of potential, and a double lot in which to work some magic.

What still takes the couple by surprise, even 11 years later, is how the charm of the borough and its residents have so smitten them with this region.

The Tyrells' rental - next to a cemetery that dates to the 1700s - had been in the same family from 1850 to 1980. Its second owners had moved to Paris, then were transferred again, to Houston. So, shortly after the Tyrells moved in, they were given the option to purchase the house.

"We bought it because it was too expensive to move again," says Marcia Tyrell.

Once the property was theirs to shape, they started working on the double lot and putting down real roots here.

First, they installed a pool and a walkway and replaced the uneven brick patio. Then they slowly pulled out bushes and moved them to different spots in the yard.

"Some people rearrange furniture. I rearrange plants," says Marcia. Richard Tyrell, a former Neiman Marcus executive who now works for the Italian jewelry company Damiani USA, does the heavy labor, building stone walls and borders.

"My husband is the decorator out here," she jokes.

Outdoors are "rooms" and objects that are Asian-influenced: a peaceful rock garden, stone temple lanterns, two regal stone temple dogs near the shallow end of the pool, and a host of Japanese maples.

Marcia Tyrell loves to share the maples, her favorite tree, and anything else she can forage out of her garden. "I dig up the little maple saplings in the yard and give them as gifts to friends," she says.

Her love for gardening started early. One of eight children, she learned how from her mother and is reminded daily of her native Atlanta here in Bucks County.

"This area is like Atlanta was 40 years ago: light traffic, rolling hills, creeks, and rivers. Of course, nothing there predates Gen. Sherman's march to the sea," the former elementary-school principal says, referring to the infamous burning of Atlanta in 1864 by the Union Army.

Think of Atlanta's landscape - azaleas and dogwoods. Of course, these are Marcia Tyrell's favorites here, along with hostas, daylilies, and red maples.

"Atlantans use ivy as [ground] cover, as we do here," she says. "It's low-maintenance and green all year."

Every year, she plants impatiens, too, and divides the hostas in different parts of the yard. "The flowers love me. They always grow well, and the more you cut flowers from them for the house, the more profuse they become."

A towering silver maple embraces a hammock where Marcia Tyrell and their Jack Russell terrier, Scrubby, like to lounge. The couple's other rescue, a black lab named Rowdy, is always nearby.

In 2004, their house was on Langhorne's garden tour. The Tyrells plan to be on the Arts in the Garden tour in 2010, when artists will be paired with musicians in selected gardens.

Though Marcia Tyrell has no idea how many hours she spends in the garden, she is hoping there will be more now that she has retired from the Central Bucks School District, where she worked most recently in technology-staff development. (She is an adjunct professor in education at Wilkes University.)

When Richard Tyrell isn't planning his next climb, and Marcia isn't playing polo, they enjoy planning their next project for the yard with the four-legged family members, who hop in and out of the pool and enjoy their owners' handiwork.

A third dog, Mowgli, arrived recently - son Flynn spent thousands on surgery after finding her on the streets of Doha, Qatar, where he lives.

"She's already dug holes all over the yard and dragged the new sod to the driveway," says Marcia, "but she is so endearing and snuggly."

The pups are now known in the half-mile-by-half-mile town; the mayor lives down the street from the Tyrells, and Langhorne Heritage Farm is a block away. At Langhorne Hardware, they get supplies and advice from owner Hank Carfagno on treating Japanese beetles, staining floors, and more.

This tight-knit community banded together to prevent builders from razing the Heritage Farm to build townhouses. The buildings have been refurbished, and there is now a community garden, as well as artists in residence and weekly summer concerts.

"The borough is a hidden treasure," Marcia Tyrell says. "The people are friendlier, and I love the landscape here."

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