- I'm Madeleine Hooper.

I've been gardening for over 20 years.

And of course with gardening comes a lot of aches and pains.

So I finally decided that maybe I should find a fitness trainer to see if I could fix my problems.

And a fellow gardener introduced me to Jeff Hughes.

After working with Jeff it dawned on me, what would be more exciting than to travel all over America, visiting a wide variety of gardens, and helping their gardeners get garden fit.

[upbeat music] Taking care of your body while taking care of your garden, that's our mission.

[Madeleine] So, Jeff... - [Jeff] Yes, Madeleine.

- Today, we find ourself in Somerset County, New Jersey.

And I think where we are going, to Peggy Walsh's house, is a beautiful residential area.

Big trees, wonderful fields, just a...

I think we'll have a lovely ride as we get close to her house.

- So, tell me a little bit about Peggy Walsh.

- She is delightful.

Just meeting her is a treat and she's got this great smile, Jeff.

She's just happy.

- That's really what life's about, that you have a choice, you can be happy or sad, and happy is the better choice.

- Definitely.

So she's made that choice and she's made that choice for 95 years.

- She's 95 years old?

- She is 95 years young.

- Well, there you go.

- [Madeleine] I can hardly keep up with her.

- If you're 95, that's definitely something to be happy about.

There's a lot of people that didn't quite make 95, so.

- Pretty impressive.

- That's happy.

Yeah.

- The other thing that's special about Peggy is her environment.

[Madeleine] So 20 years ago, she built the house that she lives in now, that we are gonna visit, when she also built the garden.

So it wasn't like here's a house, I'm gonna put a garden around it, or vice versa.

They really go together, Jeff.

So, there's this marriage of garden and home that is really special.

She loves the garden.

She gets up every morning, makes a cup of coffee and walks around her house and her garden.

- I would like to make 95.

I would like to do a coffee walk at 95.

- Wouldn't that be great?

- My garden.

- Yeah.

What garden?

I'm the one with the garden.

- [Jeff] Yeah, I'm gonna do something one day.

- [Madeleine] Yeah.

[upbeat music] - [Madeleine] I love the way this house looks.

- [Madeleine] This kind of courtyard look.

- [Jeff] Yeah.

This is gorgeous.

These colors are beautiful.

- [Madeleine] And now you get to meet Peggy.

- [Jeff] And it's Peggy.

- [Madeleine] And it's Peggy.

- Welcome.

Welcome.

- Peggy.

How nice to see you again.

- So nice to see you again.

- How are you?

This is Jeff Hughes.

Jeff, Peggy Walsh.

- Very nice to meet you.

- I've heard a lot about you.

- So nice to see you again.

Everything looks lush and beautiful.

- Thank you.

There's been plenty of sunshine around, so.

- I bet.

So would you like to take us on your trail?

- If you'll go that way.

- Go that way?

- Well, you go first because it's nicer seeing the garden instead of my back.

- How nice of you?

- [Jeff] Okay.

- [Madeleine] This nice path.

This is so pretty here.

- That's gorgeous.

- Oh my goodness.

- So glad we're stopping here at the hollyhock, 'cause they're better than they've ever been.

- [Madeleine] They're so beautiful.

The color yellow is just great.

- There's not many flowers blooming at this time, but the hollyhocks are doing their thing.

- Now they're the tall ones, right?

- [Peggy] They're the tall ones.

- And the yellow with the clematis?

- Yes.

Yes.

Isn't it?

- [Madeleine] Absolutely beautiful climbing on that wall.

- [Jeff] How long have you been here?

- [Peggy] 20 Years, maybe a little more now.

I think I've been saying 20 years for quite awhile.

- [Madeleine] 25 Years?

[group laughs] - So in 20 years, that's a lifetime for some people except they've never been that tall.

- Everything is that way.

I mean, I don't think I ever remember the oakleaf hydrangeas being as lush, as beautiful.

- [Jeff] Let's take a look at those.

- [Peggy] Yes.

- [Madeleine] I remember this Peggy and rhythm of your archways.

- [Peggy] Yes.

- [Madeleine] They're so beautiful.

- [Peggy] And our left here is Saint Fiacre.

He's the patron saint of gardening.

- [Jeff] Uh-huh.

- [Madeleine] How appropriate.

- [Peggy] And I always tip my hat to him when I go by.

- [Jeff] And he tipped his hat back I see.

- [Peggy] Every morning with my coffee, I say good morning.

And this obviously is the tomato patch.

- [Madeleine] Right.

- [Peggy] With the basil built in.

It's a funny thing, having oleanders here in the Northeast, isn't it?

But they do live inside in the wintertime.

- [Madeleine] They do?

- [Peggy] And the color, you can't beat the color or the smell.

- [Madeleine] Look at that.

- [Jeff] You look... - [Madeleine] She looks so beautiful.

- [Jeff] Beautiful just standing in front of it.

That's a portrait.

- So when you started this garden, maybe you could tell us what your idea was of how you organized it.

- I think it was probably organized for me by Shep Butler, who was the landscape gardener from Vermont and came with his wonderful friend, Susan Howard, who did the flowers.

He did the hard scape, planted the trees, and did all the stone walls.

And she was all the cozy flowers.

- [Madeleine] Right.

- [Peggy] So he decided it was such a little space that a medallion garden, and you'll see that these are medallions, down the way, separated each section and split by the stone walk.

And so it was all done for me.

There was nothing else.

So I love the mixture of flowers and vegetable.

- So as we go through the garden, Peggy, like these plants, what are you growing on the arches?

- Roses and clematis.

Each one has a different rose and a companion clematis.

Yellow down there, yellow showers.

And here is the Blue Bell clematis and Nelly Moser.

And then I have Westerland up there with Mr. President, another beautiful clematis.

- [Jeff] That's really pretty.

- And this is beautiful.

- And that's a shrub clematis.

- [Madeleine] It's lovely.

- [Peggy] Which is sort of different.

- [Madeleine] Yeah.

- [Jeff] That purple's striking.

- [Madeleine] Yeah.

- Again, bigger and grander and more beautiful.

I know they've never seen that so big.

- It's amazing.

- That is just full of color.

- [Madeleine] So let's go see some more.

- Alrighty.

I'll follow you.

- [Madeleine] Would you like to cook with rhubarb?

- [Peggy] I love rhubarb and rhubarb and strawberries.

So we sort of, so you have the strawberries.

- [Jeff] That's beautiful.

- [Peggy] They're peas and sweet peas in between, which won't grow.

So, I'm gonna put that mandevilla plant in there.

- In there.

That'll be lovely.

- See how it goes.

- So, that's just a nice natural lattice - Isn't it though?

- It's such a nice... - [Peggy] It's such a work of art, I think.

- [Madeleine] It's beautiful.

- [Peggy] But then all that's gone out of style, now.

There won't be anybody to tell that would even know, even heard of it.

- [Madeleine] Or even try to do that.

- [Jeff] Well, we're going to send this out into the airways.

- [Peggy] Good.

- [Jeff] People are gonna be inspired by things like this.

- I think the green zinnias, with the purple again, the rhythm of the color of purple right now through the garden is so pretty.

It's great.

Do you plan the colors?

- [Peggy] I don't plan much.

- [Madeleine] You don't?

- [Peggy] It's a lot of hit and miss.

- [Jeff] I'm just surrounded by just this beautiful garden.

- [Madeleine] So gorgeous.

- These look like something off a chess game.

The castles.

- You know what they are?

They're chimney pots from England in London.

Everybody had to have fireplace and they used to be on the roof.

[Jeff] Oh.

- And so when they banned fires, some smart person went inside the wall... - [Jeff] Found a use for them.

- [Peggy] They went to an antique shop and here they are.

- [Madeleine] It's wonderful.

One thing in this garden that I think is so special and that are these seed packets.

- [Jeff] Okay.

- [Madeleine] Tell us about these packets.

- [Peggy] I just thought they were so amusing and so colorful that I had to laminate them and put them out here.

- [Madeleine] I'd wear that as a pin.

They're charming.

[whimsical music] - [Jeff] And, this.

- [Madeleine] The focal point.

- [Peggy] And this is one of my favorite parts of the garden.

- The relationship of size is so fabulous.

- Not just that, but the sound of the water, because it's hitting the stones, it breaks it up.

It's very peaceful.

- [Madeleine] I must say most people do add water features to their gardens.

And it is exactly that.

It brings the serenity.

It brings sounds with the bird sounds and the bees sounds... - Absolutely.

- It's really... - And actually the bird's drinking it too.

And I wanna mention the goat on the way out.

That is done by my son's father-in-law, Jack Carney.

Unfortunately, he's not with us anymore, but he's done quite a few of the animals here, a fox and the other way and an owl.

And it's wonderful.

- [Madeleine] It's wonderful.

- My favorite.

I say good morning to it every morning.

- [Jeff] On your coffee walk.

- On my coffee walk.

Exactly.

- [Madeleine] So let's see more of the garden.

Such pretty lilies.

They're all out now.

- [Jeff] Stone work is gorgeous.

That's a a huge stone right there.

- [Madeleine] Look at that.

How'd you get that stone there?

- [Peggy] [chuckles] I carried it in on my head.

[laughing] - [Madeleine] You did?

- I almost believed.

[laughing] - [Madeleine] So this must be a favorite spot.

The combination of stone and the wisteria's trained in such a unique way.

- [Peggy] I wanted to soften the look of the porch rather than the bloom.

So sort of like life it's a give and take kind of a thing.

I had to give up the bloom to get the wisteria looking the way I'd like to do.

So that's how that happened.

- Usually wisteria is all over the place.

- And everybody wants that.

- Because that's how you get great bloom.

- [Madeleine] But it's like a foliage column, you know, it's just another structure.

It looks beautiful.

And the other thing that really impresses me is the combination of plants in your pots.

So what gave you the idea to use that roos with the heuchera?

- Well, actually I saw it up in Great Island at a friend of mine, Roly Nolen, who was actually, I think, the head of the board of the New York Botanic Garden.

But the roos was much smaller and it didn't have the dark heuchera underneath.

And these have grown since I bought them because in the wintertime we put them in the garden.

- Right.

- And then bring 'em back and put 'em in the pot.

- You actually plant them in the garden?

- We plant them in the garden.

Take 'em out of the pot, the heuchera too.

- The pots are beautiful.

Well, I think the combination of colors of all the bright chartreuse leaves and the gray blue leaves of the hosta, and of course the heuchera.

It's beautiful, isn't it?

- [Jeff] It's just... - [Madeleine] Wonderful combination.

- [Jeff] Levels of colors and you feel like you're somewhere.

- Lovely.

- Thank you.

- Thank you.

I love it myself.

- [Madeleine] It's beautiful.

It's all beautiful.

- [Peggy] Thank you.

Thank you.

[inspiring music] - So, I have just totally enjoyed my time here from the moment we walked up to your house till you came out and I met you, finally.

I'd heard so much about you.

- That scares me a little bit.

[laughs] - Don't let it because I don't see a lot of problems.

You've done a great job.

Is there anything that's going on physically that maybe I could be of assistance?

- I suppose one of the thing is that I think I have a weak foot, so I trip a lot if I'm walking in the woods or something, not necessarily you know, on these stones.

and I just sort of drag it along.

But I'm not so sure it's a physical issue.

I think it's more of a mental issue, if that's what you'd like to call it.

- And I think you nailed it.

I think you have self-assessed that very well.

Can you straighten your leg out and lift it up?

So that works really good.

- Right.

- Point and flex.

You don't have a weak foot.

I think your assessment is correct.

I had this whole thing, I teach people that they're the three Ms: there's muscular, there's mechanical, and there's mental.

And it's never all of them.

It always one or two.

Have you ever had an injury or something that would have put you in a habit doing that?

- Well, maybe the replaced hips.

So I've got two replaced hips and half a knee.

- Okay.

- They also think growing older, you have to pay attention more.

And that drives me crazy.

- I think the problem there is you're not getting older.

- No.

[laughs] - I think that's the real problem here.

- Crazy to hear that.

- You're defying all aspects of what we think is supposed to happen when you get to your age.

So tell me a little bit about balance.

I just wanted to touch on that.

Do your friends ever talk about their lack of balance?

- Unfortunately, if you have a lack of balance, you don't like to talk about it, but you can see it.

So, you know, they don't, what happens is they don't walk.

- Yeah.

- And because their balance is not good.

I'm not sure anxiety doesn't hurt balance too.

I think if you stop, take a deep breath, limp a little, your balance is much better.

- Limp a little?

Now, what does that mean?

- Well, I think the word limp was just brought to my mind maybe last week by a friend of mine whose mother said to her, "Joan, limp.

Go limp."

- Does that mean like limp with a foot?

- No, just go with your body.

- Oh.

- What she meant was stop being whatever Joan was at that moment, but just go limp.

- Go limp?

- Yes.

If I take a deep breath, the anxiety that I hold or the tenseness, tenseness, I can walk down those steps.

No problem.

If I'm all tight, I'm always trying to hold on something to help.

- You should be doing my job on this show.

I want to take this idea of relaxing and not getting in your own way, not trying to make yourself do something, but allowing it to happen.

I just want to add a little bit to it.

So let's stand up and I want to go to the upper part first and then we'll go there.

I had this wonderful yoga instructor in New York City.

Her name was Sylvia.

I'll always remember her.

She gave me the trick, take your shoulder blades and slide them into your back pockets.

And you just relax down there.

And you have this relaxed understanding and relationship of your shoulder blades and your glutes.

By dropping those shoulder blades, you're lengthening that area back there.

And actually, what it will do actually, which you already are beautiful, but it draws this in and it gives you your jaw line as well.

You look younger.

- Also, you can breathe easier, and that's gotta be half the battle right there.

- That's it.

You've increased your opening of your, you know, people don't understand, it's a cage.

They say rib cage and they never really listen to that second word of cage.

- Yes.

- And your lungs are in there.

And if you don't expand it, they're in there going, "Hey, I can't get, you know."

And you get more... That's excellent.

You get more air out of that.

- Hmm - Now, I have an exercise I'd like to do with your ankle.

- Okay.

- It'll get your mind connected with that.

Because somewhere along the line, you just stopped being active with that foot of doing what it needs to do.

- Right.

- So I'd like you to back up just to the edge of the sidewalk there, so we have a little space between us.

And I'd like you to turn your hands upright.

And the reason for that is if you turn your hand down and around, your shoulder starts to rotate in and it causes your shoulder to come up.

If you rotate your hand up like this, your shoulder starts to externally rotate and it drops those shoulders down.

So this actually puts you in this place where they're hanging down naturally.

- Interesting.

- What I want you to, I'm just gonna hold this lightly.

- Yeah.

- So that you can be comfortable.

You're not going to fall, so you can go ahead and do the exercise.

And what I want you to start first doing is just, we're gonna have about a two foot distance.

I just want you to step over and then step over.

It's like dancing.

Step over and step over.

Now, a little bit bigger distance.

Step over, wide steps.

Good.

- We're not getting... - Now when you bring that other foot over, don't put it down.

Just stand on one foot and just relax and let your body do what it naturally does.

- Dancing.

- Uh-huh.

- It's perfect.

You can do it.

- It's the best exercise.

It's one of the best longevity sports ever.

- And the most fun.

- Yeah.

So just keep that up and just allow yourself to be there for the moment and feel that stack of head, shoulder, hip, knee on top of your foot, one foot, - All going together.

- All together right here.

All right?

So let's go again, back and forth.

Good.

Now, as we do this, I need you to take a wider step, so you actually, your body knows it's gotta go somewhere.

All right.

And as you get there, I want you to pick that knee up.

Yeah.

A little higher, pick that knee up, all the way up.

Good.

And it takes time to do that.

So take the time.

You're fine.

Take your time doing that.

Give yourself time to bring that one all the way up, all the way up.

Yeah.

Now bring that right one all the way up.

Yeah.

Take your time.

All right.

Now this time, when you pick your knee up, I want you to leave it there long enough to wave twice with your ankle.

Okay.

So just one more time, pick that knee up, point and flex.

Good.

All right.

So what I want you to do is this three times a day, just do that as long as you feel like doing it once or twice, or maybe 10 times, or just to a song.

It should get that autonomic system back into your ankle.

- Terrific.

- And you've got the shoulder blades down to the back pockets to add to that release of all this up here.

- Right.

- And so what I'm gonna have to ask you to do now... - You've already asked me.

- I'm coming back in about, no, there's more, but wait, there's more.

I'm coming back in a month or so.

- Yep.

- And I want you to promise you're going to do these three times a day.

And I'd like to see what happens when I come back.

- Oh, I buy that.

- Do we have a promise?

- We definitely have a promise.

- There's the handshake, but I've gotta have a hug.

- Okay.

I'm good and steady when I give hugs.

- Yes, you are.

[Peggy laughs] - Well, this has been an amazing visit.

- I don't know what to say.

I have learned more from you than I think you have learned from me.

I'm really looking forward to coming back and it is not even for the show, just to see you.

You have inspired me.

I have learned so much from you that I can pass on.

So thank you very much.

- [Peggy] You are so welcome.

We'll see you again soon.

- [Madeleine] Okay, Peggy.

- [Peggy] Thank you.

- [Madeleine] Bye.

- I was particularly excited about the fix I gave Peggy.

I mean, 'cause really, there wasn't a whole lot to fix with this one.

- It's amazing.

- She's 95.

She's rocking it at 95.

- She is.

- But the one thing that bothered me was the fact that she has a foot that some times causes her to trip and fall.

And that's not a good thing.

- Especially at 95.

- No.

- And I think we both really admire Peggy so much and I love the way she gets up in the morning, makes a cup of coffee, and walks around her house.

- The coffee walk.

- The coffee walk.

[chuckles] And she just does that every morning.

- Barefoot.

- Barefoot.

- Barefoot.

Yeah.

- On stone.

Pretty impressive.

She checks out all her plants, Jeff.

And she looks at the vegetables that she's going to use for lunch and dinner.

So I think Peggy's someone who really plans ahead.

She must be very smart.

- Yeah.

I think so too.

And I actually recognized that when I was talking to her, she knew, I mean we tested her foot and it worked, but she knew before that that it was not a physical problem.

She knew that it was kind of a mental problem or an autonomic problem.

- That was really impressive.

So you gave her exercises where she repeated things and it became an autonomic habit.

So really what is an autonomic habit?

- Well, let me show you.

So I'll tell you what.

- What?

- I want you to hold this.

- Okay.

- And I want you to take this pen and write your name on that piece of paper.

- Okay.

[Madeleine sniffs] - Stop right there.

What'd you just do.

- I haven't done anything.

- Oh, but you did.

I handed it to upside down and you flipped that thing around nimbly and you popped that ball point right out.

And if I had let you keep going, you would've written your name, all unconscious behavior.

- You're absolutely right.

- That's an autonomic action, just like when you said you used to ballroom dance.

You've told me over and over again how you would rehearse and rehearse and rehearse and rehearse, and when it was time to go compete, you would just go out there and not think about a thing.

You would just dance freely.

- Just enjoy it.

- That is autonomic behavior.

- So it's something that you repeat a lot.

It becomes a natural habit.

- Exactly.

A natural habit, autonomic habit.

- Autonomic habit.

So before we go back to Peggy, I think we should take our shoulder blades.

- Oh.

Let them slide back into our back pockets.

[upbeat music] - [Jeff[ I can't wait to see Peggy.

- [Madeleine] Me too.

There she is.

[ Peggy] Oh, it's so nice to see you again.

It's been much too long.

- [Madeleine] It's been such a treat to be back here with you.

How are you?

- Well, thank you on this gorgeous day.

- Peggy.

Come on up here.

- So nice to see you again.

- So nice to see you.

- So... - Oh, I've had such a lovely time.

What has it been, about a month since we've seen each other?

- A month.

- And your exercises have changed my life.

- Do tell.

- Yes.

The best one of all, the first one you gave me, was to lower my shoulders.

- I'm doing it right now.

- And lowering your shoulders almost makes everything else fall into place.

- Exactly.

- As you mentioned, my shoulder blades oozing down into my back pockets, my pockets are full.

[laughs] - So that was great.

And then that leads into balance is so much better.

And then confidence comes after that.

- I think, I think we need another hug for this.

- That sounds good to me.

- And your foot.

How's that working out?

- It's really doing well.

I changed your idea a little bit about raising it from the knee.

I do more heel-toe, and it does the job.

- Perfect.

- But it works for me, and it seems to do the trick.

- That was the idea.

- So because of your exercises, I can't believe it, but I feel like going dancing, and I haven't heard myself say that in a long time.

- That's terrific.

That oh, you know, Peggy, that's just... - That's it.

- When it works, it works.

It's so nice to hear.

- So however old you are, you can always learn a lot.

- Absolutely.

- That's another good lesson.

- That is.

- Absolutely.

- I forgot to show you one special place I happen to love.

It's not exactly a garden, it's more of a meditative place.

- Oh.

- I'd love to show it to you if you'd like to see it.

- I'd love to see it.

Absolutely.

- We'd love to see it.

- Okie doke.

Follow me.

[playful music] - [Jeff] This is charming.

- Isn't this Toad Hall?

- This is a special spot for me.

It's obviously my grandchildren's house and you must have an invitation from a grandchild, now even a great grandchild to go in.

- [Jeff] That's a great rule.

- They love being here by themselves and having tea at their own little special table.

- [Madeleine] So sweet.

It's kind of really secluded.

- [Jeff] Yeah.

- And so this is what we call the crescent border just because that's the shape of a crescent.

- It's such a love space and the mixture of all the different leaves and the leaf colors.

I'm sure this just gets better as fall comes round.

- It does indeed.

This crescent border was really designed for spring blossom and fall color.

Hopefully the sun doesn't stay and picks up the colors of the leaves.

- I can't take my eyes off that roof.

That moss roof is magic.

- It is cool, but it has another side to it 'cause it's from a very good gardener from Ireland.

And I was saying just what you're saying and she looked at me and she said, "It signifies damp."

[laughs] So... - Yes.

- So, every time I look at moss and say how beautiful, I think of that.

- Think of this.

- And of course it it's that because the sun rarely gets on it.

- [Jeff] And we have a tea party.

- [Madeleine] Yes.

We have a tea party.

So how did this get here?

- Yes, we do.

So here's the tea party.

They have their own China from "Wind in the Willows".

- This, we... - And it's, be careful.

- [Jeff] This is really special.

- [Madeleine] I love the little card.

- You know, I have a daughter and I used to have little tea parties just 10 years ago.

- Really?

- Yeah.

- That's so.

- I miss my little tea party.

- I'm gonna join the tea party you used to have with your... - Cheers.

- Cheers.

[laughs] - So there's just one more spot I would love to show you.

And it is in honor of St. Hubertus, who was a hunter, and one day he was out hunting and he got into a beautiful glen and all of a sudden a stag lay down in front of him with a cross between his antlers and said, "Don't hurt me.

I wanna be your friend."

And from that moment on, Hubert dropped his gun and never shot again.

And instead, went into trying to help all the creatures, honoring God by honoring all his creatures.

So I saw this shrine in Austria and I came back and copied it.

- [Jeff] You're inspired, and that's your, that special place.

- It's my special place.

And it's just hosta and leaves and very quiet.

- [Jeff] That's beautiful.

- [Madeleine] How nice.

- [Peggy] That's what happens out here.

- Everybody should have a special place.

- You bet.

You bet.

- That's really... - If you're lucky more than one.

- Yes.

[laughs] - [Peggy] It's so much fun to show it off to somebody that likes it too.

Other people might think gardens are just flowers... - [Madeleine] Right?

- But, its a different one.

- No, this is so special.

- Yes.

- So now let's go back to the terrace and have a little Prosecco in honor of the garden.

- What a lovely idea.

- Good.

[tranquil music] - Well, Peggy, this has been an absolute delight.

We love being with you, seeing your garden.

It's been a treat.

Thank you so much.

- It's my pleasure.

- Well, Peggy let's dance.

- Odd lot.

[inspiring music] - [Madeleine] Oh.

- [Peggy] I feel very safe.

- [Jeff] Good.

You're doing great.

This is lovely.

This is fun.

[upbeat music]