Natural hospitality
After finding the perfect home, William Simpson transforms his acreage into a welcoming destination.
When it comes to purchasing a home, sometimes you just know when you've found the perfect place. That's how it happened for William Simpson eight years ago when he bought his acreage near Chattanooga, Tennessee. William says he felt an immediate connection to the property, which is located on Missionary Ridge.
"I purchased the home without ever getting inside of it," he says. "Just from the driveway, I knew I had to own this home."
William says his house was built in the early 1960s by an architect who worked for Frank Lloyd Wright. Its surrounding grounds, however, were still overgrown and wild. In order to turn his home into the showplace it is today, the retired real estate broker began designing extensive garden and orchard areas.
William's possibilities were nearly endless, and he took advantage of them by creating separate garden areas that house flowers and plants, herbs, vegetables. He grows heirloom tomatoes, and his orchard boasts many types of fruit trees, including apples and plums. After years of cultivating plants and laying paths, William has 13 different garden areas, each with its own name and distinguishing features. One of the areas is named the Secret Garden because it can only be seen from terraces accessed from his house.
William's home was once part of a plantation, and the foundations for the stables and livery still stand on his property. He installed lights to illuminate the historic sites at night. In fact, illumination plays a key role in most of William's landscaping. Statues, fountains, trees, and plants throughout his gardens are also lit at night.
The overall effect of William's hard work and planning often captures the attention of people who drive by. "I find people stopping all the time at the foot of the cul-de-sac, and they ask if they can just walk around," he says.
William wants his work to be something his friends and fellow gardening enthusiasts can enjoy. He loves to open his home to guests, particularly around the holidays. For his annual Christmas Eve party, William hires a bartender and local musicians. When his parties take place outdoors, he sets the mood with music through his outdoor sound system.
The homeowner also gets requests from garden groups or even random passersby, and he is happy to oblige them with tours of his acreage. The reactions of visitors who enjoy his gardens make all of the work worthwhile.
"The best part is the compliments that people genuinely, sincerely pay me," he says. "Visitors are just awe-inspired." William decided to take his hospitality a step further by opening his home as the Ridge View Bed & Breakfast.
The goal for the future of the gardens is to make them something that will continue to inspire and surprise people. William says he likes to include small details in his gardens that encourage visitors to take a closer look at their surroundings.
"Discovery is the mark of a good garden," he says. "I continue to develop that."
