Sometimes it’s good to go back to your roots. When I was a struggling college graduate, I took several jobs at plant nurseries. The manager probably thought I was barely qualified with my degree in music and humanities, but he let me suit up daily in a yellow rain suit and water the fuchsias. Later, I was promoted to planting color pots with annuals. I found the work stimulating and loved the deep, rich, earthy smell of the greenhouse every morning. My mom also worked in a greenhouse and we spent many wonderful hours talking about the newest trends in plants and flowers. In 2015, I noticed the large greenhouse across from Churchill Downs and just had to learn more about it. I spent a wonderful afternoon with Churchill Downs Horticultural Director Matt Bizzell. 

There was a rather unusual side effect after I wrote my essay “Planting a Vision for Churchill Downs.” It was like a veil had been removed from my line of sight. I suddenly slowed down and started admiring every flower pot and every garden on the grounds. I felt like I had transitioned from the black-and-white segment of “The Wizard of Oz” to the vibrant sparkling land of color. I could no longer just walk by a garden without exploring the plants and flowers. I saw hues and intensity; textures and tints; variety and variations as I looked at annuals, grasses, shrubs, trees, tropicals and perennials. Oh my! 

Bizell (Julie June Stewart photo)

So I was thrilled to learn that the Kentucky Derby Museum, in partnership with Churchill Downs racetrack, has announced a new Gardens and Greenhouse Tour. This is a unique opportunity to look at Churchill Downs and learn first hand what it takes to keep the grounds beautiful on Kentucky Derby day and year round. The tour will give guests a first-hand introduction to the amazing variety of flowers and plants that are grown onsite. They will also learn about the care and history of the track’s gardens. Guests will visit the racetrack’s 12,000-square foot Horticultural Center and visit with Horticultural Director Bizzell.

Bizzell is a friendly young man (40) who graduated from college with a degree in biology. He said he didn’t know what to do next so he took a job at Churchill Downs with the greenhouse crew and never left. It must have been the perfect cultivating environment as he has been there 19 years. He manages the greenhouse, where they produce two crops a year. For the spring crop, they grow 25,000 annuals that consist of about 90 varieties. “With a facility so big, we never catch up, so we are always planting, pruning, watering, fertilizing, doing maintenance, mulching and cleaning up anything to do with the grounds.” Churchill Downs is 164 acres and they are also responsible for 10 acres of city property on Central Avenue, which he has populated with an amazing collection of rare and unusual trees. 

Normally, the middle of the summer is when he starts planning for the next year. He outlines what he wants to buy and starts purchasing from several different companies. “The earlier you order, the better chance you have of getting what you want. The plants start coming into the green house in late January or early February. When they come in, they are called plugs [or cuttings] and they are thimble size.”

Serpents blue chalk fingers. (Julie June Stewart photo)

They have several weeks of intense work once the plugs arrive. The entire crew helps plant them into 5-inch pots. That is the largest size they can use to plant quickly. “Anything bigger than that takes too long to put in the ground. Imagine a trowel that you put in the ground. It leaves the right size for that 5-inch pot.”

This year they have a succulent called Serpents blue chalk fingers that has been easy to care for in the greenhouse. This is a “succulent with densely packed blue-green narrow leaves that grow in a symmetrical fashion from sprawling fleshy stems.” (Full disclosure – I hustled that quote from the Monrovia Seed Guide as I thought it was unusual and pretty, but I honestly wasn’t sure how to describe it.) Bizzell is hoping that it does well as he has them in the G. H. Mumm winner’s circle this year. 

In addition, they have a new area of window boxes that they have planted on the second-floor balcony above the paddock. “They are bright and pretty with philodendron, strawberry petunias, pink flowering strawberries, angelonia and diamond frost, which is a euphorbia.” I chuckled because I thought that “Diamond Frost” sounds like a perfect name for a Thoroughbred. I found this beautiful description on a plant website: “A graceful annual, diamond frost arrives on stage in early summer wearing a glittering tiara of airy, white flowers that keep coming through September.”    

Usually, the greenhouse is not open to the public, but Bizzell said they have offered tours before for school groups or gardening groups. It’s amazing that all the work on the grounds is accomplished by Bizzell plus seven full-time employees and one seasonal employee to help with planting. For the past three years, Seneca High School’s agricultural and horticultural program has brought its students over to help plant the terrace garden. “We set out the flowers and make stations for them for planting hanging baskets and window boxes. When they arrive, they can put in a lot of flowers quickly.”

Majestic Staghorn fern. (Julie June Stewart photo)

People expect the traditional in the gardens. Every year, the Aristides garden is planted with thousands of tulips for Opening Day. It’s a real gamble whether Mother Nature will cooperate. Sometimes spring comes early and the tulips are removed and replaced with another annual. The one traditional flower that is probably the most photographed is the red geraniums in the Kentucky Derby winner’s circle.  There is a small living wall in the G. H. Mumm winner’s circle and four large living walls in the terrace garden. “People always like them and are fascinated by how they grow.” Even the horses notice!  “Horses do pay attention especially the everyday winner’s circle. The first year, the first horse they brought in took a bite out of the living wall. Every so often, they will take a bite.” 

Bizzell loves unusual plants. The first time I visited him in 2015, he showed me an amazing world of black pearl peppers, sweet potatoes, rhubarb, Japanese umbrella pines, philodendron selloums, cocktail vodka begonias, mona lavenders and the strikingly beautiful rattlesnake plants. His favorite back then was the kangaroo paw fern. This year, he said that one of his favorites is the black pearl peppers.  “People are really interested in them and curious about them because of their unusual look. The staghorns ferns are also really unusual. People either love them or hate them. They are hard to describe.  They are in large 24-inch hanging baskets and are very impressive.” Personally, I think of the “Game of Thrones” when I look at the stag horn ferns as they are very primal looking.

There has been a horticultural program at Churchill Downs for more than 100 years. There is lots of history for one to discover. There are two different sets of historic ornate urns on the grounds. There are three huge urns on the backside that are planted with philodendrons and begonias. The urns are 8-feet tall and 6-feet across. “You actually have to stand in the urn when you plant them.” Bizzell isn’t sure where they came from, but it is believed that they came from the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition (known as the Chicago World’s Fair.) Sometimes you can catch a glimpse of one of them driving by on South 4^th Street. The urns are actually large enough that you can spot them on Google Maps when you look at Churchill Downs!

Historic urn believed to be from the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair. (Mary Meek photo)

There are also eight historic, cast-iron urns on the grounds that were forged in the area. One of them is stamped with New Albany, Ind. There are two on the backside and one at Gate 5 to the stables. The one at the track kitchen is sinking and at least a third of it is underground. Bizzell said that the urns are turn of the century at least and are very cool. He grinned when he said “They weigh a ton!”

The garden tours will be a lovely new exposure to the beauty of Churchill Downs. The tours will take place on May 24, June 7, July 5, Aug. 2, Sept. 6 and Oct. 4.  It costs $99 per person. The guests will be transported by van to the Horticultural Center to meet with Bizzell. They will return to the Kentucky Derby Museum for lunch in the Derby Café featuring the Kentucky Derby Cobb salad followed by admission to the museum to explore its amazing exhibits. In the summertime when the greenhouse is too hot, they will go to the paddock and the Aristides garden and probably the winner’s circle, depending on the gardens. The tours are limited to just 14 people, so there will be ample opportunity to discuss plants and flowers. 

Churchill Downs is one of the most photographed tracks in the world. Keeping it spectacular is a passion for Bizelle and his dedicated crew. Their ideas germinate and blossom silently in the greenhouse and then they produce a sensational sense of elegance with their eye-catching displays throughout the grounds. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself heading to the local nursery after taking the tour! For gardening buffs, this is a winner!

Click here for further information about the tours.