Prell family plants apple trees at Hawthorn Hollow

Andy and Tammy Prell, whose northside Kenosha home was one of the stops on this past summer's "Secret Garden" Tour, planted three apple trees at the Hawthorn Hollow Nature Sanctuary in Somers.

The trees, planted Oct. 26, were purchased with proceeds from a lemonade stand the Prells' grandsons operated during the tour, hosted in July by the Four Seasons Garden Club.

"We thought this was a good use of the money raised during the tour," Tammy Prell said.

The Prells have been working on their extensive backyard since buying their home 15 years ago, when the back of the property was — in their words — "brush and weeds."

Now, the former "brush and weeds" area features a patio and the pond. And beyond that, after going through a "secret garden" door, visitors discover the back half of the Prells' yard, which features hundreds of day lilies.

These aren't just any daylilies. Andy Prell creates his own day lily hybrids.

"It's like Christmas morning when they open up," Tammy Prell said. "We come out and see what new varieties are blooming in the yard."

During the summer garden tour, the Prells' nine grandsons also set up a table in the yard and talked to visitors about raising swallowtail butterflies and praying mantis and about tagging monarch butterflies.