Originally, I wanted to purchase at least 5 arces, outside Baton Rouge's city limits, however after moving from Atlanta, Georgia where I lived for 4.5 years, I did not want to deal with a long work commute. So, I opted for a home in Melrose Place Subdivision which is dominated by old live oaks (Quercus virginiana), water oaks (Q. nigra), and pecans (Carya illinoinensis). Melrose Place Subdivision, established in 1945 is located on the northeast side of the intersection of S. Foster Drive and Florida Blvd.

Prior to purchasing my home, the grounds were over run with mondo grass (Ophiopogon japonicus), dwarf mondo grass (Ophiopogon japonicus `Nanus`), Asiatic jasmine (Trachelospermum asiaticum ), a variety of half dead azaleas and other ornamental shrubs, nandina (Nandina domestica), Chinese privet (Ligustrum sinense), poison ivy (Toxicodendron radicans), and Japanese honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica). The lawn was in poor to moderate condition with lots of bare spots and weeds such as dollarweed (Hydrocotle spp.), sweet clover (Trifolium repens), heal all (Prunella vulgare), chamber bitter (Phyllanthus urinaria), sedge (Carex spp.), and a variety of other early successional herbaceous species. A major plus of the property is that it contained seven large overstory trees planted in the mid- to late-1940s. Unfortunately, the original owners chose to plant more water oaks than live oaks hence the $1,400.00 in arborist fees I spent in March 2005 to have dead and dying branches trimed out of the oaks. The house also came complete with 4 ancient camelias which put on quite a show each late winter. Many yellow and blue irises and large beds of paperwhites were found in the back yard. Most of these were given to neighbors and coworkers while I retained a small portion to incorporate in the new gardens.