Wish you were here: take home gardening tips from a European-style landscape on Mississippi's Riviera.

Every rose does indeed have its thorn.

For the horticulture team at the Beau Rivage resort in Biloxi, the thorns were the roses themselves--hundreds of them, all delicately beautiful but also vulnerable to pests and diseases. As part of the formal European garden that separates the hotel from busy Beach Boulevard, the crescent-shaped rose beds were among the first sights weary travelers laid eyes on when they reached this waterside destination. But their maintenance was proving to be far too labor-intensive. The garden-savvy staff made a tough decision--the roses had to go.

Today, with plots of lush green grass in their place, none of the estimated 960,000 annual hotel guests would likely ever miss the fragrant but faint-of-heart blossoms. Not when the rest of the resort's formal indoor and outdoor gardens are so seemingly perfect, so chic, that they make a visit here seem more like a holiday on the Cote d'Azur.

Along with her 24-member staff, resort assistant director of horticulture Teresa Malone has the pleasure and the responsibility of creating that fantasy--that feeling of a magical place where the sun always shines and no petals ever wither.

But as the tale of the troubled rose garden reveals, managing an elaborate garden wonderland like this one isn't really so different from maintaining a simple garden at home. Sure, the resort's gardens contain hundreds of plant varieties and require millions of gallons of water and fertilizer, but the lessons learned on such a large scale aren't so different from those uncovered in our own backyards, on our kitchen windowsills, and on our patios or pool decks.

The lessons begin in the resort's "front yard," the intricate formal garden that serves as a living welcome mat for hotel guests. And what a welcome it is: gentle curving paths, oversized vividly colored flowers, perfectly pruned hedges, and manicured green grass. The garden's original concept was developed by Lifescapes International landscape firm of Newport Beach, California, but Malone now oversees the placement and care of each plant. "I get my inspiration from so many different things--books, people, even the feel of the day," she says. "I truly do love the formal European design, but then again, I also appreciate the wild garden."

Borders along the pathways are defined by layered hedges in subtly varied green hues: low-trimmed yaupon hollies; taller, squared-off wintergreen boxwoods ("They stay pretty and green throughout the winter," Teresa says); and interspersed gumdrop-shaped yaupons and ligustrums. Within the beds, colorful annuals are changed with the seasons; winter's "Panola" pansies give way to spring's hot pink and apple blossom-hued "Dream" petunias, summer's pink portulaca, and fall's marigolds. With outstretched limbs, mature live oak trees--31 in all around the resort--provide pockets of Southern-style shade in this otherwise sunny location.

Over the years, modifications have been made to the original design based on what performed well and what didn't. The rose bushes were removed out of practicality, but their replacements, St. Augustine grass in summer and rye in winter, have actually added to the design, providing resting spots for the eye within the busy landscape pattern.

"A lot of it is trial and error," Malone admits. "You want to try something new and you're not quite sure how it's going to go." On paper, the marigolds that perform so well in this garden wouldn't seem ideal for conditions like these. "But they work."

Adding to the sense of serenity is the landscape's two-tiered effect: valet parking and check-ins are on a built-up porte cochere cleverly removed from the garden level. So instead of a whirlwind of people and cars, the garden's backdrop is a simple vine-covered wall lined with creamy white "Omega" camellias, American hollies, pink-blossomed "George Taber" and purple "Formosa" azaleas, and agapanthus. "There aren't many perennials, because I need instant color, instant gratification," Malone says. "But here and there, it's nice to pull in a few."

Planning and caring for an indoor garden requires an entirely different strategy, whether at the resort or at home. With soft sunlight shining down through its 60-foot-high glass ceiling, the Beau Rivage's atrium lobby is filled with curving "beds" of colorful flowers and towering trees year-round.

Springtime here means a show of more than 2,000 hydrangeas--two weeks of pink, then two of blue, accented by yellow chrysanthemums and hardy greenery like Chinese evergreen. "I like to make the spring bright and cheerful," Malone says. In other seasons, this area is filled with a parade of azaleas, begonias, bromeliads, cyclamen, poinsettias, and even chile pepper plants.

For a full, mature look, Malone sets out flowers in 7- to 8-inch pots placed close together; these and most of the resort's plants are grown at Natchez Trace Greenhouse in Kosciusko and shipped here ready to use. The individual pots allow for easy placement and removal, and bigger pots mean bigger blooms and plants that don't have to be watered as often. "I never buy plant materials in pots smaller than 6 inches," she says, "and I only use the 6-inch pots for outdoors."

The flowering plants are watered daily--both by hand and with a computerized irrigation system--and replaced every two weeks. With careful maintenance, home growers can expect to keep flowering plants looking good in a sunny spot indoors for as long as three to four weeks before they need to be taken outside to truly thrive, Teresa advises.

Throughout the atrium, 11 "Alii" ficus trees stretch toward the skylights. The 25-foot trees require regular applications of 10-10-10 fertilizer and hormone growth stimulant, but watering is much less of a demand than it is for the flowers. "They get watered about every four weeks in the summer and every six weeks in the winter," Malone says. Just off the lobby, the colorful displays of the shopping promenade are set off by several tall Kentia palms, native to Australia and known for their graceful arched fronds and durability indoors.

Quieter areas of the hotel are also kept in the green. In the second-floor spa, a steam-filled whirlpool room is home to humidity-loving philodendrons, peace lilies, and bromeliads. Plants in a damp, muggy room like this or a home's bathroom usually don't need as much water as those elsewhere, Malone notes. Down the hall from the whirlpools, the spa's solarium features more bromeliads, Rhapis ("Lady") palms, and variegated rubber plants alongside rows of cushioned lounge chairs. Here, spa guests and plants alike welcome the sun's warm rays.

Just outside the solarium, the pool deck proves that sizzling hot concrete and unrelenting sunlight don't have to mean a Sahara-like garden. Somehow, this spot manages to look more like a lush French Riviera paradise: blue-and-yellow-striped cabanas and chaise lounge chairs surround the sparkling water, while breezes from the Gulf of Mexico do a nice job of cooling the air. At the water's edge, the resort's requisite European stateliness is infused with tropical style. Thirteen tall, thin date palms and 26 slightly shorter canary palms are the pillars of the design; sago palms, white-blossomed Indian hawthorn bushes, and cheery seasonal flowers fill raised beds below.

Malone has found success in planting for the coastal conditions by combining indigenous plants and more unusual varieties. For spring, pots filled with Robellini palms and cascading petunias are scattered around the deck and on the nearby floating marina dock. This summer, she plans to add more hibiscus, mandevilla, and allamanda ("trumpet flower") to the pool deck and adjoining special events terrace, where weddings and parties take advantage of the Gulf-view setting. Malone and her team are responsible for all of the floral arrangements for these affairs as well as for the massive centerpieces found in the hotel's atrium and lobbies.

Lobby arrangements are changed twice a week, and those flowers that are still vibrant are rescued and donated to nursing homes, churches, and other groups. That's only a small part of the resort's commitment to the coast community. Malone serves on the board of the ongoing garden renovation at Jefferson Davis' Biloxi home Beauvoir, and her staff donates plant materials to horticulture programs at schools in D'Iberville and Ocean Springs. They've also aided with landscape projects at area parks, churches, and schools.

These extra-curricular projects are a comfortable fit for Teresa, who had a different sort of service-oriented career before turning to horticulture. A native of San Diego, she served as a U.S. Air Force surgical technician for 20 years. "But I was always interested in gardening, ever since I was young and my grandmother was winning blue ribbons for her roses and fuchsias," she says. So after retiring from the military, she decided to go back to school for a horticulture degree. She joined the Beau Rivage staff in 1998, seven months before the resort opened.

So what does Malone's own home garden look like? It's interesting to learn that she's not unlike so many of us wannabe green thumbs. "I have grand ideas, but I don't always really follow through with them," she confides. "When I get home, l usually don't feel like dealing with a garden." Her home garden choices are often different than those she uses at work; this year, she's planning a plot filled with heirloom tomatoes. Their numbers will no doubt pale in comparison to the volume of plants Teresa tends at the resort, but when those tender shoots break through the soil, she'll use the same wisdom, the same lessons learned on the job, to care for them all.

flower fundamentals

No matter where you grow, Teresa Malone says it helps to follow some universal gardening guidelines:

Start with a high-quality soil. "If you don't have good soil, you can forget it," Malone says. A professional brand called Sun Gro Metro-Mix is a favorite of hers "if you can find it," though any soil with added micronutrients, peat moss, and organic ingredients is fine.

Water well. "You can't just say, 'It's Tuesday, so I'll water the plants today,'" Malone says. "That's what kills the most plants--either an overabundance or lack of water. You should either get a water meter or just stick your finger in the soil. You've got to feel the dirt."

Use the correct fertilizer. Malone recommends that weekend gardeners stick to a balanced 20-20-20 formula for most uses; she prefers J.R. Peters (Jack's Classic) brand, available at garden centers and nurseries.

Light it right. Even in a bright area like the hotel atrium, Malone uses special grow lights to help the ficus trees grow properly. But the lights are dimmed at night because even indoor trees and plants like to rest, just like people do.

Carefully control pests. For the mealy bugs, scale, and azalea lacewings Malone must battle, she prefers to try organic control methods like insecticidal soap (she likes Safer Soap brand) or alcohol first. "If that fails, we will use chemicals that are safe for the public."

Go for instant gratification. "You've got to buy big plants and space them 6 inches apart," Malone says.

proven performers

Teresa Malone's favorite tried and true outdoor and indoor plants include:

"Dream" petunia: Malone prefers this over the popular "Wave" series.

"Panola" pansy: "It seems to tolerate the cold well," she says.

Portulaca: The low-growing "moss rose" loves our hot summers.

Graptophylum: Tropical evergreen shrub with variegated foliage.

Angel-wing begonia: Easy-care houseplant that thrives in bright, indirect light.

Potato vine: Fast-growing vine with large white blooms.

Bromeliad: For a long-lasting tropical look indoors with a burst of color.