PTU Patient Neil Boll: Master Gardener

Some people perceive gardening simply as digging up dirt, planting something and watering it however to Neil Boll, it is so much more. Mr. Boll, a seventy year old patient at Physical Therapy Unlimited (PTU), is a part-time dentist at Fort Sam and a full time gardener at home. He proclaims that gardening as a hobby is mind cleansing and it satisfies his personality. “To me, gardening is an appreciation of nature,” said Boll. “I enjoy growing plants and sharing them with others who share that same appreciation.”

Boll started gardening in Houston after he got married in 1967. “I really didn’t have an interest in hunting or fishing and I wanted to stay home with my family so I started working in the garden,” he said. He learned to garden through trial and error and even recalls trying to grow vegetables in pots when he lived in an apartment until he quickly realized it didn’t work. “I was very proud to be married and a dad and I really enjoyed sharing my hobby with my daughters and as a result, they are now very active in gardening as well.”

When Boll started building his home in New Braunfels in the fall of 2003, the yard was in a state of disarray, overgrown with trees and brush. So in February of 2004, Boll started his full landscape renovation. His garden became a labor intensive art form that involved a large number of different plants. “I seek plants that will do well in our climate,” said Boll. “I usually choose plants from the Texas Superstars list on the A&M Horticulture website.”

“I’m most proud of my Mexican Orchid because it’s a hard plant to find. Unfortunately my orchid became freeze damaged this past winter but because of its root heartiness, it came back to life.” Boll also grows a number of herbs and vegetables including thyme, mint, chives, Echinacea, tomatoes, peppers, lemons and oranges.

Boll works in his garden every day and during the heat of the summer he tries to maintain morning and evening hours. “Sometimes I’m in the garden from six to eleven in the morning,” said Boll. “Occasionally I’ll go back out in the evening with a glass of wine and my pruners.”

Boll sought therapy at Physical Therapy Unlimited to help him with his neck stiffness and the curvature of his neck. He was impressed with the fact that PTU had been doing business in New Braunfels since 1984. “When I saw the website and read about PTU, I had a gut feeling that was the place for me,” he said. “And I really have enjoyed working with Robert Rodriguez.”