My Offer:

I hope to help people:

> find connection with land, companionship with plants, and creativity in growing spaces
> get inspired to grow your own food

My ideal target audience:

From folks who have never stuck their hands in the dirt, to people whose hands are always etched with soil, I hope to support people in their journeys into a more connected and self-sufficient way of living through organic gardening.

I believe cost should not be a barrier and am happy to discuss sliding scale options for any of my services.

Reach out if you want to:

• Garden Consultations for home and community gardens: garden planning, companion planting, container gardening, dealing with pests, organic amendments, maximizing small growing spaces and more
• Horticultural Therapy: Explore the connections between plants, food, healing, identity, and decolonizing relationships with the land
• Repurposing and Upcycling: Build fun garden surprises and creative growing spaces for your family using natural and reclaimed items

Why me:

I have been growing plants since the age of 8 when my mom entrusted me with her seedlings each spring. In my adult years my work with plants formalized through:

-2 summer apprenticeships at Nature’s Way Farm in Northern Alberta where I helped establish a successful vegetable CSA (Community Shared Agriculture);
-3 years working as the Urban Farm Manager at the Hope Blooms Community Garden in Halifax, NS, where I taught kids and adults how to grow and provide food for their community. In 2013 I helped support 7 of these youth successfully pitch their fresh herb dressings on CBC's Dragon's Den (https://hopeblooms.ca/stories-bloom/dragons-den-pitch/);
-Organic Master Gardener certificate (2011, Gaia College);
-Growing Food certificate (2012, Gaia College) and;
-Chartered Herbalist (2014, Dominion Herbal College)

Over the years, I have gained deep respect and reverence for all things green and growing. I believe that when we dig our hands into the earth we become more connected with ourselves and the spaces we are privileged to call home. Through my background in organic gardening and anti-oppressive social work, I help guide people into greater understandings of our connections with plants and food.

“Gardening is the most therapeutic and defiant act you can do. Plus you get strawberries.”
- Ron Finley

What it’s like to work with me:

I come into this work with a great deal of humility and humour. I know some stuff about growing plants, food, and medicine, but I don't approach this work from an "expert" lens. I'm happy to offer what I know, but also to learn alongside you and help you access your own plant knowledge.

I am a DIY gardener and a huge fan of repurposing, upcycling, and using what you have at home. While I enjoy creating beautiful spaces, I’m not a manicured lawn and ‘no weeds to be found’ type gardener. I’m more the “I don’t care about spots on my apples but leave me the birds and the bees please” type. Plus, many so called “weeds” are quite yummy!

Lastly, while I am happy to offer practical advice and information about growing organically, I also believe that anyone wishing to gain a deeper knowledge of plant and land care must critically think about how our presence on this land functions to either perpetuate or disrupt harmful plant-people relations. For me, respectful plant care and food production sits at an important crossroads of human-relations healing and requires some 'deep digging'. In addition to any practical gardening help, I am happy to hold a safe, non-judgemental space for these 'uncomfortable'' conversations about land access, dispossession, privilege and healing, and ask that you enter them with an open mind and heart.

Professional experiences:

• Urban Farm Manager at Hope Blooms
• Youth Diversion Coordinator at Skookum Jim Friendship Centre
• Family addictions counsellor at Kackaamin family development centre
• Disability case manager at BC aboriginal network on disability

Educational experiences:

• Master of Social Work at University of Victoria
• Bacherlor of Arts at University of Alberta
• Chartered Herbalist at Dominion Herbal College
• Organic Master Gardener at Gaia College

My portfolio: