In 2007 I received a Master’s of Science in Landscape Design from Columbia University.
In 2008, I started my first landscape design project in the Catskill Mountains, in Allaben, New York. This design project evolved into me installing the garden — terraces of lavender, raspberries and summer sweet, sweeps of dayllies and allium and a grove of peach trees — with the help of my best friend. Since then I have designed, and — with the help of a small dedicated team — installed and managed large and small gardens and landscapes in the Catskill Mountains.
Over the years my design priorities have shifted to embrace an ecological approach to garden design, taking into account native plants, pollinators, insects, birds and small mammals. Plants, animals and humans work together to create stability, balance and resilience in an ecological garden, often minimizing the need for costly inputs of materials and labor. Very importantly, gardens with ecology as inspiration and native plants as the foundation are beautiful and biodiverse.
In 2020 I am adding Garden Coaching to my services and continuing with offering scaled landscape design and project management but have stepped back from active installation and maintenance. Please visit Services for more information on these offerings.
Additionally, I will be reprising the 5-class course Designing Your Landscape at the Phoenicia Library starting in March 2020. Check back for dates.
Currently, some of my Garden Heroes are: Edwina von Gal, Jinny Blom, Larry Weaner, Piet Oudolf, Rick Darke, Doug Tallamy, Diane and Francis from Catskill Native Nursery and Mel Bellar of Zone 4 Landscapes in Andes.