Stay ConnectedIn conversation with garden people — designers, florists, growers, naturalists, chefs, artists and more — about how gardens have shaped their lives and inform their work today. Seasonal tips, expert recommendations, and lots and lots of plants.
https://www.violetearstudio.com/episodes
Copyright: © Copyright 2021 Violetear Studio
My guest today is Ngoc Minh Ngo, a photographer and author based in New York City. Her work is an immersive exploration of the beauty of plants and nature, enveloping and other worldly. I always feel I am being drawn into a more three-dimensional space. It is an almost tactile experience as the garden wraps around you and where you can disappear into the page. No matter what she captures, it often seems as though I am looking at my own memory of a space or plant, whether or not I have seen it before. Her creative expression stretches not only through different gardens and subjects – this year alone she photographed gorgeous books by Gabriela Salazar and Umberto Pasti, and authored one on the green spaces of New York to be released next month – she also experiments with other media. I can see how these practices, along with her own garden, give her a deeper understanding of her subjects and allow her to reveal their beauty and essential nature. I am so grateful to have her work to transport and inspire me, and to share this conversation with you. Thank you for listening!
Garden People Podcast from @violetear_studio
L I S T E N
S H O W N O T E S
Ngoc’s IG
Ngoc’s books:
New York Green - coming May 23, 2023
Artistry of Flowers: Floral Design by La Musa de Las Flores by Gabriela Salazar
The House of a Lifetime: A Collector’s Journey in Tangier by Umberto Pasti
Botany of Desire, Michael Pollan
Can you name a garden dweller who is ecologically obsessed, a little punk rock, and creates spaces for plants, pollinators and people in equal measure? Why that would be the next guest on the Garden People podcast, Rebecca McMackin! Link to listen in the bio or find us wherever you catch your podcasts.
Rebecca @oroeoboeococoao is an ecological gardener, a Loeb Fellow with the Harvard Graduate School of Design, and former Director of Horticulture for Brooklyn Bridge Park (BBP) in New York. She writes, lectures, and teaches on ecological landscape management and pollination ecology. In these spheres, she brings an infectious enthusiasm alongside an abiding commitment to ecological vitality and urban biodiversity.
As part of NYC Parks Rebecca was the head gardener at historic Washington Square Park, where she deftly maintained displays and occasionally was called on to coax a reveler down from an English Elm. At BBP, Rebecca managed 85 acres of diverse parkland organically, creating a habitat that was welcoming to New Yorkers, birds, butterflies, and soil microorganisms. She migrated to Cambridge after being awarded the Loeb Fellowship, where she currently studies ecological design and science communication.
Rebecca understands plants and their pollinators, but she also understands people and how we can best invite them into the garden. This is helped by her exceptional ability to synthesis and share important information about our world. Her newsletter is an indispensable part of my learning, a go-to for a roundup of important articles and ideas, all framed by her optimism, humor, and seriousness of purpose. This interview was recorded in the last weeks of her Directorship at BBP, and it was a pleasure to speak with her at this time of transition.
Thank you for listening!
S H O W N O T E S
Rebecca’s IG @oroeoboeococoao
Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates Inc
Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation
Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center - Wildflower.org
My guest is Lucy Hunter, a multi-hyphenate if there ever was one: creative director, garden designer, floral artist, stylist, photographer, teacher, author, botanical dyer…the list goes on. Based in North Wales in the UK, Lucy is, at root, a restless creative who is always adding to her list of projects and modes of expression. She shows us how useless labels can be in a creative life, and how generous our output becomes when we do away with them. Her book, The Flower Hunter: Seasonal Flowers Inspired by Nature and Gathered from the Garden, was published in November of 2021.
I was fortunate enough to attend a workshop with Lucy, Gabriela Salazar, and Max Gill this past March, and saw first-hand her creative force at play. From design notes to photography demonstrations, her energy and engagement with attendees and their work was simply amazing. I’m so happy to welcome her here today.
Lucy will have another whirlwind tour of workshops in the coming months, including one in October with TJ McGrath in New Jersey. Next year, she will return to New York, San Francisco, Seattle, and New Orleans in March, and Provence in April. You can receive up-to-date information on dates and registration on her website and IG. Links in the show notes, below.
Garden People Podcast from @violetear_studio
L I S T E N
S H O W N O T E S
Lucy’s book: The Flower Hunter: Seasonal flowers inspired by nature and gathered from the garden
Carol’s Garden (Featured in Lucy’s book)
Jackdaws eating buxus caterpillars
Rachel Ashwell Shabby Chic Interiors: My Rooms, Treasures, and Trinkets
Gabriela Salazar La MUSA de las FLORES
Wilding: Returning nature to our farm by Isabella Tree
From Seed to Bloom, Milli Proust
P L A N T L I S T
Roses
Daisies
Poppies
Rudbeckia
Buxus
My guest today is Jennifer Jewell, gardener, author, and the host of Cultivating Place, a co-production & podcast of North State Public Radio, which is syndicated across the United States and available as a podcast worldwide. For listeners of a garden podcast in North America, much less one produced in Northern California on indigenous land, Jennifer probably needs no introduction. In many ways she has shaped a corner of garden culture and literacy, introducing listeners to gardeners across the globe and the remarkable beings in their own backyard.
Her interviews and writing are focused on the importance of the person and place in the garden -- considering the land, its history, and culture, and always moving toward a more sustainable, inclusive whole. I am always inspired by her unwavering faith in gardeners, and the belief that we can meet the incredible challenges of our current time with community, care, and an embrace of the interconnectedness of our natural world.
Garden People Podcast from @violetear_studio
L I S T E N
S H O W N O T E S
Arrabella Lennox Boyd (and her wonderful new book)
Anna Pavord, The Tulip (and her most recent: The Seasonal Gardener: Creative Planting Combinations)
Vandana Shiva (two favorites: Who Really Feeds the World? and Stolen Harvest)
Claire Cooper Marcus (a favorite book: Therapeutic Landscapes)
Debra Prinzing, Slow Flower Society
P L A N T L I S T
Salvia
Manzanita - Arctostaphylos edmudsii Big Sur Manzanita
Nasturtium
Iceberg roses
Native Eryngium aristulatum
Buckwheats - Eriogonum
Geum – (local native is Eeum triflorum)
Marigold
Deer Grass - Muhlenbergia rigens
Purple sage - Salvia leucophylla
Today I welcome Amanda Luu and Mia Westphal of Studio Mondine, a floral design studio based in San Francisco, California, to the Garden People podcast. Mondine’s work is multifaceted and always a reflection of the group’s deep appreciation of the natural world. Whether it’s finding inspiration for a bridal bouquet in the weeds growing around the wedding venue or puzzling through ways to make travel to that venue the most environmentally sustainable, the team works with admirable care and infectious joy. They lead by example and educate through beauty, and they might just invite you to eat the centerpiece. Listen in to hear them discuss sustainable floristry and seeking inspiration from nature.
Garden People Podcast from @violetear_studio
S H O W N O T E S
Ikebana Unbound (by Amanda and co-founder Ivanka Matsuba)
Garden People episode with Hanna Brannan of Gather Flora
Lauri Kranz, her book A Garden Can Be Anywhere: A Guide to Growing Bountiful, Beautiful, Edible Gardens
P L A N T L I S T
Jasmine
Tulips
Peonies
Mushrooms
Today I welcome floral artist and flower friend and mentor, Sarah Statham of Simply by Arrangement. Whether writing from her corner of Yorkshire, England, or gardens farther afield, she is forever seeking light and the perfect pebble, and always celebrating color, form, and seasonality.
Her role as an educator extends beyond the vase, providing invaluable business advice through one to one conversations with numerous flower fettlers, both seasoned and new.
As much as I rely on her rock steady advice, it is her humor, love of learning, and keen sense of observation that I admire most. Perhaps it is due to the many roles she has held in her own life, but her ability to see and share stories is one of her greatest gifts. And since most of you will know her way with a bowl and a tulip or two, you’ll agree there are few in the same league.
Garden People Podcast from @violetear_studio
L I S T E N
S H O W N O T E S
Rachel, Yorkshire Flower Patch
Sue Stuart Smith, The Well Gardened Mind: Restorative Power of Nature
The Business of Selling Flowers (Claire Brown, Paula Baxter, Carol Siddorn) - Scholarship Program
P L A N T L I S T
Grand Prix Roses
Clematis
Fritillary
My guest is Jane Scotter, a biodynamic farmer and author and the force behind Fern Verrow in Herefordshire in the West Midlands of England. Jane has been a huge inspiration for me and countless growers and gardeners. Her passion, drive, and love for her land are evident in each crate of castelfranco. In addition to her cookbook, Jane’s relationship with Skye Gyngell and Spring restaurant shows the wonderful partnership between plot and plate, and the artistry involved in the growing and making of meals. The gorgeous products of her work also make one of the most compelling arguments for how care for our earth and where our food comes from can be life affirming in addition to being life-saving.
From favorite tulips to the best days for cultivation, you'll hear about Jane's dynamic relationship with the growing season, which is always imbued with beauty and a celebration of taste.
Garden People Podcast from @violetear_studio
S H O W N O T E S
Maria Thun calendar / Thun app
P L A N T L I S T
Tulip Bown sugar
Tulip Red impression
Castelfranco
My guest is Marryn Mathis, a flower farmer and educator running a small family flower farm in Stanwood Washington. A few years ago Marryn left her corporate job for a life of flowers and has never looked back. To hear Marryn’s approach, it seems like she can always do more, whether that’s planting 13,000 sweet peas to 10,000 sunflowers. This past spring she also fielded 46,000 online visitors to her dahlia tuber sale. It speaks to her boundless energy and enthusiasm for what she does, and the joy she takes in sharing flowers with her community. What I am struck by, though, is how thoughtful she is about what she spends her time on – she is constantly reconsidering and reshaping her work, which then allows her to put her whole heart into the farm and its many wonderful projects. Whether it’s a wall of sweet peas or a rainbow row of dahlias, you’re sure to be inspired.
Garden People Podcast from @violetear_studio
L I S T E N
S H O W N O T E S
P L A N T L I S T
Chocolate lace flower
Sunflowers
Cress
Sweet peas:
Vicks
Blue shift
Emma
Windsor
Apricot queen
Old Times
Clementine kiss
Susan Burgess
Kings ransom
Betty White
Deborah Devonshire
My guest today is Bex Partridge, the floral artist and gardener Botanical Tales based in Devon, England. Bex creates sustainable designs, displays and installations using dried flowers, also known as everlastings. Her work celebrates nature and the shifts of the seasons, drawing attention to flowers in each stage of their existence. Her ethereal displays and designs create a sense of wonder in the observer, and bespeak certain magic. Learning from her – whether through her workshops, books, or Patreon community – will change the way you see the garden. Her most recent book, Flowers Forever, is available this month in the UK, and at the end of June in the USA. Please see the links below for order'/preorder information.
Garden People Podcast from @violetear_studio
L I S T E N
S H O W N O T E S
Bex’s most recent book “Flowers Forever: Sustainable dried flowers, the artists way,” available early June in the UK and June 28 in the USA.
Also see: Everlastings: How to Grow, Harvest and Create with Dried Flowers
Charles Dowding no dig, No till from Love ‘n Fresh Flowers
Oudolf Field - Hauser and Wirth
P L A N T L I S T
Tulipa ssp.
Oxeye daisies Leucanthemum vulgare
Meadow Buttercup Ranunculus acris
Forget-me-nots Myosotis ssp.
Strawflowers Xerochrysum bracteatum
Helichrysum ssp.
Statice Limonium sinuatum
Dahlias Dahlia pinnata
My guest today is the incredible Melissa Goldstein, a ceramic artist based in Brooklyn, New York. Her work – hand thrown and painted with a cobalt stain and the occasional metallic splatter – is inspired by 17th century German and Japanese botanical illustration, and draws on numerical calligraphy, botanical drawings, and ornithology.
Every piece is absolutely exquisite: from platter to vase, the flowers seem to grow, the birds careen midflight. The details speak to a life of close observation and deep immersion in art and the world as a garden.
My guest today is Melissa Goldstein, a ceramic artist I have long admired. Melissa is based in Brooklyn, New York. Her work – hand thrown and painted with a cobalt stain and the occasional metallic splatter – is inspired by 17th century German and Japanese botanical illustration, and draws on numerical calligraphy, botanical drawings, and ornithology. Her pieces are absolutely exquisite: from platter to vase, the flowers seem to grow, the birds captured midflight. They speak to a life of close observation and deep immersion in art and the world as a garden.
If you are in New York, please make your way to Fox Fodder Farm to see more of the vases we discuss. You can buy Melissa’s pieces in all their forms at the lovely E-E Home, or on her website, Mg by hand.
Garden People Podcast from @violetear_studio
L I S T E N
S H O W N O T E S
P L A N T L I S T
Flowering quince - Chaenomeles speciosa
Lady tulip - Tulipa clusiana
Snake’s head fritillary, checkered fritillary - Fritillaria meleagris
Persian lily - Fritillaria persica
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