Horticultural House Calls

I started doing Horticultural House Calls about 15 years ago. It was a natural companion for my landscape design practice. Not everyone needs a full-on landscape plan, but lots of people need help with the basics of gardening and design. What are the names of the plants in your yard? How do you take care of them? What should you put in that bare spot over there? What are soil amendments and how do you use them? What's eating this tree? Where can we plant a vegetable garden? How big should a patio be? Should you use concrete or natural stone? What if you want an outdoor kitchen? And so on... 

The way a House Call works is that I come to your home and spend an hour, sometimes a little more, answering your questions. Some clients take notes, others record the session with a video camera (great for plant identification) or tape recorder. I have lots of handouts to suit various situations. We can cover a lot of information in just one hour! People are often surprised by how much they learn. And by eliminating trial and error, my clients save time, money and effort. There's a lot you can learn from books and TV shows, but it's not the same as having someone come to your house and explain what's going on.

I have over 30 years of experience as a gardener and horticulturalist. In the early 90s, I left a career in public relations to go back to school and get a degree in Environmental Horticulture and Landscape Design from South Seattle Community College. In addition to design and consulting, I have worked for a landscape contractor and at retail nurseries. As a volunteer, I have worked on and managed various parks and tree planting projects in West Seattle. I also served on the West Seattle Garden Tour Committee in its early years. 

The charge for a Horticultural House Call is $60/hour, plus $15/hour for drive time for calls outside West Seattle. (Sorry, gas prices and traffic make that necessary.) I make calls in the Seattle area only. For more information or to make an appointment, please email me. 

By the way, I no longer do formal landscape plans. I had a great run as a landscape designer, but don't feel an urge to return to that work. (Below is a concept sketch of my most dramatic before-and-after which was featured in Pacific Northwest Magazine.) For now, it will make me very happy to help Seattle residents get in touch with their inner gardeners. Let me know how I can help.

For My Son and His Wife

My son is getting married the day after tomorrow. He is marrying a woman with beauty, intelligence and a warm heart. It is an honor to welcome her into the family.

The first time one of my children got married, I was surprised by the way the event touched me. I expected, of course, to be proud and happy. But in my mind, the day was all about them. I was not one of the stars of the show. I was there in a supporting role, to give my blessing and wish them well.

And yet, as I looked around the room at the reception, I saw that the day was about me, too. I had a connection to all those people - many of whom I had known for a long time. Each face was connected with stories from my life, my journey from young woman to mother-of-the-groom. I felt a quiet celebration inside myself, grateful for all those relationships and all that had come before to bring us to that happy day.

Today I was thinking about the upcoming wedding, and one of my first thoughts was of this poem by Kahlil Gibran. It contains the best advice on parenting I ever received. I like to think that at least some of the time I was clear-minded enough to make use of it. But whether I was or not, one fact remains: my son is an amazing young man. To him and his beautiful bride, I send my congratulations, my blessings, and my love.

On Children

by Kahlil Gibran

Your children are not your children.

They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.

They come through you but not from you,

And though they are with you, yet they belong not to you.

You may give them your love but not your thoughts.

For they have their own thoughts.

You may house their bodies but not their souls,

For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow,
which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.

You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you.

For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.

You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth.

The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite,
and He bends you with His might that His arrows may go swift and far.

Let your bending in the archer's hand be for gladness;

For even as He loves the arrow that flies,
so He loves also the bow that is stable.