The Plantastic Podcast

JAZMIN ALBARRAN BIO Jazmin Albarran, MBA, is the Seed Your Future Executive Director with over a decade of change and systems management experience. With a solid knowledge of associations and philanthropy, she will bring her skills and expertise in planning, leading, and managing development projects and programs to the movement. She has experience in a broad range of nonprofit organizations, including those focused on crisis support, youth development, and workforce development. Jazmin will lead Seed Your Future’s next phase of growth, promoting horticulture sectors and the nationwide expansion of career development opportunities with plants. THE PLANTASTIC PODCAST The Plantastic Podcast is a monthly podcast created by Dr. Jared Barnes. He's been gardening since he was five years old and now is an award-winning professor of horticulture at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, TX. To say hi and find the show notes, visit theplantasticpodcast.com. You can learn more about how Dr. Jared cultivates plants, minds, and life at meristemhorticulture.com. He also shares thoughts and cutting-edge plant research each week in his newsletter plant•ed, and you can sign up at meristemhorticulture.com/subscribe. Until next time, #keepgrowing!

JULIE WITMER BIO Julie Witmer works to create beautiful and ecologically sensitive gardens across the continental United States. She began in perennial production and garden nursery retail before earning a Certificate of Horticulture—Britain’s professional gardener qualification—from the Royal Horticultural Society in Wisley, UK. She is a popular local speaker, teaching classes for all ages, and is a published garden photographer in books by Timber Press, Kew Gardens, and Rodale. Her own garden, Havenwood, is nearly one acre and divided into fifteen diverse garden spaces which grow a wide variety and succession of plants throughout the year. With a keen eye for design and place, Julie has worked with private clients for nearly twenty years, helping them realize their own garden dreams, and providing one-on-one coaching in order to grow the skills of the gardener alongside their garden. She shares online classes and garden inspiration on her Substack Julie Witmer Gardens and Instagram at @juliewitmergardens. You can learn more about Julie by visiting her website juliewitmer.com. THE PLANTASTIC PODCAST The Plantastic Podcast is a monthly podcast created by Dr. Jared Barnes. He's been gardening since he was five years old and now is an award-winning professor of horticulture at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, TX. To say hi and find the show notes, visit theplantasticpodcast.com. You can learn more about how Dr. Jared cultivates plants, minds, and life at meristemhorticulture.com. He also shares thoughts and cutting-edge plant research each week in his newsletter plant•ed, and you can sign up at meristemhorticulture.com/subscribe. Until next time, #keepgrowing!

SCOTT BEUERLEIN BIOGRAPHY Scott Beuerlein is the Manager of Botanical Garden Outreach at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden. He runs the Zoo’s Botanical Garden educational programs, including three symposiums. He is involved in most of the department’s other outreach and with the plant trialing. Scott is a 1982 graduate of Xavier University, earning a B.A. in Communication Arts. He is an ONLA Certified Landscape Technician and an ISA Certified Arborist. Scott is also a garden writer and horticultural speaker. He has published hundreds of articles and columns in several gardening and green industry publications. He currently pens two columns in each issue of Horticulture Magazine—the (usually, hopefully!) humorous Deep Roots column and the Garden Views series of interviews. Scott is a partner in the long running and highly respected GardenRant blog and posts about twice a month. Learn more about Scott by visiting his website, by reading his articles on GardenRant and Horticulture Magazine, and learning from the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanic Garden's website where there are additional resources, including event details, trialing program brochures, and the plant for pollinators initiative. THE PLANTASTIC PODCAST The Plantastic Podcast is a monthly podcast created by Dr. Jared Barnes. He's been gardening since he was five years old and now is an award-winning professor of horticulture at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, TX. To say hi and find the show notes, visit theplantasticpodcast.com. You can learn more about how Dr. Jared cultivates plants, minds, and life at meristemhorticulture.com. He also shares thoughts and cutting-edge plant research each week in his newsletter plant•ed, and you can sign up at meristemhorticulture.com/subscribe. Until next time, #keepgrowing!

JANET DRAPER BIO Janet Draper has been the sole gardener for Smithsonian’s Mary Livingston Ripley Garden for 26 years. This tiny 1/3 of an acre garden is located on the National Mall and is open 24 hours a day to visitors from around the globe. Janet’s roles in the garden include everything from design and maintenance to cleaning the fountain and answering questions from visitors. Janet’s approach is to try to do something different every year to challenge herself and to keep educating visitors about the amazing diversity of plants! Janet was raised in a rural farming community in Indiana and always knew she wanted to do something with plants. She pursued a bachelor’s in horticulture from Purdue University in 1987. Afterwards, she sought addition training with a series of internships that took her further than she could ever have imagined. She worked at Mt. Cuba Center for the Study of Native Piedmont Plants in Greenville, Delaware before it was open to the public; Kurt Bluemel’s nursery in neighboring Maryland where she learned the European approach to running a nursery, the famed perennial nursery of Countess von Stein-Zeppelin in Germany’s Black Forest, and Beth Chatto at her amazing Nursery and Garden in Elmstead Market, England. Once back in the States, she continued to gain experience at numerous nurseries from Long Island to Illinois. After nearly a decade of working in perennial nurseries, she then started putting plants in the ground instead of little black plastic pots as an estate gardener and contractor for Oehme van Sweden where she helped install and maintain their designs. She also helped co-found the Annapolis Horticulture Society. You can learn more by visiting Smithsonian Gardens, by contacting Janet at her email address drapeja@si.edu, and by following Smithsonian Gardens on Instagram. THE PLANTASTIC PODCAST The Plantastic Podcast is a monthly podcast created by Dr. Jared Barnes. He's been gardening since he was five years old and now is an award-winning professor of horticulture at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, TX. To say hi and find the show notes, visit theplantasticpodcast.com. You can learn more about how Dr. Jared cultivates plants, minds, and life at meristemhorticulture.com. He also shares thoughts and cutting-edge plant research each week in his newsletter plant•ed, and you can sign up at meristemhorticulture.com/subscribe. Until next time, #keepgrowing!

DAVID HOFFMAN BIO David Hoffman is Chief Operating Officer at Hoffman Nursery, Inc. in Rougemont, N.C. Hoffman Nursery is a wholesale nursery specializing in ornamental and native grass liners for the horticultural trade. David grew up on the nursery, which was started in 1986 by his parents, John and Jill. In 2012, David earned his horticulture degree from NC State University. After a two-year internship at Stauden Peters Nursery in Germany, David returned to Hoffman Nursery, where he applied his experience with European automation and quality control techniques. In 2022, David assumed the role of Chief Operating Officer of Hoffman Nursery. He oversees long range strategic planning and the management of operations, sales and marketing, IT, and HR. This position involves decisions and communications across all sectors of the nursery and nursery-managed properties. He is passionate about the role grasses, sedges, and other plants play in nature-based solutions for sustainable environmental management and resilience. David is a member of the various organizations including Perennial Plant Association (PPA), International Plant Propagator’s Society (IPPS), AmericanHort, American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA), and North Carolina Nursery and Landscape Association (NCNLA). In addition to serving on the board of the JC Raulston Arboretum, David has been honored with the Perennial Plant Association’s Young Professional Award, NC State University’s Outstanding Young Alumni Award, NCNLA’s Bill Wilder Outstanding Young Nursery Professional Award, and a 40 Under 40 Award from Greenhouse Product News. You can learn more about him by visiting his website hoffmannursery.com or their LinkedIn page Hoffman Nursery. THE PLANTASTIC PODCAST The Plantastic Podcast is a monthly podcast created by Dr. Jared Barnes. He's been gardening since he was five years old and now is an award-winning professor of horticulture at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, TX. To say hi and find the show notes, visit theplantasticpodcast.com. You can learn more about how Dr. Jared cultivates plants, minds, and life at meristemhorticulture.com. He also shares thoughts and cutting-edge plant research each week in his newsletter plant•ed, and you can sign up at meristemhorticulture.com/subscribe. Until next time, #keepgrowing!

SUSAN POIZNER BIO Susan Poizner is an urban orchardist in Toronto, Canada and the author of Grow Fruit Trees Fast and Growing Urban Orchards. Susan trains new growers worldwide through her award-winning fruit tree care training program at Orchardpeople.com. Susan is also the host of The Urban Forestry Radio Show and Podcast and an ISA Certified Arborist. THE PLANTASTIC PODCAST The Plantastic Podcast is a monthly podcast created by Dr. Jared Barnes. He's been gardening since he was five years old and now is an award-winning professor of horticulture at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, TX. To say hi and find the show notes, visit theplantasticpodcast.com. You can learn more about how Dr. Jared cultivates plants, minds, and life at meristemhorticulture.com. He also shares thoughts and cutting-edge plant research each week in his newsletter plant•ed, and you can sign up at meristemhorticulture.com/subscribe. Until next time, #keepgrowing!

BRYCE LANE BIO Bryce Lane discovered his passion for plants and telling others about them working at a small Massachusetts garden center through high school and college. After earning his BS in Plant Science at the University of Massachusetts and MS in Ornamental Horticulture at The Ohio State University, he came to the Department of Horticultural Science at NC State University as a lecturer in 1981. Bryce also served as the department’s Undergraduate Coordinator from 1987 to 2014. He spent 34 years teaching and advising over 20,000 students. He was the recipient of numerous local, regional, and national teaching awards. Bryce retired in 2014, but still teaches part-time in the department. From 2003 to 2014 Bryce hosted and produced a three-time, Emmy winning, UNC TV public television show called In the Garden With Bryce Lane. The show focused on all things home gardening and served all levels of gardeners. He now spends his time giving horticulture talks, doing leadership, and communication training, teaching part-time at NC State, and at the JC Raulston Arboretum. He has worked closely for years with North Carolina Extension and the NC Nursery and Landscape Association. An avid gardener, Bryce has gardened on the same one quarter acre plot for 40 years. He and his wife of 46 years also spend plenty of time with their 6 grandchildren. You can find out more about Bryce by visiting his website. THE PLANTASTIC PODCAST The Plantastic Podcast is a monthly podcast created by Dr. Jared Barnes. He's been gardening since he was five years old and now is an award-winning professor of horticulture at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, TX. To say hi and find the show notes, visit theplantasticpodcast.com. You can learn more about how Dr. Jared cultivates plants, minds, and life at meristemhorticulture.com. He also shares thoughts and cutting-edge plant research each week in his newsletter plant•ed, and you can sign up at meristemhorticulture.com/subscribe. Until next time, #keepgrowing!

MOLLY HENDRY BIO Molly toggles the worlds of design and plants as both a trained horticulturist and landscape architect. Up through July 2023, she was the Associate Director of Gardens Support for the Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens for 5 and a half years. There she was actively involved in the horticultural and design development of the 26 unique gardens that make up Birmingham Botanical Gardens. She was also a key support player in the renewal of the Gardens's master plan, in addition to managing ongoing garden projects. Since recording the podcast, she has stepped out to create her own garden design studio, Roots and Ramblings, where she does design work for folks in the Birmingham, Alabama area. With this studio, Molly is most interested in the intersection between people and places. She loves designing gardens for "hands in the dirt" gardeners, focusing on how design is not just a masterplan on a piece of paper, but an ongoing dialogue between a person and a place... often with a spade in hand! One of her top honors is that she spent 10 months living in the UK, sinking her hands into the soil at some of the top gardens across the country as the Garden Club of America's 2016–2017 Royal Horticultural Society's Interchange Fellow. You can learn more about Molly by visiting her website Roots and Ramblings and by following her on Instagram @mollshendry. THE PLANTASTIC PODCAST The Plantastic Podcast is a monthly podcast created by Dr. Jared Barnes. He's been gardening since he was five years old and now is an award-winning professor of horticulture at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, TX. To say hi and find the show notes, visit theplantasticpodcast.com. You can learn more about how Dr. Jared cultivates plants, minds, and life at meristemhorticulture.com. He also shares thoughts and cutting-edge plant research each week in his newsletter plant•ed, and you can sign up at meristemhorticulture.com/subscribe. Until next time, #keepgrowing!

MATT BIGGS BIO Matt Biggs, a graduate of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, is a well-known British gardener, broadcaster, and author of fifteen gardening and plant related books. He has presented numerous television programs, notably Channel 4’s Garden Club, stepped behind the camera to direct Meridian Television’s popular gardening series Grass Roots and worked as Horticultural Consultant for a garden design series on Channel 5. Matt contributes to several magazines, including the Royal Horticultural Society Journal The Garden, BBC Gardeners’ World, Countryfile, and Gardens Illustrated and leads gardening tours worldwide. He lectures at the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, Oxford University Botanic Gardens, the Cookery School of Michelin starred chief Jean-Christophe Novelli, and is course Director of the Plants and Plantsmanship course at the English Gardening School. Matt is also a regular panellist on BBC Radio 4’s ‘Gardener’s Question Time’. You can learn more about Matt by visiting his website. THE PLANTASTIC PODCAST The Plantastic Podcast is a monthly podcast created by Dr. Jared Barnes. He's been gardening since he was five years old and now is an award-winning professor of horticulture at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, TX. To say hi and find the show notes, visit theplantasticpodcast.com. You can learn more about how Dr. Jared cultivates plants, minds, and life at meristemhorticulture.com. He also shares thoughts and cutting-edge plant research each week in his newsletter plant•ed, and you can sign up at meristemhorticulture.com/subscribe. Until next time, #keepgrowing!

LESLIE HALLECK BIO Leslie Halleck is a Certified Professional Horticulturist (ASHS) who has spent her 30-year career hybridizing horticulture science with home gardening consumer needs. Halleck earned a BS in Biology/Botany from the University of North Texas and an MS in Horticulture from Michigan State University. Halleck’s professional experience is well rounded, with time spent in botanical field research, public gardens, landscape design and maintenance, garden writing, garden center retail, and horticulture and green industry consulting. For the last decade Halleck has devoted herself full-time to running her company, Halleck Horticultural, LLC, a horticulture industry consulting and marketing agency. Halleck also coaches horticulture industry business owners, from larger established businesses to brand new Plantrepreneurs. Halleck has developed and teaches courses on indoor plants and botany for UCLA Extension since 2020. Halleck currently sits on the certification board for ASHS and the Leadership Advisory Committee for Resource Innovation Institute (supporting the CEA and cannabis sectors). She also holds certificates in “The Science and Technology of Medical Cannabis Cultivation” from Utah State and two certificates in “Women in Leadership” from Cornell University. Halleck’s previous positions include Director of Horticulture Research at the Dallas Arboretum and General Manager for North Haven Gardens, an independent garden center in Dallas, Texas. Halleck is a regular feature on the professional speaking and industry publication circuit and was a columnist at Garden Center Magazine, Greenhouse Management Magazine, and Produce Grower Magazine for almost a decade; but she also continues to offer up common-sense gardening advice and hands-on learning to home gardeners via her Plantgeek Chic blog, public workshops, and consumer publications. During her career, Halleck has written hundreds of articles for local, regional, and national publications, as well as taught countless gardening programs for the home houseplant keeper, indoor grower, flower gardener, edible enthusiast, and backyard farmer. Halleck is the author of Gardening Under Lights: The Complete Guide for Indoor Growers (2018), Plant Parenting: Easy Ways to Make More Houseplants, Vegetables, and Flowers (2019), and Tiny Plants: Discover the Joys of Growing and Collecting Itty Bitty Houseplants (2021). Halleck is an avid lifelong plant and gardening “everythingist” who prefers low-input “fluffy” landscapes and gardens as well as dense high-output vegetable gardening (both indoors and out!). She’s obsessed with tiny plants and tiny chihuahuas. Halleck is also an artist who creates botanical and nature-focused work in watercolor, colored pencil, printmaking, as well as digital illustration. You can find some of her work at her website. THE PLANTASTIC PODCAST The Plantastic Podcast is a monthly podcast created by Dr. Jared Barnes. He's been gardening since he was five years old and now is an award-winning professor of horticulture at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, TX. To say hi and find the show notes, visit theplantasticpodcast.com. You can learn more about how Dr. Jared cultivates plants, minds, and life at meristemhorticulture.com. He also shares thoughts and cutting-edge plant research each week in his newsletter plant•ed, and you can sign up at meristemhorticulture.com/subscribe. Until next time, #keepgrowing!

ANN AMATO BIO Ann Amato lives in Portland, Oregon and is a horticulturist and seed propagator at Cistus Nursery and a propagator at Secret Garden Growers in Canby, Oregon. At 18, she published the book Ancient Forests and Western Man: A Pictorial History of the West Coast. Later, she earned a bachelors of arts from Portland State University with a double major in English literature and art history. She has been a garden blogger (amateurbotannist.com) for over a decade and is the recipient of an Oregon Nurseries Foundation Scholarship. Currently, she is the President of the Mount Hood Gesneriad Society, an affiliated chapter of The Gesneriad Society. She been featured in horticulture media like Garden Time TV, The Planthunter in Australia, and the podcast Horticulture Rising. When not working, she tends to her indoor houseplant collection at home where she has over 500 different plants in her indoor collection, many of which are either gesneriads or begonias. She also tends to her small urban garden named Campiello Maurizio: the Garden of One-of-each-ee. You can learn more about Ann by visiting her website www.amateurbotannist.com. THE PLANTASTIC PODCAST The Plantastic Podcast is a monthly podcast created by Dr. Jared Barnes. He's been gardening since he was five years old and now is an award-winning professor of horticulture at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, TX. To say hi and find the show notes, visit theplantasticpodcast.com. You can learn more about how Dr. Jared cultivates plants, minds, and life at meristemhorticulture.com. He also shares thoughts and cutting-edge plant research each week in his newsletter plant•ed, and you can sign up at meristemhorticulture.com/subscribe. Until next time, #keepgrowing!

GREG PAIGE BIO Greg Paige discovered his career goal early—creating and working in beautiful public gardens and sharing and teaching this passion with others. Greg currently serves as the Director of Horticulture at the JC Raulston Arboretum in Raleigh, North Carolina. Greg has had a storied life in public horticulture. His 30-year career involved work at some of the finest gardens in the country including Bartlett Tree Research Laboratory as Director of Horticulture and Arboretum Curator, Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden in Belmont, North Carolina, the Scott Arboretum of Swarthmore College in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina, the Holden Arboretum outside Cleveland, Ohio, and the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden in Cincinnati, Ohio. You can learn more about Greg by visiting him at the JC Raulston Arboretum, watching videos from his work at the arboretum, and following him on Instagram. THE PLANTASTIC PODCAST The Plantastic Podcast is a monthly podcast created by Dr. Jared Barnes. He's been gardening since he was five years old and now is an award-winning professor of horticulture at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, TX. To say hi and find the show notes, visit theplantasticpodcast.com. You can learn more about how Dr. Jared cultivates plants, minds, and life at meristemhorticulture.com. He also shares thoughts and cutting-edge plant research each week in his newsletter plant•ed, and you can sign up at meristemhorticulture.com/subscribe. Until next time, #keepgrowing!

MARY PHILLIPS BIO For eight years, Mary has led Garden for Wildlife™ and Certified Wildlife Habitat® as an ambassador for native plants with the National Wildlife Federation. Her work ensures all habitat programs and resources are rooted in sustainable practices and the latest science. Under her leadership, in coordination with the White House Office of Science and Policy, NWF coordinated the National Pollinator Garden Network in 2015 to launch the Million Pollinator Garden Challenge which created over a million pollinator gardens in three years. This partnership involved over fifty national organizations with a third from the commercial garden trade, such as growers and independent garden centers. Mary helped create the Garden for Wildlife Native Plants Collection™. The goal of this social enterprise is to increase the native plant supply, reduce carbon impacts, and secure survival of iconic species, such as the monarch butterfly, native bees and songbirds. Mary works to ensure Garden for Wildlife, Inc. maintains its sustainability commitments: to engage everyday people in solutions for critical wildlife loss and climate impact and, connect local native plant growers to consumers through ecommerce. Prior to joining NWF, Mary was principal at The Abundant Backyard, a sustainable native plant landscaping service and one of the first Certified Green Businesses in Montgomery County, MD. As a Maryland Master Naturalist, Mary maintains her Certified Wildlife Habitat® with her family and enjoys hiking and exploring the Chesapeake Bay natural history and heritage. You can find more about Mary Phillips on LinkedIn. THE PLANTASTIC PODCAST The Plantastic Podcast is a monthly podcast created by Dr. Jared Barnes. He's been gardening since he was five years old and now is an award-winning professor of horticulture at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, TX. To say hi and find the show notes, visit theplantasticpodcast.com. You can learn more about how Dr. Jared cultivates plants, minds, and life at meristemhorticulture.com. He also shares thoughts and cutting-edge plant research each week in his newsletter plant•ed, and you can sign up at meristemhorticulture.com/subscribe. Until next time, #keepgrowing!

JAMES GOLDEN BIO James Golden’s garden design has been featured in national and international magazines, in The New York Times, and in several books on garden design. He has collected many of his inspiring thoughts in the recently published book The View from Federal Twist. It is a wonderful, well-written glimpse into the inception, creation, and management of a naturalistic garden. James has been the recipient of national awards and is widely known in the gardening world through his garden blog View from Federal Twist. Federal Twist regularly appears on tours of the Garden Conservancy, the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, the Hardy Plant Society, and on numerous private tours. Recently retired, he has started a garden design practice. You can learn more about James on his website and blog, by following him on Instagram @imfederaltwist, and by reading James’s book The View from Federal Twist. THE PLANTASTIC PODCAST The Plantastic Podcast is a monthly podcast created by Dr. Jared Barnes. He's been gardening since he was five years old and now is an award-winning professor of horticulture at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, TX. To say hi and find the show notes, visit theplantasticpodcast.com. You can learn more about how Dr. Jared cultivates plants, minds, and life at meristemhorticulture.com. He also shares thoughts and cutting-edge plant research each week in his newsletter plant•ed, and you can sign up at meristemhorticulture.com/subscribe. Until next time, #keepgrowing!

CAROL REESE BIO Carol grew up as a farm girl in Mississippi where she learned much about the land from her family. In her 30’s she pursued her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Mississippi State University in horticulture. Carol worked as a regional horticulture extension specialist for the University of Tennessee’s West Tennessee AgResearch and Education Center in Jackson, Tennessee for 27 years where she inspired countless gardeners within the state with her humor and scientific approach to learning. She is beloved in the horticulture community for giving sensational presentations across the country where she pushes the envelope of people’s understanding of the natural world. Additionally, she wrote Q&A articles for Horticulture magazine and contributed a weekly column to the Jackson Sun newspaper in Jackson, Tennessee for many years. Carol recently retired from her position and has even more time to roam the 117 acres of her mostly wild property with her dogs. You can connect with Carol Reese by finding her on Facebook. THE PLANTASTIC PODCAST The Plantastic Podcast is a monthly podcast created by Dr. Jared Barnes. He's been gardening since he was five years old and now is an award-winning professor of horticulture at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, TX. To say hi and find the show notes, visit theplantasticpodcast.com. You can learn more about how Dr. Jared cultivates plants, minds, and life at meristemhorticulture.com. He also shares thoughts and cutting-edge plant research each week in his newsletter plant•ed, and you can sign up at meristemhorticulture.com/subscribe. Until next time, #keepgrowing!

JARED HUGHES BIO Jared Hughes and his wife Liz run Groovy Plants Ranch in Marengo, Ohio, a family friendly, whimsical oasis of escape for customers from all over the country. Groovy Plants Ranch has been featured in a number of magazines like Better Homes and Gardens, and Midwest Living named them the best garden shop of 2022. THE PLANTASTIC PODCAST The Plantastic Podcast is a monthly podcast created by Dr. Jared Barnes. He's been gardening since he was five years old and now is an award-winning professor of horticulture at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, TX. To say hi and find the show notes, visit theplantasticpodcast.com. You can learn more about how Dr. Jared cultivates plants, minds, and life at meristemhorticulture.com. He also shares thoughts and cutting-edge plant research each week in his newsletter plant•ed, and you can sign up at meristemhorticulture.com/subscribe. Until next time, #keepgrowing!

ABRA LEE BIO Abra Lee is a storyteller, horticulturist, and author of the forthcoming book Conquer The Soil: Black America and the Untold Stories of Our Country’s Gardeners, Farmers, and Growers. She has spent a whole lotta time in the dirt as a municipal arborist and airport landscape manager. Her work has been featured in publications including The New York Times, Fine Gardening, and Veranda Magazine. Lee is a graduate of Auburn University College of Agriculture and an alumna of the Longwood Gardens Society of Fellows, a global network of public horticulture professionals. You can learn more about Abra at her website Conquer the Soil, on Instagram @conquerthesoil, and on Twitter @conquerthesoil. THE PLANTASTIC PODCAST The Plantastic Podcast is a monthly podcast created by Dr. Jared Barnes. He's been gardening since he was five years old and now is an award-winning professor of horticulture at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, TX. To say hi and find the show notes, visit theplantasticpodcast.com. You can learn more about how Dr. Jared cultivates plants, minds, and life at meristemhorticulture.com. He also shares thoughts and cutting-edge plant research each week in his newsletter plant•ed, and you can sign up at meristemhorticulture.com/subscribe. Until next time, #keepgrowing!

ANDREW BUNTING BIO Andrew Bunting is Vice President of Horticulture at the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society (PHS) and leads the utilization of planting and design to promote environmentally sound gardening practices at PHS. Andrew has elevated each of the departments he oversees and has increased the brand and visibility of PHS through their respective work. Andrew received his B.S. in Plant and Soil Science from Southern Illinois University. Prior to arriving at PHS, Andrew worked at Chicago Botanic Garden, Chanticleer Garden, and the Scott Arboretum for a tenure of 27 years. He has received the American Public Gardens Association’s Professional Citation, Chanticleer Scholarship in Professional Development, and the Certificate of Merit from PHS. He also serves on the Board of Magnolia Society International. Andrew published his first book in 2015 The Plant Lover’s Guide to Magnolias. Andrew enjoys bird watching, travel and, of course, gardening. You can learn more about Andrew by visiting PHS’s website and his Instagram page @abunting64. THE PLANTASTIC PODCAST The Plantastic Podcast is a monthly podcast created by Dr. Jared Barnes. He's been gardening since he was five years old and now is an award-winning professor of horticulture at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, TX. To say hi and find the show notes, visit theplantasticpodcast.com. You can learn more about how Dr. Jared cultivates plants, minds, and life at meristemhorticulture.com. He also shares thoughts and cutting-edge plant research each week in his newsletter plant•ed, and you can sign up at meristemhorticulture.com/subscribe. Until next time, #keepgrowing!

PEGGY ANNE MONTGOMERY BIO Peggy Anne Montgomery is a people-oriented horticultural professional with more than 35 years of U.S. and international experience in trade- and consumer-focused garden marketing and communications, public relations and outreach, landscape design, and public horticulture. She studied horticulture and apprenticed in the Netherlands where she raised a family and owned a landscape design firm for 15 years. Her business specialized in sustainable, eco-friendly landscapes continuing her life-long interest in nature and the importance of balanced ecosystems. She has an extensive background in public relations and was part of the creative team that launched the Endless Summer® Hydrangea brand. Peggy Anne went on to study native plants at Mt. Cuba Center in Delaware and Longwood Gardens in Pennsylvania. She is currently an account executive for the Garden Media Group, the premier horticulture marketing firm where she represents Royal Anthos, a consortium of Dutch bulbs growers and exporters. She is a long-standing member and Fellow of GardenComm and has written for numerous trade and popular publications. Her home garden has been featured in magazines, books, and television. Today she lives and gardens with her husband and fellow horticulturist Dan Benarcik in northern Delaware. THE PLANTASTIC PODCAST The Plantastic Podcast is a monthly podcast created by Dr. Jared Barnes. He's been gardening since he was five years old and now is an award-winning professor of horticulture at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, TX. To say hi and find the show notes, visit theplantasticpodcast.com. You can learn more about how Dr. Jared cultivates plants, minds, and life at meristemhorticulture.com. He also shares thoughts and cutting-edge plant research each week in his newsletter plant•ed, and you can sign up at meristemhorticulture.com/subscribe. Until next time, #keepgrowing!

ETHAN KAUFFMAN BIO Ethan Kauffman developed his love of the natural world exploring the hills in southeastern Pennsylvania. He cultivated his horticultural perspective over two decades of gardening in the deep south, including working at Riverbanks Zoo and Garden and then as director of Moore Farms Botanical Garden, where he led the transition from a private pleasure garden to a public botanical garden. Drawing on influences from both regions, he currently serves as the first director of Stoneleigh: a natural garden, a 42-acre former estate located in Villanova, PA, which opened to the public in 2018. At Stoneleigh, he enjoys creating a garden experience that inspires others to garden for beauty, biodiversity, and the health of our planet. To learn more about Ethan, visit the show notes on The Plantastic Podcast. THE PLANTASTIC PODCAST The Plantastic Podcast is a monthly podcast created by Dr. Jared Barnes. He's been gardening since he was five years old and now is an award-winning professor of horticulture at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, TX. To say hi and find the show notes, visit theplantasticpodcast.com. You can learn more about how Dr. Jared cultivates plants, minds, and life at meristemhorticulture.com. He also shares thoughts and cutting-edge plant research each week in his newsletter PlantEd, and you can sign up at meristemhorticulture.com/subscribe. Until next time, #keepgrowing!