Month: July 2020

Meet GardenComm Virtual Conference Speaker, April Thompson


April Thompson

April will be featured at the GardenComm Virtual Conference on Wednesday, August 12. Her topic, Market Segmentation: Communicating to Different Horticultural Audiences will show us how to identify and appeal to audiences with different horticultural needs and levels of expertise. This is the type of marketing session anyone can benefit from, but until then, let’s learn a little more about April:

Tell us a little about what you do and how long have you worked in the horticulture industry?
While I have only technically been professionally working in this industry one year, I was a founding member of a community garden in my neighborhood in DC 10 years ago and worked with agricultural development in sub-saharan Africa supporting value-added product marketing for farm businesses on and off over the past 15 years.

What is the first garden-related experience you can remember?
My love of flowers and plants has deep family roots. I have fond memories of the black-eyed Susans and Queen Anne’s lace in my grandma’s garden on my father’s side, and of working in my grandparents’ greenhouse and florist shop on my mom’s side. 

Talk about a mistake you made in your garden once that turned into an unexpected learning experience.
One mistake that turned out to be a learning experience was harvesting and eating broccoli leaves thinking I was growing collards. It opened my mind to the possibilities of the various plant parts that can be eaten from the garden (rather than just the parts commercially grown for sale), and alternative garden eats is now something I write and teach about.

If you could only give one piece of advice to a new gardener, what would it be?
One piece of advice for new gardeners would be to pay attention to your soil health – you need to make sure to have a healthy ecosystem in your soil for your plants to be healthy too. Bloom, our fertilizer product, is all about improving soil health and giving plants the nutrients they need to thrive. 

What’s a good teaser we could provide to audiences about your session content that might pique their interest?
Teaser – there is arguably nothing more important in communications than knowing your audience, yet we often fall prey to our own unchecked biases about our audiences in communicating. My presentation will help you come away with practical tools and tips to identify segments of your audience and find out what makes them tick.

What is your favorite plant to grow?
I love growing common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca), as it not only supports monarchs, bees and other important critters, but is edible throughout the season. As a forager, I like eating its tender shoots, leaves, buds and immature pods as well as making concoctions like cordials and vinegars and eye-catching bouquets from its aromatic flowers. As a perennial, they will come back year after year. I opt for perennials as much as possible. My little asparagus patch has been producing for years now!

Meet GardenComm Virtual Conference Speaker, Katie Elzer-Peters

Katie Elzer-Peters
The Garden of Words

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Katie Elzer-Peters got her professional start in public gardens and has now worked in the horticulture industry for over 20 years

Katie’s knowledge extends far beyond the garden, of course. She’s the woman behind The Garden of Words, LLC, a green industry digital marketing agency that helps companies develop websites, sell gardening products, publish books, scale up, and do email marketing.

Let’s learn a little more about Katie!

Tell us a little about what you do and how long have you worked in the horticulture industry?
I run The Garden of Words, LLC, a green industry digital marketing agency. We help companies large and small (including sole proprietors) develop websites (including ecommerce), sell gardening products online and at brick and mortar stores, publish books, scale their companies, and do email marketing. I have worked in the horticulture industry for about 22 years. I began working in public gardens and then transitioned to marketing. I’ve loved plants since I learned how to walk and talk.

What is the first garden-related experience you can remember?
I remember getting in trouble for putting sand from my sandbox in my mom’s flowerbeds. I told her “it improved drainage.” I was also completely obsessed with purple- and white-striped petunias as a kid. My first plants I really remember growing from seed are zinnias. I used to plant gobs of them. (We’re talking 6 to 8 years old here.)

Talk about a mistake you made in your garden once that turned into an unexpected learning experience.
Uh, all of gardening in the South! Right after I bought my house here I planted WAY too much too closely together. I did not realize that plants will legitimately engulf your house if you let them here. I learned to a) give more space, b) seriously shop for the compact varieties, and c) give my garden a good chop 2 to 3 times per year.

If you could only give one piece of advice to a new gardener, what would it be?
You will kill tons of plants. Everyone kills tons of plants. Don’t try once, fail, and give up. Keep trying and learning.

What’s a good teaser we could provide to audiences about your session content that might pique their interest?
I want to help people make their online footprint work efficiently and effectively without sucking their lives away.

What is your favorite plant to grow?
My favorite plants to grow are coneflowers and rudbeckias. I just love them so much—and so do the butterflies. They also last ridiculously long as cut flowers. I have a few that are on day 12 on my desk!
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Click here to see details and register!

Meet GardenComm Virtual Conference Speaker, Diane Blazek

Diane Blazek
Executive Director
All-America Selections/National Garden Bureau

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Diane will be featured on Tuesday, August 11 and Wednesday, August 12 during the GardenComm conference as she unveils plant varieties that are new to the market now, or will be introduced in the upcoming season.

Learning about new plants is something we all love, and learning more about Diane is just as fun! So we asked a few questions so everyone can become better acquainted with her.

Tell us a little about what you do and how long have you worked in the horticulture industry?
I am the Executive Director of two separate non-profit organizations. I’ve been in the industry since 1993 (27 years!) and my role is pretty diverse ranging from legal matters and financial management to speaking engagements and social media management.

What is the first garden-related experience you can remember?
Sitting in the shade of our maple trees in the yard, with my mom, scraping carrots and shelling peas so we could can them for winter eating.

What is the first plant you ever grew successfully?
I grew “Cockscomb” celosia (cristata) around our patio after my dad made new garden beds for us to use.

Talk about a mistake you made in your garden once that turned into an unexpected learning experience.
Which one? Ha! There are so many. In the beginning, not understanding the importance of soil composition or how useful fertilizers can be. Then, as I learned more about breeding, I started to realize the importance of different varieties. You really need to track which “red petunia” you use so you can track your favorites and/or the best performers.

If you could only give one piece of advice to a new gardener, what would it be?
Don’t be afraid of failure. Just learn from your mistakes and failures. Keep a good journal to track it all.

What is your favorite plant to grow?
Herbs! Specifically basil. It’s so easy to impress my husband by growing basil then making pesto to freeze for later. I love impressing him with my gardening skills but don’t tell him how easy it is to grow basil!!!!

Normally we’d ask Diane for some teaser content for her session, but since it’s about new varieties, that could give away too much! So make sure you’re registered for the conference so you can be among the first garden communicators to see these fascinating new plant varieties.
Register Today

Click here to see details and register!

Meet GardenComm Virtual Conference Speakers Abra Lee and Ellen Zachos


Starting today through Thursday, you will receive a dailyGardenComm Virtual Conference “Speaker Spotlight” email featuring one or more of our speakers. The series content includes responses to personal and industry questions we have asked all our speakers so you can get to know them better (sort of like chatting with them at a meal or in the hallway – a pivot for 2020).  

We are thrilled to kick-off our Speaker Spotlight Series with our opening session co-presenters,Abra Lee, owner ofConquer the Soil, a community that celebrates horticulture beyond plants andEllen Zachos, the Backyard Forager, a Harvard graduate, author of seven books, regular columnist for Edible New Mexico, and co-host of the Plantrama podcast. 

Abra and Ellen’s discussion,Finding Your Purpose, Forging Your Path, will explore the well-developed specialty, singular passion and unique voice each of us have to answer WHY people should listen to you. And when you’ve figured out your WHY, when you’ve found your purpose, your people will find you. And isn’t that why we all do what we do?

This isn’t a quick and easy fix. Finding your purpose takes time and dedication. But once you’ve defined your WHY, once you’ve discovered your purpose, work is no longer work. The joy of doing what you love is priceless. 
Please enjoy the below Q&A with Abra (responses noted as AL) and Ellen (responses noted as EZ). 

Tell us a little about what you do and how long have you worked in the horticulture industry?

AL: I write and speak for the company I founded named Conquer the Soil where I provide an experience in horticulture beyond the world of plants. My audience is people that are fond of culture, history, pop culture, and the arts. So I discuss these things with them through the lens of horticulture. 
I have worked in this industry for 20 years.

EZ: My first career was on Broadway. After leaving the cast of Les Miz, I went back to school at the New York Botanical Garden and earned certificates in ornamental horticulture and ethnobotany. I taught at the NYBG on a wide range of subjects, and founded Acme Plant Stuff, a boutique garden design/install/maintenance company specializing in rooftop gardens and private greenhouses. In 2014 I moved from NYC to Santa Fe, New Mexico, where I continue to enjoy an entirely new plant palette. 

What is the first garden-related experience you can remember? OR What is the first plant you ever grew successfully?

AL: My first garden-related experiences happened in my childhood. On the weekend we would go down to my Mama’s hometown of Barnesville, Georgia. It was rural and the the dirt road country and I loved it. Here I was exposed to gardening on our family farm.

EZ: My yiayia was an amazing gardener. She died before she could teach me (although I bet she knew how to forage because she was a sturdy Greek peasant), but I remember she grew a peach tree from a pit and gave it to my dad, who planted it in front of our house. I don’t know how old I was, but we moved out of that house when I was 9, so I’m guessing I was 4-5. That peach tree produced the sweetest, most delicious peaches I’ve ever eaten.

Talk about a mistake you made in your garden once that turned into an unexpected learning experience.

AL: I remember being an intern and on my first week on the job and skinning the bermuda grass (cutting it too low) with a mower. My supervisor was irate with me. I learned a) stay calm everybody it’s just grass —and— b) when I became in charge one day I would never ever talk to my team like that.

EZ: I once planted a large window box for a client with a small terrace and no irrigation. I’d never take on a terrace client without irrigation now, but I was young and foolish. I incorporated some water retaining polymer granules. I thought that was smart. What was NOT smart was that I didn’t hydrate them before mixing them into the potting mix. I watered the planted window box and went home. The next day I got a call from my very confused client. As the granules absorbed water overnight, they expanded, and the soil and plants spilled out over the edge, making a huge mess. 

If you could only give one piece of advice to a new gardener, what would it be?

AL: Poke around and try a little bit of everything. Garden tours, different plants, flower shows, various products, bonsai, etc. You will find your lane and find your people if you give yourself the freedom to experience all kinds of different stuff.
EZ: Don’t beat yourself up when something dies on your watch. It happens to all of us, and that’s how we learn.

What is your favorite plant to grow? OR, In your next life, if you were to come back as any plant, what would it be?
AL: Orchids have done wonders for my self-esteem. I am pretty proud that everytime I have been gifted an orchid I get it to rebloom multiple times. Since I have a 0% fail rate with that plant (and fingers crossed I keep it up) it is my favorite one to grow.

EZ: Oh my god, I am going to pretend you didn’t ask me what plant I’d like to be in my next life. First of all, there is no next life. Second, I do not want to be a plant.

What’s a good teaser we could provide to audiences about your session content that might pique their interest? 

It isn’t until you are brave enough to stand out that you start to fit in. Join this candid discussion on how we ran out of darns to give and freed our brands by embracing our true identities in the garden industry.
We all look forward to seeing you online August 10 – 13. More conference information here.

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