Women Who Are Changing the World From the Ground Up
A new book, ‘The Earth in Her Hands,’ profiles 75 inspiring women who work with plants. Read about 10 of them here
Annie Thornton
March 5, 2020
Houzz Editorial Staff
In The Earth in Her Hands: 75 Extraordinary Women Working in the World of Plants, published this month by Timber Press, author and public radio host Jennifer Jewell profiles 75 inspiring and diverse women who have positively impacted, and continue to impact, the world through their work in plants. Jewell showcases women working in the fields of botany, landscape design, agriculture, research and more.
“Women have been sowers of seeds and tenders of seedlings for a very, very long time. For much of that time these women didn’t have the time or the means to document their history,” Jewell writes in the book’s introduction. “I want to explore the ways this field is a more viable and creative career path for women than ever before and how the plant-work world is demonstrating greater social and environmental responsibility, in large part due to women’s contributions.”
“Women have been sowers of seeds and tenders of seedlings for a very, very long time. For much of that time these women didn’t have the time or the means to document their history,” Jewell writes in the book’s introduction. “I want to explore the ways this field is a more viable and creative career path for women than ever before and how the plant-work world is demonstrating greater social and environmental responsibility, in large part due to women’s contributions.”
Jewell has written about gardening since 1998, with her work appearing in national and regional publications. Her award-winning podcast for NPR, Cultivating Place: Conversations on Natural History & the Human Impulse to Garden, explores the relationships between plants and gardens, offering a natural history of place and culture.
In the following excerpts from The Earth in Her Hands, we bring you 10 of the women profiled in the book, with their favorite plant or landscape and a summary of their work.
In the following excerpts from The Earth in Her Hands, we bring you 10 of the women profiled in the book, with their favorite plant or landscape and a summary of their work.
1. Leslie Bennett
Her work: Owner and founder, Pine House Edible Gardens; founder, Black Sanctuary Gardens, Oakland, California
Her plant: “The passionflower. It’s vibrant, beautiful, strong, medicinal, visually inspiring, delicious. I just love it and all the different forms it comes in. Plus, it was one of the first plants I learned about when I lived in Jamaica. I love that it’s tough and grows rampantly, and that it’s so healing.”
Her plant journey: Leslie designs, installs and maintains edible landscapes, “landscapes that are both beautiful and productive, including plants that can be harvested for food, medicine and beauty.” More and more, specifically through her work with Black Sanctuary Gardens, Leslie’s work and advocacy speak directly to the value of cultural heritage in gardening.
Since 2014, Leslie’s work has included creating garden spaces that center on people of color, building on their cultural backgrounds and lives to guide the shape of a garden space, and “using plants that provide food, flowers and medicine relevant to their specific experiences. In other words, in my garden design work I am trying to literally make space for people of color in the landscape of American gardening.”
Her work: Owner and founder, Pine House Edible Gardens; founder, Black Sanctuary Gardens, Oakland, California
Her plant: “The passionflower. It’s vibrant, beautiful, strong, medicinal, visually inspiring, delicious. I just love it and all the different forms it comes in. Plus, it was one of the first plants I learned about when I lived in Jamaica. I love that it’s tough and grows rampantly, and that it’s so healing.”
Her plant journey: Leslie designs, installs and maintains edible landscapes, “landscapes that are both beautiful and productive, including plants that can be harvested for food, medicine and beauty.” More and more, specifically through her work with Black Sanctuary Gardens, Leslie’s work and advocacy speak directly to the value of cultural heritage in gardening.
Since 2014, Leslie’s work has included creating garden spaces that center on people of color, building on their cultural backgrounds and lives to guide the shape of a garden space, and “using plants that provide food, flowers and medicine relevant to their specific experiences. In other words, in my garden design work I am trying to literally make space for people of color in the landscape of American gardening.”
2. Jinny Blom
Her work: Principal and founder, Jenny Blom Ltd., Clerkenwell, London
Her plant: “The grapevine — it is so generous and lives long on very little. It even improves its gift in hard and uncompromising soils!”
Her plant journey: “On the face of it, I’m designing and building gardens. It draws together all the things I care most about: people, landscape, plants, social confluences, architecture, quality of life and the long-term view of our culture and cultural deposit on the earth.”
Ecological and cultural health weigh on her, and this sense of responsibility is regularly reflected in her work. She sits on the advisory board of the Therapeutic Landscapes Network, an organization founded by Naomi Sachs … in 1999 to expand global awareness of the evidence-based therapeutic benefits of landscape design across a broad spectrum of populations, from cancer patients to those experiencing PTSD or memory loss issues, and well beyond.
Her work: Principal and founder, Jenny Blom Ltd., Clerkenwell, London
Her plant: “The grapevine — it is so generous and lives long on very little. It even improves its gift in hard and uncompromising soils!”
Her plant journey: “On the face of it, I’m designing and building gardens. It draws together all the things I care most about: people, landscape, plants, social confluences, architecture, quality of life and the long-term view of our culture and cultural deposit on the earth.”
Ecological and cultural health weigh on her, and this sense of responsibility is regularly reflected in her work. She sits on the advisory board of the Therapeutic Landscapes Network, an organization founded by Naomi Sachs … in 1999 to expand global awareness of the evidence-based therapeutic benefits of landscape design across a broad spectrum of populations, from cancer patients to those experiencing PTSD or memory loss issues, and well beyond.
3. Andrea DeLong-Amaya
Her work: Director of horticulture, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Austin, Texas
Her landscape: “Enchanted Rock — a sculptural granite outcrop dome (geologically known as a batholith) in Texas with beautiful flora, creeks, and wide-open views.”
Her plant journey: Andrea has worked at the Wildflower Center since 1998, and she is currently the director of horticulture and oversees the cultivated gardens, the native-plant propagation nursery, the arboretum, and the natural-areas programs, which showcase more than 800 plants native to Texas. As an integral team member in the design and construction of the Family Garden and the 2005 master plan for the institution, Andrea has developed a love of teaching and sharing her passion for native plants and ecology.
“Some families might never go camping or hiking, but they might come to the safe, interpreted and controlled environment of a garden. We could be their only contact with nature or we could be the inspiration that empowers them to step out of their comfort zone in nature; maybe we’ll help them feel a sense of familiarity and stewardship once they get there.”
Her work: Director of horticulture, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Austin, Texas
Her landscape: “Enchanted Rock — a sculptural granite outcrop dome (geologically known as a batholith) in Texas with beautiful flora, creeks, and wide-open views.”
Her plant journey: Andrea has worked at the Wildflower Center since 1998, and she is currently the director of horticulture and oversees the cultivated gardens, the native-plant propagation nursery, the arboretum, and the natural-areas programs, which showcase more than 800 plants native to Texas. As an integral team member in the design and construction of the Family Garden and the 2005 master plan for the institution, Andrea has developed a love of teaching and sharing her passion for native plants and ecology.
“Some families might never go camping or hiking, but they might come to the safe, interpreted and controlled environment of a garden. We could be their only contact with nature or we could be the inspiration that empowers them to step out of their comfort zone in nature; maybe we’ll help them feel a sense of familiarity and stewardship once they get there.”
4. Mia Lehrer
Her work: Founder and president, Studio-MLA in Los Angeles and San Francisco
Her landscape: “The rolling California oak savannas. The dotted oaks grew on me, having come from the tropics of El Salvador. I love going to Catalina Island and taking long walks; it’s a unique environment, and I can get lost in those hills. It grounds me in different ways than the familiar lushness of the tropics, with the long vistas across the terrain and the exoticism of cactus.”
Her plant journey: One of our generation’s leading lights in bringing nature to urban areas is Mia Lehrer. Mia is the founder of Los Angeles-based Studio-MLA, whose large-scale public and residential garden design work in urban environments embodies her belief in the power of landscape to enhance the livability of a city and encourage nature as part of a city’s environments. Her award-winning work includes rewilding and community integration projects along the Los Angeles River and in the Nature Gardens at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County.
Her work: Founder and president, Studio-MLA in Los Angeles and San Francisco
Her landscape: “The rolling California oak savannas. The dotted oaks grew on me, having come from the tropics of El Salvador. I love going to Catalina Island and taking long walks; it’s a unique environment, and I can get lost in those hills. It grounds me in different ways than the familiar lushness of the tropics, with the long vistas across the terrain and the exoticism of cactus.”
Her plant journey: One of our generation’s leading lights in bringing nature to urban areas is Mia Lehrer. Mia is the founder of Los Angeles-based Studio-MLA, whose large-scale public and residential garden design work in urban environments embodies her belief in the power of landscape to enhance the livability of a city and encourage nature as part of a city’s environments. Her award-winning work includes rewilding and community integration projects along the Los Angeles River and in the Nature Gardens at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County.
5. Julie Moir Messervy
Her work: Owner and founder, Julie Moir Messervy Design Studio, Saxtons River, Vermont
Her landscape: “I have been lucky to travel to landscapes around the world and to have experienced some of the most beautiful and sophisticated gardens one can ever see. They always touch something deep in my soul, transporting me back to my favorite childhood landscapes that in turn inspire the gardens I design for others.”
Her plant journey: For more than 40 years, Julie, an award-winning landscape designer and garden design theorist, has worked to “compose landscapes of beauty and meaning, further the evolution of landscape design and change the way people create and enjoy their outdoor environments.” She has focused on helping people — individual homeowners, municipalities developing public parks and institutions creating public gardens — to realize garden spaces that achieve these ends.
Her work: Owner and founder, Julie Moir Messervy Design Studio, Saxtons River, Vermont
Her landscape: “I have been lucky to travel to landscapes around the world and to have experienced some of the most beautiful and sophisticated gardens one can ever see. They always touch something deep in my soul, transporting me back to my favorite childhood landscapes that in turn inspire the gardens I design for others.”
Her plant journey: For more than 40 years, Julie, an award-winning landscape designer and garden design theorist, has worked to “compose landscapes of beauty and meaning, further the evolution of landscape design and change the way people create and enjoy their outdoor environments.” She has focused on helping people — individual homeowners, municipalities developing public parks and institutions creating public gardens — to realize garden spaces that achieve these ends.
6. Debra Prinzing
Her work: Writer; founder and owner, Slow Flowers, Seattle
Her landscape: “My landscape is an ocean beach. I always feel at peace when I can sit quietly and watch the rhythmic and irregular patterns of waves advancing and receding. Beachcombing is one of my favorite ways to experience the amazing diversity of our natural world, and I confess to filling my pockets or the hem of an upturned shirt to carry my special finds home with me.”
Her plant journey: Garden journalist Debra Prinzing, founder of the Slow Flowers movement, has been a leader in shifting our national consciousness and conversation around where and how the flowers in our life are grown. She focuses on how floral consumers (gardeners, growers, floral designers) can help resolve concerns about a flower industry [whose products are] not sustainably grown or locally sourced.
Her work: Writer; founder and owner, Slow Flowers, Seattle
Her landscape: “My landscape is an ocean beach. I always feel at peace when I can sit quietly and watch the rhythmic and irregular patterns of waves advancing and receding. Beachcombing is one of my favorite ways to experience the amazing diversity of our natural world, and I confess to filling my pockets or the hem of an upturned shirt to carry my special finds home with me.”
Her plant journey: Garden journalist Debra Prinzing, founder of the Slow Flowers movement, has been a leader in shifting our national consciousness and conversation around where and how the flowers in our life are grown. She focuses on how floral consumers (gardeners, growers, floral designers) can help resolve concerns about a flower industry [whose products are] not sustainably grown or locally sourced.
7. Midori Shintani
Her work: Head gardener, Tokachi Millennium Forest, Hokkaido, Japan
Her plant: “Miscanthus sinensis. A field of miscanthus was the first place that as a child, I was overwhelmed by plants and their vigorous strength. At first, I felt a little fear there, and then I realized, ‘I actually am living with them.’ It’s never changed since.”
Her plant journey: The Tokachi Millennium Forest in Hokkaido, Japan, models for visitors that “the natural environment is an asset worth preserving for future generations for the thousands of years to come.” Midori Shintani, its head gardener, explains that she and her garden team strive to “merge” the cultivated landscape and gardens seamlessly into the natural areas surrounding the site. With a goal to tend the connection between nature and humankind, the Millennium Forest serves “a deeply felt sense of beauty in Japanese culture and garden history.”
Her work: Head gardener, Tokachi Millennium Forest, Hokkaido, Japan
Her plant: “Miscanthus sinensis. A field of miscanthus was the first place that as a child, I was overwhelmed by plants and their vigorous strength. At first, I felt a little fear there, and then I realized, ‘I actually am living with them.’ It’s never changed since.”
Her plant journey: The Tokachi Millennium Forest in Hokkaido, Japan, models for visitors that “the natural environment is an asset worth preserving for future generations for the thousands of years to come.” Midori Shintani, its head gardener, explains that she and her garden team strive to “merge” the cultivated landscape and gardens seamlessly into the natural areas surrounding the site. With a goal to tend the connection between nature and humankind, the Millennium Forest serves “a deeply felt sense of beauty in Japanese culture and garden history.”
8. Lauren Springer
Her work: Plantswoman, garden designer, author, Fort Collins, Colorado
Her plant: “Eastern pasqueflower (Pulsatilla patens). It’s slender yet tenacious, a pioneer in harsh places. It’s the first to bloom and looks vulnerable and soft but survives difficult conditions and manages to grow and thrive. It will be gloriously full of furry flowers and pollen all there by itself, helping hungry ants and bees at the crossroads between winter and spring, with maybe a few of its seedlings alongside for company, on a hillside with no one watching but grass and rocks.”
Her plant journey: Her plant research, plant introductions, garden writing and design across the Intermountain West bring attention to the tough, resilient and beautiful plants of her region and the need for regionally adapted gardening and designs. Through the course of her more than thirty-year career, Springer has introduced between 50 and 60 new plants to the trade in the Rocky Mountains and at least six to the wider nursery world, including Salvia ‘Ultra Violet’ and Oenothera ‘Shimmer’.
Her work: Plantswoman, garden designer, author, Fort Collins, Colorado
Her plant: “Eastern pasqueflower (Pulsatilla patens). It’s slender yet tenacious, a pioneer in harsh places. It’s the first to bloom and looks vulnerable and soft but survives difficult conditions and manages to grow and thrive. It will be gloriously full of furry flowers and pollen all there by itself, helping hungry ants and bees at the crossroads between winter and spring, with maybe a few of its seedlings alongside for company, on a hillside with no one watching but grass and rocks.”
Her plant journey: Her plant research, plant introductions, garden writing and design across the Intermountain West bring attention to the tough, resilient and beautiful plants of her region and the need for regionally adapted gardening and designs. Through the course of her more than thirty-year career, Springer has introduced between 50 and 60 new plants to the trade in the Rocky Mountains and at least six to the wider nursery world, including Salvia ‘Ultra Violet’ and Oenothera ‘Shimmer’.
9. Mégan Twilegar
Her work: Nurserywoman and designer; owner and founder, Pistils Nursery, Portland, Oregon
Her plant: “Wild onion. There are many species native to our region, and I have fallen in love with all of them. Being bulbs, they have the ability to grow in the leanest, grittiest and heaviest of soil and, depending on the species, push through the toughest mats of grass to return year after year for eons. For me, they represent flexibility, perseverance, and longevity. As a woman, I aspire to embody these qualities, as I feel they are needed to navigate life. Also, wild onions are caretakers offering us sustenance, as many are medicinal and edible.”
Her plant journey: “The dependence on and rampant use of chemicals in the horticulture and floriculture industry” is one of the biggest challenges in her business today…. Pistils is conscientious about where they source their plants, and while not all growers are 100% organic, once a plant reaches the shop, it’s a whole new life for them. Every care is taken to avoid chemical intervention.
Her work: Nurserywoman and designer; owner and founder, Pistils Nursery, Portland, Oregon
Her plant: “Wild onion. There are many species native to our region, and I have fallen in love with all of them. Being bulbs, they have the ability to grow in the leanest, grittiest and heaviest of soil and, depending on the species, push through the toughest mats of grass to return year after year for eons. For me, they represent flexibility, perseverance, and longevity. As a woman, I aspire to embody these qualities, as I feel they are needed to navigate life. Also, wild onions are caretakers offering us sustenance, as many are medicinal and edible.”
Her plant journey: “The dependence on and rampant use of chemicals in the horticulture and floriculture industry” is one of the biggest challenges in her business today…. Pistils is conscientious about where they source their plants, and while not all growers are 100% organic, once a plant reaches the shop, it’s a whole new life for them. Every care is taken to avoid chemical intervention.
10. Rowen White
Her work: Seed keeper; founder, Sierra Seeds, Nevada County, California
Her plant: “Corn Mother. She has been with my people since our creation story, she has helped nourish our people, and she has a very healing spirit that will help us through these times. Sometimes I ask, ‘Am I growing the corn, or is she growing me?’”
Her plant journey: Rowen’s deepest calling and interest lie in “empowering and growing confident seed stewards. Locally adapted seeds are at the foundation of any durable and resilient food system. By growing a network of capable seed stewards, we are making a lasting contribution to seed and food sovereignty” and furthering “true seed literacy” in the world. She fulfills her calling as founder of Sierra Seeds in Nevada County, California, a locally grown seed cooperative and an educational resource; as chair of the Seed Savers Exchange; and as a member of the Indigenous Seed Keepers Network.
Taken from “The Earth in Her Hands” © copyright 2020 by Jennifer Jewell. Published by Timber Press. Portland, Oregon
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Her work: Seed keeper; founder, Sierra Seeds, Nevada County, California
Her plant: “Corn Mother. She has been with my people since our creation story, she has helped nourish our people, and she has a very healing spirit that will help us through these times. Sometimes I ask, ‘Am I growing the corn, or is she growing me?’”
Her plant journey: Rowen’s deepest calling and interest lie in “empowering and growing confident seed stewards. Locally adapted seeds are at the foundation of any durable and resilient food system. By growing a network of capable seed stewards, we are making a lasting contribution to seed and food sovereignty” and furthering “true seed literacy” in the world. She fulfills her calling as founder of Sierra Seeds in Nevada County, California, a locally grown seed cooperative and an educational resource; as chair of the Seed Savers Exchange; and as a member of the Indigenous Seed Keepers Network.
Taken from “The Earth in Her Hands” © copyright 2020 by Jennifer Jewell. Published by Timber Press. Portland, Oregon
More on Houzz
Read more landscape and gardening stories
Browse inspiring outdoor photos
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Thanks for posting a most enjoyable read!
amazing story inspiring and right on time as we watch our mother planet literally at war for her survival.....more stories like this please women do so many amazing things we want to hear about them.....
Thanks for posting! I have Lauren's books and just love them. They are filled with creative, no fuss plants and ideas. She's a great photographer as well.