Growing a Career in Horticulture with Art Vanden Enden

Down The Garden Path Podcast

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This week, Joanne Shaw welcomes Art Vanden Enden to the podcast to discuss exploring a career in horticulture.

About Art Vanden Enden

Art Vanden Enden is self-employed as a Horticultural Advisor and Horticultural Technical Instructor at Landscape Ontario and Loyalist College. He also serves on the board at Landscape Ontario, Communities in Bloom and Garden Centres Canada. He has a long history in the garden centre industry, starting with Weall & Cullen and then Sheridan Nurseries until his retirement in 2022.

Here are some of the topics discussed in this episode:

The Pandemic's Positive Impact on the Younger Generation
- The positive impact of the pandemic on the younger generation, particularly in terms of their appreciation for outdoor activities
- Art shared his work with Landscape Ontario, focusing on training and working with various age groups, primarily those in their 20s and early 30s.
- The importance of teaching basic gardening skills and practical training to help them enter the industry
- The Grow Program, which provides introductory courses for those interested in the industry, and the role of job developers in matching students with employers
The Landscaping Industry's Versatility and Benefits
- The industry offers year-round work opportunities, from using lawn mowers in summer to snow blowers in winter
- Adapting to various weather conditions and being able to pivot when necessary
- Joanne’s experience entering the industry as a second career
- Working at an independent garden centre provides an excellent learning environment for those interested in the industry
Gardening Practices and Climate Change
- How gardening practices have changed over the past 30 years
- Sustainability and the need to adapt to climate change
- The shift in plant hardiness zones and the impact of invasive plants
- The need for progressive change in the industry and the role of influencers in promoting better gardening practices
- How reducing demand for invasive plants would lead to their eventual decline
Native Plant Promotion and Challenges
- The challenges of promoting native plants and the importance of being patient and supportive when advising gardeners
- The distinction between aggressive and invasive plants and the need for balance between native and non-native plants
- Joanne expressed her struggle with finding the right native plants for her clients, while Art shared his journey towards having 70% native plants in his garden
- The issue of invasive plants and the need for more research on creating sterile versions of these plants
Supporting New Gardeners and Best Practices
- The need for experienced gardeners to be good coaches, stay current with best practices, and be open to change
- The importance of being welcoming to new Canadians who may have gardening experience but are unfamiliar with local plants

Learn more about Art at www.communitiesinbloom.ca.

Have a topic you'd like Joanne to discuss?

Email your questions and comments to [email protected], or connect via her website at down2earth.ca.

Find Down the Garden Path on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube: @downthegardenpathpodcast.

Down the Garden Path Podcast

On Down The Garden Path, professional landscape designer Joanne Shaw discusses down-to-earth tips and advice for your plants, gardens and landscapes. As the owner of Down2Earth Landscape Design, Joanne Shaw has been designing beautiful gardens for homeowners east of Toronto for over a decade. She does her best to bring you interesting, relevant and useful topics to help you keep your garden as low-maintenance as possible.

In Down the Garden Path: A Step-By-Step Guide to Your Ontario Garden, Joanne and fellow landscape designer Matthew Dressing distill their horticultural and design expertise and their combined experiences in helping others create and maintain thriving gardens into one easy-to-read monthly reference guide. Get your copy today on Amazon.

Don't forget to check out Down the Garden Path on your favourite podcast app and subscribe! You can now catch the podcast on YouTube.

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