LOS ANGELES – Chantal Ida Gordon never thought she would be a plant.
The 38-year-old horticultural associate and “How to Window Box: Small-Space Plans to Grow Inoors or Out.” “As a kid, I wanted to be an astronomer,” Gordon said. Sadly, she decided to study physics to become a better writer.
A native of Maryland, he studied journalism and psychology at New York University and worked as an assistant editor at Vogue before moving to low-paying jobs in La Jola. “I think I missed the chance to become a scientist,” she says.
A.D. When she moved to New York in 2013, she discovered that she could still “think like a scientist” while still researching fiction.
“I volunteered at a community garden in East Harlem and it made me want to be more involved in plants,” she says.
Her newfound passion for vegetables eventually inspired Horticulture, a garden and lifestyle station that she compared to Ryan Benoit, who was under pressure from friends before thousands of years ago.
“We did it for fun, but When we sent our launch email in 2013, we were surprised and delighted to find out that our friends were secret plant lovers. ” “Many people in our generation were curious about plants and wanted them and wanted more plants in their lives. They just need some advice and guidance.
Inspired by something unfamiliar and unfamiliar, the couple delved their 1,800-square-foot La Jola garden into a unique view of Southern California with plant and garden tours.
While working on a blog and advertising agency, Gordon taught herself with experience, research: Jane Perron’s “Leigh” podcast is popular – and interviews with botanists when your reader came to pick up the plant. the world.
Gordon, who hails from fashion, says she was surprised by the positive response to their “dirty, design and culture” blog.
“Loneliness is a positive thing in the fashion world,” she says. But the plant community is more like ‘Everyone is welcome here!’
Two years after developing the horticultural symbol, the couple realizes that they are basically looking for different things in life and will be better off as friends. Just as they were preparing to write a book together, the divorcee and Gordon moved to a small apartment in Los Angeles.
“It was strange and weird and I doubted myself,” she says. “Starting my own garden was emotional. I killed a lot of plants on my porch in front of the northwest but having my own garden was a treat.”
We are fortunate to have skyscrapers growing side by side in Los Angeles, figs and roses and lemons.
Holding a small porch, she moved her garden outside her apartment, and in the process, she says, she gained self-confidence as a plant.
“It was wonderful to know that I am the only gardener,” she says. It is full of fun and surprises mixed with some self-doubt. I realized that my style was a little more romantic and relaxed and a little more cohesive in that La Jolla was calm and organized in several layers of plants.
During the epidemic, the 600-square-foot apartment she shared with her boyfriend and her two dogs became “very popular” and sheltered the courtyard. “I understand how many herbs there are,” she says. “Plants get you out of your head. Finding even a small amount of space was like a pressure valve.”
Today, dozens of gardens line the walls and shelves of the courtyard, and she points to an unusual beggaria that has been banned from the podokarpus tree, and an unusual carnivorous pine tree (Drosophilus lusitanicum) blooms and crawls on wild bats. The “Thai constellation” is an inspiration for home gardeners who once said that Monteras, Gordon, knew nothing about plants.
Like the plants on her porch, she grew into a veteran gardener, and in the process she endured difficult life changes, including divorce and the COVID-19 epidemic. She eventually became a scientist who dreamed of becoming a child. “This is my second chance,” she said with a smile.
And even though she doesn’t blog as much as she used to – she and Benoit continue to work together on horticulture these days and spend a lot of time on Instagram these days – she’s working on a plant-related project that she still can’t share while she’s working. As a copy of a technology company.
In a recent Q&A session, Gordon discussed what it would be like to start a new garden, shared some of her favorite drought-tolerant plants in Los Angeles, and explained why she was separated from Epipelium.
Question. A large part of your identity must be expressed in the La Jola Garden. Was it hard for you to start again?
The la lala compound was an important part of my story. But I live here and I want to return to Los Angeles because I missed my close friends and the diversity and culture here. Even though I have a small fence here, it is still worth living in a neighborhood that reflects my identity.
Q: What is the horticultural situation like today?
A. We have a constant green content on the site, from how to make cocktails to plants on the site and to create an outdoor movie theater, as long as it is not too late to blog. Ryan is working on the Skypots vertical garden solution and although we are divorced, we are friends and business partners.
Obviously, there is a lot of plant content out there, but me and I want to stick to science in horticulture. So no TikTok is useful for watering your plants in hydrogen peroxide. Instead, you’ll get a little legend from us and some will hopefully dive deeper into the species that could be your gateway to your next favorite plant. This is the main thing I want – for people to find the plants that are closest to them. It may not be a seasonal plant – but who cares?
On the design side of things, we want to show you how to have something that is interesting to you but what your plant needs. Also, the more attractive your plants are, the more likely you are to take care of them. There is much happiness in gardening when you put your personality into perspective.
Q: As a writer, do you have a favorite gardener?
A. I am learning a lot about the history of black people from my friend Abra Lee, who has an amazing Instagram account. She is a horticulturist and writer and Instagram is full of fascinating stories about the lives of black plants and women. I find my life every time she posts about black gardeners, gardeners, farmers and florists trying to destroy history.
I think Jamaica’s Kinkeid book “My Garden” is broken, so I like that a lot of people are paying attention to it now.
Q: Is it fun for people who are not inferior to be more recognized?
A. I do not say anything pleasing. More outdated. Long gone. For this recognition to happen, black people should not accept the killing of police officers. Recognition is important, but it must come with compensation. That sense of justice and compensation must have existed for centuries. It is important that it is happening now. I hope it continues.
Q: Favorite plant?
A. It depends on the time of year, but in general it is my favorite epiphilium, a kind of wild cactus. It is a striking contrast to the creation of giant flowers that grow at night. Since I have parents from Trinidad, I feel like a tropical person living in the West, so I am associated with a tropical cactus. One of my plant tattoos is a cousin of epiphyllums – dysplasia philanthropy. I love how these plants are shaped and how they grow so much without a ton of water. I have a flower tattoo on my forehead.
Q: Given the severity of the drought in California, can you recommend some good drought tolerant plants for Los Angeles?
– Opuntia santarita (see the invisible ones as sharp as hell’s glosses).
– Aeonium arboreum ‘Zwartkop’ (small yellow flowers that look like black roses, except for real flowers, are shockingly conical).
– Ionium Sunburst, an unstoppable variable success.
– Euphorbia grantii, unopened euphorbia tree with purple and green leaves; He grows fast and is on the verge of his loading game. Even if he is thirsty, he cannot be completely ignored.
-And then those hanging baskets are loved like pearl string, burrow tail, dolphins, and crocodile perforata.
-I love all the kalanchoe I see in my neighborhood with pink bell-shaped flowers like kalancho fuchenkoi.
– Of course, our native Salvia loves a hummingbird like the Hummingbird sage!
– Until the curiosity on the table, I love Euphorbia obesa and Astrophytums.
I was trying to get more into the “dry shade” plants and I heard about good things:
-Claytonia perfoliata is a nutritious ground cover, which looks really cool.
Q: Tell us about your new garden.
A. When I found this place, I went inside and loved the outside, even though it was halfway between the yard and the yard. The camellias began to bloom, and there were four two-story camellia trees with delicate, delicate flowers that we would spend in autumn and winter. I have a tall Meyer lemon tree – it is very good in our tropical winter – and they smell from this world. We are importing Black Mission figs and I want to buy Panache Tiger Striped Figs. There is a huge podcarcarp that gives us a lot of shade. Underneath it, I brought my favorites, the epipelium, my hoe, the dragon fruit, many tillandsias, the African milk shrub I had found next door. Atwater water is very stimulating for people who love plants because they do things that attract people to their gardens. Three years ago, I received permission to paint the concrete wall around the compound. After several trips to Jill, I finally landed in a light shade of aqua reminiscent of the Caribbean. I love to see plants reflect light. It’s like being in a pool.
Question – What is the most common herbal question that people ask you?
A. “What plant should I get?” In response, I asked them, “Which way is your window facing?” “How much light do you have?” Before you start thinking about plants, you need to be an expert on how sunlight gets into your space. That’s why I’m busy with the compass app coming with my iPhone. The hardest thing for people is what they like to do at home. It may be hard to let go of your hot plant dreams, but people need to understand where their plants come from. If it grows in the tops of trees and likes a little blood circulation, then do not put it in a glass case. When you see how Monsteras and philodendrons grow in the wild, you can see how they like to support.
Q: Are you an indoor or outdoor plant person?
A. Definitely outside the house. I have seven plants in the house. I tried to bring the bird of paradise into the living room, and after a few months it was covered in size. I took him outside to recover and he never came back inside. He was happy outside.
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