About

How it Started

From the moment Cheeto Satan was re-elected, I could see the writing on the wall. I knew it would be bad, that it would be worse than last time - and I knew people would go hungry.

As a kid, I grew up with a single mom who bartended for a living. I know what it's like to have the lights get shut off for a couple days and bounce between relatives’ houses. As a young adult, I learned what it was like to sit in the DHS office and get grilled about how many hours a week you work a week in order to qualify for SNAP benefits so I could feed my baby and stay in college.

I was devastated. I was depressed. And as I sat there despairing, thinking about all the parents worrying about how to make sure their families had enough to eat, I remembered something I learned when I was on SNAP.

You can buy seeds and plant starts. I wondered how many other people didn't know that.

Then I started thinking: what else do I know? Well, I’m a marketer. (Not exactly a line item for the apocalypse.) I studied permaculture and environmental economics in college. I've been a hobby gardener for 15 years. I come from a family where my great-grandparents grew and preserved enough food to feed our entire extended family years after they’d passed.

Turns out I actually know a lot - and I had power I didn't used to.

When the inauguration happened, it hit me - this full body knowing, a download from the universe that said, "Plant something."

Plant something? (It was January.)

But the voice was persistent. It felt like something was pulling me towards something I couldn't quite name or see the shape of, but I knew that it was right. If I had been looking for a sign, this was it.

So I went online and got the biggest, cheapest greenhouse I could find without telling my husband, and I started planting every seed I could get my hands on.

That instinct became Hearth & Hollow, my urban farm here in SE Vancouver where I grow edible plant starts and teach families how to start growing their own food. 

Because opting out of the food system - even if you only grow a little - that's one way to build power.

The Plants

Every start is grown from seed in my backyard in the Ellsworth neighborhood in SE Vancouver, with varieties selected for flavor, resilience, and what performs well here. Everything I use is OMRI-listed, which means it's 100% approved for organic operations. Every single plant I grow also comes with a growers guide, because I don't expect you to just know what to do with the plant you just bought. My goal is you know where your starts came from, who grew them, and how to keep them alive.

At the Market

You can find Hearth & Hollow at the Vancouver Farmers Market for the spring and fall growing seasons. I bring plant starts, raspberry jam, and whatever else is ready from the backyard that week.

The market is where I get to put plants directly into the hands of people who are ready to grow, hear what's working in their gardens, and stay connected to the people this work is for.

We accept SNAP/EBT at the market. Growing your own food should not be out of reach because of your income, and I'm happy to find ways to work with you, whether that's SNAP benefits or helping me label plants or start seeds for an hour. Send me a message - I'm here to help.