About

It all started when…

I moved to a house that had a massively overgrown yew bush and the usual flavor of undesirable weeds making up the yard. As a recent graduate of the Masters of Landscape Architecture program from the University of Minnesota, it was a massive restoration project. For a mom of twin 8 month olds, it was a side huddle during nap time.

Everyday at 10-11:30ish, I was ripping out all kinds of nuisance plantings. Ivy was taking over, junipers were scraggly and unpleasant, I told you how massive that yew was? No? At least ten feet tall, at least twenty wide and four feet thick. While my twins napped, I got my little electric chainsaw out and got ANIMAL on that Taxus. I tore up the yard, put in nice native grass medley and planted up!

True to the saying…the first year my garden slept, second year it crept and the third year it leapt. As I worked, I met the neighborhood. The scraggly junipers were replaced by native amsonia, echinacea, indigo…all perennials that would give a little color all season and entice pollinators and song birds to my yard. My neighbors couldn’t help but notice. By the time a family of wrens moved in and we were fostering pollinators such as swallowtail butterflies, monarchs, cabbage moths, and goldfinch, the neighbors were asking advice, seeking plant knowledge or know how. Once, I was even stopped in the grocery store with a question on what vine was growing on my light post (purple hyacinth bean, what a beaut). I began to form a vision of how I could actually pivot from a homemaker into a steward of my home. I decided to combine my education in sculpture, landscape architecture and my passion for naturalistic design into a service!

I created Tumbleweed Design as way to branch out and help others who would like to add ecological function to their property. I focus on designing low maintenance and water wise spaces that support the regional pollinators we see suffering species decline.

I can help create beautiful spaces that benefit our aesthetic experiences all while adding ecological value.

We can enjoy a balance of nature in our yards when we invite a diversity of plants and animals to return. This way, our home and our roots grow even deeper.

Tumbleweed is a garden consulting and design business to help homeowners create an ecological retreat in their very own yards.