British Ambassador's residence in Washington, D.C.photo credit: courtesy of John Sonnier, with various images via the American Horticultural Society’s American Gardener magazine, all rights reserved.

 
This week, Cultivating Place host Abra Lee explores diplomacy and gardens. She’s in conversation with John Sonnier, Head Gardener at the British Ambassador's residence in Washington, D.C. There since 2009, John focuses on organic and sustainable methods of care AND he has created one of the United State’s most significant historic orchid collections.
Orchids are known for their extraordinary forms, relationships, and resilience and John, a distinguished horticulturalist, artist, and self-taught orchidist, brings us into that world – sharing what it means to grow them, care for them, and stay curious about them over time. We consider how the environment we cultivate – from gardens to shared community spaces – shape our thoughts and our lives.
Listen in!
 
 
 

Recorded Shows

Reeves-Reed Arboretum

A Path For All, Reeves-Reed Arboretum Summit, NJ

Reeves-Reed Arboretum in Summit NJ, an historic estate and garden, has been considering these questions intensely. How to increase accessibility for visitors and yet maintain the equally important sense of being in and with nature. One result of their thoughtful deliberations is their Path For All, which opened in May of 2026. Three members of…
AFT.MPPD Summary

Slow Design, Thoughtful Places, Andrew Fisher Tomlin

Planting design is an essential skill in garden design writ large, for the health and beauty of a site– functionally, environmentally, and psychologically. Andrew Fisher Tomlin is widely acknowledged as leading the development of a distinct professional career path in planting design through his own work and as a Director of Environmental Design…

Sunchoke Farms, Next in the Cultivating South Bend Series

Cultivating Place well so often comes down to sharing the abundance of growing from a place of love, and a strong sense of community and home. Susan Greutman is the founder and owner of Sunchoke Farms, an urban homestead-turned-family farm in South Bend, Indiana, growing chemical-free produce on formerly vacant city lots.
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Following What Flourishes, with Amanda Hannah

Amanda Hannah is the Director of Botanical Garden Horticulture at Holden Forests & Gardens in Cleveland, Ohio. Amanda’s path into horticulture has taken her from the agricultural landscapes of Idaho and Utah to studying in Argentina, living in Seattle, and moving through the Longwood Fellows Program. This week, Amanda and Cultivating Place Host,…
Redwood Empire Food Bank

Flora Culture with Christin Geall of Cultivated by Christin

This week on Cultivating Place, we continue with our flower theme as we celebrate May, looking toward the most floral of celebrations, Mother’s Day in the US. We discuss not us as gardeners growing flowers, but rather, how flowers shape our world, our cultures, our economies, our thinking and outlooks. We're in conversation with Christin Geall,…

Mid-Atlantic Regional Seed Bank (MARSB) with Ed Toth and John Price

This week, when we think about Cultivating Place well, we get to the seed of the matter in conversation with the team at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Seed Bank, also known as MARSB. We’re in conversation with Ed Toth the Executive Director, and John Price, MARSB’s Associate Director and Native Seed Collection Coordinator.

Northern California
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