A Gardener Gets Married: Coming Home

In the past two weeks, we’ve followed our friend Tara Douglass of Brooklyn Plant Studio as she cultivated and arranged her own blooms for her hometown wedding, then biked around Sweden’s botanical sanctuaries and dined in some of France’s most remote locations on her honeymoon. Now, in our final installment of “A Gardener Gets Married,” Tara is back home with her new husband in their Brooklyn abode, and sharing what she’s been up to post-nuptials. If there’s one thing she’s not doing, it’s settling down! 

terrain: What’s the first thing you did when you returned from your honeymoon? 

Tara: We stayed pretty unplugged for most of our trip, so when we arrived home I was eagerly perusing Instagram when I stumbled across a posting from Philadelphia's Love ‘n Fresh Flowers. Owner Jennie Love was looking for an apprentice! Growing  a field of flower bulbs for my own wedding and then doing all the arranging made me realize how amazing it would be to have my own flower farm and florist business. Jennie does exactly that, so needless to say I leapt at the opportunity to learn from one of best. I reached out immediately and am now an apprentice on her farm, learning the ins and outs of what it will take to start a field to florist business of my own, ideally back in my hometown. 

terrain: How has life changed since saying “I do”? 

Tara: My husband and I have been living together in Brooklyn for the past 7 years, so not much has changed. We have our dogs, Basil and Biscuit, and our garden that we tend out back. We received some incredible gifts for our wedding, one of which was a large vase by acclaimed ceramic artist Frances Palmer. I’ve been obsessed with filling it full of fresh arrangements – it has definitely become a focal point in our home. 

terrain: When you’re not busy growing and arranging fresh blossoms, what's your favorite pastime? 

Tara: Beekeeping! I actually have a hive on the roof of our building, which I’ve been tending since 2009.  It was actually illegal when I started, but luckily my landlord and neighbors are very sweet and didn't mind.  I got interested in beekeeping after I heard about CCD - Colony Collapse Disorder, a phenomenon where the worker bees of a honey bee colony abruptly disappear, which is occurring more and more. I bought the hive and bees from a company in upstate New York that sources honeybees from Georgia, then set up the hive. Each year we harvest the honey, usually around 60 lbs of it! It's so easy and I just love seeing the bees; they're such an integral part of the gardening process. 

Images courtesy of Tara Douglass.