Age: 32 yrs young

Hometown: North Carolina (and the road)
Everywhere else: Greensboro, NC – Boulder, CO- Granada, Spain- Miami, Florida- NY, NY

Hobbies: Cooking, Athletics, Music, Exercise & Nutrition (ran a ½ marathon in march), Basketball, Outdoor Activities

Pets: Nico, 8 yr old rescued Staffie Terrier

Favorite food: I’m a foodie, I love all food, worked in restaurants all my life – love it all when its quality. Mexican, Deli Food (sandwiches), Mediterranean Cuisine (olive oil), Diners, Dives & Drive In’s Restaurants

Favorite music: Music is a form of art communication. I love all genres of music. My background is in traditional rock & roll, however, I listen to all American root music: Jazz, Blues, Folk, (Country/Bluegrass), Rock&Roll, Heavy Metal, conscious Hip-Hop, some electronic, and many international artists and Roots Reggae. I enjoy so many different styles of music, it depends on my mood, when I’m happy, I want Ludacris, when I’m sad, I want Elliot Smith… And, I can play the guitar, bass, dulcimer, harmonica, and can hold down a beat on the drums…

What is your job at GH? I am the customer service representative for the East side of North America, from Maine to Florida.

Tell us about your background in hydroponics: I am a passionate farmer and gardener who got into hydroponics out of my love of our Mother Earth. and a desire to promote land stewardship amongst her inhabitants.
I worked and managed a retail garden store in North Carolina for five years. Anyone who has spent time in a busy hydroponics retail store knows that a hydroponic garden center is an educational center. Something is being taught and learned every hour in a retail hydroponic store. I got a crash course in all things hydroponics for the first years of my tenure in the industry, the years that followed have been implementation of that knowledge and the constant research to gain more knowledge. I am self taught through experience and personal research.

What do you have going on in your own garden right now? I live in a townhome AND I am on the road A LOT, so with those excuses out of the way, I have a small kitchen garden consisting of (1) T5 strip light with various herbs and lettuce growing. Outside I have (2) tomatoes plants in soil with General Organics trials underway, along with many house plants I have accumulated over the years. Some agave plants, purple passion vines, a palm from Florida. My favorite plant is a Schefflera plant given to me by a friend the first day I moved to Boulder, CO more than 12 years ago.

Can you share a tip for successful indoor gardening? SOIL: The best tip I can give is the easiest and most obvious: DON’T OVERWATER!!! DON’T OVERTHINK IT, if the soil is dark and damp, don’t water, if the soil is dry, water. It’s that simple, overwatering is the most common way to kill a plant.
HYDRO: Don’t over-fertilize, start with half strength of fertilizer, less is more! Gradually increase nutrients, better to start conservative than too much too soon.

Your favorite GH products? I LOVE the Subcultures B and M. I love the BioWeed as a foliar spray during all vegetative growth. Kelp as a foliar rocks! Simple recipe for ‘two thumbs up’ gardening- FloraNova Gro and Bloom with Floralicious Plus