About the Event

Whether your goal is to conserve water, promote pollinators, or just make your yard look better, you’ll want to join this landscape design conversation. Our panel of experts will explore beautiful, sustainable designs that feature native and well-adapted plants. 

Featuring Francie Jaffe, City of Longmont’s Water Conservation & Sustainability Specialist; Designers Emily Maeda & Johnny Moore of Tree of Life of Landscapes; and Ross Shrigley, Executive Director of Plant Select®. Moderated by Justin Veach, Longmont Museum. Presented in collaboration with the City of Longmont and Tree of Life Landscapes.

Featured Guests

Francie Jaffe (Water Conservation & Sustainability Specialist, City of Longmont) holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Cornell University and a master’s in environmental management from Western Colorado University. She is originally from Maryland but has been living in Colorado for the past five years, primarily in Longmont, and has loved having greater access to hiking and snowboarding in the Rocky Mountains. She currently coordinates water conservation programs for the city, including Garden in a Box and irrigation rebates with partners Resource Central and Efficiency Works. Outside of water conservation, she also works on a variety of general sustainability projects. She is passionate about equity and works to incorporate it into all of her work.

Emily Maeda (Vice President of Tree of Life Landscapes, Designer) grew up outside of Boulder on her parent’s farm where she learned to love the beauty of Colorado’s natural environment. Her love of plants quickly grew with forays into herb and flower gardens she designed and installed, and continued in her work at an organic farm. She pursued her education in piano performance at both the University of Colorado and Arizona State University, where she also took classes in landscape design. After moving back from Arizona, she continued her love of piano, both teaching and performing, while at the same time pursuing design skills in landscape design. She worked with a landscape architect and founded Tree of Life Landscapes with her husband, Mark with a deep desire to work with native, well-adapted plants and bring good design to people. She has seven children, whom she loves deeply, and continues to play and perform music, seeing congruence in the rhythm of music and the rhythm of good landscape design. In her free time she loves to cook, run, read poetry and literature, and sit in the sun on her front porch.

Johnny Moore (Designer, Tree of Life Landscaping) grew up in the rural South, where he helped his parents and grandparents in the garden before he could walk. After earning a bachelor of arts, he married his Colorado sweetheart, Kirstin, and returned to the Arkansas Delta. He worked as curator of an historic family garden and museum, built in the Greek Revival style in 1870. Eventually Johnny and Kirstin moved back to Colorado to pursue an opportunity in landscape design and to be closer to Kirstin’s family. The beauty of nature has always moved and inspired Johnny: “From fishing the ancient bayous and oxbow lakes of the Arkansas Delta to big game hunting in the Rocky Mountains, I am continually struck with wonder. The beauty, mystery, and joy of nature speak deeply to me, like a song the universe can’t stop singing.” Johnny’s favorite aspect of his job is bringing the feeling of nature into the spaces people live in and pass through every day.

Ross Shrigley’s (Executive Director, Plant Select®) passion for horticulture and gardening began at Colorado State University. He earned his biology degree in 1994 and went on to own a small gardening business that he operated for seven years. In 2005 Ross became a horticulturist at Denver Botanic Gardens where he managed several gardens including the O’Fallon Perennial Border, Dwarf Conifer Berm, Ornamental Grass Garden, and the Mordecai Children’s Garden. In 2012, Ross accepted a position closer to home with Fort Collins Wholesale Nursery serving as their Outside Sales Representative. Ross is a seasoned gardener with a breadth and depth of experience in the world of horticulture. He now serves as the Executive Director of Plant Select®, a nonprofit collaboration of Colorado State University, Denver Botanic Gardens, and professional horticulturists. Additional certifications that round out Ross’s portfolio include becoming an Irrigation Auditor in 2005, a Colorado Certified Nursery Professional in 2013, and, most recently, earning his Sustainable Landscape Management Certification through ALCC in 2019. Ross is honored to be part of the Plant Select legacy and brings his creativity, excitement, dedication, and knowledge to help others garden with confidence.

:Courtesy Tree of Life Landscapes

Watch Adventures in Landscaping: