photo by Margie O’Loughlin for the Midway-Como Monitor
I’m Anna McLafferty, owner of Hothouse Horticulture. I’ve been a student of the landscape my whole adult life. Since 2009 I’ve lived and gardened in the Hamline-Midway neighborhood of St. Paul. I also spent several years as a Ramsey County Master Gardener before having my two sweet, outdoors-loving kids.
You can think of me as a mix of creative director and general contractor for outdoor spaces. I can develop designs for people who like to DIY, install my designs for you, or do something in between. When installing a project, I oversee all the work carefully and do much of it myself, bringing into each project an artful eye and over a decade of project management experience. I work with subcontractors as needed, such as structural engineers, arborists, and electricians. With every project I stand by the entire finished product.
My work draws from horticultural and ecological perspectives. I aim for a positive environmental impact with each project, using local materials, minimizing use of carbon-heavy practices, removing invasive species, creating designs that require minimal or no watering, relying on methods that cool and store as much carbon in the soil as possible, and giving wildlife quality habitat (food, shelter, and a place to raise their young).
I focus on natives and edibles but cater each project to client wishes. Examples of what we can do for you include:
- Organic food gardens
- Prairie, savanna, or woodland style plantings
- Play gardens
- Wildlife, pollinator, butterfly, or bird gardens
- Landscape design and management plans for homeowners who prefer to DIY
- Unique paths and patios made with stone, urbanite (recycled materials), or mixed media
- Dry-stacked stone walls
- Drainage, erosion, and privacy solutions
- Perennial garden maintenance
Please get in touch to talk about how Hothouse Horticulture can help you!