The Botanical Exchange

Shannon Algiere, on two decades at the Stone Barns Center.

In January I began recording long-form conversations with the people whose work I admire most, as a kind of self-guided curriculum. This is the first of several.

These conversations are worth slowing down for; they may take 15-20 minutes to read. I think that's a good thing. If Shannon sat you down for an afternoon in her greenhouse, you'd pull up a chair and listen. That's what this is.

She talks about land literacy, viewing failure as a teacher, building a farm and a marriage side by side, and what it feels like to watch something you started grow beyond you.

The work of repairing our landscapes is urgent. That's exactly why it's worth learning from those who have been doing it longest.

So many of us look to Shannon as a mentor, and I'm grateful for the time she took to share her thoughts. Link in bio.

Photographs by @photobyjennajones
@shannonalgiere
@stonebarnscenter