Hi! I'm Shelley Haefner! My husband Bryan and I live in Old Chatham with our family. I am a mom to two crazy kids, Blake (12) and Emma (7). I am passionate about gardening, nature, photography and the great outdoors! I’m a garden coach & designer, lover of nature, plant enthusiast, cut flower farmer and have a love for finding and growing rare and unusual plants. This has, of course, turned me into a bit of a plant addict! (There are worse things… right?)

Beyond just my passion for gardening, I have 12+ years of gardening & coaching experience. I love to teach & help foster a love of gardening. I love to share my experiences and knowledge. I love to create! Whether it’s planting perennial gardens, planning cutting or kitchen gardens or making bouquets for an event, I love using nature’s bounty to bring joy and smiles to everyone! I’m a huge advocate for organic gardening. I love to observe and learn from healthy thriving ecosystems. I love to attract insects, birds and pollinators to the garden. I am also an active Master Gardener volunteer with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Columbia & Greene Counties.

My husband and I acquired a little neglected farm parcel in April of 2023. It’s located at 278 Rigor Hill Road, on the Ghent/Austerlitz town border at the intersection of the Taconic State Parkway. We are currently working to restore the old barns (from the 1800’s!) and breathe a life of flowers, habitat and beauty back into its land.

I have a passion for landscape and flower photography, too! What better hobby than gardening can you have as a hobby photographer! They just seem to go hand-in-hand!

Gardening has always been therapy for me. There’s a saying I love; “Happiness is right where you plant it.” For me, this has always helped me foster a mindset of creating my own joy. Gardening allows me to grow and harvest my own joy. It has become a creative outlet for me and there’s been no greater joy than to share it any way I can.