Home Sown Gardens LLC Restorative care for your garden and soul ™
Home Sown Gardens LLC

Meet the Team

Account Managers

Tami Gallagher

MNLA-CP, Master Gardener, Business Leader, Gardener Extraordinaire

Best Hugger

Tami loves all aspects of gardening and has a wide variety of annuals, perennials, shrubs, grasses, herbs, and vegetables growing in and out of her home. She loves to experiment and often refers to her gardens as labs. She is willing to try anything. While she tries not to get too attached to any one plant, she does tend to fall head-over-heels over certain ones – usually the one in front of her.

She loves to push the hardiness zone. She loves to teach and share her love of gardens; to her 6 kids, her nieces & nephews, her employees, her clients…anyone who will listen. She loves taking photos of gardens. She loves bugs and rocks and critters. She loves “picking” her dinner. She loves sharing the bounty. She loves the sounds, the textures, the smells, the spirituality, the healing power, the magical-ness of gardens! She believes there is nothing better than being dirty and sweaty at the end of the day!

Ann Hortsch

Master Gardener, Account Manager, Seasonal Services Maven

Most Likely to say “OH GOODY!” when facing a huge project and actually mean it

Ann is a farmer at heart. She grew up on a hobby farm in northern Minnesota and continues the family tradition by feeding her family with produce grown in her backyard. As was her father before her, she is an organic gardener who utilizes companion planting, natural soil amending with compost and manure, beneficial insects, rain barrels and sustainable plantings.

During March through May, Ann's basement turns into a nursery for plants started from seed, and she always starts too many. She also has a continually expanding perennial garden and is forever rearranging, trying new cultivars, adding trees, making room for this and that, and cutting down on lawn that her husband must mow by breaking more ground for her “finds”. She wants to try it all–hedges, grasses, rock gardens, rock walls, roses, conifers, fruit trees…

Ann's gardens are an extension of her home. Birds, bees, and insects help her in pursuit of a balanced ecosystem, a pleasant retreat for family and friends in harmony with nature. She loves dirt, rocks, working outside for hours and hours, deadheading, weeding, a sturdy wheelbarrow, and a good pair of clippers.

Abbey Endert

Account Manager, MNLA-CP, Master Gardener

Shrub ID Extraordinare!

Abbey is an overall plant enthusiast and enjoys both the vast diversity of MN hardy species as well tropical plants for seasonal color and as houseplants. Abbey has worked in many aspects of the Green Industry including natural resource management, commercial and residential garden maintenance, container design, and nursery plant sales. Pollinator and native gardens are a favorite – bringing habitat pockets to our urban areas, while also introducing communities to the beauty of our local plants, insects, and birds.

When not gardening, Abbey is most likely to be found hiking and camping in our amazing parks, trying out a new recipe, or buying yet another houseplant.

Office Staff

Miss Daisy Mae

Pawfessional Pet Coordinator

Most Likely to Fall Asleep During a Staff Meeting

While details about Daisy's background remain fuzzy, some of the information we do know is pretty tough. In early life as a breeding mama, our sweet girl didn't have the care she needed for eye conditions, which led to her needing surgery for eye removal after her rescue. Since feeling better and joining the HSG family, Daisy's permanent smile and wagging tail have brought joy to our company. We can't wait to see how Daisy grows more confident, marching into the world with her nose up and tail wagging!

Daisy's hobbies include napping in hammocks, going out for recess, morning meet & greet with all the crews, and playing fetch – yes, our blind gal can find her tennis ball like the best of them!

Laura LD Benhardus

Field Operations Director, MNLA – CP

Most Likely to Burst into Song and/or Dance

A childhood of shoveling snow in upstate NY has served LD well in training for an outdoor career. A decade in food service gave LD the drive and grit to take on the challenges of the green industry. In 2018 she decided that she missed the sun and wanted to be able to enjoy every change that the seasons of Minnesota bring to our gardens. Since then, LD has found joy and fulfillment in her work at Home Sown Gardens. Bringing her whole self to work each day and finding integration with her favorite things keeps her coming back. She lives in Minneapolis with her partner, three cats, and too many houseplants.

Lead Gardeners

Katie Culshaw

Master Gardener, MNLA-CP, Inventory Manager, OSHA Safety Officer

#1 All-Around Crusher of Lists & Coiner of Phrases

Katie's love of gardening started when her post-college graphic design internship did not turn into a job. She needed some way to make money in the meantime so she got a job in a small nursery. After moving into her first apartment she attempted container gardening tomatoes and herbs with limited success. It continued when she and her husband bought their first house that came with a fully landscaped yard and a large vegetable patch, forcing her to learn how to keep things alive!

She was officially bitten by the gardening bug and, eager to learn, took many gardening classes through community ed, joined a community garden, and then tackled landscaping her yard in their new house (a work always in progress!) When not in the garden, you can usually find her in the bleachers watching one of her three kids' sporting events. She also likes to re-hab old furniture, hike, bike, run, camp (especially in the BWCA), and hug trees!

Angie Banks

Master Gardener, Cruise Director/Social Committee Chair

Best Smile

After a few seasons working for a Conservation Corp in the Rocky Mountains, Angie’s love for the outdoors was born. Since then she’s found herself around the country doing jobs from guiding people on hiking adventures in the PNW to taking kids canoeing in NYC, and just about everything in between. After 6 years of traveling around, she found herself back in the Midwest and missing the thrill of working in the dirt! 

When she’s not gardening you can find Angie paddleboarding in the summers, discovering the best places to get cheese curds in the winter, (Can you tell she’s from Wisconsin?), and petting every dog that crosses her path.

Johanna Helmin

MNLA – CP, Lead Gardener

Most Artful Arranger of Plants, Annual or Perennial, 2021

With an eagerness to learn new things and a relentless itch to be outside after quarantine, Johanna joined the HSG family mid-2020 and has stuck around since. Recently being promoted to work as a Lead Gardener, she has proved herself able to tackle tough obstacles and have fun along the way! When she’s not sitting on a pile of 30 yards of mulch, you can find Johanna creating and selling artwork from her studio in Saint Paul, singing and playing guitar, and spending quality time with her friends and family! 

Martha Rozario 

Crew Gardener, Office Assistant, Seasonal Services Assistant

Fastest Mulcher in the MidWest

As a lover of plants and the healing they provide both physically, emotionally, and spiritually, Martha loves to be outside. Originally from Guadalajara, Mexico, Martha has spent over half of her life in Minnesota. From her career in food, she took a leap to the adventure of gardening with HSG in 2018, which has provided her with a great deal of enjoyment, connection, and peace. At the same time, she found a second family at Home Sown!
She feels her life journey to this point is best summarized thus: “Most of the time, a small detail can change your life. In the blink of an eye, something happens by chance, when you least expect it, it takes you in a direction that you never would have taken, to a future you never could have imagined. Where can it take you? That is the journey of our lives, our journey of light.”

Crew Gardeners

Lina Urdinola

Crew Gardener

Ever since her start with HSG in 2019, Lina has embodied the teamwork, positive attitude, and tenacity that make HSG stand out. From her sparkling smile and sense of humor to her never-quit attitude and encouraging spirit, Lina is a treasure. Originally from Columbia, Lina grew up with flowers like Gerbera daisies growing in her garden. Outside of work, Lina fosters a love of nature in her daughter who is our unofficial mascot and cheerleader!

Meghan Detlaff

BS Horticulture, NDSU, MNLA – CP, Crew Gardener

Most Likely to be Caught Talking to Inanimate Objects 

Hailing from the frigid prairies of North Dakota, Meghan feels right at home here in Minnesota. She graduated from North Dakota State University in Fargo in 2020 with a bachelor’s in horticulture and eventually made her way to the Twin Cities in search of trees and glory. Experience working at multiple arboretums has given her an eye for the arboreal and a love for preserving green space in urban areas. She enjoys finding bugs in the garden and giving shrubs bold new haircuts.