Kent Russell - Good ‘Mean’ Fun!

 

 

Gardeners are not necessarily known for keeping it clean, but Kent Russell really knows how to sling dirt! That is what makes him so good though. At his lecture for the 2011 Bucks Beautiful Garden and Home Show, Kent filled the tables with plants and the seats with fans. They come to hear him dish the dirt on his wealthy clients, clueless audience members, untalented gardeners and his own quirky behavior. Kent needs no microphone when speaking to a packed room. He re-counts one reviewer who called his voice “honking” and laughs maniacally while telling how he overheard an audience member asking a friend “What is he on?” The answer, of course, is nothing - that’s just Kent!

He began his career in horticulture as a child while working at the family business, Russell Gardens in Churchville, PA. Thanks to a keen interest in perennials, Kent was specializing in the propagation, maintenance, and sales of over 1,500 different species by the time he was a teenager. At only 19, he left to establish the renowned Renny-Hortilus Farm Nursery in Wrightstown, PA. This property has since been featured in numerous lifestyle magazines nationwide and the 3,000 peonies Kent planted there continue to thrive and supply bouquets for the New York Flower market.

Of course his fans also come for the plants; a colorful mix of unusual annuals, perennials and shrubs that (unlike the hard to find varieties mentioned by some garden experts) are widely available. He was even selling specimens of the plants discussed in that days seminar. Kent cautions the audience that they if they are unable to find the plants anywhere else, it is because he has already beat them to the garden centers and bought everything in-stock. It’s really a public service though; judging by the mad clamor of gardeners racing, with money in hand, to grab their favorite plant after the seminar concludes, Kent has just prevented dozens of accidents in the parking lots of area garden centers!

Kents’ speaking venues include private clubs, public gardens and events around the Northeast. He speaks their language too, confessing to the recent absurdity of spending three thousand dollars to ship one thousand dollars worth of plant material from Oregon after a visit, while carrying his favorites home on the plane. Kent then raves over the subtle beauty possessed by each of a dozen individual Hellebore varieties, some of which are so new and rare that they are un-named and are so far identified only by the breeders number, to a room of envious gardeners.

Not all of Kents’ clients are such knowledgeable horticulturists though and they are the ones who make the best stories! He tells of the woman who sat beside him on that plane trip, admired the plants and asked. “Do they need water?” At recent lecture Kent introduced a variety of Pink Blueberry to an unappreciative listener who missed the point and only wanted to know if they contained the same beneficial anti-oxidants. Another wealthy client, who does not set foot outside of her home or take any interest in the gardens only asked Kent to plant more witchhazel after it impressed the ladies who came for tea. Of course I don’t do justice to Kens’ stories, you really need to hear the dirt from him.

Kent is listed as a preferred speaker by the Garden Clubs of America for which he speaks frequently, along with other events, including the Newport and Philadelphia Flower Shows. A schedule can be found on his website at www.thegardenguru.com. In addition to seminars, Kent provides gardening and container design services to an elite client list….who, though they supply a few good laughs, remain nameless!