Growing up in Southern California, LAURA BAUER was always interested in the natural world around her. After receiving a joint degree in Biology and Fine Art, she went on to complete graduate school training to be an Exhibit Designer for natural history museums. Several exhibits introduced her to working with living plants and gardens.
She leaped into horticulture in 2001 by volunteering (and eventually teaching) at the Theodore Payne Foundation for Native Plants. She also took horticulture classes at Mt. San Antonio College and gained practical knowledge through working as a high-end gardener. She started her own specialty garden maintenance company in Pasadena in 2004, eventually gaining her California contractors license.
After moving to Ventura in 2012, she decided to concentrate on garden design over garden maintenance. She was introduced to G3 by taking a free seminar. She felt that their approach to designing landscapes was so relevant and important that she went on to become a certified Watershed Wise Landscape Professional. She is also enrolled in the G3 Garden Guru program, and has helped teach classes for G3.
Recently, she has helped with several designs and installations for Surfrider Foundation’s Ocean Friendly Gardens Committee. She has been a member of the Association of Professional Landscape Designers for two years and she has been a Board member of the Southern California Horticultural Society for ten years.
Her design company in Ventura is Bauer Fine Gardening (www.bauerfinegardening.com). When she is not designing for other people, she is tending her collection of rare and native plants and enjoying the bugs and birds that visit.