Sun, water and soil are all you need, he says, and is emphatic that pesticides are out

Egan Davis only needs three tools to do his job: water, soil and the sun. "I don't believe in using anything you can buy in a box or a bag," said the 34-year-old horticulturalist. "It's sun, soil and water and that's all you need." As a horticulturalist at Vancouver's VanDusen Botanical Garden for several years, Egan promotes sustainable garden practices: pesticides and other chemical products aren't used, watering is minimal and emphasis is placed on using natural products, such as mulch.

They are techniques he's used since early in his career when he was cutting lawns and moving shrubs as a teenager.

"I didn't see myself doing this when I was in high school. I was meant to be a gardener. I was pulled into it. It was gravitational, this is pretty much the only job I've ever had." Three years after graduating from high school, Davis had completed a one-year pre-apprenticeship certificate program at Capilano and was beginning his four-year landscape horticulture apprenticeship program at Kwantlen.

He began his apprenticeship at Park & Tilford Gardens in North Vancouver, working under journeyman Todd Major, who Davis said he draws his sustainable gardening philosophy from. The pair were highly involved in promoting sustainable practices, speaking at garden parties and leading composting workshops with the North Shore recycling program.

Davis has continued that tradition at VanDusen, where for the past two years he has been teaching gardening made simple for adult-education classes, and master gardener classes to homeowners who already have some level of horticultural education.

When he's not in the classroom, Davis can be found tending to his defined section of VanDusen, currently the Southern Hemisphere garden. He is responsible for maintaining the plants and developing the collection. Then there's all the other work gardeners do: Pruning, planting and transplanting.

"It's honestly the most exciting time of my career right now, because the nature of materials and the nature of the collections are so botanically interesting and it's really exciting." Davis is a member of the board of directors of HortsTrade B.C., the industry's training organization, which he also represents at the B.C. Recreation and Parks Association.

The ITO's main focus, Davis said, is to draw apprentices into the horticultural trade while increasing existing gardeners' stock. He's also volunteered with the Canadian horticultural technician program through the B.C. Landscape and Nursery Association and is an active member of the Great Plant Picks Commit- tee, an educational program that recom- mends plants for Pacific Northwest gar- dens.

"I can honestly say that at the end of my weekend I truly look forward to going to work," he said, adding gardening is the most important thing in his life after his family. "I'm doing the same thing I did as a kid, just with a man's body with an adult's focus. I'm just moving bigger rocks."

Profile

Name: Egan Davis.

Category: Environmental Sustainability.

Age: 34.

Town: Richmond.

Trade: Certified horticulturalist, certified horticultural technician, additional certification through CNLA.

Employer: VanDusen Botanical Garden.

Years in trade: 16.

Education: Capilano College, Kwantlen College.

Why would someone want to be a gardener? "Every day is a learning experience. It's like getting paid to have an education. If you're curious in general, you'll never stop learning as a gardener."

Why did the judges choose him to win? "When he is not in the garden, he does a great deal of volunteer work within the industry . . . His energy and enthusiasm for the horticulture industry is refreshing and contagious. He is an inspiration to all apprentices in the horticulture field."

Why did you nominate Egan for this award? "He's been able to inspire and educate a great number of people . . . people like him really do influence others who might be considering the value of the trade or the career in their lives."

-- James Warkentin, Egan's supervisor