The Air We Breathe
“Plant trees. They give us two of the most crucial elements for our survival: oxygen and books.”
~Whitney Brown
In 2020, Patty Shipley, our founding owner, and a naturopath practicing for 24 years, decided to start a native plant nursery. We decided it was time to interview her and share the backstory with all of you…
So Patty, tell us what inspired you to start a nursery!
Something I’ve heard for over 20 years from patients seeking care: “Ever since I moved to Ohio…” followed by the health problems they’ve experienced since relocating here - often sinus and allergy symptoms, but also other conditions I know firsthand are related to the bio-accumulation of toxins.
For many years at functional medicine conferences, I’ve heard Ohio is in the top handful of states for the most chemicals released into the environment. For example, in 2020 and 2021, the US EPA put our state at #6 in the country for the most chemicals introduced into our air, soil and water (over 2000 POUNDS per square mile - link here). And, in 2022, Ohio was ranked #2 for the overall worst air quality in the US (supporting data here)!
Plants clean our air, water and soil through a process called phytoremediation…but only if they’re present. Could there be a correlation here on why we rank 8th in cancer deaths per capita in Ohio? Think about it…only 7 states have a higher rate of cancer deaths than Ohio!
With starting the nursery, what I’m doing is stepping back a bit from the smaller picture of helping people one at a time, into a bigger picture of recognizing that many of the illnesses we’re treating are environmentally driven. I feel called to make a broader impact by interesting and educating as many people as I can in helping to restore and preserve the healthy, bio-diverse ecosystems we all rely upon for good health.
Trees are said to be the lungs of the world because they fill the air we breathe with abundant oxygen…but it’s not just trees…all plants contribute in this way. And native plants are uniquely beneficial because they have the added benefit of forming the foundation for the local food web that supports all of life, including us. I hope you’ll take 4 minutes to listen to Doug Tallamy, the author of the book I read in the fall of 2019 that tipped the balance and set me on this journey with native plants (below).
We all need to be interested and involved in restoring and maintaining a healthy environment and balanced ecosystems — for us, for nature, and for future generations.
~ Patty
