When we speak of gardens, we often think of beauty, nourishment, and stillness—but for Teresa J. Speight, gardens also tell stories of legacy, resilience, and cultural reclamation. As the Urban Garden and Container Garden Chair for National Garden Clubs, Inc., and the founder of the Jabali Amani Garden Collective, Teresa has spent years cultivating more than soil. She’s nurtured a movement. Through her work as a garden coach, blogger, and co-author of The Urban Garden, she empowers others to reconnect with the earth in ways that are healing, personal, and deeply rooted in community.
We had the opportunity to connect with Teresa and speak about her new book, Black Flora, which shines a light on the often-overlooked contributions of Black floriculturists. She reflects on the ancestral connections so many Black gardeners feel with flowers, the systemic barriers they’ve navigated, and the joy that comes from honoring both beauty and heritage. From little-known pioneers like Joel Cooley, a dahlia expert, to the powerful legacy of the Negro Garden Club of Virginia, she shares a vision of floriculture that’s both inclusive and inspiring.
Our full interview with Teresa dives into her personal journey—from a nature-loving child with dreams of anthropology to a nationally recognized voice in horticulture. Along the way, she opens up about her evolving work in community wellness, the challenges of organizing as a woman of color in a predominantly white industry, and the spiritual affirmations that guide her. If you’ve ever felt the quiet magic of a bloom or believed in the power of green spaces to transform lives, you’ll find inspiration in Teresa’s words.
Read our full interview with Teresa J. Speight below.
What inspired you to write “Black Flora” and specifically highlight Black experts in floriculture, an industry where their contributions have often been overlooked?
Teresa J. Speight: As an avid gardener, garden blogger, and garden writer, I am always reading. I began to wonder where the people in horticulture and floriculture were who looked like me. I knew they existed; however, I never really heard them mentioned by name or given their flowers in accolades or awards. My publisher at the time shared some of the people she knew who were practicing their craft but not really heard of.
Together, we compiled a list; I did the interviews and pared down the content – for a digestible, but beautiful book.
While researching “Black Flora,” what surprising historical contributions from Black florists did you uncover that you feel more people should know about?
Teresa J. Speight: Many people do not know that there are African Americans who have a love affair with flowers and created businesses from this passion. Creating unique floral arrangements to beautify their homes, cutting flowers, and making arrangements to sell at local markets became a way of life for African Americans. It became a way for many to acquire and maintain a sense of financial freedom.
As we found joy in flowers, we became more confident in exploring outside of our familiar and sharing our talents with the world. Few people know of Fred C.W. Brown. When we admire the dahlia, few people know that Joel Cooley was a leader in the world of dahlias. Yet, we admire the much sought-after blooms of the dahlia. It is not just about the Black florist but the flower farmers and active community members who appreciate flowers. There are many stories that have not yet come to the forefront that we can learn from and be inspired from.
The Negro Garden Club of Virginia is a perfect example of how real people gathered to form their own world of garden clubs to enhance their communities, as they could not participate in garden cubs outside of their race. The garden clubs in and outside of Virginia took care of their cemeteries, beautified their city blocks, had special events commemorating the season’s best flowers, and taught younger community members how to cook, clean, and grow.
The Extension offices engaged a core of African American women to go out and educate the community on so many aspects of home and land ownership…as well as gardening for food and beauty. Garden clubs held blood drives and voter registrations as well. I consider garden clubs to be the underrated seed that can be sown in any environment, with the ability to set roots and grow. We bring so much to the table but often feel as though it is still not enough due to history not sharing how valuable our skillset is.
Of the 24 Black creators you profiled in your book, were there any common threads or experiences that particularly stood out to you?
Teresa J. Speight: What I found quite interesting was our connection with our ancestors’ flowers. Famous or not, the flowers of our familiar beckoned and reached out to many of the voices in Black Flora, causing us to utilize our skills and expand upon them as a way of making ends meet. Many of our favorite flowers can be attributed to something we saw, something an ancestor grew, or something we simply admired. Exposure to appreciating beauty from nature was the thread each of us shared in one way or another.
As the founder of the Jabali Amani Garden Collective for minority women, what unique challenges or perspectives do you find women of color bring to gardening and floriculture?
Teresa J. Speight: Unfortunately, the Collective has disbanded. Due to time constraints, we all had too much on our plates to find time to conscientiously gather and make time to enjoy a good garden conversation as a group.
Now, we individually find time to visit with each other. I also found it was a challenge for the women who initially thought this was a good idea to be a part of a National group, NGCA, as they did not recognize Negro/African American garden clubs in the past. Many in the group found it hard to join this group, pay the dues, and make a quantifiable difference to show how important it is to diversify.
I am not giving up as I am on the Board of NGCA, and I will find those who know you must cut down the past season’s garden debris to see the garden’s beauty, so to speak.
Through your garden coaching and Cottage in the Court platform, what earth-friendly practices do you find most accessible for urban gardeners with limited space?
Teresa J. Speight: I encourage gardeners with limited spacing to diversify their plantings. Add seeds, plants, and shrubbery that will complement all four seasons. Mixing in edibles or herbs into the garden encourages the homeowner to visit and use these plantings for more than visual appeal. Integrating edibles into the garden beds also discourages using pesticides and other chemicals – who wants to ingest that?
There is something about planting for the seasons. Watching seedlings, tubers, or bulbs protrude from the ground provides the gardener a sense of surprise and hope. Planting to share with the pollinators also encourages life to come into the garden. Plantings with fragrance or pops of color also encourage the gardener to pause and embrace the beauty found in a garden they created.
As the Urban Garden Chair for National Garden Clubs, Inc., how do you see urban gardening evolving, particularly for communities of color?
Teresa J. Speight: As we begin to feel comfortable expressing gardening our way, I see this as an activity that will continue to grow. If you look at African American gardening history, we often grew food for our communities and bartered with each other. Now I see how one neighbor will enhance their yard, add a bit of cultural art and a bit of whimsy that might not have been deemed appropriate.
Now, there are bottle trees, ethic art, and more in urban settings. This encourages conversations about how your garden is an expression of who you are and also lends the opportunity to empower others to break the cookie-cutter mold we have been trained to accept.
How did your lifelong passion for gardening evolve into a professional career path and eventually lead to authoring books?
Teresa J. Speight: As a child, I wrote all kinds of things while lounging in the garden or playing in the woods at the Isaac Walton League near our house. Being outdoors was important to me, because I simply felt free and at one with nature. I truly delighted in witnessing ants working together as well as seeing bees dance from bloom to bloom. My Dad did not believe I should be digging or doing anything strenuous – because I was a girl. I had dreams of being an anthropologist or fashion designer. However my parents thought a more traditional path was more appropriate.
I married, had my daughters, and became an at-home Mom. I took the Master Gardener course in Fredericksburg, Virginia, and became a Central Rappahannock Master Gardener. From that class, I became a Water Wise Technician for the Extension Office, a Founding Farmer of the Eitt CSA, and started a garden consulting business.
When my married life dissolved, I wanted to write about gardening to distract me from an unpleasant chapter in my life. I began to look for other African Americans who wrote about gardening, since my voice was a bit different from what I was reading. My voice is more common and poetic and not as firm and direct. I only found two people, Anne Spencer and Lee May.
After reading and speaking with Lee May, I was encouraged to write in my true voice – even if others find it more florific than most. When one of my GardenComm colleagues inquired if I wanted to perhaps write a book with her new publishing company, I was excited and jumped at the chance.
I had no idea what I was in for at the time. I was also co-writing another book at the same time. This took me away from my blogging – my true love- as I could write how I uniquely feel about how I perceive the garden. Now, as I still consult on small space/urban gardens, I am delving back into my blog to share my perceptions and ideas of how to uniquely make your green space yours. I love what I do…
What has been the most rewarding aspect of creating the Jabali Amani Garden Collective specifically for minority women?
Teresa J. Speight: Realizing that we want to gather, however, our obligations sometimes instill a sense of guilt. If we do not feel as though we can step away from life’s obligations and simply enjoy the garden, we are denying ourselves the right to mentally rest. I am glad because at least I tried and am still trying to create that mix of the right people who simply want to enjoy the garden, travel to different gardens, read about the garden, and make their garden speak to who they are. As there are Negro garden clubs that are 70, 90+ years old, I am not giving up because Garden Clubs Grow Communities.
Wherever I go, I proudly state that I am a Member of National Garden Clubs and encourage others to either create or join a garden club. I make time to get to know others in the clubs I belong to and continue to connect with whoever I can, especially women of color. I feel that if I show how just being yourself and getting involved can break down barriers that were put in place to keep us out in the past.
Looking back on your journey from gardener to author and garden coach, what advice would you give your younger self?
Teresa J. Speight: Follow your heart while you are young. If I had followed my heart, I would have been excavating a pyramid, finding long-lost bones from a prehistoric creature, and traveling near and far. No one told me that as a little Black girl, I could not have done those things. I was told that because I was a girl, it would be a really hard thing to do, but not due to my race.
When I had my first landscape consulting business, I knew I had the skillset and an eye for how to use plant material in an inviting way, I can only imagine if I had stayed the course on being an anthropologist, where would be today.
How has your understanding of the connection between gardening and community wellness evolved throughout your career?
Teresa J. Speight: I pay attention to how communities in urban environments function in my travels. I see how health disparities are more common in communities – often minority communities – that are in inner cities, rural areas, and everything in between.
When a community encourages beautification, litter-free streets, and opportunities for exercise, crime is reduced, mental well-being is enhanced, and a sense of thriving can be seen.
In areas where there is neglect, pollution, and a sense of invisibility, the residents tend to have a sense of hopelessness and depression. It is in these communities where crime is often high, and the people are considered forgotten. By encouraging getting outside and connecting with the earth, many times, a simple corner plot, a caring community member who starts the conversation of taking care of the community, bolsters the community’s self-esteem.
Keeping the momentum in the community is often the hardest part, due to funding and governmental support. I encourage community members to keep asking like a gnat. Never stop showing that you care, calling to request community needs, or simply sowing a simple seed to beautify. One sunflower can change the perception that no one cares.
Lastly, is there a specific mantra, quote, or affirmation that you hold close to your heart?
Teresa J. Speight: ‘The garden contains many gifts. You must go outside to receive them.’
Another one that is dear to my heart: ‘In a world where we are often considered not enough, we are enough.’
Emily Sprinkle, also known as Emma Loggins, is a designer, marketer, blogger, and speaker. She is the Editor-In-Chief for Women's Business Daily where she pulls from her experience as the CEO and Director of Strategy for Excite Creative Studios, where she specializes in web development, UI/UX design, social media marketing, and overall strategy for her clients.
Emily has also written for CNN, Autotrader, The Guardian, and is also the Editor-In-Chief for the geek lifestyle site FanBolt.com
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