Ray Larson

Garden manager for the UW president's residence and lead gardener for East Campus

Education

• Master of Science degree in Urban Horticulture, University of Washington
• Bachelor's degree in History and Economics, Ripon College

Career path

• Facilities coordinator, Center for Urban Horticulture at the UW
• Garden manager, UW president's residence
• Lead gardener, UW East Campus

Current work

Ray splits his time between managing two distinct landscapes: the verdant grounds of Hill-Crest, the 1.5-acre UW president's residence, where President Michael K. Young and his family reside; and the eastern side of the UW's Seattle campus. Ray's role is part gardener, part curator, part educator and part researcher. And just as he adapts his activities to the UW's changing needs, he seeks plant species that are versatile and offer beauty, cost effectiveness, resource conservation and environmental benefits.

The UW's advantage

Longtime interests in ecology and art drew Ray, a Seattle native, to a career in horticulture. After attending college in Wisconsin, he worked for about six years at the UW's Center for Urban Horticulture, ultimately serving as facilities coordinator for the four building complex in its 16 acres of buildings and gardens, and coordinating the rental program with more than 1,000 events a year. "After a while, I got tired of people asking me what all the plants were and not knowing," he quipped.

Ray chose the UW for graduate school because of its opportunities to go beyond the traditional urban horticulture curriculum and take courses in departments such as museum studies, botany, public affairs and landscape architecture. He also liked the program's emphasis on ecological issues and restoration.

Ray's graduate training translates seamlessly to his work today. "The practical and field components combined with the science background help me take a rational, fact-based approach to landscape management," he said. "The public affairs and public service components help me communicate with a wide audience — from the president of the UW to the gardening public who come for tours or use campus."

Graduate focus

As a graduate student, Ray focused on public garden management, including the role of public gardens in education, conservation and public service. His thesis was the first comprehensive study of the historic plants and landscape of Seattle prior to urban development, although his research techniques can also be applied throughout the country.

Ray's research answered some questions about what plants once grew in the Seattle area, what the land looked like and what restoration and related efforts may be possible. That information has proven valuable to restoration ecologists, city parks employees, land use planners, landscape architects and designers, and public garden staff.

A startling setback

Near the end of Ray's first year of graduate school in 2001, he and his colleagues faced an unexpected obstacle. An early-morning firebomb set by environmental terrorists destroyed Merill Hall, the UW's Center for Urban Horticulture main administrative and research building, which housed the office where he continued to work while taking classes.

"That greatly complicated things for several years and set back my research considerably," Ray said. "I spent the next three years trying to assist in getting the facility and program rebuilt."

That replacement building, the new Merrill Hall, earned the first LEED Silver certification on the UW Seattle campus for its environmentally friendly features, including solar panels, recycled building materials, sustainable wood and water conservation.

A garden laboratory and classroom

Three months after graduating from his master's program, Ray signed on as the first gardener devoted to the UW president's residence. The spacious brick Georgian revival home, which the Walker-Ames family donated to the UW in 1931, perches on a steep slope overlooking Lake Washington in the Washington Park neighborhood and is often used for events to benefit the University. On a clear day, you can glimpse Mt. Rainier from its backyard gardens, with several viewpoints designed to highlight the view.

When Ray started, the grounds were overgrown, and many of the plants bloomed only in the spring, leaving a mass of bare branches and a shortage of color and interest the rest of year. He set to work cleaning up the space and, with the help of a landscape architect, transformed many of the plantings to create visual appeal year round while preserving plants that had flourished on the property for decades. At the same time, he sought to conserve scarce resources by focusing on long-lasting species and arrangements that required minimal pruning and watering.

On one recent visit to Hill-Crest, the garden swelled with electric yellow and pink dahlias, cool blue hydrangeas, feathery green ferns, blushing raspberries and some 1,000 other species Ray knows primarily by their Latin names.

"We try not to overdo the purple and gold," Ray said. "It's there, but it's hopefully not overwhelming."

The grounds are also a laboratory. Ray tests flowers and plants for their hardiness and landscape value; and, if he likes what he sees, he selects them for use on campus and propagates what he can in the Hill-Crest greenhouse. The practice saves the University money by reducing the number of plants to purchase and ensuring they have the best chance to thrive. Ray also carefully selects plants that require minimal maintenance, trimming the amount of UW staff time required for care.

The gardens also serve as an outdoor classroom, where Ray can teach other gardeners and UW students about sustainable practices. Outside of work, he serves as president of the Northwest Horticultural Society, which promotes gardening education and outreach. The group also provides scholarships to UW horticulture students—a benefit that Ray, too, received while in graduate school.

Photo by Elizabeth Lowry