Amy Goldman is not your ordinary home gardener. One visit to the serene and green surroundings of her home in New York’s Hudson Valley is enough to convince you that she has a far larger purpose in mind as she tends to her fruits and vegetables. Her quiet sense of humor and warm appreciation for the life that surrounds her is most evident as she guides you through the lavish isolation garden filled with unusual beans and sunflowers. This area is isolated from her everyday garden to prevent cross-pollination of the rare strains with other plant varieties. She shines even more brightly as she guides you through the melon patch, her eyes lighting up as she describes how the plants bear fruit at harvest time. To some, this would be a way to pass the time, a hobby or relaxation exercise. But to Amy, this is the fullest extension of who she is as a person—her pride, her passion and her joy. She describes herself as a “late bloomer.” Although she has been gardening since her teen years, she only recently discovered the true mission of her life: to help preserve the agricultural heritage and genetic diversity of the world’s fruits and vegetables. Her specialty is that unique category of plant that has come to be known as the heirloom vegetable. Passed on from generation to generation much like any family heirloom, the seeds of these vegetables represent a direct link to the past, and a striking alternative to the uniformity of today’s mass-produced hybrid and genetically modified vegetables. As modern agriculture has evolved into a field dominated by multinational corporations, the original heirloom varieties—from which modern hybrids have descended—have died out. But in recognition of their ecological, historical and culinary value to the world, a group of concerned gardeners and farmers known as “seed savers” have dedicated themselves to preserving these endangered strains. After reading about the cause in a cookbook, Amy Goldman decided to extend her firmly-committed hand to their ranks. It was a natural, organic fit. Every summer, she grows hundreds of different varieties of heirloom vegetables in her garden. Despite the delicious taste afforded by these exotic varieties, Amy’s primary purpose is not to consume them, but rather to cultivate and save the seeds of these endangered species. She quickly became an active member of the Seed Savers Exchange, a non-profit group dedicated to preserving the nation’s agricultural heritage, and now serves as Vice President of the Board of Directors. She dedicates many of her waking hours to spreading the word about the importance of growing and preserving heirlooms.

Amy Goldman recently emerged from her peaceful garden to write a book, Melons for the Passionate Grower, profiling more than one hundred melon varieties and featuring exquisite photos by Victor Schrager (Artisan 2002). She has been featured on a number of television programs, including Martha Stewart Living, HGTV’s Way to Grow, PBS’s The Perennial Gardener, and The Victory Garden. The print media have also embraced her sophisticated, yet easygoing way with plants and people. She has been featured and profiled in many magazines, including House and Garden, Martha Stewart Living, Good Housekeeping, Country Living Gardener and Organic Gardening. She is also a Contributing Editor at Garden Design magazine, and is the monthly Zone 5 reporter for the OrganicGardening.com Almanac. While Goldman is definitely most at home in her melon patch, she has traveled far and wide in her search for exotic varieties to grow and maintain in her garden and greenhouse. She makes semi-annual treks to rare fruit and vegetable fairs in England, Belgium and France and plans her travels around visits to kitchen gardens and potagers at home and abroad. She even collects tomato seeds off of dinner plates in restaurants and hot peppers in farmer’s markets. The speaking circuit has provided another venue for the articulation of her passionate devotion. She has lectured at the Culinary Institute of America, the New York Botanical Garden, and the Horticultural Society of New York. In the summer, she opens her gardens to others and enjoys being in her element while talking fruits and vegetables with gardeners and gourmets. She also hosts taste tests at farmer’s markets, including the Union Square Greenmarket, where she was televised serving up heirloom melons. Her commitment has extended far beyond her garden. She serves on the Board of Trustees of the New York Botanical Garden, the Seed Savers Exchange, and the National Gardening Association. She is a member of many additional garden and professional organizations, including the Horticultural Society of New York, the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, the American Horticultural Society, and the Garden Writers Association of America. Amy has won many prizes and awards for her displays of heirloom vegetables, including grand championships in vegetables at state, county and regional fairs and flower shows. Her crowning glory as a competitive gardener occurred when the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, awarded her the coveted Virginia Brooke Pennypacker Gardener’s Sweepstakes Award at the 1998 Philadelphia Harvest Show. Amy won the award after amassing the greatest number of blue ribbons in two or more horticultural classes. She retired from active competition in 1999 to widen her horizons and devote herself more completely to the heirloom seed movement. Gardening was not always the focus of her life. Trained as a clinical psychologist, she received her doctorate in 1984 from Oklahoma State University. She no longer practices psychology as a profession. But it is easy to see that her nurturing concern for people fuels her as she promotes the important cause that she has come to embrace.

http://www.douglasgould.com/amygoldman/biographical/about_amy.htm

NOTE*- it’s AMY GOLDMAN, NOT AMY GOLDMAN-PUTNAM!

Info on Design Director

my guess is someone who directs designers on what to design. think of it as a movie director but in the art of design.

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Ms. Godman putman is a creative consultant. She has a child with lung disease. That is the precious little I got off google.