About me
After two other careers, in 1992 Debra turned her avocation of plant study and gardening into her full-time life path when she showed up at Dr. Steve Still’s office at Ohio State and asked him to be her advisor. He was initially hesitant as her degrees and jobs in music and Speech-Language Pathology didn’t quite translate to a Masters in Ornamental Horticulture. But it worked out.
Known as “The Garden Sage”, Debra is passionate about gardening, sustainable garden design and the natural world, and enjoys sharing knowledge through her writing, public speaking, radio and podcast appearances, and garden consulting in the private and public sectors. She has served on various local and national committees and boards that focus on education, the environment, and sustainability. She has championed those passions during her two-year term (2014-2016) as Honorary President of the Herb Society of America, as the Co-Chair of the Sustainability Committee of GardenComm, as “customer care” at Groovy Plants Ranch, and, believe it or not, as a Cemetery Trustee for the Walnut Grove and Flint Cemeteries in Worthington, OH.
In addition, she mentored the future of the landscape industry at Columbus State Community College for 24 years and fortunately left that position just before COVID changed many aspects of life.
She loves being a gardener and has packed an amazing variety of perennials, trees, shrubs, and edible plants onto the 2/3-acre lot surrounding her home.
Perennials for Ohio by Debra Knapke and Alison Beck
Annuals for Ohio by Debra Knapke and Alison Beck
Gardening Month by Month in Ohio by Debra Knapke and Alison Beck
Best Garden Plants for Ohio by Debra Knapke and Alison Beck
Herb Gardening for the Midwest by Debra Knapke and Laura Peters
Heartland Gardening: Celebrating the Seasons by Debra Knapke, Michael Leach, and Teresa Woodard
