Check Out Whitney Brandon’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Whitney Brandon.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
My name is Whitney Brandon, and I am the Cultivator at TreeGarden in Austin, and Farmer at Blue Butterfly Farm in Dripping Springs. In 2014, my mom was diagnosed with ovarian cancer, and I quit my job as an autism therapist to help her through surgery and chemotherapy. After her recovery, my husband and I decided that life is too precious to not follow your dreams. We had always wanted to live in the Texas Hill Country, so we found a beautiful organic farm in Dripping Springs and moved there with our two kids. I am passionate about sharing the incredible healing power of Nature with others, so I have focused on growing and wildcrafting medicinal plants and making plant medicine. We also offer free, educational + interactive farm tours at Blue Butterfly Farm so people can connect with Nature and experience the beauty + wonder of all the plants, animals, and people living and working together at the farm.

In 2020, I started TreeGarden as a way to share my passion with people in Austin. TreeGarden is Cultivating Collaborative Community through Nature + Education + Art + Wellness + Outreach. I believe we all have a special gift to share with the world, and TreeGarden is a magical place where we can learn together, inspire each other, grow our collaborative community, and nurture our connection to Nature. Surrounded by the beautiful trees + gardens of our East Austin oasis, you’ll find an exciting variety of creative programs + special happenings at TreeGarden, including creatively cultivated workshops, magical community meetups, live music on the Backyard Stage, inspiring art in the TreeGarden Studio, and community outreach opportunities. Thanks, and I look forward to Cultivating Collaborative Community with you all!

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Of course, starting a small, one woman owned + operated adventure in the midst of a pandemic has been a HUGE challenge! But what really inspires me + keeps me going is the beautiful, collaborative community that has come together at TreeGarden despite the difficult times we’re all going through. It makes my heart happy to see everyone’s smiles, as their eyes light up, and they tell me how magical + special their experience at TreeGarden has been! I think my 13 year old daughter said it best: One night, after a long, hard day, I came home upset and frustrated. The next morning, I found a note from her that said: “I think you should keep working on TreeGarden and keep making it the best it can be, and keep making it a beautiful space for people to share their talents and for people to learn and grow together. Every sapling has to survive through its first frost before growing big and strong!” 🙂

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
The best part about my work is the amazing people I have had the opportunity to collaborate with! It takes a forest to cultivate collaborative community, and TreeGarden would not have made it through it’s first year without the incredible support of all the wonderful artists, musicians, artisans, friends, and family that have shared their talents, energy, enthusiasm, hard work, dedication, and love. I feel truly blessed by the beautiful community that has grown at TreeGarden, and look forward to all the exciting things we will create together in the future!

Contact Info:

• Email: hello@treegarden.org
• Website: https://treegarden.org
• Instagram: Instagram.com/treegarden
• Facebook: Facebook.com/TreeGardenAustin
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGnYbmLpQlAqHQlUBzJZSGQ

Image Credits:
Whitney Brandon profile pic – photo by Jinni J. (Instagram @heyjinnij)
Photo by Whitney Brandon – photo of Andrea Cortez of Mind Body Music Center
Photo by David Eckman – photo of The Better Halves
Photo by Whitney Brandon – photo of TG-Mural by artists Rosemary Allen + Juan Villegas
Photo by Shawn Kennedy – photo of Sydney Wright on TreeGarden Backyard Stage
Photo by Whitney Brandon – photo of Dr. Cass Naumann leading TreeGong at TreeGarden
Photo by Mike Grey – photo of Jaime Ospina of Superfónicos