I was very lucky to have a few years to work with Cindy Gilberg. By the time I became interested in native plants she was already well established as an authority on native plant landscaping in the St Louis area. When I was in school converting my parents backyard lawn to a native landscape we bought the plants from Cindy's nursery.
As part as our working together at Shaw Nature Reserve we would go on trips together to conferences or to collect plants. The above photo of Cindy was taken by Terri Brandt on one of our trips. She was a good companion and I never got the impression that hanging out with me was a burden to her. I loved to hear Cindy's presentations. They always provided new information and helped me become a better landscaper. She was also very funny.
Cindy inspired me to start a native plant monthly newsletter when I worked at Shaw. In the 5 years I published it I ended with more then 2000 subscribers. That has been one of the more rewarding things I have done in my career. I really felt like I was making a difference in the landscaping word to make it more native plant friendly. Many of Cindy's articles were featured and she also edited my writing to help me improve.
Towards the end of her life Cindy continued to write for the newsletter and the days she came to the office were something to look forward too. I feel like I understand her determination better now as I have my own battle with cancer. The inspiration to write is hard to find when you are completely exhausted.
She must have had so much more to say.
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