About me and my resume

I was raised in Central New York, the Finger Lakes region to be exact. I grew up on a farm and come from a long line of horticulturists on my father's side of the family; I'm the 6th generation. I attended Cornell University in Ithaca, New York and earned my Bachelor's of Science in General Plant Sciences with a minor in Ornamental Horticulture.

After college, I moved to New Hampshire after I graduated and worked on my family's fruit farm at their stand for a couple of years. I had decided to further my employment opportunities and took a job at a garden center in Nashua, New Hampshire as a nursery yard sales associate. In the spring of 1997, I moved to Rhode Island and I began to work at Chaves Gardens, Inc., as their nursery manager and garden designer. I have attended the University of Rhode Island and have taken landscape architecture courses for Chaves' Gardens.

I am currently a member of Greenwimmen, which is an organization of women horticulturists in Southern Rhode Island. I also belong to the Rhode Island Nurseryman and Landscape Association (RINLA.) I am very active in RINLA by participating with their publicity committee, flower show committee, website committee, and yearbook committee. 2006 - 2009, I have been the designer of RINLA's Rhode Island Flower Show Exhibits. I have been a RINLA Board Member since 2007 and was their President for 2009 - 2010. I have given talks and demonstrations to the Newport Garden Club, the Seaside Garden Club, the Warwick Neck Garden Club, The Open Gate Garden Club, Blithewold: Mansion, Gardens, and Arboretum, and the Rhode Island Master Gardener organization.

Employment History:

2000 - Present - Cristin M. Larson, The Garden Consultant - Owner

1997-2002- Nursery Manager and Garden Designer; Chaves' Gardens, Inc., Middletown, RI

- Assist customers with plant selection and cultural practices, this includes visiting sites and drafting residential landscape plans
- Assess environmental, pest, and disease problems both in the nursery and those of customers
- Ordering of all nursery stock and managing inventory
- Supervise and instruct nursery employees of daily maintenance and sales tasks
- Daily maintenance and merchandizing of nursery stock

1996-1997 - Sales Associate; PK's Garden Center, Nashua, NH

- Worked with managers compiling task lists for following day
- Prepare in depth fact sheets on available trees and shrubs
- Maintenance of trees, shrubs, and herbaceous plant material
- Assess environmental, pest, and disease problems for customers and in the nursery
- Assist customers with plant selection and cultural practices

1994-1997 - Greenhouse and Fruit Stand Worker; Brookdale Fruit Farm, Hollis, NH

- Maintained indoor and outdoor plant material
- Quality control of plant material and farm produce for retail display

1994-1995 - Teaching Assistant; Introductory Horticulture, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY

      - Taught science labs, created lesson plans, corrected exams and term papers
      - Held office hours and tutored students

   Education:
    1991-1995 BS, Plant Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY

Courses included: Botany, Plant Physiology, Plant Pathology, Woody Plant Materials, Annuals and Perennials, Practical Horticulture, Soil Fertility Management, Soil Sciences; Dean's List: 1994. Cumulative. GPA: 3.2

Awards and Accolades:

- 9/24/09 - Featured "My Business" in Providence City News - http://creative.providenceri.com/CityNews/newsletter2.php?id=240
- Rhode Island Spring and Flower Show 2009; Rhode Island Nursery and Landscape Association Exhibit - Honorable Mention: Non Profit Exhibit
- Contributor to Lawn and Landscape Magazine - September 2008 issue; Intergrated Pest Management article

- 2007 Rhode Island Nursery and Landscape Association Excellence Awards: The Jones Residence - First Place: Landscape Design.
- 2008 Young Nursery Professional of the Year - Rhode Island; given by the New England Nursery Association.
- Rhode Island Spring and Flower Show 2008; Rhode Island Nursery and Landscape Association Exhibit - Second Place: Non Profit Exhibit
- Rhode Island Spring and Flower Show 2007; Rhode Island Nursery and Landscape Association Exhibit - Third Place: Non Profit Exhibit
- Warwick Neck Garden Club; August 2006: The Harriet Miner Horticulture Project; Entranceways - Third Place.
- 2006 Rhode Island Nursery and Landscape Association Excellence Awards: The Burress Residence - First Place: Landscape Design.
- Newport in Bloom; 2003, 2004: First place for window box design for Judie Moore

Other Activities and Interests:

- The K9 Connection, Warwick, RI - Rally Obedience and Canine Good Citizen Instructor

Bowen's Wharf in Bloom; Newport, RI - Committee Member

- Greenwimmen, Middletown, RI - horticultural organization for women in the "Green" industry

- Rhode Island Nurserymen and Landscape Association: '97-present: 2009 - 2010 RINLA President; 2008; Vice President; 2007 - 2010: Executive Board Member; 2006 - 2009 Rhode Island Flower Show RINLA Display Designer; Flower Show Committee; Publicity Committee - Chairperson; '10: Education Committee; '01: Website Committee

- Showing and working in Obedience and Agility with my Rottweiler, Lars.

- Drawing/painting