We are a small, woman-owned company that started with one woman and a pickup truck. Since then, we've grown to a staff of as many as 25 during the growing season. We have completed thousands of landscape installations and vegetable plantings for residents and businesses in the DC Metro area.

Our Mission

Love & Carrots envisions a future where landscapes nourish and replenish both nature and the people who steward them.

In 2011, Love & Carrots began working diligently to proliferate vegetable gardening knowledge with individuals, families, businesses, and organizations. We began with providing assistance to people who would like to grow healthy food in their yard, porch, patio, eatery, balcony, or rooftop. That goal has evolved to encompass each property as a whole by building out the landscapes around them into a harmonious ecosystem as much as possible. We want to make urban environments more conducive to healthy living.

DC is unique in that it has abundant yard space for a city, but very few people use these spaces to grow food.  Every garden we plant is a small step toward reducing our carbon footprint, and positively impacting the District as a whole.

Meredith Sheperd

Founder, President

Meredith has been working in organic agriculture and environmental sustainability for 15 years. Before founding Love & Carrots in 2011, she was the manager of Chaily Farm in VA, which produced organic herbs and vegetables for DC restaurants. Meredith received the 2013 DC Mayor's Sustainability Award, 2014 Green America Award, and Business Insider's Top 50 'Coolest' Businesses in America. Meredith can be reached at: [email protected]

Carly Mercer

partner, Vice President

Carly previously worked on food issues at an advocacy group before taking the fight for access to good food directly to people’s backyards (front yards too!). She has apprenticed on farms from Costa Rica to Maine, and participated in the DC Master Gardener Program. Carly joined Love & Carrots in 2014 and is passionate about urban agriculture and teaching people how to grow their own food. Carly can be reached at: [email protected]

Freddy Carruth

INSTALLATION director

Freddy joined the Love & Carrots team in March 2020. He is a Clemson graduate with a degree in Plant and Environmental Sciences, and a concentration in Agricultural Biotechnology. Freddy has worked on a variety of farms with different focuses such as research, production, and education. In his spare time, he enjoys rock climbing!

Rifka MacDonald

installation project manager

Rifka is a Pacific Northwest transplant to the DMV. After a career in non-profit development for natural history, arts, and youth education institutions she became an apprentice carpenter. Her time working in all aspects of residential construction and interior design has led her back to project management, now with Love & Carrots. Rifka loves learning how to do-it-herself, live music, and volunteering at river cleanups with her partner.

Leah Drew

horticulture director

Leah grew up in northern Vermont and worked on two farms through high school. He came to DC to do political work, and ended up specializing in agricultural policy, which ultimately inspired him to return to his farming roots. He is concerned about our ability to grow food as the climate changes, and think intensive urban agriculture is one facet of a more resilient and sustainable food system. Mostly, he loves working with plants and is excited to help people raise their own gardens in the DMV. Leah can be reached at: [email protected]

Lauren Paulsen

Installation Lead

Lauren’s interest in building started deep in the scrap bin of her fathers wood shop in North Carolina. Graduating from the wood shop to the metal shop, she has been welding steel furniture for local residents and businesses for the last 7 years. Her two loves, construction and plants, have come together in Love & Carrots, which is why she is excited to expand sustainable urban green spaces throughout the DMV. On the weekends, you can usually find her baking sourdough bread, doing the crossword, or riding her bike to a brewery.

Ruby Dessiatoun

Senior FARMER

Ruby came to Love and Carrots in 2021 after spending 6 years at the University of Maryland where she obtained a dual degree in Plant Science and Geography with a minor in Soil Science, and then a Masters in Geographical Sciences. She spent five years at UMD with the Community Learning Garden, a student run urban agricultural project focused on sustainable farming teaching students about agriculture and the food cycle. Ruby loves food and sustainability, knitting and making art, and is completing the volunteer hours to become a PG county certified Master Gardener. Ruby can be reached at: [email protected]

Maddy Belin

Accounts & Communications manager

Maddy hails from California, where she found her passion for agroecology as an undergraduate on Stanford’s campus educational farm. After graduating with her B.S. and M.S. in Earth Systems, she worked as a field organizer for climate action advocacy campaigns. Maddy’s passionate about ensuring equitable access to good food through building community food sovereignty. She is happiest with her hands in the soil and with her dog Hooch at her side. She can be reached at [email protected]

Silver Alford

assistant training manager/ urban farmer

Silver joined Love & Carrots in 2021. He has a degree from University of Maryland in Environmental Science and Policy, and he previously worked at the AgroEcoLab as a Field Technician. They are excited to further their interest in agriculture at Love & Carrots. Silver can be reached at: [email protected]

Alison Jones

Landscape Designer

Alison has a background in art history, painting, publishing, and sustainable landscape design. She recently completed a master's degree in landscape architecture at the University of Maryland where she conducted research on how sensory perception can be applied to the design of restorative public and private landscapes. Alison grew up in a foreign service family and loves learning about other cultures, cuisines, and gardening styles. Alison is happiest with her hands in the soil, deriving satisfaction and solace from tending her exuberant garden. Alison can be reached at [email protected].

Marisa Willis

Landscape Designer

Marisa is a native of the Bronx, New York, and from a young age learned how to make the most of the green space we are given. She is a graduate of George Washington University, with a Masters Degree in Sustainable Landscape Design. Over her 13+ years experience in residential and commercial design/build, she has learned to address stormwater issues and create beautiful, functional garden designs that highlight native plants. She loves spending time with her husband and two little boys, visiting local gardens and attending live music shows.

Josie St. Denis

urban farmer

Josie first came to love organic agriculture by spending time on homesteads in South America. After returning to the United States, she continued to develop her technical skill set by farming on small-scale organic vegetable operations in the DMV area. Josie has spent the last two years farming outside of Portland, Maine, and is excited to move back home and engage with her local community in their shared urban landscape. Her passion for a food system that can be both sustainable and connective is what guides her today. She can be reached at [email protected].

Goose Kelley

URBAN FARMER

Goose has a background in culinary arts and has primarily worked with farm-to-table vegan restaurants. Goose’s love of animals, food justice and sustainability led them to an intentional community in Virginia where they lived for two years. While there, Goose was introduced to farming and became the garden manager overseeing the raised beds, the green house and the hoop house. Goose has a degree in integrative health and wellness, which highlights the innumerable connection between body, mind and soul. For Goose, growing food is a living example of that connection. Goose hopes to bring awareness and support to food deserts and bipoc communities that can’t access locally grown fresh foods. In their free time, Goose loves to read, bike, rock climb, explore the city, and listen to music. Goose can be reached at:[email protected]

Franco Rodrigo Estrada Pravdic

INSTALLATION CREW

Franco Rodrigo grew up in Huanchaco, Peru, a small surfing and fishing village where everyone is very connected to the land and the sea. It is important to him to respect pachamama, or the mother earth, and he is happiest when he is in nature. Franco moved to the U.S. in 2019, and to D.C. in 2023. He is excited to be part of the Love & Carrots team to learn more about urban agriculture. In his free time, Franco enjoys cooking, hiking, biking, skateboarding, surfing, playing with his three-year-old daughter, and sleeping.

Catherine Oberfield

installation crew/Urban Farmer

Catherine graduated from the University of Maryland, College Park in 2020 and then managed an organic vegetable farm in Derwood, MD for 3 years. They live in Maryland with their partner, dog, and Prius, who is a member of the family. They love teaching folks about growing vegetables, and especially like getting kids’ hands in the soil. They can be reached at [email protected].

Stefan Brady

INSTALLATION CREW

Stefan comes from Silver Spring MD and studied philosophy at Concordia University in Montreal. He has a background in sustainable farming with a special interest in mushroom production and mycology. He’s passionate about biodiversification, regenerative farming techniques, edible landscapes and producing healthy and delicious food. He loves cooking, DIY projects, foraging for mushrooms and fermenting everything from yogurt to beer.

Mikyla Reta

Urban Farmer

Mikyla is originally from Orange County, California and graduated with a B.S. in Environmental Science and a minor in Geography/Environmental Studies. She moved to Washington, D.C. in 2019 to work in politics, with a focus on domestic climate and environmental justice policy. She is passionate about food justice and empowering local communities. She is excited about working with the Love & Carrots team and learning more about sustainable urban agriculture. She can be reached at [email protected].

Julia Wood

Urban farmer

Julia grew up in Midcoast Maine and attended the University of Southern Maine, where she studied photography and bookmaking. After graduating, she completed a two-year farming apprenticeship, which deepened her love for working with her hands and plant cultivation. She served as the Greenhouse Manager for The Organic Gardener in Chicago for six years, managing gardens throughout the Chicagoland area and growing thousands of seedlings for clients’ gardens. Throughout her work in agriculture, Julia has always valued the role of creative thinking, and has come to experience farming/gardening as an intersection between art and science. Now, as a newcomer to the DC area, she is eager to continue creatively learning and growing within this new community. She can be reached at [email protected].

Suzanne Williams

landscape designer

Suzanne’s bio is coming soon!

Samuel Pineda

Installation Crew

Samuel’s bio is coming soon!