It Takes One Person

Vegetables
Written By Steven Biggs
Julia Dimakos is an avid gardener and garden communicator…but she didn’t grow up gardening. One person sparked that interest.

Julia Dimakos is an avid gardener and garden communicator…but she didn’t grow up gardening. One person sparked that interest.

Today on the podcast we meet an avid gardener who grew up in downtown Toronto, in a family that didn’t garden. And for a long time she didn’t garden either.

But then one person sparked her interest in gardening, and dropped by with a bucket of llama poo to help her make and plant her very first garden.

Julia Dimakos hasn’t looked back. Her kitchen garden has grown to 7,000 square feet.

Now, she is on a mission to spark the interest in gardening in other people. She gives presentations about gardening, and shares her passion for gardening online.

Garden Wisdom

“I want people to see gardening as something fun,” says Dimakos as she shares her tips for new gardeners.

Her top tip is that new gardeners start small, and not take on too much the first year. Make it manageable, and grow the garden over time.

And if something doesn’t work? “Every failure is an opportunity to learn to do better next time,” she says.

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Steven Biggs

Recognized by Garden Making Magazine as one of the "green gang" of Canadians making a difference in horticulture, Steven Biggs is a horticulturist, former college instructor, and award-winning broadcaster and author. His passion is helping home gardeners grow food in creative and attractive ways.


He’s the author of eight gardening books, including the Canadian bestseller No Guff Vegetable Gardening. His articles have appeared in Canada’s Local Gardener, Mother Earth News, Fine Gardening, Garden Making, Country Guide, Edible Toronto, and other magazines.


Along with over 30 years working in the horticultural sector and a horticultural-science major at the University of Guelph, Steven’s experience includes hands-on projects in his own garden including wicking beds, driveway strawbale gardens, and a rooftop tomato plantation—to the ongoing amusement of neighbours.


When not in the garden, you might catch him recording his award-winning Food Garden Life podcast or canoeing in Algonquin Park.

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