The Love of Gardening


Honorary Master Gardeners


The Honorary Master Garden title is awarded to outstanding individuals who share our passion for sustainable garden practices and are friends of the Master Gardener of Ontario program. We are proud to recognize their contribution to the gardening public and to our communities.

  1. Sofie Bigham

    Sofie Bigham

    Sofie is an absolute passionate gardener! She shares her years of gardening experience widely with many groups and answers questions from newbie gardeners with patience and understanding. She has generously opened her garden every summer to tour groups from local and not so local garden clubs, plant societies and senior groups.

  2. Mark Cullen

    Mark Cullen

    Mark is one of Canada's best known gardeners connecting with over one million Canadians weekly through various media. His personable style and topical information has captivated audiences and continues to garner him fans across Canada.

  3. Dr. Jim Cruise

    Honorary Master Gardener

    Dr. Cruise, a botanist, was director of the Royal Ontario Museum from 1975 to 1985.

  4. Judi Denny

    Judi Denny

    Judi is a founding member of the Canadian Peony Society, and the driving force behind the Oshawa Botanical Garden Peony Festival when her collection of hundreds of peonies has resided for over 15 years. Judi is a lifetime member of the Brooklin Horticultural Society and a certified Ontario Horticultural Association judge. A regular speaker at other garden clubs, horticultural societies and community groups on her favourite flower, Judi is well-respected throughout Durham Region.

  5. Charlie Dobbin

    Charlie Dobbin

    Charlie is an internationally known horticulturist and landscape designer. During her over two-decade career, she has become well known for her professional gardening seminars and demonstrations, as well as for her prolific articles in newspapers and magazines.

  6. Cathy Dueck

    Honorary Master Gardener

    Cathy is a lifelong naturalist who has been gardening since she was 19 and her passion is teaching about land stewardship in its many forms. Over the years, she has been a guest speaker for horticultural societies, universities and colleges, and developed a range of programs for the public including environmental education for children and community-based urban forestry.

  7. Denis Flanagan

    Denis Flanagan

    Originally from England, Denis trained at Merrist Wood Horticultural College in Surrey. While working for an upscale London Nursery, he helped Princess Margaret and Lord Snowden landscape their estate in Sussex. Since transplanting himself to Canada, he's thrived as a nurseryman and landscape designer. In his current position at Landscape Ontario, he finds it rewarding to share his love of gardening with the younger generation.

  8. Richard Hinchcliff

    Richard Hinchcliff

    Richard is author of Blooms: An Illustrated History of the Ornamental Gardens at Ottawa’s Central Experimental Farm and co-author of For the Love of Trees: A Guide to the Trees of Ottawa’s Central Experimental Farm Arboretum. His stewardship efforts to preserve the Central Experimental Farm in our nation’s capital for future generations is truly inspiring.

  9. Wayne Hugli

    Wayne Hugli

    Wayne, an educator and devoted gardener, is a life member and past president of the Sudbury Horticultural Society who works closely with the Sudbury Master Gardeners on their many local initiatives. In 2005 he championed the regreening of local schoolyards through the Ugliest Schoolyard Contest. Since then, more than 40 schools have received support for their projects.

  10. Lorraine Johnson

    Lorraine Johnson

    Lorraine is the author of numerous books, including Garden Plants and Flowers: A-Z Guide to the Best Plants for Your Garden and 100 Easy-to-Grow Native Plants for Canadian Gardens. Her writing has appeared in such publications as on Nature, Chatelaine, and the Globe & Mail, and she makes regular appearances on CBC Radio and TV.

  11. Guy Jolin

    Honorary Master Gardener

  12. Liz Klose

    Liz Klose

    Liz is an avid life-long gardener and appeared as a guest on HGTV’s Gardener’s Journal and Calling All Gardener’s. A co-author of two gardening books, Liz is a Certified Landscape Professional (CLP).

  13. Thomas Laviolette

    Honorary Master Gardener

    Thomas is superintendent of the Niagara Parks Botanical Gardens and Butterfly Conservatory, the Floral Showhouses and Parks Greenhouse Production, in Niagara Falls, Ontario.

  14. Ed Lawrence

    Ed Lawrence

    Retired head gardener to six Canadian Governors General and Prime Ministers, Ed has provided practical, down-to-earth advice that has become the final word in gardening for more than half a million loyal listeners and fans in all media.

  15. Lorraine Mennen

    Lorraine Mennen

    Lorraine is a talented writer, landscape designer and sought after international speaker. Lorraine’s focus on family lifestyle, nature and ecology underlies everything she does. She has created outdoor rooms that are natural extensions of indoor living - where there’s something to do outdoors, in every season, for every age.

  16. John Valleau

    John Valleau

    John is the Corporate Horticulturist for Valleybrook Gardens, growers of the blue pots of Heritage Perennials. John's own garden is under constant renovation these days, located in the scenic village of Jordan, in the Niagara region. Known as "The Tangled Garden", it's an eclectic collection of plants growing around a century farmhouse.

  17. Ray Wilhelm

    Honorary Master Gardener

    Raymond was one of Stratford Master Gardener charter members - from 1986. He was a dedicated advisor for 22 years until his retirement at 85 in 2008.

  18. Paul Zammit

    Paul Zammit

    Paul was the Nancy Eaton Director of Horticulture at the Toronto Botanical Garden and is an active member of many Canadian and international gardening communities. He lectures on a wide array of subjects, including container gardening, perennials, ground covers and tropicals.



Banner courtesy Kathy Ward, Stoney Creek, Ontario

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