JMJ FAQ

I completed the “Horticultural Principals and Practices for Central Texas” course, taught by Travis County AgriLife Extension, and passed the completion exam. This is the prerequisite for their Master Gardener program and as far as you can progress if you want to maintain a blog such as this one with my own advice that may sometimes depart from their formal practices. I highly recommend it if you are interested in learning more about Texas gardening.

I am also enrolled in the Continuing Education Program at ACC in Landscape Design and take classes there as my time permits. My credentials are mostly through experience. I am a seasoned garden enthusiast that has made many, many, mistakes and thus will help you not make the same ones. I also incessantly read books & periodicals about gardening and share what I learn.

You can learn what houseplants are easy to keep alive from me in that if I have one, it must be be hard to kill. I tend to forget about them, so they have to be able to take care of themselves. Fiddle Leaf Figs are not included in that assessment. I have two, and one is a total nightmare.

I have been working as a graphic designer and creative director for the last twenty years. Over the years I’ve worked for Rockstar Games, MTV Networks, Tito’s Handmade Vodka, Austin Film Society, Tulane University, to name just a few. If you live in Austin, you may have seen the new South Terminal at the airport, which is all my branding. Now I am my own client. I design all my seed packets and am learning to paint which I’m slowly incorporating into my products.

I’ve stopped updating my design website as Joy Max Jardín has required all my attention for some time now, but you can see it at fiveandfour.com and read more about my design career here.

Drop me a line any time! Or DM me on Instagram! I’d love for you to say hello. Also, remember to watch my IG Stories everyday, as that is where I share the most of what I’m doing and dealing with in the garden on a daily basis.