Welcome to
The GrowTH Network
The GrowTH Network (Grow Therapeutic Horticulture) is a professional support platform for therapeutic horticulture and horticultural therapy practitioners, including trained allied health professionals.
It’s designed to help you confidently build and adapt your practice with ongoing support, while saving time, energy, and cost at every stage.
What's Included in The GrowTH Network
Connection Opportunities
Create a personal profile, connect with other members, and engage in chat forums. The network includes 225+ practitioners across every inhabited continent.
Activity Database
A robust database with over 125 step-by-step activities, and four new activities added per month. The database is sortable in multiple ways such as domain of wellness, cognition level, material requirements (budget) and ability to deliver virtually.
Resource Library
This extensive library includes resources such as customizable templates, intake forms, evaluation forms, sample budgets, visual cue templates and more.
20% Discount on Courses*
Annual members enjoy a 20% discount on Root in Nature courses. *excluding the Advancing Skills in Therapeutic Horticulture certification course
Events
Bi-monthly guest speakers on relevant HT/ TH professional development topics. All events are free to GrowTH Network members. Check out our upcoming events.
Practitioner Support Calls
Feel isolated in this field? Join our one-hour virtual drop-in calls with an experienced horticultural therapist for connection, support and Q & A.
The GrowTH Network is one of the most exciting things to expand the growth of horticulture as a therapeutic tool that I have seen in recent years. Professionals from many fields working together with volunteers will bring this valuable tool to many more people.
— Dr. Paula Diane Relf
Professor Emeritus
Virginia Tech University
GrowTH Network
Annual Membership
$108
/yr
save 10% annually
Registration coming soon
What's Included
Online profile and network
A growing activity database
Resource library
20% discount on all courses
Free events
One-hour group call (monthly)
GrowTH Network
Monthly Membership
$10
/mo
Registration coming soon
What's Included
Online profile and network
A growing activity database
Resource library
20% discount on all courses
Free events
One-hour group call (monthly)
GrowTH Network
Monthly Membership
$10
/mo
Registration coming soon
What's Included
Online profile and network
A growing activity database
Resource library
20% discount on all courses
Free events
One-hour group call (monthly)
INCLUDES 7-DAY FREE TRIAL
Annual Membership-
7-Day Free Trial
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Personal Profile & Connections
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Sortable Activity Database
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Resource Library
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20% Discount on Courses*
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Guest Speaker Events
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Monthly Peer Support Calls
*excluding the Advancing Skills in Therapeutic Horticulture course
Students & Volunteers:
50% off the first year of your annual membership
Click here for discount
INCLUDES 7-DAY FREE TRIAL
Monthly Membership-
7-Day Free Trial
-
Personal Profile & Connections
-
Sortable Activity Database
-
Resource Library
-
Guest Speaker Events
-
Monthly Peer Support Calls
We love hearing from you!
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Personal Profile & Connections
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Sortable Activity Database
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Robust Resource Library
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Professional Development Events
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Expert-led Practitioner Support
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Chat Forums
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20% Discount on Intro Courses
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Personal Profile & Connections
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Sortable Activity Database
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Professional Development Events
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Expert-led Practitioner Support
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Chat Forums
*Resource library access is not included in monthly membership
Resource Library Contents & Navigation
To support practitioners in building and sustaining effective therapeutic horticulture (TH) programs, the GrowTH Network Resource Library is organized into sections that reflect the natural stages of TH program development. Each section aligns with a specific phase of planning, delivery, or evaluation, making it easier for users to find relevant tools and information as their program evolves. Sections include:
- Program Site Assessment & Viability
- Participant Intake & Assessment
- Participant & Program Goals
- Program Planning, Schedule & Curriculum
- Therapeutic Gardens & Programming Environments
- Traditional & Adaptive Tools & Techniques
- Horticulture Knowledge
- Program Budgets, Funding & Proposals
- TH Marketing Strategies
- Consent, Liability & Volunteer Forms
- TH Session Facilitation & Organization
- TH Program Management & Billing
Activity Database
Your membership includes a database of more than 150 therapeutic horticulture activities that is sortable in the following ways:
- Session Component: Opening Activity, Activity, Closing Activity
- Activity Type: Horticulture, Botanical Arts & Crafts, Mindfulness/Meditation, Sensory, Games/Trivia, Culinary, Soilless
- Material Requirements: Cost vs. No/Low cost
- Domains of Wellness Affected: Physical, Cognitive, Emotional, Social, Spiritual & Creative
- Season
- Indoor / Outdoor
- Physical Exertion Level Required
- Population / Cognitive Ability
- Ability to Deliver Virtually
StrongerU customers save $75 on a GrowTH Network & Intro Course bundle! Ask for details.
Upcoming Events
July Practitioner Support Call
GrowTH Network members can participate in monthly drop-in Q&A and check-in calls with our Director of Learning & Community Engagement Emilee Weaver. These calls provide a supportive environment where practitioners can seek guidance, share experiences, and engage in ongoing professional development.
From Garden to Table: Simple Ways to Preserve the Harvest
This talk and demonstration explore practical methods for preserving the harvest, equipping therapeutic horticulture professionals with techniques to help clients extend the rewards of their gardening efforts. Topics include drying (herbs, fruits, and vegetables), cooking, canning (jams, jellies, chutneys), making infused vinegars, freezing, and curing. These methods not only enhance food security and sustainability but also provide engaging, skill-building activities that promote well-being and connection to nature.
Rebecca is a member of Master Gardeners of Ottawa-Carleton. Her small garden is certified as wildlife habitat. She has received several awards from the Ontario horticulture community. Not a scientist herself, Rebecca is passionate about gardening science. She shares what she learns via her blog Gardening at Last. Her publications on ResearchGate have over 10,000 reads. Rebecca’s gardening addiction is enabled by her loving husband Richard and a collection of spoiled rescue cats.
The Practitioner’s Map: Understanding the 9 Stages of Therapeutic Horticulture Program Growth
Join our Director of Learning & Community Engagement, Emilee Weaver for a guided walkthrough of the nine foundational stages of TH program growth. From Curiosity and Conceptualization to Disillusionment and, ultimately, Equilibrium, Emilee draws on over 15 years of hands-on experience in inpatient psychiatric hospitals, botanical gardens, and community settings to illuminate key themes at every stage of program development-whether you’re gaining initial buy-in, piloting a new effort, or working toward long-term sustainability.
This professional development event will offer a strategic framework to empower you to plan your next steps with clarity and confidence—while also addressing the emotional highs and lows that often come with TH program development. It is ideal for practitioners, students, and professionals who are looking for actionable advice about avoiding common pitfalls, proactively managing the expectations of clients, and achieving the sustainable TH program you envision. Expect practical insights, thoughtful reflection, and a compassionate approach to program development that meets you where you are.
Emilee credits the lush, fern and moss filled New Hampshire forests and her grandmother for inspiring her adoration of nature and the ability/language to develop meaningful relationships with plants. This passion led to over 25 years in professional horticulture, a degree in social work, and a horticultural therapy certificate from the Horticultural Therapy Institute.
Her deep passion for accompanying people on their healing and learning journeys led Emilee to spend the past 15+ years building TH and HT programs and educational programs that span diverse clinical and community settings and students. She was the lead content creator and instructor for the online and hybrid TH certificate programs co-created by two prominent universities and is proud to have co-authored one of the first comprehensive HT textbooks in the field, The Profession and Practice of Horticultural Therapy, published in 2019.
Emilee has worked with a wide range of populations and has centered her work primarily around the intersections of TH/HT and mental health. She has developed therapeutic and vocational programs in a range of inpatient psychiatric settings, botanical gardens, farms, elder care communities, and most recently pioneered a partnership with Ukrainian and Armenian botanical gardens and clinicians seeking TH training to assist citizens experiencing the trauma of war.
In her free time, you’ll find her tending and chatting with her gardens, chasing after her tortoises, preventing her cats from taking over the world, and spending time with friends and family whose support has inspired, guided, and supported her journey.
Supporting Emotional Resilience: Addressing Climate Emotions through Nature-Based Practice
Climate change is not just an environmental issue – it’s an emotional one. Many clients are grappling with eco-anxiety, grief, despair, and anger as they witness environmental shifts and wonder what, if anything, they can do.
In this session, Alexis Ashworth shares an evidence-informed framework for supporting emotional resilience in the face of climate-related distress, drawing on therapeutic horticulture, trauma-informed practice, and nature-based tools. You’ll explore the emotional dimensions of climate change, how to recognize when clients are within or outside their Window of Tolerance, and how to offer regulation strategies rooted in nature and values-aligned action.
This presentation will offer:
- Guidance on validating and working with five key climate emotions
- Strategies to help clients move from emotional paralysis to Active Hope
- Nature-based techniques like symbolic planting and grounding exercises
- Practical tools including the Climate Emotions Wheel and WOOP framework
This session will help you support clients (and yourself) through uncertainty with clarity, compassion, and care.
Join our Founder & CEO Alexis for a live 20 minute Information Session on the GrowTH Network. Click the link below to watch a recorded session now!
FAQs
The network is a space for horticultural therapists, therapeutic horticulture practitioners, students of therapeutic horticulture and allied professionals trained in therapeutic horticulture.
Yes! We’re here to support you, and that means supporting your business. If you have events or other offerings that others could take part in, please feel free to share them on the GrowTH Network timeline or in forum posts.
Yes! The intention of this network is to provide you with practical tools that you can put to use in your own practice without crediting of any kind. However, it should be noted that the information contained in the resource library is provided for general information purposes only. Please review the disclaimer in the library prior to using any of its contents.
Yes – you can ‘connect’ with members in the directory. If they accept your connection, you can send private messages to each other. We want to facilitate connections between people and provide a space to openly share ideas, resources, experiences and successes.
Absolutely! There is a form set up on the relevant pages of the community to collect submissions from members. Here is the Activity Idea Submission Form and resources can be emailed to courses@rootinnature.ca. The more members who engage and share, the more robust the community will become over time. Members are part of helping the network grow!
The GrowTH Network and sortable Activity Database require significant infrastructure and ongoing management. Registered horticultural therapists create, review and vet activities and resources. They also manage monthly check-in calls and other events. We’ve worked hard to keep the cost affordable while ensuring that the value provided far exceeds the price.
We were hoping to have a Canadian price and an US price. However, our software (MemberPress) is only able to process one currency. Since this is an international community, and the US dollar is widely recognized worldwide, we chose that currency and set the price at the US dollar equivalent of our intended Canadian price.
Best Ottawa Business (BOBS) Award Winner
Coralus Venture
Root in Nature is grateful to be selected as one of the Ventures working on the World’s To-Do List by Coralus Activators! We will be receiving support from radically generous Activators, including funding, connections and relationships to grow our impact.