Leading Women of Horticulture: Katie Dubow, Garden Media Group, and Aubry Field, Lizzy Blossom

Aubry Field: I’ll be Jennifer.

Dubow: Okay, perfect. I don’t think our paths have crossed. What are some of the shows you go to each year?

Field: I started to exhibit at Cultivate in 2021, and I do that every year. I’ve been at MANTS twice as an exhibitor. I’m slowly getting into presenting at conferences. Not quite in my comfort zone but I’m getting out there. I’ll be talking at Cultivate and also Farwest. So, you’ll see more of me.

Dubow: So good to get out of your comfort zone. Obviously, this is a women in horticulture kind of thing, but I think as women, we don’t realize the things that we do every day that challenge ourselves. Even this conversation. It’s something that I’m not used to doing and it sounds like you’re not used to doing either. But it’s great, too; if you’re not continually learning, then what are you doing?

Field: Absolutely.

Dubow: I read you were the youngest team member to be hired at Ball Helix, which is impressive in itself, but I would also imagine you were probably one of the only women, or am I wrong in that?

Field: No, there were a couple more women, just kind of a nice balance at the time. We had all types of people from different disciplines that could contribute. One of the things that really excited me about going to this company was how small it was and how I could kind of learn a lot from a lot of different people in different disciplines. I’m kind of a science nerd. People don’t really say that out loud, but I am, and I was very green. I had just finished my master’s at Ohio State, and what they needed at the time was somebody to run the particle gene gun and do tissue culture, and that was a perfect fit. I’m like, oh, this is going to be great. I’m going to learn so many different things, and I’m really going to figure out what I love.

Dubow: And then you have Lizzy Blossom. You’re leading that business today. What do you do there?

Field: We’re running a virus testing program here. This is our main service that we provide where people ship in leaf samples to us and we do routine testing, diagnostic testing, symptoms, non-symptoms. We test everything.

Dubow: Do you have employees?

Field: I have high school students that come to get time in the lab. That’s kind of been my mode.

Dubow: I love it.

Field: Yeah, my 16-year-old son is actually starting to work in the lab, so that’s really cool. And I have a senior in high school who just got the news that she got into her dream college. So, very exciting. But I really like having the space for kids to come in and learn about the lab. Doesn’t have to be plants necessarily.

Dubow: Oh, that’s so neat. In the last couple of years, I’ve just been so interested in learning about how we cultivate this next generation, and not just of women, but of people, because plants are now cool. Besides being a science nerd, what’s one surprising fact about you?

Field: When I was a stay-at-home mom, I sold nail stickers. Literally stickers that you can put on your nails. And it wasn’t to make money, it was to have a business of my own. And again, out of my comfort zone. And it just opened a lot more about understanding myself and what I can contribute. And that was something so off of science, it was the exact opposite.

Dubow: You have to do things out of your comfort zone. You have to wear a lot of hats. You have to do all these things, and the product is different, but you were an entrepreneur. And so that to me just shows that there’s something inside of you that you’re not letting moss grow on your stone.

Field: Exactly. It was a good experience. It was about two-and-a-half years. I still have a million nail stickers, but it was a really good time being a stay-at-home mom and doing something for myself while I was taking care of my boys. So, what about you? I know your mom started the company (Garden Media Group); sounds like it was booming. When did you officially take over the company?

Dubow: It was not always booming. Especially in 2008 and '09, I remember layoffs. She didn’t take a salary for a couple years. But we’re 37 years old this year, so we certainly have been around. And I came back to work here about 13 years ago with the promise that she’ll be out in a few years, and it took 10. I took over in January 2020. We popped the cork, and she officially retired. She had laid the groundwork for me, already giving me a lot of opportunities to lead.

Field: Is she still part of the company?

Dubow: I talk to her all the time. This morning, she FaceTimed me at 8:17, and I’m like, ‘Does she not know I have to get my children on the bus?’ I am trying to get ready for work, which she forgets sometimes now that she is fully retired.

Field: I feel like I’m going to be one of those people that will work forever — as long as you can still see. But I just love being in the lab. I can’t imagine myself anywhere else. I’m a lab junkie.

Dubow: No golf course for you.

Field: Right. So, I have this issue, and I’m sure you have it too. How do you manage your work/life balance with your kids versus all the work that you need to do?

Dubow: I know, and it’s tough, but I also want to lead by example. I want them to know that I’m taking my vacation and that I am walking out at five o’clock and I am not working late because I have other things. To me, I have to remember that having a work-life balance doesn’t just mean catering to your children. It’s catering to yourself. One other thing that is challenging to me is I’m fully addicted to my cellphone. And what example is that showing them when they’re having a conversation with me? The work-life balance at work was something that I was very cognizant of, but it didn’t really hit me until last year. Like, oh, I need to have that balance really at home when I’m with my kids.

Field: And be present. I need to be present when I’m somewhere else, but I’m thinking about something else. I need to shut that off. This is where I am at. Boundaries are a problem for me. I’m working on it. I just want to do as much as I can. And that’s not healthy. You’ve got to think of yourself. So, the beginning of Lizzy Blossom, I would say I did not have a good work-life balance, but that has changed. It’s been almost six years since I started the company. But the first three years, man, I mean, my husband was amazing. I mean, allowing me to have that time in the lab and taking care of our kids and doing whatever to help me was tremendous.

Dubow: We have to be honest about what it’s like to start a business. Obviously, I didn’t start a business, but if there are entrepreneurs out there, maybe work-life balance is not going to happen in that first couple of years.

Field: So, you are a TV star. I thought this is so cool. So, do you go on QVC? How did that come about, or how does that work in your company?

Dubow: Well, before you looked me up, did you even know they sold plants on TV?

Field: I did not. I was amazed.

Dubow: So, Cottage Hill sells plants at Target, outside of QVC, but they came to me and said, 'Our host at QVC is leaving. Can you send us a video?' And I was like, for what? Never in a million years did I think QVC sold plants. They’ve been doing it for over 20 years. And I’m not kidding you, one day we sold 10,000 waxed amarillo bulbs in eight minutes. It was a big learning curve because you have a very short amount of time. Each segment is between six and 10 minutes. You have to communicate all of the scientific things about the plant, what zone it grows in, shade, soil preferences. But you also have to tell the story. You have to weave this narrative that is broad enough for everybody who’s watching, which they say is like 10 million people, but that is specific enough to fit the plant.

Field: What is your favorite flower? If you had to only pick one.

Dubow: They’ve asked me that on TV before, and I’ve had a lot of time to think about it. To be honest, I have to say a rose. My mom got into this business because Conard-Pyle knocked on her door, and she helped launch Knock Out. It really was the plant that put my mom on the map. She was not a garden PR firm before that. And it was the Conard-Pyle company and the Knock Out Rose that got her to decide to focus on this niche. Do you have a favorite flower or plant?

Field: Well, peonies. I think they’re absolutely gorgeous for cut flowers. I love echinacea. I love sunflowers. They make me happy; they look happy. And yeah, those are probably my top three.

Dubow: You got a good June, July and August plan there. Your whole summer’s blooming.

This article appeared in the March 2025 issue of Greenhouse Management magazine under the headline "You've got to get out of your comfort zone."