Gardeners in general are not particularly fashion-forward. We may think we’re hip enough with our uniforms of linen button-downs and worn-in jeans and Blundstone boots, but can these outfits go from “day to night,” as fashion editors like to say? We’re going to go out on a limb and say, No.
If there’s anyone who can change the sorry state of gardenwear, it’s Rozae Nichols, a clothing designer with major fashion chops (her vegan label, Clover Canyon, once attracted a celebrity fanbase that included Beyonce, Natalie Portman, and Michelle Obama). An LA native, Rozae launched Flora Animalia six years ago to bridge the yawning gap between workwear and fashion. Her designs prioritize comfort and durability but not at the expense of a chic silhouette—which means one could wear her pieces for a morning of weeding OR an afternoon of gallery-hopping. And she uses only clean-crop Belgian linens and GOTS-certified organic cotton, all sewn in her LA studio. (A plant and animal lover, Rozae donates a portion of revenues to its nonprofit allies Mercy For Animals and Farm Sanctuary.)
Interestingly, what initially drew us to Flora Animalia wasn’t the clothing, but rather the garden Rozae planted in the courtyard of its first location (which, come to think of it, was very on-brand for us). “After years of feeling so weary and saddened by our increasing broken food system, I wanted to create an edible garden,” she tells us. “The garden was a path towards my ever-increasing passion to continue learning about ways in which we can all help to improve this system and counter the impacts of modern agriculture and sustain a healthy ecosystem.”
Flora Animalia has since relocated to, fittingly, Gardner Street in West Hollywood. Rozae misses her old courtyard garden, but she’s ready to put down some roots again: “This early spring, I will build a new raised-bed edible garden for our Flora Animalia studio and storefront.” We can’t wait to see it.
Photography courtesy of Rozae Nichols.
Above: Rozae in front of her store in West Hollywood.
Your first garden memory:
As a child, we lived in various batwing style apartments that were surrounded by concrete and asphalt, sometimes dotted by dehydrated, overgrown bird of paradise and “bottlebrush” plants. [I remember marveling] at the plants and insects from a neighbor’s modest garden of monotonous waxy shrubs, hibiscus ,and geraniums. It was there that I often returned to scout furry black caterpillars I found crawling amongst the red geraniums, enamored by the intoxicating aromas of their fuzzy, scented leaves. To this day, besides the Japanese shiso leaf, my favorite herb scent remains geranium—rose geranium, in particular. I grow it as a companion plant, always close to fruit and vegetables since it’s one of nature’s anti-bacterial species and repels plant-munching beetles and other hungry insects.
Garden-related book you return to time and again:
So many. Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer; Edible Wild Plants by John Kallas; and The Secret Life of Plants by Peter Thompson and Christopher Bird.
Instagram account that inspires you:
@plantbasedtreaty. @thetransfarmationproject. @farmsanctuary. @poppy.okotcha. @chelseagreenbooks. @ronfinleyproject. @vandanashiva1.
Describe in three words your garden aesthetic.
Edible. Organic. Native.
Plant that makes you swoon:
Above: P. graveolens (rose geranium) gives off a scent of roses. Photograph by Salchuiwt via Flickr, from Gardening 101: Scented Geranium.
Rose geranium.
Plant that makes you want to run the other way:
No plant (or animal) deserves a bad wrap. But I have to admit—seeing the withered tropical bird of paradise in our sunny, dry California inspires dread.
Favorite go-to plant:
Passion fruit vine for its abundance of ever-blooming, alien-like flowers and fruit and fence-covering density. It flowers and bears fruit nearly all year (at least here in California)—a gift that other vines like Ficus or (non-edible) fig vines don’t have. And though I like to plant as many natives as possible, I do make exceptions with certain fruits and vegetables.
Hardest gardening lesson you’ve learned:
Searching for and experimenting with beneficial plants and insects to ward off predator insects. The discovery and very effective use of insect-eating nematodes to ward off beetles from devouring my fruit trees was very tricky, and it took some time to realize the undertaking was a success.
Unpopular gardening opinion:
Veganic gardening/farming is still not embraced or understood—and it should be.
Gardening or design trend that needs to go:
I live in California, where drought and soil erosion is destroying native wildlife and flora. We have to evolve away from non-native, water-intensive, and invasive plants and trees to help restore a healthy ecosystem and conserve water.
Old wives’ tale gardening trick that actually works:
Talking and singing to my plants.
Favorite gardening hack:
In the summer or very intense sunny days, I will use some of my clothing-collection fabrics like cotton gauze to make light covers for both sun and insect protection.
Favorite hardscaping material:
Above: Concrete sewer pipes repurposed as planters at Flora Animalia’s former location. Read about how Rozae transformed the overgrown urban lot into this serene courtyard in Before & After: ‘Delightfully Sculptural Elegance’ in Flora Animalia’s Gravel Garden in Los Angeles. Photograph courtesy of Flora Animalia.
Large found objects like the nine giant concrete ( underground municipal sewer pipes) tunnel cylinders I used for raised beds. They are architectural and built to last.
Favorite way to bring the outdoors in.
Enjoy the dirt under my nails, grow food, herbs and flowers for the kitchen for meals, tea, medicine and everyday joy.
Every garden needs …
Healthy soil, tender loving hands, beneficial insects and companion plants.
Tool you can’t live without:
My Japanese tree pruning shears that I purchased at Anzen, my favorite hardware store in Little Tokyo several years ago.
Go-to gardening outfit:
Flora Animalia was created because I wanted to create the most sturdy, yet finest organic cotton and linen worker aprons, vests and jackets for my and other people’s needs in the garden.
Favorite nursery, plant shop, or seed company:
Two Dog Nursery for organic seedlings and Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Co.’s The Whole Seed Catalog.
On your wishlist:
A greenhouse.
Not-to-be-missed public garden/park/botanical garden:
TreePeople in Los Angeles; Lotusland in Santa Barbara; Huntington Gardens in Pasadena.
The REAL reason you garden:
Above: Rozae with her beloved Ollie and Maya. “When I look in their eyes, I see innocence, fierceness, love, strength, fear, intelligence, sadness, joy & above all – I am in awe of their wild & other worldly spirit,” she wrote in an Instagram post.
Gardening is a path towards my ever-increasing passion to continue learning about ways in which we can all help to improve this system and counter the impacts of modern agriculture and sustain a healthy ecosystem.
Thank you so much, Rozae! (You can follow her on Instagram @floraanimalia.)
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