Welcome!

Hey! Hi there! Hello! It’s so nice to “meet” you! I’m Ina Marie - pharmacist by day, passionate gardener in every other spare second I can find. I established Grow Sow Happy to help others with their gardening, focusing on organic growing and pest management practices, so that you can have fresh, safe food, grown with minimal impact on the environment. 

So many of my favorite memories are in the garden. As far back as I can remember my grandmother had a garden - first a large vegetable garden, complete with chickens running around keeping pests under control and providing fresh eggs, then later a smaller backyard garden when she downsized her house as she grew older. My parents also have kept small gardens over the years. I remember as a child playing between the rows, closely watching the way our food was growing, learning how to properly harvest produce... even scaring my dad half to death with a fake rubber snake while we toured the garden one night!

And so when I married my husband and we began to create our own home and life together, I knew that a home garden was at the top of my wish list. My garden has gone through many different forms - from containers on the back patio of our first rental home, to raised planters off of the back steps, then to a larger in-ground garden where I could have enough space for more of my favorite vegetables. My garden has changed in size and form over the years, but has always remained my very favorite place wherever we have lived.

I live with my husband on 13 acres outside of Augusta, Georgia, where we are delighted to share space with an incredible assortment of wildlife - everything from native birds, insects and small mammals, to foxes, rabbits and coyotes. We consider ourselves to be stewards of the land, with our goal being to leave our property even better than we found it, through leaving habitat for native wildlife, chemical-free growing practices and pest management, and regenerative land management. When I’m not in the garden you’ll find me spending time with my husband, caring for my chickens (I have 7!), and getting some cuddles with my adorable cat, Penny. I’m a lover of puns (the cheesier the better) and my absolute favorite shoes are a pair with chickens printed all over them - a gift from my grandmother. I’m also a breast cancer survivor, diagnosed just a few months past my 27th birthday. I love to read, and prefer paper versus reading on a screen. And my favorite topic to read about? Gardening, of course!

I’m so excited to share a love of gardening with you, and to grow with you in this awesome journey together!

Until next time, happy growing!