January has traditionally been a time to build dreams and dreams are definitely alive and well at Garden Marcus. Amid the rows of their bountiful winter garden, resplendent with blooming pea pod plants, peppers, and trailing vines that form a cathedral like ceiling, the most sustainable ingredient Marcus and Dana Bridgewater have grown is an awareness for the connection between nature and man.
Never has that grounding tenet been more important. As a new father of now 16-month-old Imriel, Bridgewater works side by side with his son. “Imriel loves to be outside and so wants to be helpful,” Marcus says, “Imriel brings me tools I don’t need at that moment but at some point in the near future, he’ll be telling me what to plant. He’s already done so many things that inspire me.”
“My son reminds me that life moves very quickly. He’s gone from barely crawling to doing jumping jacks. I compartmentalize my time so that I’m with him every moment possible. I take more time to record and center my thoughts.”
Bridgewater moved to The Woodlands in 2015 at age 27 to work at the private John Cooper School. In his first book, “How to Grow: Nurture Your Garden, Nurture Yourself,” (HarperOne, 2022) he shared that he took the new position for these reasons: “It was a job I saw as an opportunity to empower students with skills that will last a lifetime. That job made me do something I had not done before – settle. I bought a house and committed to living in one place after years of traveling every few months.
That was the beginning of a reverence and delight in gardening that residents in The Woodlands have embraced. In the township of The Woodlands, some people exceed the late millionaire Howard Hughes' daily expense tally of $176K on breathtaking gardens. The joy of gardening is that it costs very little to get started and it's possible to grow a garden that complements evolving needs.
“We maximize our potential when presented with the right conditions,” says Bridgewater in his first book, “How to Grow, Nurture Your Garden, Nurture Yourself (HarperOne, 2022). “The primary difference between us and our plants is we must choose to focus on our growth. Plants do it instinctively. Unlike plants, we are liable to become distracted, and shift our focus away from our growth. Our agency can be a tool or a vice. It’s up to us. I brought these lessons to my classroom and watched my students prosper.
Also in the book, he says, “One lesson changed how I would ever think about growth– we cannot make anything grow but we can foster environments where life wants to grow,” he shares in his first book. “Growth cannot be forced, only nurtured. As much as I wanted to see every plant in my care flourish, I realized it would only happen if I paid attention. It later dawned on me that I did for my plants what I’d done for myself all my life. Spending time in my garden slowed me down, enabling me to reflect on my past and the lessons I’d learned along the way.”
His second book, Seasons of Growth: A Journal for Well-being Inspired by Trees, debuted in September of 2024. "We've gotten amazing feedback," says Bridgewater. I wrote it because I want to encourage people to see all the connections between themselves, nature and the Earth."
As far as plans for a Cliff's Notes shorter collection of quotes in the future, he says, "So yes, I do feel I'm in a very unique place and poised in a unique way. We've created the engine and I can't wait to create a bridge between the people on the train and the forest."
Bridgewater is strategic about how and when he plants. The quiet moments with his son allow for deeper reflection and a synchronicity with the freedom to dream. “Instead of preparing new plants right now for early 2025, I have been focused on tidying up the garden and tending to what we already have growing,” he says. “We decided we would not get any new plants or prepare any new seeds, bulbs until the cold passes so we could do some TLC to the space and be set up for future success.”
His world has expanded from the township of 120,000, reaching more than one million social media followers with his life lessons. He has also expanded his footprint from The Woodlands. "A project I'm working on south of Houston in Brazoria County is the Harvest for the Hungry, building a healing garden on farmland," says Bridgewater.
For spring gardens, he advocates sustainable gardening for those wanting to grow their own vegetables/herbs in our area. Herbs like cilantro, parsley, dill, mint, lavender and rosemary that will be ready for spring harvest do well in our area. Lettuce, spinach and other greens are just weeks from the salad bowl.
“There is joy to be found in every seed we plant,” he says.
Marcus's Strawberry Melody Smoothie
1 cup frozen strawberries
1 cup frozen banana
1 tbsp almond butter
1 cup water
2 pitted dates
½ cup ice
4 tbsp coconut cream
Optional: ½ avocado
Add ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth. Serves two.
"One lesson changed how I would ever think about growth– we cannot make anything grow but we can foster environments where life wants to grow,”