About Studio Petrichor

Meet the team that is transcending limitations

OUR MISSION

Inspiring a global paradigm shift by influencing humanity’s reintegration with Nature

Studio Petrichor is a group of compassionate individuals on a journey to manifest meaningful change in the world through transformational and environmentally-aligned landscaping practices.

Our goal is to help individuals and communities cultivate stronger, richer relationships with their environment. Along the way, we educate and empower one another to support and protect Mother Nature’s living systems.

When we see and believe our actions and lives matter, it places us in a role of responsibility. It is this belief that will bring about a more beautiful, abundant, connected world.

OUR APPROACH

We are reimagining the practice of landscape design, implementation and care

Our unique methods tap into Nature’s intelligence and challenge the status quo. We support the optimization of natural resources, while acknowledging they are processes. Enhancing biodiversity and fostering relationships between the land and our communities is our goal.

In addition to our design services, we are movement leaders who facilitate hands-on workshops, educational seminars, design courses and so much more.

OUR PHILOSOPHY

Studio Petrichor’s design aesthetic is an embodiment of the variable (messy) nature of life

We value variation wherever we find it, whether it is represented in the imperfect, random shapes and sizes of repurposed paving materials; in the community-based experimentation of our planting designs; or in the invitation to our clients to learn, grow, expand, and become caretakers of the land. We are all about relationships!

OUR TEAM

We are a group of caring individuals committed to sharing our love of the natural world

Shawn Maestretti

Oracle and Alchemist
(aka designer, plant daddy, licensed landscape architect and contractor, certified arborist, certified permaculture designer, biospheric caretaker, speaker, educator, and author-in-the-works)

Shawn has been co-creating exceptionally designed and artfully reimagined gardens in both California and Nevada since 2006.

A collaborative visionary and optimistic “possibilitarian”, he is a member of the Climate Reality Leadership Corp, a Kiss the Ground Soil Advocate, and an activist in the movement to care for the environment.

Read more
Shawn has been presenting on Nature’s intelligence and humanity’s impact on climate change in his presentation series Regenerative Landscapes and the Climate Crisis, Reimagining Landscape and Lifestyle, and Co-creating as Interbeings (Landscape Architecture and The Death of the Ego)
His personal mission is to reconnect with the natural world, tread lightly on the land, nurture biodiversity, protect water, and bring people together.

Repeat Landscape Design Teacher at Theodore Payne Foundation (A Legacy Native Plant and Wildflower Nursery)

Shawn always considers impacts on flora, fauna, fungi,, soil, water, the environment, the interconnectedness of our actions, and of course, a changing climate.

Shawn’s legacy is his commitment to leaving a more beautiful world for his son and everyone else.

Gisela Garay

She who is evolving
(aka project manager, landscape designer, artist, animal lover, and community activist)

Gisela likes the unexpected and thrives on challenge and breaking the status quo. She courageously chose her own path as a young woman and continues to inspire all of us to be unafraid and curious, her outward calm is integral to a mindful, transformational approach to design and project management.

Read more

A graduate of the school of Environmental Design at Cal Poly Pomona, she combines her unique skill set and artistic sensibility to create gardens and outdoor spaces that connect people with the soil, their gardens, and Nature. Gisela’s belief that “nothing is too hard” ensures that our client’s projects are managed in a timely and efficient manner.

Constantly curious and exploring, Gisela pushes herself to learn and practice new ways of doing things; this year she pushed herself to learn about rammed earth, greywater systems, new visual languages and design programs and looks forward to sharing with the team.

Leigh Adams

Water Witch and Spirit of Light
(aka consultant, co-presenter, educator and designer)

Leigh is an educator and eco-sensitive designer. She has been a groundbreaking, horticultural interpreter at the LA County Arboretum and Botanic Gardens for many years and has trained many county agencies in regenerative practices. She has conducted hundreds of hands-on, organically based workshops with local schools, private citizens and professional groups. Her love of collaboration and education infuse all aspects of her work, leaving participants with a profound sense of empowered accomplishments.

Read more
She has held multiple artist’s residencies at the LA County Arboretum, Metabolic Studios, Westland School and New Horizon School, to name a few. Leigh has received a Global Citizen Award from the United Nations, an Angel Award from the City of Los Angeles, the National Gardening Teacher of the Year 2020 and an Outstanding Citizen Award from the County of Los Angeles.
Leigh is the muse, inspiration, artist, water harvester, and wisdom-keeper of Studio Petrichor. Her ability to see her way into a landscape and name the intention of the work for each project contributes to the manifestation of enchanting and healing (for client and earth), nature-focused designs. She is instrumental to keeping the heart and intention in all of our work.

Quite simply, when Leigh speaks, you listen. She has an incredible way of captivating with her words and brings an infectious wonder to all of our lives.

Kyle Massie

The Synergist
(aka landscape designer and communicator)

Kyle is an enthusiastic designer with a natural ability to connect with clients while inspiring and guiding them through the design process. A recent graduate of the landscape architecture program at UCLA Extension, Kyle has experience in project management, rendering and installation. All of which provide a solid foundation for working in the innovative landscape architectural field.

Read more

Kyle is a bright spirit with boundless curiosity and dynamic focus. His passion for landscape design, native plants and for life, in general, is contagious. He is hungry for all experiences that will lead him to gain wisdom and expertise in the design profession, and he is becoming a walking encyclopedia of native trees and shrubs.

What our clients say about us:

This has been the answer to my despair over what has been happening to the environment. It feels so good to be able to go into my backyard and to see, to feel the life that is now happening.

Mary Haden

Studio Petrichor are experts in their field and have a true passion for the environment, for building community and for building connection with the natural systems which sustain us. They approach their work with great attention to quality and making a meaningful impact.

Ursula Schmidt

Our yard now goes through actual California seasons and we are visited by rare bees, dragonflies, and birds at different times in the year. Even though we live in Hollywood, our native garden has a natural rhythm and offers an urban retreat.

Ken MacFarlane and Robert Harrison

Receive paradigm-shifting ideas and life-changing insights directly to your inbox.

Ready to envision a deeper, richer relationship with your environment?