Catherine Constantino

Catherine Constantino

she/her 

• Learning by Leading Role: Plant Propagation and Nursery Management, Intern (2023 - 2025)
• Major: Wildlife, Fish and Conservation Biology; Minor: Plant Biology

Transferring into UC Davis, I knew I wanted to become an interpretive naturalist, as I realized my passion in public outreach and environmental education. I knew I mainly loved plants, especially California natives, and during my first quarter, volunteered for the UC Davis Arboretum’s first Fall Plant Sale. I helped bring customers’ plants to their cars, and even during those tiny slivers of interaction, loved talking to gardeners and sharing our love for plants. After that first volunteer job, I reached out to the staff mentor of the Arboretum Ambassadors, Melissa Hernandez, who told me to apply for the Plant Propagation and Nursery Management Learning by Leading Program, after which I got the position. 

I started the internship knowing very little about nursery and propagation work, and came out of the position realizing that careers in facilitating peoples’ reconnection to nature is much more expansive than park service jobs! Everyday I learned new tasks in nursery management such as pruning, merchandising, potting up plants, pest maintenance, and more. However, I spent most of my time developing skills in propagation, where I prepared countless flats of plant cuttings at our greenhouses, and nurtured propagated cuttings. This newfound task—to observe and tend to the entire developmental stage of propagated plants—felt so intimate. I developed a deeper appreciation for our nursery plants and it was incredibly rewarding to recognize the baby plant I had propagated a year prior, finally becoming a full mature plant happily being tended to in the Teaching Nursery. 

This appreciation empowered my passion in my interactions with the public during our Plant Sales! Having gained the hands-on experience of tending to and maintaining plants, I grew a deeper sense of inspiration which I shared in the connections I had with customers at the Plant Sales, the volunteers we worked with, and the visitors to the Teaching Nursery! Working with climate-ready plants, as well as educating customers and visitors about our plants and environmentally friendly landscaping, was such a fulfilling experience. My confidence as an environmental leader and educator was immensely sharpened through the hands-on skills and my enriching experience at the UC Davis Arboretum. 

This communal passion in plants was absolutely present with my peers and the work environment. During my position, I was supported by Staff Mentor Abbey Hart and Special Projects Coordinator Carly Feldman. Through the trust and compassion of these two amazing women, I gained the confidence to learn new skills and realize my potential as a nursery worker! Abbey and Carly were both incredibly patient and receptive to all of my questions and my learning—they’re amazing mentors with plenty of knowledge and experience to share. Between these two and my lovely coworkers I shared time with, I consider myself extremely fortunate to have had most of my UC Davis time be filled with a work experience so enriching. 

Coming out of this internship, I have developed a newfound appreciation for nursery work and a new angle in my career prospects in environmental education. The Arboretum became like a second home during my time at UC Davis. Throughout my time at Davis, propagating at the greenhouses and seeing plants develop through their lives planted a very tender and passionate relationship between plants and nursery work that I carry in my environmental education and leadership skills. 

I would see the impact of the Arboretum Teaching Nursery in the West Davis neighborhoods I enjoyed taking my springtime walks in, seeing our nursery plants thrive happily in front yards amongst native pollinators and other springtime walkers. I would see the impact in the Arboretum walks I would take with my friends in between classes, pointing out the flowers happily blooming near Putah Creek. And I would see the impact during our Plant Sales, where I loved conversing and sharing my love for plants with the customers who came from all over. 

Working in this program has helped me realize the potential of nursery careers and my potential as an environmental leader and advocate of environmentally-friendly landscaping! With the encouragement of my peers, I’ve developed invaluable skills and experience, and will forever cherish my time at the UC Davis Arboretum.