Garden-themed store is a natural next step in Oella
Hallowed Ground, which opened in a former Oella church in June, sells plants and planting accessories like pots and trowels; as well as jewelry, candles and other items with botanical themes.
It has a small nursery and classroom space where owner Amy Poff plans to offer classes in plant-related topics like making terrariums, seasonal wreaths, or kokodama — growing a decorative plant in a moss-covered ball of soil.
“It’s important to me to have a space that feels like a community,” said Poff, 47, who lives in Marriottsville. “I always wanted to have a store that had a teaching space. I just joke with everybody that it took me until my late 40s to do it.”
Poff grew up in Catonsville, in a “big house with a big garden and parents who embraced farming,” she said. They grew vegetables and flowers on their acre and a half, and Poff has warm memories of eating fresh peas, straight from the earth.
Her mother Pegg Poff, an art, theater and special education teacher, is also a fiber artist who grew goldenrod, pokeberries and other plants to use as natural dyes. Her father, Bill, is an engineer.
Amy loved gardening, but when she was younger she didn’t think of it as a career. She earned an American Studies degree from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and worked in museums and arts-focused nonprofits, including serving from 2001 to 2006 as deputy director of the Howard County Arts Council and teaching art and design classes at Community College of Baltimore County.
Meanwhile, she kept learning, earning a master’s degree in the history of decorative arts from Smithsonian Associates/Corcoran College of Arts+Design (a program that doesn’t exist anymore), and taking classes in sustainable horticulture at CCBC.
“I was blown away by her talent. She’s an excellent designer,” said Carol Allen, a horticultural educator who got to know Poff while teaching her at CCBC. “I’m very excited about her new store. She’s got the touch. I love her selection of products. She hits all the right notes.”
In 2017, Poff launched a garden design consulting business, called Hallowed Ground Gardens, helping mostly residential clients choose flowers and plants while taking into account factors like sunlight and drainage.
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“It’s really about [the] right plant, right place,” Poff said. “You need to understand your property and choose plants based on that.”
Poff said there’s more interest lately in using native plants and creating more sustainable landscapes. Clients often ask her how to use their landscaping to attract pollinators or to reduce flood risk.
And one question that nearly everyone asks is how to keep deer away — an impossible request. “It’s about understanding how to work with deer in your environment,” she said. “The only thing they’re not going to eat is plastic plants.”
Poff’s new store is in a former church that was built in 1904 and for years housed the offices of the Oella Company, which protected and preserved much of the historic district.
In this cozy and historic space, Poff is bringing together her interests in arts, plants,sustainability, design,community, and teaching. “It cobbles together a lot of my loves in one place,” she said. “It’s wonderful.”
Hallowed Ground
803 Oella Ave., Ellicott City. 410-804-9703. instagram.com/hallowedgroundgarden
