Carly McDougall
East Gwillimbury Gardeners, Uxbridge Horticultural Society, Cannington Horticultural Society
Uxbridge
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Bounty from the Boonies taps into multiple consumer desire paths, all stemming
from Carly McDougall's remarkable story of resilience, recovery and resourcefulness.
After an award-winning career as a journalist working at the Toronto Star, Canadian Press, Metroland
Community Newspapers, and co-creating the lifestyle magazine Uxbridge Town Talk, Carly suffered a
catastrophic mental health breakdown in 2014.
She spent a decade navigating the complex world of psychiatrists, therapy, and multiple medications,
clawing her way to recovery and stability.
A gardener since childhood, the incredible healing power of plants became an essential piece of
Carly’s coping toolkit, alongside conventional medicine.
Carly started selling pots of her famous flavoured honey as a way to make money during recovery.
Neighbours and friends engaged her gardening, seed-starting and indoor plant advice, swooning over
her whimsically upcycled outdoor spaces and huge food garden.
Carly began to cultivate the community she missed so much from her decades as a journalist and
small business owner. In January 2024, she incorporated Bounty from the Boonies, and began
formally running the business.
- Environment
- Floral Design
- Gardening
| TOPIC | TITLE | DETAIL | OPTIONS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pollinators + Native Plants + Environment + Vegetables + Gardening + Herbs | Rewilding the Suburbs | How Carly transformed her grass-covered suburban lot into biodiverse native plant and food gardens using sustainable, upcycled, repurposed and low-cost materials. Interactive presentation with slides, photos and drone video | Environment |
| Environment + Gardening | Sustainable Gardening Hacks | Using a variety of props, photos and plants, Carly shares her favourite gardening hacks to save money, time and the environment | Gardening |
| Gardening + Mental Health | The Power of Plants and Starting Over at 40(ish) | How plants saved Carly from suicide and healed her mental health after a catastrophic breakdown in 2014 | Gardening |
| Gardening + Environment + Floral Design + Pollinators + Vegetables | Whimsical Garden Design | Carly shares creative uses for thrifted, upcycled and broken materials to create whimsical gardens that offer visual interest all year round. Interactive presentation with props, slides and video | Environment |
| Gardening + Floral Design + Vegetables + Pollinators + Environment | Small Space, Big Food | Expect gasps from the audience as Carly uses drone video + photos showing the before/after of her backyard food garden. Carly grows most of her food in upcycled containers. Includes favourite seed varieties, companion plants, successes and failures | Gardening |
| Gardening + Vegetables + Environment | Live Demo: Preserving the Harvest | Using seasonal fruit/veggies/herbs, kitchen supplies, hot plates, fool-proof recipes etc., Carly shows easy, low-cost ways to preserve the harvests from our gardens and farmers markets. Examples: compound roasted garlic butter with edible flowers, frozen shredded zucchini blocks, herb + fruit iced teas. This presentation includes samples and carries an extra cost | Gardening |
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