When Jan Goldfield took up the task of building a pond in her backyard in 1987, it was strictly as a hobby. As a child in Michigan, Jan helped in her grandmother's garden and years later, when she'd purchased a house in New Orleans, she discovered a true passion for it. Once completed, Goldfield's garden was such a showpiece that friends encouraged her to market her skills. With a direct mail piece picturing her pond, and referrals from local nurseries, Goldfield started her water garden business. From them until her retirement in 2006, she had a career designing, installing and maintaining aquatic gardens. Goldfield was the premier water gardener in the southern region of the United States and the only one in New Orleans for many years.

When creating a garden -- whether it's English, Italian, Oriental, herbal or some other variety -- Goldfield says her goal was to design a space that is an extension of both the owner's home and lifestyle. "The first thing I did was spend time with the client to find out things like where they 'live' in their house and if it's formal or informal. When we're landscaping," she explains, "What we're really doing is adding another room to the house. I want my clients to feel comfortable so that they'll spend time there."

Goldfield says garden maintenance was also individualized for the client. She cared for some gardens weekly, others once a month, and still others only twice a year for a change of seasonal color. Happily for the homeowner who's not handy in the yard, Goldfield points out, ponds require minimal maintenance." They're completely balanced ecosystems that benefit most from benevolent neglect," she says. Private homes aren't the only place you'll find Goldfield knee- deep -- often literally -- in gardening. She's also done work for a variety of commercial and public spaces, including Bienville House Hotel, The French Quarter Inn, St. Louis Cathedral, City Park and the New Orleans Museum of Art. She's given seminars in such places as Longue Vue House & Gardens, City Park, the New Orleans Nature Center, Hilltop Arboretum and numerous garden clubs. During NOMA's 1995 Monet exhibit, Goldfield even transformed the interior of Lakeside Shopping Center into a local Giverny by installing a lush garden complete with arched bridges. (By Lee Cutrone, Gambit, April 1995.)