GREEN SCENEBy Carrie Borzillo

Homegrown SpecialtiesToday's spa owners are fortifying their services, refreshments and

decor through the abundance of on-site gardens.

SOME OF THE INITIAL STRIDES THE SPA INDUSTRY

made in "going green" included employing organicingredients in treatments, purchasing local prod-ucts, and eliminating bottled water and paper goods.Today, many business owners are taking those ini-tiatives a step further by cultivating gardens ontheir facilities' property. This one-stop greeningapproach allows spa professionals to source theirown herbs and customize treatments, infuse spawater with fresh-picked fruit, use homegrown flow-ers to enhance their decor and more.

"Business gardening isn't only something thatday spas on large pieces of property can do," saysGeri Miller, a certified master gardener and ownerof Home Grown Edible Landscapes (homegrownediblelandscapes.com) in Manhattan Beach,California. "There are alwaysopportunities to plant insmall containers on window sills and balconies. Andyou needn't be a gardening expert to get going."

Miller helps small business owners to designand plant functional gardens. She also teaches cli-ents how to maintain and care for their plots, and

36 DAYSPA I February2011

hosts events such as gardening workshops. For spaclients, the latter presents a valuable new outreachtool to bring in new guests.

While two of the more obvious benefits of creat-ing a spa garden are reducing costs and increasingsustainability, many spa owners cite more per-sonal motives for growing plants on site. "Our mainintention is to maintain a place where clients candeepen that sense of inner peace and sensory aware-ness that often follows a treatment," says MichaelStusser, founder of Osmosis Day Spa Sanctuary(osmosis.com) in Freestone, California. His facilityis home to several gardens, including an outdoortea lounge, a Zen Garden and a meditation oasis.

Likewise, Glen Ivy Hot Springs (glenivy.com)in Corona, California, which occupies 12 acres ofnatural landscaping and gardens, aims to expandupon clients' sensuous experiences. "Our atmo-sphere is best described as 'Nature's Spa'," saysJim Root, CEO and president. "The gardens are ahuge part of clients' overall experience. This landhas served as a healing and nurturing center for

/The meditation garden at Osmosis Day

Spa Sanctuary was designed to capture thespirit of Japan's seren~ landscapes.

GREEN SCENE

Top: Elegance Boutique Spa'soutdoor treatment cabana allowsguests and massage therapiststo savor the garden throughoutservices. Left: Fresh-pickedingredients are used to customizefacials to clients' skincare needs.

thousands of years, and we aim to perpetuate thathistory for our guests' benefit."

Gardens provide similar mental health benefitsto those afforded by spas, according to experts. Bothprovide serene, tranquil environments that ease thestress of visitors' everyday lives. "Every spa growerI've met says that their time in the garden boosts theemotional and physical well-being of their staff andclients," Miller adds.

The sky's the limit when it comes to spa gardens.They can come in all shapes and styles; from herbpatches, to potted flowers, to meditation areas.Since springtime planting season is just aroundthe corner, we checked out some functioning dayspa gardens. Here, we present some owners' greenthumbs to find out exactly how they reap the fruitsof their gardening labors.

Organic IntegrationThere are myriad ways in which business ownerscan utilize their homegrown herbs, flowers andedibles. From the flowers gracing spas' receptiondesks to infused drinking water, to custom-tailoredtreatments, the options are infinite.

Bernadette George employs her spa's freshlypicked herbs, including lavender and rosemary,to enhance the complimentary foot soak that'sprovided to each of her guests before treatments.The owner of Elegance Boutique Spa (elegancespa

38 DAYSPA I February 2011

.com) in Manhattan Beach, California, also tappedher homegrown stock to create the facility's sig-nature scent: an energizing blend of orange andlavender. Prior to each facial treatment, guests arebrought outside to the adjoining garden lounge fora screening session. The herbs and organic materi-als to be used during each service are determined bythe individual guest's allergies and skin type.

"For instance, we pick fresh rosemary and mintfor oily/acneic skin, and chamomile for easily irritat-ed skin types," George says. "For dry dermis, we usecomfrey, and marjoram to invigorate sluggish skin."

Starting with a base cream mask, estheticiansuse a mortar and pestle to incorporate the cus-tomized garden supply of ingredients. "Clients arewelcome to modify the blends according to theirfavorite fragrances," George adds.

Additionally, the lemons, oranges and cucum-bers grown in the garden are infused into the spawater, while strawberries and grapes provide freshrefreshments when in season.

The garden itself even serves as a treatment area.The staff set up a simple outdoor cabana that hasbecome a popular spot for fresh-air massage ser-vices. It has also earned Elegance its tagline: "We'renow known as 'The spa with a garden by the sea',"George says.

While Osmosis' crown jewel is its expansive,Japanese-influenced Meditation Garden, the staffalso tends to a 50-ft by 50-ft. cutting space. There,they grow fresh flowers to decorate the reception,treatment and relaxation areas. The garden producesseveral popular annuals and perennial flowers, includ-ing alstroemeria, zinnias, dahlias, sweet peas, bells ofIreland and more.

Plans involve grow-ing a variety of herbs toenhance Osmosis' sig-nature treatment, the Cedar Enzyme Bath (90min./$85), according to Stusser. In a room overlook-ing the serene Zen Garden, wooden tubs are filledwith a blend of cedar, rice bran and plant enzymesimported from Japan. When clients enter, the ingre-dients ferment naturally, heating the body andmimicking its natural metabolic process to improvecirculation and lymph functioning.

Osmosis plans to add homegrown lavender tothis experience. "We'll grind the plant's fresh flow-ers, and add them to the dry soak. As they heatup and create vapor for the client to inhale, thisservice will become intensively aromatherapeutic,"predicts Stusser.

For those looking to get started, Miller offers morepotential spa garden applications. "Herbs such as

GREEN SCENE

Left: Guided tours anddemonstrations by the on-staff

soil reclamation team help guestsenjoy an educational-and

enlightening-spa experience.Right: Glen Ivy's property doubles

as a nature sanctuary.

lavender, mint and rosemary can be applied to thehot towels used in facials," she says. "Marjoram's aro-matic oils can be distilled and utilized in massage oil.Applying crushed lemon balm to a towel and runningit under hot water has a soothing effect as well."

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GREEN SCENE

"Ever since we began growing our own cucumbers for drinking water andlavender for hot towels, our budget has benefitted:'

Organic spa gardens may also pro-vide owners with a surefire way toincrease their visibility. "Some busi-ness owners are taking things to thenext level by extracting the oil from

herbs, distilling them and developingtheir own product lines," Miller says.

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ticultural side cite the greeningboost as its main draw. However,they also say that having home-grown ingredients at hand providesan added boon to bottom lines.

"It was never about the money,"George says. "But ever since webegan growing our own cucumbersfor drinking water and lavender forhot towels, our budget has benefit-ted-and we don't have to deal withoutside vendors when we run out."

Others claim that gardens helpthem stand out from the compe-tition. "Our gardens are a largepart of the reason people come toGlen Ivy," Root says. "There's like-ly a significant savings when youexamine our finances, but aboveall, it enhances and elevates theguest experience. The gardens fos-ter a sense of community with thenatural world, which constitutesour main draw."

Gardens also provide a quickambiance solution. Inside Osmosisas well as outdoors, guests are greet-ed with an abundant cornucopia ofvibrant flora and fauna. "We're ableto provide the material for our floralarrangements almost eight monthsout of the year," Stusser says. "Itabsolutely helps cut costs."

Blooming BusinessOnce your garden is in motion,the growth opportunities are end-less, experts say. At Elegance forinstance, Home Grown's GeriMiller recently hosted an aroma-therapy workshop.

"We invited the community aswell as the spa's current clients, andshowed attendees how to incorpo-rate specific plants into their ownbackyards," she says. "We also dem-onstrated the uses of various herbsand how to care for them."

George publicized the eventthrough the Elegance Facebook

GREEN SCENE

"Each month, we invite expert craftsmen to provide an herbalwreath-making class for our guests:'

(facebook.com) fan page, and alsoissued a press release to the localnewspaper. "It was a great way todraw a different set of people intothe spa," she says.

She has also used Elegance'sgarden lounge to host special occa-sions such as birthday parties, bridalevents, baby showers and the like."Guests love to take in the scents

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of the garden and feel the breezes,"George says. "And of course, wealso use it as a tranquil place forour clients to relax and reflectbefore and after treatments."

At Glen Ivy, complimentary "jun-gle tours" are available on Thursdayand Friday. "We provide an in-depthlook at our gardens-the plants,their origins and what they bring toour spa and the surrounding area,"Root says. "These guided botanicaltours are well received by guests,many of whom seek us out becausethey love to garden or have a passionfor exploring nature."

The gardens have also doubledas venues when special presentersvisit Glen Ivy. "Each month, weinvite expert craftsmen to providean herbal wreath-making class forour guests," Root says.

Osmosis has found similar uses forits tranquil spaces. "We host medita-tion classes here every week," Stussersays. "We also offer guided walksthrough the garden to lead spa-goersinto a more reflective state."

Making room for a little slice ofnature in your facility's space thisspring, whether by creating an herbgarden, a flower patch or an outdoormeditation zone, achieves many goalsof the modem spa owner. It satisfiesenvironmental initiatives, cuts costs,and better fulfills the body, mind andspirit of clientele. Spa gardens alsoprovide a beautiful way to enhanceyour guests' overall spa experience. •

Carrie Borzillo is a freelance journalist

and author based in Los Angeles.

,1/~' To see more of

Elegance Boutique Spa'sgarden lounge, visitdayspamagazine.com andclick on DAYSPA VideoChannel.