To achieve your dreams in this professional industry, watch, listen, learn and show respect to others. Then when you get your chance, you should never be afraid to try something new, even if it's outside your comfort zone.

Ed Hume is a Northwest native, born in Seattle some 83 years ago. He is a Certified Professional Horticulturist, graduating in the very first Master Gardening Class at Washington State University in Seattle in 1971. After serving in the Army, he spent 10 years in managerial positions in the gardening industry before beginning his career in garden communications.

In 1965 his first full-time industry job was as host of Green-Up Time on KIRO, where he also made guest appearances on J.P. Patches, the news and other feature programs.

It was at this time in his career that he also started writing a gardening column for the Seattle P-I and began a daily radio program on KIRO radio. In 1969 he moved his program to KING, changing the name to Gardening with Ed Hume. During his 19 years there he appeared as a regular guest on Seattle Today. He also made guest appearances on the news, Almost Live, The Dick Klinger Show, Evening and many other feature shows. Ed became garden editor of The Seattle Times and KING radio during this period. And, his show was expanded to the Portland and Spokane markets, where he participated in many local and regional television shows.

For 10 years, Ed and his wife Myrna taped Christmas specials titled Deck the Halls. These shows drew upwards of 40,000 pieces of mail. Ed hosted two specials for the late Fran Guidos: The Arboretum Thing and The Olmsted Brothers.

In 1988, he moved the show to KOMO, first renamed Ed Hume on Gardening, then Gardening in America. In addition to being broadcast on KOMO and its affiliates in Boise, Portland and Spokane, the show was syndicated across the United States into approximately 50 million households. For two years the show was broadcast on NHK, Japan’s number one television station, to a viewing audience of 100 million people. (Ed’s voice was dubbed in Japanese.) During this time Ed also hosted weekly radio shows on KVI, then KOMO. In the early 2000s Gardening in America was moved to KONG, where it remains today.

Ed has written seven books on gardening and contributed columns to several national gardening and lifestyle publications.

He has received numerous accolades and awards throughout his career from a variety of garden-based local and national organizations. Twice he has been invited to visit and televise the gardens of the White House.

Ed has served on several nonprofit boards. During his time on the board for World Concern he went to Haiti to advise farmers and staff on farming techniques. He has also supported the Diabetes Association, Northwest Kidney Centers and Seattle Children’s Hospital.

Ed was instrumental in organizing an educational program for the Monroe Reformatory, which prepared inmates for outside employment once they were released. With Myrna and friends, he formed People Aiding the Homeless, which helped provide funding, food and shelter for the less fortunate. Since the 1980s the Hume family has donated millions of dollars of seed packets to Third World countries, those affected by the 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina tragedies, community projects, foodbanks and other charities.