The Art of Gardening, The Cultivation of Art.
About Kylin Mettler, Owner.
I've been dancing with horticulture since 1999. My degree is in sculpture from Rhode Island School of Design, a degree that comes into use daily while pruning, planning and designing gardens. I began my horticultural two step at Chanticleer gardens each summer between college years. Their staff is world class and I was lucky to work under their tutelage. I waltzed with three other small gardening companies as worker and manager before starting my own business in 2008. I have completed thousands of jobs, some, like a spring ephemeral, a beautiful momentary surprise. Others like a long-lived perennial starting more than a decade ago and still being shaped. Gardening has taught me about time, how to think in seasons and years yet still appreciate the awe of each moment. Gardening has also humbled me. Soil science, plant anatomy, chemical relations, environmental impact, designing in four dimensions, invasive plants, native plants and ecosystems could each take a lifetime to truly know. I believe that any entity including myself is either growing or dying, therefore I endeavor to continue my learning forever. Currently, I am filling that need by attending classes at Longwood Gardens.
About Kylin Arts.
Our staff
Krista Shaffer
Krista has lived in Philly for 13 years and recieved her BFA at Tyler School of Art. She now finds joy and satisfaction rolling around in the dirt as a Manager at Kylin Arts. She has a very love/hate relationship with the chaos of the natural world, but it's definitely never boring and there are always problems to solve.
Briar Maverick
Briar (they/them) is a Texas transplant and has been with Kylin Arts since the spring of 2018. They're currently enrolled in the Barnes Arboretum Horticulture certificate program. Their favorite tree is the Tall Stewartia, and their favorite garden task is weeding.
Li Xu
Li is a bird enthusiast. They have been known to write poetry and make zines, sometimes about those alien familiars that are plants. Their favorite shrub is fragrant sumac, and their favorite garden tool is the hard rake.
Grace Montesano
Grace (they/them)
I love plants, I love music, I love singing to plants.
Que McCall
Que (He/Him) Que is a Philadelphia native who considers himself a human solar panel. Loves all things of the outdoor variety, his favorite garden tool is his trusty pruners.
Matt Cameron
Loves being outside, learning new skills and finding edible plants. He is always down to build and implement new garden features and teach people new gardening knots. His favorite garden task is pruning and his favorite gardening tool is his Tobisho Japanese hand pruners.
Raymond Owens
I'm Raymond Owens, a trained aesthetic pruner, gardener, and earth activist. I received my Associates of Science in 'Landscape and Park Maintenance' in 2018 and trained with the Aesthetic Pruners Association for 3 years. Aesthetic Pruning is the creative interpretation of small trees and shrubs. This living art form combines the artistic skill of the pruner, the essence of a tree, the science of horticulture and the needs of clients and surroundings. Since moving to Philadelphia in 2020 I was fortunate to continue my career in horticulture with Kylin Arts. Here at Kylin Arts I get to bring my unique skill set to improve your garden experience by creating beautiful scenes for you to enjoy with artistic pruning and regular maintenance
Ash Reed
(She/They) They love all things horticulture. When not out in the gardens, they love to work with plants in other ways like cooking, apothecary use, incorporating into their art, dissecting under a microscope, and nurturing their house plants. They also love playing guitar and participating in mutual aid.
Mads Moore
A lover of many creative pursuits, Mads Is a New York Transplant who came to Kylin Arts by way of Texas where they learned all about the importance of delicately balanced ecosystems and the ways of resilience of plants, insects, and humans in the Swamps of Houston. Mads is an expert in rescuing and managing plant survival from environmental fluctuation and in seed starting and vegetable gardening in urban settings. They find great joy in learning! But specifically; plant names, plant ailments, variety differences, and the methods of balancing the world through gardening and restorative landscaping and are bringing that passion to Kylin Arts to cultivate.
Max Lussenhop
Max (He/Him) is a Philadelphia native who's love of the Eagles is rivaled only by his love for all things natural, especially spring ephemerals.
Our Story.
After working in the horticultural world since 1999 first at Chanticleer for three summers then for various small gardening businesses as a manager, I started my own business In 2008. The business began on a wing and a dream out of the back of a station wagon with only a few tools and a business partner, Eero Hagen. Though my tech genius business partner is now cultivating IT systems instead of plants, we still rely on each other as friends. Hundreds of customers, thousands of jobs and millions of plants later our fleet has grown to two fully equipped trucks, and a staff of 10 but the basics are still the same. I love the people as much as the plants, and watching a greenspace transform remains magical.
Our Logo.
The word Kylin (or Qilin) comes from Chinese mythology. The Kylin is a chimerical creature with a deer body, fish scales, antlers, the tail of a lion and the head of a dragon. This mythical creature is said to be good luck, so powerful it can burst into flames to protect the righteous, yet so gentle it floats above the grass in order to avoid harming a single blade. Our logo depicts the Kylin, hovering above a garden, watching over it, and perhaps adding a little magic.
The Kylin Arts Philosophy.
Design and maintain outdoor spaces that engage the human soul, provide habitat and food for animals and nurture the soil and plants. Using the arts to guide our aesthetics we design and maintain residential gardens that keep native and edible plants in the mix and invasive plants and chemicals out. A people, planet and pet friendly approach to horticulture, we tread lightly using mostly hand tools and organic methods. We work hard, we imagine big and we implement exquisitely.
Plant a Seed.
We work in West Philadelphia, Mt. Airy, Chestnut hill, Elkins Park, Wyncote, and on the Main Line from Bala Cynwyd to Bryn Mawr. Please use this form to inquire about rates and availability or just ask us questions.