Listen to a 8 minute rebroadcast of Going Green Program 1st aired in March 2009 on Houston Chanel 39.
Georgia Bost found her companion for life, Rick, and also her botanical passion for Hibiscus in the swamps of east Texas. They discovered that they both had a love for nature and natural systems. Over the years, as a sideline to their environmental consulting and family vacations with their kids, they researched natural systems and the ecological principles, which are the foundation of what many researchers began calling sustainability concepts in the early 1990's. In 1992, they, along with a few of their friends, founded Texans for Urban Susainability, a regional organization for organic technology for sustainability (TexUS ROOTS) in order to share their knowledge with farmers, landscapers, nurseries, and landscape architects, and those who then created Green Movement Houston.
They collected many native species and opened a native plant nursery, art colony, and educational center called The Village Botanica. Georgia began cultivating these Hibiscus and created new hybrid varieties with her own hands. In the course of her ethno botanical research, she learned about the historical uses of the Hibiscus plant for medicinal purposes. Georgia began formulating teas, culinary vinegars, and other products. In 1996, she focused full-time on Hibiscus research and began selling her Hibiscus products in local Houston venues.
Through collaborations with the United States Department of Agriculture in Peoria, IL and College Station, TX, Georgia was able to identify the enhanced nutritional attributes of her patented hybrid and Hibiscus selections. Over time, she has transformerd her farm and ranch into a grass-fed beef
operation and organic farm. There she grows her Hibiscus and has perfected her products to provide superior nutritional benefits while continuing to research how to operate a farm and ranch organically in a sustainable manner. In 1999, they purchased over 260 acres in Waller County to create an organic and sustainable farm and ranch operation as commercially viable demonstration and educational facility called Hibiscus Hill Plantation. With the help of USDA and USDOE competetive grants, she has created a natural grassfed beef ranch and organic farm, while also conducting nutraceutical and biofuels research.
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