Meet Dane Hoover | Landscape Designer and Sustainability Consultant

We had the good fortune of connecting with Dane Hoover and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Dane, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I’ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit, Inspired by a father with an endless drive to work for himself. That attitude formed a deep sense of autonomy within myself, and I created a couple businesses over the years. Those businesses have had varying degrees of success. I always wanted to do something that would combine many of my strengths and skills, along with what I know, which is an eclectic and occasionally esoteric mixture of botany, mycology, psychology, business, and many more subsets. As I was finishing my last 2 semesters at college in Arizona, I realized that I had something a lot of people could benefit from: knowledge on how to transform their yards into food producing spaces that also use the site’s natural features to save money, electricity, and water. Many people have reached out, and received, site-specific designs that lead to more self-reliance. Its been a win-win-win.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Of the two main practices of Eden and Dane, rock sculptures called Cairns are something truly special and, now, offered via commission.

I started making cairns in the woods for fun, just stacking and balancing rocks in the hopes of making something cool. I quickly realized it was an ‘antidote’ to my ADHD, allowing me to completely focus on something in a way that I hadn’t been able to before.

Not long after building them, people started to ask me to create a stack of rocks for them.

I transformed what was a hobby into something that I could use to make money, and started to make them for people.

It’s a lot of work, but the times flies because I greatly enjoy making something that people love to see and talk about. It took a lot of time to figure out the best practices to make permanent cairns, with a lot of trial and error, but not I can confidently make unique and beautiful sculptures that can even function as fountains. I even learned that the water aspects functions as a ‘pollinator fountain’, adding yet another feature.

I would love to create as many as possible, I feel a tremendous amount of satisfaction in seeing my own quality work and the joy that it brings other people.

The other component of Eden and Dane is Permaculture Design and installation. Basically, helping people create a food producing landscape in their very own land. Creating custom, site-specific landscape designs to transform their yards into their own personal grocery store. Eden and Dane began doing that as its primary function.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Los Angeles – my favorite city.

Food: Pono Burger, The Hive, Gringos
Places: Getty Villa, Getty Museum, Topanga Canyon
Parks: Malibu Creek State Park, Will Rogers State Park (Inspiration Point), Joshua Tree NP (Indian Cove Campground)

I train Jiu Jitsu and like to check out gyms as I travel – this city is the American Jiu Jitsu Mecca. There are so many great gyms to train at here and go to different ones 3-5 times in the week.

Comedy shows/Improv places – any, some are great, some bomb.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I’ve had so many wonderful and amazing people help me over the years, I’d be neglecting many people by mentioning one. I think my parents were wise to raise me in an area where I could learn a lot, and make excellent connections with all kinds of people. My dad is probably the most influential of all the people in my life, but many have made great impacts on me. Mentors, coaches, friends, etc. I have a lot of appreciation for all of them.

Website: www.edenanddane.com

Instagram: www.instagram.com/edenanddane

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7LGL2_rPuLXr-BSMyLS7Rg