About Me

Hi, my name is Linval Owens -- I also go by my nickname, "Fishtea." I am the founder and owner of Doctor Bird Garden and Landscape, an Oakland based landscape installation and organic garden maintenance service.  In my gardening work, I build on my lifelong experience with growing organic foods and years of organic and traditional plant care, landscape maintenance and installation experience.

Born and raised on the south coast of Jamaica in the rural fishing town of Treasure Beach, I've lived my entire life from the land and sea. I grew up on a true homestead, raising chickens, fishing, and growing vegetables to take to market. I began my serious agricultural work as a teenager, growing callaloo, the legendary Jamaican cooking green, which I sold at the weekly market in the mountain town of Christiana. My experience soon expanded to the ocean, where I had a 25-year career as a deep sea fisherman, boating up to 90 miles off the coast of Jamaica, catching lobster, grouper and swordfish for the local Jamaican market.

Through my time working as a fisherman, and now, my appreciation of the simple, good life, has kept me grounded. As a Rastafarian, I've always avoided processed foods, hunting for wild honey and medicinal herbs in the Jamaican country, and perfecting my recipes for vegetarian foods and the famous fish soup that earned me my nickname, "Fishtea."

When the opportunity came up to move to Boston in 2006 to work as a landscaper, I was happy for the experience. After two years of training with the large landscape maintenance crew at Roger B. Sturgis Associates in Massachusetts, I became experienced in lawn management, stone wall building and other valuable landscaping practices. After meeting my American wife, I decided to move to California in 2009 and share my experiences with a new audience! Together with my wife, I founded Star Apple Edible Gardens, an Oakland-based edible landscaping company. We worked together to build a successful business, and designed and installed many beautiful, productive gardens throughout the Bay Area.

Now, with Doctor Bird, I'm focusing on what I love and keeping things simple: creating and taking care of gardens, and building relationships with my clients.  I bring an authentic agricultural background, a range of building experience, and local organic plant care skills to my clients -- helping them to keep things running smoothly in their own backyards. When I'm not busy helping clients with my knowledge of and passion for aesthetic pruning, lawn care, carpentry, irrigation systems and good, clean food, you can find me playing and singing reggae music in Oakland, California.

Learn more about the Doctor Bird, the national bird of Jamaica, click here.