Paul Elliott is Professor Emeritus of the Department of Biological Science, Florida State University. Dr. Elliott earned his Ph.D. at the University of Michigan followed by a Postdoctoral research position at The Johns Hopkins University. He was on the faculty at the University of Florida from 1962 to 1971 and at Florida State from 1971 to 2001, where he founded the Program in Medical Sciences (PIMS), a joint MD degree program involving Florida State, Florida A&M, and the College of Medicine at Gainesville.

When Dr. Elliott began looking toward retirement, he saw the chance to pursue his lifelong interest in gardening and become a Master Gardener. As a biologist and professor of ecology, he was fascinated with broad concepts of water use. As a gardener troubled by the way water carried his soil away, he took on the challenge of designing ways to capture every drop of water and has created a fascinating yard. Dr. Elliott is a natural fit for the TAPP program, which allows him to share his biological knowledge, his passion for gardening and his expertise in collecting the water that flows over his landscape.