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

Hi Mandy, every day, we about how much execution matters, but we think ideas matter as well. How did you come up with the idea for your business?
Years back, as a new homeowner, I was met with the challenge of maintaining my property. I had certain criteria for a landscape or gardening company, and realized that the specialized services that I wanted weren’t easy to find. I wanted to be able to maintain my gardens using no power or low power tools and hand removal of weeds, but above all I did not want any pesticide or herbicide use on my property. It was hard to find a company to do the curated detail work I desired so I started to do it myself. Starting with hand removing invasive weeds and installing low maintenance native perennials, I became obsessed with the process and gardening design using natural sustainable methods. I read “Native Plants of the Southeast” by Larry Mellichamp and developed a real passion for this type of gardening. A neighbor in East Atlanta Village reached out on a local social media page asking if someone could hand pull weeds from their garden bed, and I offered to do so. It was then that I knew I could make a business out of this. My work grew organically from that experience. I received messages and texts from other neighbors that had heard about me and wanted my services. So here I am!

What should our readers know about your business?
I started working in any hours that I could dedicate to my business. I started waking up earlier than the rest of the family and going to a client’s house right as the sun comes up to start gardening. I’d then come back home to take care of my toddler, and maybe go back out to do some more gardening in the evenings. Working around my responsibilities as a parent has not been easy, but with a little help and understanding from the clients who have let me work “unconventional” hours and from my patient husband, I’ve created a business I’m passionate about.

I love thinking outside of the mainstream and offering curated solutions that are not traditional. Tell me about how you don’t want grass and I’ll get way too excited about turf alternatives. There are some promising “lawn” alternatives that are native and give an interesting look. My opinion is that the best turf alternatives are poly cultures that benefit the soil, enhance the lives of native pollinators, and can take repeated mowing.
Even though you may have heard about native landscaping in your favorite gardening magazine, native plants are still underutilized for manicured garden designs. I love a gardening concept remove of somewhere between traditional landscaping, where plants are used according to general design principles, and nature scaping, where you are really trying to recreate a native wild environment. So you have these small urban spaces that have more of a cozy, modern vibe that really embraces the natural structure of the plants (no shearing shrubs into meatballs!). I’ve really been enjoying disrupting the way things have usually been done for a curated look.

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.
As a gardener and person passionate about plants and natural spaces, Atlanta has some great things to offer. First, I would suggest a visit to the Atlanta Botanical Garden- you can go there during the day or at night for their “Cocktails in the Garden” series. For someone more outdoorsy, Fernbank Museum’s Nature Preserve is the perfect place to go hiking in the city. Fernbank Museum’s old growth forest features some amazing natives like huge tulip poplars, pawpaws, and perennials like jewelweed and woodland phlox, but there are so many great plants.

For some plant-based (see a theme here?) food, La Semilla on memorial cannot be beat, and they have a creative cocktail menu, too.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My East Atlanta Village community has really supported me and made me understand the need for the type of work that I do. I received most of my clients from referrals. The social media group “The Southern Shmooze”, a local networking group for small businesses, has been a huge part of my success. The local gardening community in East Atlanta has also been so welcoming as a space to relax and obsess over plants in my off time as well.

Instagram: @gentlegardener_atl

Other: email: gentlegardener.atl@gmail.com

Image Credits
All photos taken by me

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