Meet Our Garden Design Team
written by Janet Harrold
Most of our regular customers are on a first name basis with many of our staff members. The first people to greet you when you enter our sales yard is typically a member of our Garden Design Team. A knowledgeable and friendly crew. They work in the yard every season, sometimes in the rain, the bitter cold, the sleet and snow and this time of year the heat. Despite the weather conditions our crew is always there to answer your questions about summer plantings, to sell you the perfect Christmas tree and wreath and setting up the best Harvest Festival in town. For those of you who don’t know them, let me introduce you to our Garden Design Team…
Bob
Bob has been Garden Center manager for 12 years and like any manager Bob wears many hats. His duties include overseeing the staff, ordering plants, statuary and garden accessories. Bob rotates the inventory and maintains the overall layout of the yard. In addition to overseeing the day to day operations of the Garden Center, Bob also plays an intricate roll in the delivery and installation of the many weddings that we provide floral arrangements for each weekend.
Before Bob came to work at Cedar Grove Gardens he spent nearly 25 years as a professional chef. Working with and learning from Jasper White (Jasper’s), Chris Scheslinger (East Coast Grill), Jim Burke (Harvest). He also held management positions with Paparazzi and Legal Seafoods.
Bob also worked in interior design and architecture. He studied at Autocad a computer drafting design school, but his visual skills, eye for detail, organizational abilities, and lifelong passion for plants and gardening has made his work at Cedar Grove Gardens truly a feast for the eyes.
John
You may know John from seeing him around our garden center, or in the past you could have crossed paths with him at the Ashmont Peabody Square farmers market, but during the spring and summer months, John’s primary job is container garden design. If you take a stroll around town you will see beautiful plantings in many residential homes as well as businesses such as Steel &Rye in Milton, Aquitaine in Dedham, and The Quarry Restaurant & Lounge in Hingham just to name a few.
Growing up, John worked long summer hours doing landscape design. His extensive horticultural background includes Essex Agricultural & Technical School as well as Stockbridge School of Agriculture.
Before John came to work for Cedar Grove Gardens 5 years ago he owned and operated “Pete’s Dockside” a hidden gem that serves breakfast and lunch at the Seaport section of South Boston.
Philip
Just about any day that you troll through our garden center you will see Phil with a big smile on his face. He has been with us for 10 years now and has made many friends with our loyal customers. He enjoys helping customers by answering questions and helping them with their purchases. Philip got his education from Norfolk County Agricultural School. Before Philip joined us he was part of the beautiful Cedar Grove Cemetery grounds keeping and nursery team.
At various times throughout the year we also add additional staff members to the garden center, some are hired on a seasonal/temporary basis and others have been with us for years and are knowledgeable about the indoor and outdoor day to day operations.
I hope you enjoyed meeting part of our staff and getting to know them a little better. The next time you stop in, be sure to say hello!
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