Both Ann and Mimi have an incredible love for nature and incorporate plants that attract beneficial insects, birds and butterflies to their thoughtfully designed gardens. “Our beach community is 20 miles from Los Angeles and densely urban. We wanted our designs to serve a greater purpose.", explains Ann.
“Changing garden styles of the past can take time but when people see how beautiful they can be without over-watering and pesticides it makes sense to them,” Mimi says.
Garden Magic Company continues growing as an earth friendly garden design and maintenance company that has now spread its roots to the east coast after the founder Ann Barklow sold her company to Mimi Andersen in Manhattan Beach in 2010 and moved to South Carolina to start her own maintenance and design business along with continuing her arborist career.
Garden Magic Company’s love for the environment drives their passion. On the west coast Mimi focuses on drought tolerant California friendly plants, pesticide free gardens that not only look inviting and artistic but serve nature in a way that brings the gardens alive with activity and provides the much needed food to keep our native insects and birds content.
Ann focuses on incorporating more South Carolina natives into the landscapes to provide food sources for the many native insects and birds. “There are so many beautiful plants that grow in the south and adding natives along with them will only increase the beauty and serve a purpose by protecting our native birds and butterflies.” explains Ann. Leaving the coastal beach of California where large trees had been removed to build homes and provide views of the ocean, Ann is loving the amount of trees in SC and spends much of her time consulting to help her clients keep their trees healthy and long lived. Her specialty is in supervising pruning of trees for structure and health and protecting valuable trees during construction.
Both Mimi and Ann have taught many classes on native plants, landscaping for wildlife, organic gardening, tree care and landscape design and maintenance. They explained: “When you love what you do, you want to share it with others. Watching others embrace this way of landscaping makes it more worthwhile to us.”
Contact Ann at GMC South: ann@gardenmagiccompany.com
Contact Mimi at GMC West: mimi@gardenmagiccompany.com
