Without Saul Nadler, I would still be landscaping out of the back of my Honda Civic.

When I met Saul Nadler, I had a small landscaping company and a dream of opening my own nursery. I have since learned that most landscapers dream of opening their own nursery. My nursery might have stayed a fantasy forever, had I not met Saul.

I wish we had some pictures of what Saul and Susie’s garden looked like when I arrived. It was a steep up-slope, hard to even walk on. He just wanted to change a few things. A little pruning. Maybe add some veggies. In the end, we slowly replaced just about everything, dug out yards and yards of soil, and planted what was at the time the most beautiful garden I had ever designed.

As soon as I began working with Saul and his then-girlfriend Susie, it instantly became clear that something magical was happening. They were delighted. They were obsessed. They were in love with their garden.

After working on the garden together for several months, Saul asked if I wanted a business partner. Saul is a classically trained French Chef with a degree in Russian History.  He was looking for something new and different to do. Eventually, we agreed we would open a nursery together if we could find a location. Within just a few weeks, we had purchased The Palm Broker, a run-down funky palm tree nursery on Guerrero Street in SF. Is it too cheesy to say, “and the rest is history?”

Neither of us had ever worked at a nursery. Neither of us had ever worked at any store. Neither of us had ever taken a single plant ID class, or any class on any garden topic. We just hopped in. Saul is a really, really smart guy.  He is an incredibly hard-working guy. I often say that I know a thing or two about what is pretty, and Saul handles everything else.

So why then, is it called Flora Grubb Gardens? Because Saul says nobody would want to shop at “Saul Nadler Gardens.”

I bless the day I met Saul Nadler.