Brie Arthur's relationship with plants began early, nurtured by a gardening family and the opportunities she found through 4-H. That early enthusiasm grew into a horticultural career spanning plant production, propagation, landscape design, television, writing, and education. Along the way, she discovered that gardens can do much more than look beautiful: they can feed us, support wildlife, bring communities together, and make the world a better place.

Known as Brie the Plant Lady, Brie joins us to talk about the experiences and people that shaped her career, including her work with Plant Delights Nursery, the International Plant Production Society, and Growing a Greener World. She also shares the story behind foodscaping—her approach to weaving edible plants into ornamental landscapes—and why she believes gardening should be accessible, practical, and productive.

In This Episode:

• How 4-H, mentors, and a variety of horticultural jobs shaped Brie's path in the industry
• The inspiration behind foodscaping and how edible plants can become part of an attractive, productive landscape
• Why school gardens, community connections, and mentoring the next generation matter to the future of horticulture

Brie's parting message is a good one: gardening is one of the most meaningful things we can do with our time because it makes the world better, one plant at a time.

Find Brie: Brie the Plant Lady on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/@BrieThePlantLady) Website: www.briegrows.com (https://www.briegrows.com)

Connect with Our Show Sponsors:

Seed Your Future: www.seedyourfuture.org (https://www.seedyourfuture.org/)

National Garden Bureau: www.ngb.org (https://ngb.org/)

Sometimes a business idea starts in the most unexpected places—even in the cracks of a driveway.

Lucas Picciolo, founder of Mossify, has been an entrepreneur for as long as he can remember. From selling homemade bookmarks in elementary school to developing an assistive sleep device as a teenager, Lucas has always been driven by curiosity, creativity and a desire to build something of his own.

But it was a patch of particularly vibrant moss growing between the pavers in his driveway that sparked the idea for Mossify. What began as custom wood-and-moss decor eventually grew into a company known for its innovative bendable moss poles and a growing range of products for plant enthusiasts.

We talk about learning from early business setbacks, how a pandemic-era bonsai hobby inspired one of Mossify's signature products, and what happened when Lucas took his business to Canada's Dragon's Den. We also explore the company's 15-acre moss farm, some unexpected applications for moss, and why Lucas is embracing technology to make more room for creativity and innovation.

In This Episode:

• How a determined young entrepreneur turned a childhood knack for making money into a growing business.
• The bonsai-inspired idea that changed the direction of Mossify—and caught the attention of the plant community.
• What Lucas learned from Dragon's Den, building a business without outside investors, and finding new opportunities for moss.

Find Lucas and Mossify: Mossify: https://www.mossify.ca

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Mossify

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@mossify

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucas-picciolo/

Landscape Moss Projects: https://landscapemoss.com/

Mossify Retail Website: https://www.mossify.ca/ Mossify Wholesale USA: https://mossifywholesale.com/ Mossify Wholesale Canada: https://mossifywholesale.ca/ Order on Faire Direct: https://mossify.faire.com

Connect with Our Show Sponsors:

Seed Your Future: https://www.seedyourfuture.org/

National Garden Bureau: https://ngb.org/

Enjoyed this conversation? Follow I Dig Your Story wherever you listen to podcasts, and share it with someone who has a story worth digging into!

A north-facing window box that didn’t go quite as planned might seem like an unlikely beginning for a gardening journey. But for Erin Schanen, better known as The Impatient Gardener, that early gardening mishap sparked a desire to understand what went wrong—and eventually grew into a thriving online community and business.

Erin grew up around gardening, thanks to her mother, but it wasn’t until she bought her first home that she dove headfirst into learning everything she could about plants. In 2009, she started a blog to document her rapidly expanding garden. As the online gardening world evolved, she moved to YouTube, bringing viewers along for an honest, unfiltered look at her garden, whether it was thriving or a bit of a wreck.

In this conversation, Erin shares how connecting with fellow garden enthusiasts led to unexpected opportunities in the horticulture industry, including a pivotal trip to California Spring Trials (CAST) that transformed her understanding of how plants get from breeders to gardeners. We also talk about the value of reliable, unsung garden plants, why she believes in planting more to control weeds, and the importance of remembering that gardening is supposed to be fun.

In This Episode:

• How a failed window box sparked a deeper interest in gardening and led to The Impatient Gardener blog.
• How Erin’s transition from blogging to YouTube—and a revealing look inside the horticulture industry—helped turn her passion into a business.
• Why every garden needs its reliable “backup singers,” and why gardeners don’t need to worry so much about perfection.

Find Erin: Website: The Impatient Gardener (https://www.theimpatientgardener.com/) YouTube: The Impatient Gardener (https://www.youtube.com/@TheImpatientGardener) Instagram: @ImpatientGardener (https://www.instagram.com/impatientgardener)

Connect with Our Show Sponsors:

Seed Your Future: www.seedyourfuture.org (https://www.seedyourfuture.org/)

National Garden Bureau: www.ngb.org (https://ngb.org/)