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April 8, 2025 40 mins

With the push to get people back into offices, there’s a glaring question floating around the corporate world: how do we make the office a place people actually want to come back to? As someone who believes in the impact of plants not just on spaces but on people, this question has me wishing of a world where every office has its own green vegetable garden out back.

Does it sound too good to be true? Well, it’s already happening. In this episode, I sat down with Josh and Troy, the founders of StartOrganic, a company that helps employers give that opportunity to their employees. They’ve created office gardens for companies like PayPal, eBay, Intuit, and Apple, and what they’re doing is so much more than planting tomatoes.


In this episode, we learn:

  • [03:35] How StartOrganic started
  • [06:54] How did they end up designing gardens for PayPal?
  • [10:31] Scaling up with corporate programs
  • [12:05] What are the first steps in consulting with businesses on garden installation projects?
  • [14:00] What's the most unique place they’ve installed a garden?
  • [14:50] Make gardening fun with Espoma Organic’s all-natural products!
  • [16:26] What is the primary focus of StartOrganic?
  • [19:44] How they tailor their corporate garden programs to client needs
  • [22:11] PayPal’s evolving garden program
  • [24:56] How does StartOrganic help employees care for their corporate garden?
  • [26:54] Measuring the success of corporate gardens
  • [29:17] Heartwarming employee stories
  • [32:10] Can small offices start corporate gardens?
  • [34:42] What are the popular crops and seasonal offerings
  • [36:33] Where can you find StartOrganic?


Mentioned in our conversation:


How have office gardens impacted employees' well-being?

Check out the full show notes and blog here!


Thank you to our episode sponsor:

Espoma Organic

Visit espoma.com to find your local Espoma dealer or check my Amazon storefront.


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