My husband sometimes jokes that I could kill a fake plant. He’s not wrong: I’ve managed to kill more supposedly easy-to-grow plants than I can count over the years. Fortunately for me, he has a green thumb, so our front yard is still a proliferation of flowers I get to enjoy without lifting a finger. Regardless where you fall on the gardening expert spectrum, you probably enjoy the beauty of an outdoor plot awash in blooms or covered in a carpet of verdant grass. If so, our “Garden Issue” is for you.
Here, you’ll find Lauren Finney Harden’s profile of landscape architect Lucinda Bray of Floralis Garden Design, Jill Becker’s deep-dive on what it takes to become a master gardener and how you can get involved locally, and Nicole Letts’ story on some of our area’s most spectacular public gardens, including the Atlanta History Center, where we shot our ethereal cover. I think you’ll feel, as I do, that these beautiful floral spaces almost make all of Atlanta’s pollen worth it.
The rest of this issue was so much fun for our team to write and edit. We know you’ll love these info-packed pages to discover Chelsie Butler’s story on dog-friendly patios; H.M. Cauley’s profile on Meredith Lavender and Kendall Shores, local authors of the new novel Happy Wife; Hope S. Philbrick’s dining feature on Brookhaven hidden gem Terra Terroir; and Karina Antenucci’s article on how to get little ones involved in coding. For this issue, I had the pleasure of visiting The Swag, a luxurious mountaintop resort in Western North Carolina with a loyal following. I can almost guarantee it’ll motivate you to make plans for your own getaway.
Our team of talented freelancers and Simply Buckhead staff hope you’ll enjoy paging through this colorful issue. And maybe, it will provide some inspiration to get out and explore the great outdoors in Buckhead and beyond this season.
Jennifer Bradley Franklin
Senior Contributing Editor
