Once a Sales Pro, Now 'Marigold Mike' Happily Teaches Kids About Gardening

Once upon a time, Michael Bedrick of Morris Township had a successful career in sales, but says he "dreaded" going to the office. After deciding life was too short to do unfulfilling work, he left his sales career and started "Let's Bloom Together," where he runs programs that teach children about gardening, nature and ecology.

"I love every second of it," he said. "My business is teaching children about gardening and going green; very practical everyday things they can incorporate into their lives." His programs range from months-long, in-school programming to one-day community events, camp programs and even birthday parties for kids ages 3-10. His work name is "Marigold Mike," and he said he's constantly amused by how the younger students' mispronunciation turns him into "Miracle Mike."

Bedrick says his approach to teaching the subject matter is out-of-the-ordinary, because he places so much emphasis on humor and physical activity. "I have so much fun with it," he said. "If they're laughing they're learning. I wasn't trained as a traditional teacher and that allows me some freedom. My lessons are a lot more high-energy. I have them get up and spin around as if they're the planets and the sun. We learn how to use the wheelbarrow, then we wheel it around and give them rides. We take creature hunts, looking for birds, worms, deer. "As someone who couldn't sit still himself," Bedrick said he knows that, "You've got to keep it active."

Bedrick feels that his is the most feature-rich of the locally available gardening programs for kids, because of how he ties it to their school curriculum. "My program relates to 80% of the core curriculum standards," he said. "It includes math, science, history, ecology, geography, vocabulary. 

Bedrick said his memories of gardening with his father helped him to create his business. He said he asked himself, "What can I do that's meaningful in my life? I'd been gardening all my life–at three years old I was out there with my dad. All the kids want is to be introduced to gardening in a loving way." Basic gardening information isn't something new, he said, but his program "is a different spin on an old subject with a lot of new and creative ideas."

Regarding the career change, Bedrick said, "I have no regrets. The paychecks are not the same, but it will get there. All I ask is that people give me half a chance." Locally, he said, he's brought his programs to Normandy Park School, Chatham Day School, Kiddie Academy of Chester and other locations.

Let's Bloom Together has about 30 teaching modules, which can be customized depending on the season and the age of the attendees. "We can do tools, flowers, creatures in the garden, garden design, anatomy of a flower, composting.

One of his best rewards, which he says occurs in almost every school, is when a parent says, "You really have taught my children something about gardening that they're now teaching me."