In this episode of The Landscaper Grow Show, host Mark Lamberth talks with David Romanoff of Evergreen Landscapes in Skokie, Illinois about how he grew a one-mower neighborhood gig into a 15-person, full-service lawn, landscape, and snow operation serving Chicagoland within a two-hour radius.

David shares how he started as “David’s Lawn Care” in high school, then came back from three years studying in Israel, invested his savings in a first truck, and stacked formal training in botany, horticulture, pruning, and design at the Chicago Botanic Garden to build a company that now handles residential and commercial maintenance, turf care, enhancements, and snow removal.

He breaks down how Evergreen separates its work into clear departments—mowing, turf science, pruning, planting/softscape, tree work via arborists, hardscape via subs, and winter snow with both owned equipment and subcontractors—so each crew can specialize and stay efficient, while most core staff stay on the team year-round.

You’ll also hear how he thinks about slow-and-steady growth, trusting and empowering employees, and winning reviews: do excellent work, listen for genuine compliments, then make it easy for happy clients to share their experience online.