About Us
About us:
Golden Strip Landscaping and Hardscaping offers both Design and Construct for our neighbors in Greenville, Simpsonville, Mauldin, Fountain Inn, Five Forks, and the Golden Strip area in South Carolina.
My name is Mike Lee, and I am originally from New Jersey. I have been in a family landscape/nursery business since I was born.
At age 5, I remember being with my dad at landscape jobs in the summer. I felt the tremendous honor of sweeping the driveway. There were no leaf blowers then, and I would have to start over when I finished. I loved being outdoors. I truly learned the business from the ground up.
We always had a nursery in our backyard, or the “farm,” as we lovingly called it. So building landscapes is actually what I have done all my life.
I was fortunate enough to attend a high school with a strong Agriculture program in which I received many ‘A’ grades. After HS, I attended a local community college. Their agriculture and its opportunities expanded for me to learn the “whys” of plants.
I graduated with High Honors and an AAS degree in Agriculture Business. I then passed the Certified Nursery and Landscape Professional Exam for our state. While living in New Jersey, I held CNLP status for 18 years.
From New Jersey to Clemson
After spending a few more years on our farm, which now had a retail nursery, I transferred to Clemson, where I spent two years studying Ornamental Horticulture. While at Clemson, I learned a great deal about plant makeup and structure and worked in a tissue culture lab.
I returned to New Jersey when my father passed away suddenly in 1997. While in my hometown, I held a seat on the zoning board of adjustment for 10 years. After many years of owning and running the landscape/nursery, I decided retail was not for me.
My wife and I spent a few more years in New Jersey raising our family. Finally, we decided we liked the warmer winters in the upstate best, and moved back in 2009.
We are now growing Golden Strip Landscaping in the ‘golden strip’ with my sons participating in this third-generation business.