In the late 90s, when Lee and Teresa Hearn moved their family to Brooks, they weren’t just building a new home; they were planting seeds that their sons, Sam and Dan, would cultivate into a successful landscaping company.
Watching their home’s construction and seeing a landscape being carved from the forest captivated the brothers, and their parents saw an opportunity to teach their sons about business and work ethic. Using trees felled on the site, the boys, then 11 and 9, learned to cut wood. Advertised with red-painted letters on a piece of plywood, S & D Firewood was born. Eventually, they diversified into lawn care and renamed the company Hearn Landscape in 2008.
Focused on transforming outdoor spaces throughout Fayette County and South Metro Atlanta, Hearn Landscape Management, Inc. now employs 35 people and has three offices—a far cry from the company’s humble beginnings. Their mom has kept their first sign in the basement to remind them of their roots.
Like most brothers, Sam and Dan have occasional, short-lived disagreements, but they enjoy their business partnership. “We're exact opposites,” Sam said, adding that he’s the ADHD extrovert. “My brother is type-A, introverted, left-brained. All his strengths are my weaknesses, and all his weaknesses are my strengths. So, it works.”
The brothers credit their success to their family’s influence and the values they instilled. “My mom was particular about how we were raised,” Sam said. “We never had cable TV, and we didn't have internet until I was college-age. We were at church on Tuesday night for Bible study, Wednesday night, Sunday morning, and Sunday night. It took me until I was 38 years old to realize how great that was.” Their father made education a non-negotiable. Sam has a degree in business management, and Dan has a degree in marketing. He told them, ‘You can do blue-collar work, but you’re going to be educated.” Their extended family, including their Uncle, Byron Black, and Aunt, Joy Fletcher, encouraged them as well.
Since 2020, Hearn Landscape has focused primarily on landscape construction and contracting, grading, and hardscapes. With Office Manager Debi Rogers keeping things organized and punctual, the team handles the landscaping process with a knowledge that only locals familiar with the area’s unique opportunities and challenges can provide. Unlike landscape companies that promise anything for a buck, the Hearns provide radical honesty, advising which plants, grasses, and designs will work in certain locations and which won’t. The result is a beautiful, easier-to-maintain landscape. Hearn Landscape even guarantees plants for six months after installation. “If something doesn’t go right, we’re going to fix it. We stand behind the work. We always think of customers as if we were in their shoes. A lot of people will save up for years to do a landscape project. We want to treat their property as if it were our property. We want to do everything that they would be happy to see us do if they were out of town. We don't take shortcuts. We want to work with customers who trust us and want to buy into our brand.”
Whether the project is land clearing, solving drainage problems, installing sod, irrigation and ornamentals, designing hardscapes such as patios, retaining walls, and fire pits, or highlighting the landscape with outdoor lighting, the Hearn's team has a reputation for good communication and high-quality results.
But family and faith remain the company’s cornerstones, which the Hearn brothers want as a legacy for their own children. Sam and his wife Madeline have three children. Dan and his wife, Ashley, have two. The company often gives back to the community and recently donated new landscaping for I-58 Mission in Senoia. “We get to give back—support missions and churches,” Sam said. Thankful for how their company has grown, he adds, “To whom much is given, much is required.”