38 PUNCHMAGAZINE.COM {punchline} leaves Lyngso? “I’ve always cared about the people,” she reflects, “and the products have always mattered, education has mattered and being part of the community.” In the early days, the company helped support the Japanese Garden in San Mateo’s Central Park. More recently, Lyngso has provided soil mixes to grow vegetables and pollinator plants at local school gardens. Terry is proud of the role Lyngso has played, along with the company’s reputation for having loyal customers and longtime employees. Like Terry, Vic Thomas has also chalked up 50 years with Lyngso, logging numerous trips to China to source stone products. Unlike Vic and her parents, “My dream is not to go traveling,” Terry shares. “My dream is to dig into the dirt more.” She and her husband live in Loma Mar, where they have “an amazing native garden” with plants such as coffeeberry and Oregon grape. Bobcats, quail, snakes and stone, soil, compost and mulch mixes, garden ornaments, tools and building materials. A small display garden is set up near the bioswale demonstration area that illustrates how runoff stormwater from the parking lot can be captured and filtered with plants. Terry’s personal leanings towards composting and organics influenced the company’s growth. In early 2000, she says she learned “how important having a healthy living soil is. Important to human health, the planet—everything.” She took classes to become a Master Gardener and Master Composter, and started giving educational talks through Lyngso and other outlets. She plans to continue being involved with the UC Master Gardener program when she retires. What will she miss when she
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