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At Terra Bella Garden Center we have an experienced team of horticultural and design experts to help you with all your home exterior garden needs. We pride ourselves on exceptional customer service and seek to provide you with advice that will help your vision come to life. Our team has an extensive understanding of the various light, soil and climate conditions that exist in our area and can help you achieve a landscape that is colorful and inviting year round.

Karsten McElfresh – Founder

Karsten McElfresh opened Terra Bella Garden Center with 15 years of hands-on experience in the green industry and a degree in Plant and Soil Science from the University of Kentucky. His career began with the unique privilege of serving in a leading turf grass management position at Indian Hill Club on Chicago’s prestigious North Shore District. In 2003, he was honored to serve on the grounds staff for the 2003 U.S. Open Golf Championship hosted by Olympia Fields Country Club, also in Chicago. Upon his arrival to Charleston, South Carolina in 2004, Karsten was proud to assume the responsibility of Golf Course Superintendent at Wild Dunes Resort, a highly respected golf destination which typically ranks in the Top 100 Golf Resorts of the United States. Karsten’s horticultural knowledge, experience and creativity has positioned him as an industry leader and influencer within the local green industry. His opinion and services are widely respected and sought-after by professionals throughout the Lowcountry. Karsten started Terra Bella with the goal of leading a company like he manages his own life: with integrity, honesty and respect for his clients. Karsten seeks to balance his creativity and passion for the outdoor environments where people live with his love for his faith, family, and friendships.

Kristian Thiem – Designer

Kristian has always had a passion for design, cooking and the outdoors. Her love of cooking led her to Charleston, where she attended Johnson and Wales University and opened a retail bakery.  An opportunity to return to school allowed her to pursue her love of the outdoors and landscapes in the horticulture program at Trident Tech, where she earned a landscape design certificate. Her designs are focused on functionality and beauty with sustainable aspects. Kristian was brought on in 2012 to build Natural Tendencies’ design division to meet the growing demand.

Darren Sheriff – Garden Center Manager

Darren is a SCNLA Certified Professional Nurseryman and a Charleston County Master Gardener. As a member of the Coastal Carolina Camellia Society as well as the founder of the Lowcountry Fruit Growers Society, Darren is currently president of both groups.  He is known as “The Citrus Guy” here in the Lowcountry as an expert in the cultivation of Citrus and currently has 55+ different varieties in his yard, mostly in containers, but some in the ground as well. He is an Exotic Tropical Fruit buff, growing things many people have never heard of, and is well versed in all other kinds of fruit as well. Darren enjoys teaching and is a blog author to be educational, sometimes funny, and hopefully always inspirational. He loves helping people with their garden problems.

Jonathan Huffman

Jonathan grew up outside of Richmond VA, then headed south, graduating from North Carolina State University with a B.S. in Horticultural Science and Landscape Design in 2006.  He started his post-grad career at the former Carolina Nurseries, Inc in Moncks Corner and managed the local plant distribution center which supplied the majority of Charleston’s Garden Centers and Landscape Contractors.  A South Carolina Certified Nursery Professional, Jonathan brings a wealth of horticultural knowledge to the Terra Bella Professionals Team, further strengthening the bond we have with our clients and maximizing the full potential of our clients properties. In his free time he enjoys traveling, cooking and spending time with friends on the water.