At five years old, Brooklyn-born Billy Goodnick became obsessed with drumming. Twenty years later, after a successful career in recording studios and concert halls, he discovered the exquisite art of bonsai, his gateway drug to a life of horticulture. Billy laid down his sticks, headed to school, and got his hands dirty in nurseries, at the drafting table, and on landscape crews. Realizing the limitations of a two-year horticulture degree, he completed his education in landscape architecture, aced his licensing exam, and landed a totally sweet gig as landscape architect for Santa Barbara, CA, where he stayed for 22 years. For the past 12 years, Billy’s focus has been small scale residential garden design. His freelance garden writing has appeared in Fine Gardening, Pacific Horticulture, Sunset Magazine, Houzz.com and his speaking career around the country helped him rack up lots of frequent flyer miles and bags of honey roasted peanuts. He is the author of the popular design book, Yards: Turn Any Outdoor Space into the Garden of Your Dreams (St. Lynn’s Press, 2013).