Based in Wooster, Ohio, Mahl maintains a 3 acre old fashioned Garden of Legend and Romance Roses in the Secrest Arboretum, grows annuals for use on the grounds and is actively involved in the installation and maintenance of the perennial gardens on the OSU Wooster campus. Mahl credits Ohio State with helping her see the possibilities in horticulture, "Without a doubt in my mind the most influential experience at OSU had to be the Study Abroad Program in England.  It completely opened my eyes to so many options and ideas.  I can't say enough good about the Program and would recommend it to anyone.  It was a chance of a lifetime and I am glad that I took advantage of going."

Mahl recalls a passage from the "The Prayer of the Woods" to explain the role plants play in our lives:

"I am the heat of your hearth
On the cold, winter nights;
The friendly shade screening you
From the summer sun.
My fruit are refreshing draughts
Quenching your thirst as you journey on.
I am the beam that holds your house,
The board of your table,
The bed on which you lie,
The timber that builds your boat.
I am the bread of kindness
And the flower of beauty.
You who pass by -
Listen to my prayer:
Harm me not"