A landscaping company that operates in eight states and Washington, D.C. says it surprised its employees with a total of $28 million in appreciation bonuses.

Ruppert Landscape says the bonuses went to employees who have been with the company for at least one year. Excluding the top leadership team, 1,200 employees received bonuses reportedly ranging from $7,000 to $200,000.

“Everyone receiving this bonus was instrumental in helping create the value that we’ve been able to realize,” said CEO Craig Ruppert. “This bonus is money that is well-deserved and a way for us to acknowledge the value of our teams’ contributions and the essential role that they will play in our company’s future.”

The company said it was able to give out the bonuses because of a recent partnership with an investment firm.

According to the company's website, it started in the 1970s when Craig Ruppert began asking his neighbors if he could mow their lawns. Over the past 50 years, the company has grown to more than 2,000 employees. The company's portfolio includes work at Georgetown University, Six Flags American and President Lincoln's Cottage.

MALVERN, Iowa (KMTV) -- On a piece of land that has buried train tracks running through it, Tyler Bartley decided to create a large garden to grow local, organic produce and offer it up at affordable prices to his community.

In the bedroom community of Malvern, Iowa it can be tough to compete with the larger city about a half-hour away.

"It was always hard to offer something here that Omaha didn't have better, but having good farmland and quality produce, that's not a challenge here," said Bartley.

Sown Local Foods is able to grow on a larger scale than a typical backyard garden.

"The amount of food has almost tripled in five years, and we're now just scratching the surface on field production of watermelon and sweet corn and stuff that you'd see at bigger stands," said Bartley.

A few years ago they met someone who had extra land attached to where he parked trucks for his business. Bartley set up a garden and is now harvesting arugula and other salad greens.

They have plots of land around the area in Malvern, Council Bluffs, Glenwood, and Pacific Junction.

Once the produce is harvested, it's sold through a number of places. They've partnered with a meal delivery service and restaurants. They also sell at farmers' markets and they have a stand in downtown Malvern.

They accept many forms of payment, including SNAP benefits.

At the stand, a lockbox serves as the cashier. People can just leave payment and take produce.

"The people that are shopping want healthy food for their family, and if you're on a tight budget that's sort of the sweet spot we're at anyways," said Bartley.

Bartley said it takes a lot of hard work, but it's worth it because they feel good about the work they're doing in his hometown.

This story originally reported by Jennifer Griswold on 3NewsNow.com.