Heather Liljengren

I recently moved back to my home state of Connecticut after living in Brooklyn, NY for almost 17 years. For my entire career, I have been hiking through habitats from the coastline to the highlands collecting seed from native plant species in the greater New York City region for NYC Parks. I was a public servant dedicated to providing adapted native plant material to restoration and community projects throughout the five boroughs. I managed the seed collection program and seed bank at the Greenbelt Native Plant Center in Staten Island, NY. 
 

I worked closely with landscape architects and designers to craft native species planting palettes that would not only be beautiful, but functional in the landscape. My intimate relationship with the flora, along with a design background, allowed me to understand how these species might translate into the built environment. I was always up for the challenge when someone would exclaim "but nothing will grow here!"... there is always the right native plant for the right place at the right time.