Heidi Hesselein and Daryl Kobesky - A Better Life Through Landscape Diversity

MHG Meetings

Sponsored By: Metro Hort Group

At Pleasant Run Nursery, one of our primary commitments is to be active stewards of our local and regional environments. We choose the plants we grow not just for their aesthetic values, but also for their properties that add value through a number of important characteristics. A sustainable habitat for wildlife relies on the intelligent incorporation of food-producing natives which should also add beauty to the landscape. This is as important in an urban setting as it is in suburbia, since many animals can coexist in well-designed urban landscapes. We search out plants which in addition to multi-season interest also solve specific site problems, e.g. soil compaction, small spaces, moisture and light issues. It is the privilege and responsibility of the gardener, designer and landscaper to find tough, sustainable plants to meet the needs of these various challenges. We believe lives are enriched greatly by the possibility of interactions with communities of plants and animals, all of which come from groupings of varied, beautiful and sustainable plants

Heidi Hesselein, a 4th generation nurserywoman, co-founded Pleasant Run Nursery with her husband Richard Hesselein in 1998, with the goal of growing rare, new and unusual woodies, perennials, grasses, ferns and groundcovers. Production of landscape-worthy native plants is a particularly important part of their production goal. Their years of nursery experience in California and at Princeton Nurseries have enabled them to expand the production to 1200 species to date. Heidi lectures at trade shows, garden clubs and botanical gardens.

Daryl Kobesky graduated from Rutgers University with a degree in Planning and Design with a concentration in Landscape Architecture. Following his three postgraduate years as superintendent of the Rutgers Gardens, Daryl obtained his L.A. license while working in succession with two NJ Landscape Architecture firms. Wishing to reenter horticulture on a more hands-on level, he joined Pleasant Run Nursery as their Production Manager. Under his supervision, the nursery has grown to 95 container houses producing a broad range of high quality, hardy, landscape-worthy plants with sustainable environmentally sensitive production practices.

Website: http://www.pleasantrunnursery.com/