Biography for Kyle Cheesborough,
July 2017 Speaker
Kyle Cheesborough will be our July 2017 guest speaker and will give a program entitled Gardening for Biodiversity.
Before starting at Bellefontaine Cemetery and Arboretum, Kyle’s career took him through nursery production, public gardening, plant collection expeditions, and much more. He developed an affinity for horticulture as a young man in Augusta, GA, helping his grandmother in her garden. Kyle attended the University of Georgia, receiving a Bachelor’s in Science of Agriculture, majoring in Horticulture while working for Goodness Grows, a wholesale/retail nursery specializing in unique, old-fashioned shrubs and perennials. He then spent a short time with an annual liner production facility in Mt. Vernon, WA, working in their Research & Development Department before accepting the position of Horticulturist I-Conservatories with the Missouri Botanical Garden. Kyle’s career with MBG saw a quick maturation of his abilities as a public gardens horticulturist and included a plant collections trip to the Altai Mountains in Siberia.
In 2013 Kyle took the position of Horticulturist with Bellefontaine Cemetery and Arboretum, seeing the Cemetery’s arboretum as an excellent opportunity to further develop his skills as a professional. Under his care the arboretum has grown in breadth and depth. He was instrumental in the execution of Evergreen Meadow, the cemetery’s dedicated green burial section. In 2016 Kyle became BCA’s Horticulture Supervisor overseeing the arboretum collection, designing themed planting beds, consulting on sustainable burial practices, collaborating on burial lot design and care, directing horticulture staff, as well as keeping his hands in the dirt with regular horticulture maintenance. “I have used my emphasis on conservation and habitat restoration to shape my duties at Bellefontaine, embarking on projects that focus on native plants and those that provide some benefit to local wildlife. The Bellefontaine landscape is one of supreme beauty, and I hope to serve the cemetery in the coming years by developing this urban green oasis into a horticultural destination.“
Members of the Greater St Louis Daffodil Society are excited that Kyle has found time in his busy schedule to help us learn about Gardening for Biodiversity.