Bio of Neil Diboll
A pioneer in the native plant industry and recognized internationally as an expert in native plant ecology, Neil Diboll has dedicated his life to the propagation of native plants, promoting their benefits and furthering their use in gardens, landscapes, and restoration projects. His work emphasizes aesthetics, sustainability, and ecological compatibility with the land. The essence of Neil’s philosophy is that, as stewards of the planet, we must work to preserve and increase the diversity of native plants and animals, with which we share our world. The protection of our natural heritage and our soil and water resources is essential to maintaining a high quality of life for today and for future generations to come.
Neil received his degree in Environmental Sciences from the University of Wisconsin–Green Bay in 1978 and attended the summer session at the University of Michigan Biological Station in Pellston, MI, in 1977. He subsequently worked for the U.S. Park Service in Virginia, the U.S. Forest Service in Colorado, and the University of Wisconsin. Neil began his involvement at Prairie Nursery—one of the first retailers in the U.S. to grow and sell native plants—in 1982. For more than four decades, he has been actively involved in producing native plants and seeds and designing native landscapes. In 2013, he received the Great American Gardeners Award from the American Horticultural Society.
As President and Consulting Ecologist at Prairie Nursery and through his research, publications, and public engagement, Neil is a leading champion of the use of native plants in contemporary American landscapes. Co-authored with horticulturist, garden designer, botanist, and photographer Hilary Cox, his recent book, The Gardener’s Guide to Prairie Plants (University of Chicago Press, 2023), is a “comprehensive and beautifully illustrated reference for all gardeners passionate about native plants and prairie restoration.” Prof. Doug Tallamy (Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology, University of Delaware, and Co-Founder, Homegrown National Park) writes of it, “If you are looking for the complete—and I do mean complete—guide to prairie ecosystems, you will not do better than this much-needed book.” Dr. James Nardi (School of Integrative Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) writes “This exceptional guide to plants of the American prairies offers information about every feature of these native plants that a gardener might wish to know. […] With the information presented in this exhaustively researched guide, gardeners can restore some of the rich tapestry of prairie life that has been lost by conversion of the once vast native prairies to cropland.”
This lecture is made possible with support from the Terry Harkness “Plants in Design” Endowed Fund, a resource established and sustained by alumni and friends in honor of Terry Harkness’s extraordinary impact as a designer and educator in our department. The fund helps foreground planting design in our curriculum and events programming, including through an annual lecture.
If you require accessibility accommodation(s) to participate in any of our events, please contact our Office Administrator, Marti Gortner, by phone at 217-333-0176 or by email at ladept@illinois.edu.
For more information about this and other events in our Spring 2024 series, please contact Prof. David L. Hays.