Francesca's Biography

Leading the BRN Native Plant Nursery and co-managing the Native Plant Materials Program, Francesca hails from an alfalfa farm in Calexico, CA where her family has strong roots on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border. She started working with native plants at the UC Davis Arboretum while in college and after graduating with degrees in Native American Studies and International Agricultural Development continued as a manager, assisting with propagation research and organizing plant sales. In 2013 she moved to Patagonia for an internship with Native Seeds/SEARCH and shortly after started managing the nursery for Borderlands Restoration. Francesca is passionate about increasing accessibility and enthusiasm for native plants, and promoting partnerships between nurseries and plant programs on both sides of the border. She serves on boards of the Patagonia Regional Times, the Sweetwater Center in Cascabel, AZ and the Arizona Native Plant Society.