Who We Are
The Long Island Native Plant Initiative (LINPI) is an all-volunteer cooperative effort of over 30 non-profit organizations, governmental agencies, nursery professionals, and citizens.
Mission
LINPI strives to preserve Long Island's biodiversity by cultivating ethically sourced ecotypic plants to ensure commercial availability of native plants for nurseries, communities, and habitat restorations.
We fuel the native plant supply by driving demand through volunteer efforts, education, and outreach programs.
Our Goals
the SOURCE
Establish a commercial source of ecotypic seed for native plant production
SEED BANKING
Contribute to and manage a regional seed bank
Guiding the way
Foster a demand for native plants through education and outreach with the community
“Bridging the gap, by going to seed.”
Polly Weigand | Founder
Why Native Plants?
Native Plants are:
Ecologically beneficial (pollination, food source, shelter)
Promote biodiversity
More resilient than exotic species to disease, climate
Require fewer resources like water, soil amendments, and fertilizer
Ecotypic Natives - How Native is Native?
Long Island’s ecoregion is 59 and 84, shared by parts of NJ, CT, and MA.
Ecotypic natives are organisms native to our ecoregion, as defined by the EPA. Ecoregions are areas where ecosystems (and the type, quality, and quantity of environmental resources are generally similar (source).
Ecotypic native plants are best adapted to our:
Climate - Seasonality, Weather, Temperature
Unique Environmental Stressors - Coastal, Drought, Soils, Fire Tolerance
Most resistant to Pests and Disease
Best Pollination & Food Sources to our indigenous fauna
Best at Competition = Resilient to Invasive Species
Support Symbiotic Relationships with other species