Kevin Zuidervliet is owner and grower at Octoraro Native Plant Nursery, in Kirkwood, Pennsylvania. His diverse professional experience and passion for horticulture began while traveling and working on organic farms in Australia and New Zealand. He leveraged his skills in an AmeriCorps VISTA position managing a community garden. Kevin continued to hone his plant knowledge at Shaffer Landscapes, in Middleburg, Pennsylvania before earning a place in the Professional Horticulture Program at Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania. At Longwood, Kevin gained in-depth experience in woody plant propagation and management, later transitioning to a full-time Nursery horticulturist role.

Kevin has come full circle at Octoraro, where he is using his skill sets to create regional plant palettes for designers, ecologists, and others in the industry to maintain, enhance, and recreate lost habitats in the region.