Chicks in Horticulture Brunch

goes LOCAL with a Panel of Long Island Horticulturalists! 

Our Local Line-Up Includes:

Melissa Carvalho - Organically Green - Arborist, Plant Healthcare Specialist

 Melissa gained her love of plants from her mother, who from an early age taught her all aspects of gardening . She worked as a retail manager for eight years before deciding to change careers and pursue her love of plants. She attended Farmingdale State College and holds a degree in Ornamental Horticulture.

For the last ten years she has worked as a certified arborist and plant healthcare manager for Organically Green and as of 2017 became a minority owner. She is also a CNLP and a NYS certified pesticide applicator.

Corey Hennessey - Landcraft Environments, LTD - Office manager, Co-Manager of Production

Corey Hennessey is a native “Northforker” from the East End of Long Island where she currently co-manages ornamental greenhouse production/sales and  dabbles in horticultural design/maintenance at Landcraft Environments, Ltd. in Mattituck, NY. In addition to her current position at Landcraft, she is also studying sustainable agriculture at The Friedman School at Tufts University, and is in the development stages of an interdisciplinary research project involving the future of agriculture on eastern Long Island, in the wake of shifting demographics and ever-increasing spatial and economic pressures.

In her spare time, Corey enjoys music, hobby cheese-making, organic vegetable gardening and tending to the various critters in her charge (a dog, some chinchillas, chickens, llamas and her wonderfully supportive boyfriend, Rob…) 

Michelle Madonna - Michelle Madonna Designs - Landscape Architect

Michelle Madonna is the Principal Landscape Architect of Michelle Madonna Design which she launched in 2016. Her lifelong passion for garden design propelled her to study horticulture at SUNY Farmingdale in New York in 2002. She then received her Bachelor’s degree in Landscape Architecture at SUNY ESF in Syracuse in 2007. 

After college, Michelle began her career as a professional at a design/build firm on the north shore of Long Island where she acquired experience in design, construction and project management. She then took a role at a landscape architecture firm in the Hamptons where she expanded her knowledge of coastal environments and sensitive ecosystems, resulting in a profound understanding of ecology in design. Michelle is currently designing beautiful landscapes in the the Hamptons and the New York Metropolitan area. 

Melissa Walker Dorcinvil - Vaughan's Horticulture - Sales representative

After Graduating from the University of Delaware with a BS in Agriculture, Melissa chose to apply that knowledge to horticulture. Joining the team at Bayport Flower Houses in 1999 she was head Grower until 2017. During that time she served as president of the Long Island Flower Growers Association from 2011 - 2013, and expressed her dedication to the industry in a leadership role. Currently Melissa is a Sales Representative for Vaughan’s Horticulture with a new role and a new way to support horticulture.

Maura McGoldrick Brush - Old Westbury Gardens - Director of Horticulture

Maura Brush is the Director of Horticulture for Old Westbury Gardens, where she has been on the staff for almost twenty years. Maura is originally from Long Island but received her B.S. in Landscape Horticulture from the University of Maine. She lectures extensively on the topic of Historic Landscape Preservation, which she has gained much experience in through the various restoration projects that she has undertaken at Old Westbury Gardens.

Maura and her husband are both horticulturists and spend most of their free time gardening or visiting gardens with their three children.