Forrest Keeling Nursery to appear on Empowered with Meg Ryan

Founded in 1948, the Missouri nursery shifted industry standards by prioritizing native plants and specialized cultivation techniques. Under the leadership of President Kim Lovelace, the company produces over 1.5 million native seedlings annually, utilizing its patented Root Production Method (RPM) to ensure survival in challenging environments. The nursery’s approach treats vegetation as living infrastructure, capable of stabilizing streambanks and improving water quality long after the initial planting phase.

This methodology gained prominence following the Mississippi and Missouri River floods of the early 1990s, when then-CEO Wayne Lovelace identified the need for more fibrous, resilient root systems in restoration projects. Since then, the nursery has contributed to high-profile recovery efforts, including work following Hurricane Katrina and the 2025 St. Louis tornado. By focusing on long-term performance rather than seasonal aesthetics, the organization continues to influence urban forestry, agroforestry, and wetland mitigation across the country. The upcoming feature on Empowered will highlight how these decades of research translate into tangible environmental outcomes, reinforcing the company's core philosophy that sustainable landscapes should be designed to endure for generations.