We are driven by a passion for habitat restoration—transforming landscapes into thriving ecosystems by removing invasive species, reintroducing native plants, and rebuilding natural food webs. Our work is rooted in science and guided by nature, creating environments that are not only beautiful, but alive, resilient, and deeply connected to the local ecosystem.
Frank Piccininni is a biologist, environmental attorney, and passionate environmentalist who is dedicated to restoring functional habitat to our human-impacted landscape. Frank received his J.D. from Hofstra University School of Law, his M.S. in Biological Sciences from Marshall University, and his B.S. in Wildlife and Fisheries Conservation from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.
As a Partner and Co-Founder at SMPIL Consulting, Ltd., Frank provides expert testimony for community and advocacy groups. Frank also collaborates with real estate developers to inform their land use decisions with sustainable design and empirical data. Additionally, Frank Piccininni conducts research projects to further the understanding of local environmental issues and the efficacy of potential interventions.
Informed by his field research in ecology, Frank founded Spadefoot Ecosystem Solutions. Through Spadefoot, habitat restoration services are offered to private, public, and commercial clients. Although its menu of services is continually expanding, Spadefoot specializes in invasive species identification and removal, ecological restoration, construction of green stormwater infrastructure (e.g., bioswales and rain gardens), and adaptive management.
As a fervent advocate of local environmental stewardship, Frank sits on the Board of Directors and is the Chair of the Habitat Restoration Committee for Save The Great South Bay. Frank is Co-Chair of the Land Use Committee of the Environmental Law Section of the New York State Bar Association. Furthermore, as the Regional Co-Director of the American Chestnut Foundation he works to establish mother orchards across Long Island to breed blight-resistant Chestnut trees. Frank has several peer-reviewed publications, and he is a member of the editorial advisory board of the Environmental Claims Journal. Most importantly, as a native Long Islander and father, Frank aspires to bring back the health of this beautiful island for the prosperity and enjoyment of future generations!
Marshall Brown is Co-Founder and Principal at Spadefoot Ecosystem Solutions, Long Island’s premier native planting and ecological restoration company. Spadefoot leads the region in invasive species removal and native habitat installation, and is the exclusive New York licensee of EnBiorganic Technologies — a breakthrough platform applying microbiology to wastewater, impaired lakes and ponds, agricultural sludge, groundwater pollution, and other industrial challenges. Under Marshall’s leadership, Spadefoot brings together field craft, microbial science, and community engagement to restore Long Island’s land and water.
Marshall has spent more than 25 years at the intersection of technology, business development, and social entrepreneurship. He began his career in New York’s Silicon Alley, helping early internet and civic-tech startups build tools that served the public good. In the 2000s, he helped pioneer New York City’s public Wi-Fi movement, bringing free wireless access to parks across four boroughs — including Times Square and Union Square. He later founded and led Save the Great South Bay, growing it into a 15,000-member nonprofit that united scientists and residents around protecting Long Island’s waterways and ecosystems.
In 2021, Marshall co-founded The Long Island Conservancy, a nonprofit dedicated to community-driven habitat restoration and local land stewardship, where he is board president. Spadefoot is the operational arm of that same conviction: that lasting environmental change begins in local soil, local water, and local hands.
Marshall holds an MA in English from the University of Chicago and a BA from Dartmouth College, and was a Teaching Fellow at Harvard for five years. He has since completed two MIT Media Lab certifications — Digital Transformation and Beyond Smart Cities — along with an urban forestry certificate from Cornell Cooperative Extension of Nassau County. He writes on biodiversity, native planting, and civic engagement through nature.
In 2023, he was the inaugural recipient of The John G. Kemeny Award, given to those who have helped make the world a better place, by his class at Dartmouth. In 2025, he was given The LI Herald Green Business Award for Environmental Tech Innovation.
Our Senior Construction Lead is a seasoned landscape construction professional with over 39 years of experience delivering complex, large-scale projects across New York. His expertise spans heavy landscape construction, engineered soil systems, and stormwater management, with a career rooted in both field execution and technical problem-solving.
Throughout his work in New York City, he has been responsible for the construction and implementation of high-performance landscapes in some of the region’s most demanding urban environments. His experience includes grading and drainage infrastructure, installation of engineered soils for structural and ecological function, and the integration of stormwater management systems designed to meet rigorous regulatory and performance standards.
Known for his practical knowledge and precision in the field, our Senior Construction Lead bridges the gap between design intent and real-world construction. He brings a deep understanding of how landscapes function as systems—ensuring that projects are not only built to specification, but perform over time.
His decades of experience make him a critical asset in delivering resilient, technically sound, and constructible landscapes.
Spadefoot Ecosystem Solutions was founded by field biologists to bring science back into landscaping. Every project is grounded in ecological research, creating healthier, more resilient landscapes across Long Island.
More than 100 years of combined field experience in ecological restoration, native planting, stormwater management, and invasive species control. Project experience ranges from site-scale habitat restoration, stormwater management to complex coastal and bluff reconstruction requiring integrated design and construction execution.
Led by Frank Piccininni, an environmental attorney and biologist with deep experience in complex permitting, regulatory strategy, and agency coordination. Active leadership in regional policy initiatives.
Applied ecological research informs all projects, including contributions to regional native planting best management practices and ongoing development of field-based frameworks for ecological restoration and system dynamics. Work emphasizes translating ecological theory into constructible, defensible designs.
Hands-on construction capability with extensive experience in grading, stormwater systems, and coastal/bluff stabilization. Ability to implement restoration projects that meet both engineering requirements and ecological performance goals.
Certified erosion and sediment control specialists on staff, with expertise in stormwater compliance, site stabilization, and regulatory adherence throughout construction.
Regional licensee for EnBiomatic, a patented Bacillus-based bioaugmentation technology used to enhance biological treatment processes, reduce biosolids, and improve water quality in environmental and engineered systems.
“We believe restoration is not the reversal of damage, it is the creation of conditions in which life can do its own work again.”
Driven by a passion for nature, Spadefoot specializes in habitat restoration—recreating local biomes across residential, public, and commercial spaces. Our mission is to restore native plant systems by carefully analyzing soil, light, moisture, and site conditions to select and arrange the most suitable species.
We begin every project with a detailed property inventory—identifying native, non-native, and invasive elements—to guide what is removed, preserved, and introduced. Working alongside leading habitat restoration experts, we apply the latest ecological techniques to rebuild resilient ecosystems, including efforts to reintroduce key native species and reconnect communities with nature.
Spadefoot started from a simple place: a real obsession with how ecosystems actually work—and how badly we’ve broken them. Frank, our founder, studied Wildlife and Fisheries Conservation as an undergrad and earned a Master of Biological Science focused on conservation in human-impacted landscapes. He later went on to a PhD program in Interdisciplinary Ecology, completing all but the dissertation, with research centered on how systems respond to disturbance and constraint.
That background shows up in everything we do. This isn’t theoretical—it’s grounded in field ecology and real-world conditions.
The name “Spadefoot” comes out of that same work. During his graduate research, Frank encountered populations of the spadefoot toad—an animal that only shows up when conditions are exactly right, then disappears again. That idea stuck: if you build the system correctly, the right things come back.
Our work helps restore natural landscapes while supporting healthy ecosystems. Through sustainable solutions and native plants, we create spaces that benefit both wildlife and the communities around them.
Spadefoot completely transformed our backyard. They removed all the invasive plants and replaced them with beautiful native species.
Spadefoot completely transformed our backyard. They removed all the invasive plants and replaced them with beautiful native species.
Spadefoot completely transformed our backyard. They removed all the invasive plants and replaced them with beautiful native species.
If most of your yard is dominated by a few aggressive, fast-spreading plants—especially ones forming dense patches or climbing over everything—you’re likely dealing with invasives rather than a functioning plant community.
The quickest way to confirm is to take clear photos and compare them to regional invasive species lists from New York State Department of Environmental Conservation or iNaturalist, or send us a picture at Spadefoot, we’re happy to help you ID it.
Stormwater management is about keeping rain where it falls and putting it to work instead of sending it off your property as runoff. When you slow it down, let it soak into the soil, and store it in the landscape, that water becomes an asset—recharging groundwater, supporting plant communities, and reducing flooding and pollution downstream.
At the site scale, this means shaping land to hold water, rebuilding soils that can absorb it, and planting systems that actually use it. It’s simple in concept but powerful in effect: if every property holds onto even a portion of its rainfall, the cumulative impact is massive—less strain on infrastructure, cleaner water, and landscapes that function the way they’re supposed to.
Every property has the potential to support life and contribute to a healthier ecosystem. By choosing native, nature-based solutions, you’re not just improving your landscape—you’re helping restore balance to the environment.
Let’s work together to create a space that is alive, resilient, and built for the future.
