Lawrence Ray Heckard (1923–1991) was an American botanist and curator of the Jepson Herbarium.
[1] Heckard was born in Long Beach, Washington on April 9, 1923.
After serving in World War II, he earned his bachelor's degree in horticulture at Oregon State College in 1948.
While at UC Berkeley, Heckard met his life partner Paul Silva.
[2] In 1960, Heckard was named assistant curator at the Jepson Herbarium.