Seeds of Success

Planning of Seed Collections

State and ecoregional botanists create lists of target species for the crews. Species of high value to restoration projects, species at risk of being disrupted by flooding, wildfire, or climate change, and species representative of key ecological communities are selected. 

Some crews go to great lengths to make seed collections - such as in Alaska where helicopters are used to reach remote plant populations.

Scouting

Before going into the field, teams explore historic collection and scouting points for potential populations of interest. Crews extensively plan in the office as they will likely be out of service for the duration of their trip. Crews scout for potential collection populations an average of five times per seed collection.

Herbarium vouchers are collected for verification and sent to the U.S. National Herbarium at the Smithsonian.

Seed Collection

When seed is ready, a collection of a minimum of 3,000 pure live seeds, is made. Here we see crews in Oregon (OR130) and California (CA180) collecting seed, respectively. In addition to seed collection, crews record vital habitat, location, and plant community data.

Data Collection

Crews collect important ecological, spatial, and temporal data to inform management of future restoration projects and seed collections.

In 2022, data collection methods were streamlined using tablets, Geoplatform (similar to ArcGIS Online), ESRI Field Maps, and ESRI Survey123. This allowed for real time quality control of data. The SOS National Coordinating Office creates and manages the digital data collection infrastructure.

Good data is the key to good collections!

Seed Cleaning and Storage

Before seed can be used it must be extracted, cleaned, and tested. Seed is cleaned by machines that utilize screens, air, and motion to physically separate seed and non-seed material. Organizations across the country like the USDA-Forest Service Bend Seed Extractory, Alaska Plant Materials Center, and others preform these tasks for many government agencies.

The first 3,000 seeds in a collection are put in long term storage and the remaining collection is stored at special facilities until it is needed. 

Long Term Storage

Long term seed storage is split between two USDA-ARS locations, the Plant Germplasm Introduction Testing and Research Unit (PGITRU) in Pullman, Washington, and the National Laboratory for Genetic Resources Preservation (NLGRP) in Fort Collins, Colorado.

PGITRU maintains both long-term and working collections for distribution through  GRIN-Global  (Germplasm Resource Information Network). Accessions are stored here in 4⁰C. PGITRU has partnered with the BLM and other Plant Conservation Alliance members for collection and conservation of native plant species in the United States.

Long Term Storage

NLGRP manages long-term collections that are stored at -20⁰C.

Research

SOS data has been used to understand native plant genetics and to evaluate how natural communities are changing.

The largest and most comprehensive study using SOS data was performed by Barga et al. in 2020:  Seeds of Success: A conservation and restoration investment in the future of U.S. lands .

Restoration

In New Mexico, the BLM partnered with the Los Lunas Plant Materials Center to use Seeds of Success seed collections to grow out container plants of Sand Bluestem (Andropogon hallii). The plugs were then used in the Culp Restoration Project to re-establish native vegetation on abandoned oil well pads to benefit lesser prairie chickens, a listed species under the Endangered Species Act. The work was completed by BLM Staff, interns from the Chicago Botanic Garden’s Conservation and Land Management Internship Program, and LLPMC Staff. Monitoring is being done to test plant establishment success in the harsh site conditions and climate of the semi-desert habitat of the project.