Obtaining Plants and Seeds for Restoration Practitioners
Kara Barron1, Steve Plath1
1 Gila Watershed Partnership, Safford, Arizona, USA; kara@gwpaz.org
Obtaining appropriate and diversified plant and seed materials for ecological restoration has been problematic for restoration practitioners for decades. The likelihood of finding the necessary genotypic plants in quantities desired are remote at best. Finding growers that have the knowledge and facilities to grow out material is equally as challenging. Nevertheless, proper planning and lead time can allow willing growers to adequately fulfill orders on a contract-grow basis. Discussion will focus on pitfalls to avoid with growers, working with growers to choose the right species, container types and revegetation methodologies for a given project and how to decide when to seed and/or plant from containers.