Lupinus spp.

NATIVE SEED AND PLANT MATERIAL DEVELOPMENT 

There are many steps involved in developing a reliable, stable crop from wild collected species. Native plant materials, like agronomic crops, take an average of 10-20 years to develop as consistent, reliable commercially available species. Starting with native seed collection, the time and length of each step in the development process varies for each grass, forb, and shrub. Our goal is to facilitate this process and to increase capacity within Federal agencies and the private sector for ecologically appropriate native seed.

 
The native plant materials development cycle consists of seven steps, displayed here as circles connected by arrows. The first step is seed collection, followed by evaluation and development, then field establishment, seed production, seed certification and procurement, then seed storage, and finally restoration which circles back to seed collection.
The native plant materials development process.

Featured Videos

BLM Partners with Shoshone-Paiute Tribes to Grow Sagebrush and Native Plants.

Native Seeds: Supplying Restoration - Introduction. Watch the full video series here.

Native Forb Manual

Western Forbs: Biology, Ecology, and Use in Restoration is a developing online book containing information about the important ecological functions of forbs and guidelines to support their inclusion in vegetation and restoration. Read the Project Overview and Acknowledgements and current chapters: