Native Plants

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Monday - August 09, 2004
From: Toronto, ON
Region: Canada
Topic: Seeds and Seeding
Title: Smarty Plants on seed harvesting
Answered by: Stephen Brueggerhoff
QUESTION:
I am interested in learning more about harvesting native seeds. I manage a number of sites where restoration projects will involve planting, and we would like to use native seed stocks. Could you tell me where I might obtain information on when to harvest, how much, which species, etc.?ANSWER:
As part of our national service, we provide timely articles and information to our patrons through our Native Plant Information Network's Native Plant Library. We do provide an article that is PDF formatted that you can download, covering seed harvesting, issues of stages of maturation, preparation & storage. I want you to keep in mind that the information provided is general, and not specific to plant species. And finally, I would suggest getting in touch with the good folks at the North American Native Plant Society out of Ontario for specific plant seed harvesting info.
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