Southeastern Grasslands Initiative’s Conservation Seed Bank: Leveraging the capacity to advance rare plant conservation efforts in the region

The Southeastern Grasslands Initiative (SGI), based out of Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, TN works to conserve, restore, and promote native grasslands of all types throughout a 24 state region. Earlier this year, SGI joined the CPC as a Participating Institution (PI) due to its growing efforts in in situ and ex situ rare […]

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Florida’s Key Tree Cacti (Pilosocereus robinii and Pilosocereus millspaughii): Charismatic Megaflora at the Forefront of Sea Level Rise

Dense stands of columnar ‘tree cacti’ similar to those in the Greater Antilles were once found in the Florida Keys, but harvesting, habitat loss, damage from mammals, climate change, and sea level rise led to a population crash that landed the cactus on the US endangered species list in 1984.  Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden’s conservation […]

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Bringing Back a Fugitive

Seabeach amaranth (Amaranthus pumilus) is a federally threatened, fugitive annual species found on barrier islands off Atlantic coast from South Carolina to Massachusetts. Beginning in the 1980s, the North Carolina Botanical Garden (NCBG) has worked to secure ex situ seed collections. Surveys for seabeach amaranth conducted in the late 1990s returned counts of >200,000 individuals […]

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Integrated Plant Conservation Through the Lens of Time

For over three decades, the Missouri Botanical Garden has spearheaded an integrated conservation program with state and federal partners to improve conservation outcomes with the federally endangered wildflower, Pyne’s ground-plum (Astragalus bibullatus). Here, I highlight three key programmatic milestones critical to the successful recovery of this species. First, seed collections made over three decades from […]

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Increasing Seed for Restoration of Rare Annuals

Screenshot of Mike Kunz video

Michael Kunz, North Carolina Botanical Garden Populations of rare plants can fail to produce enough, or any, seed to support reintroduction efforts. This is particularly true for rapidly declining or recently extirpated species or populations. One solution to this problem is to increase the number of seeds through ex situ propagation and seed collection. Amaranthus pumilus is a federally endangered […]

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Restoration work helps preserve Lakela’s Mint

Screenshot from Restoration work helps preserve Lakela's Mint video

Cheryl Peterson, Bok Tower Gardens Dicerandra immaculata var. immaculata (Lakela’s Mint) (Lamiaceae) is a short-lived perennial endemic to the Atlantic Coastal Ridge. It has only a three-mile historical range and few remaining populations. Population modeling predicts near complete loss of plants within eight years unless habitat is improved enough to support large enough populations to withstand stressful events such […]

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Alpine Plants and Seed Collection

Screenshot of Alex Seglias video

Alexandra Seglias (Denver Botanic Gardens), Nicola Ripley (Betty Ford Alpine Gardens), Brittany Roberts Marshall (Betty Ford Alpine Gardens) Alpine ecosystems are particularly vulnerable to climate change. The Denver Botanic Gardens are seeking to protect rare species from these regions, banking seeds from multiple Alpine populations by maternal line. However, collecting seed from these remote areas […]

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Identifying Drivers of Orchid Population Dynamics: An Example in the Federally-Listed Threatened Orchid, Isotria medeoloides

Screenshot of Identifying Drivers of Orchid Population Dynamics video.

Melissa K. McCormick, Dennis F. Whigham, Rachel Rock-Blake, Hope E.A. Brooks North American Orchid Conservation Center (NAOCC) and Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC) Orchids are widely threatened and endangered worldwide, but efforts to conserve and restore them has been limited by not knowing about the pollinators and fungi they need to grow and reproduce. The […]

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Citizen Scientist-led Efforts to Save a Species: Safeguarding the Running Glade Clover, Trifolium calcaricum

Screenshot of Citizen Scientist-led Efforts to Save a Species video

Margi Hunter, Tennessee Naturalist Program, Cooper Breeden, Southeastern Grasslands Initiative, Austin Peay State University, Tennessee Plant Conservation Alliance The lack of funding and resources necessary to conserve many of our most imperiled species and communities is a ubiquitous problem. In the absence of traditional support, more grassroots and citizen-led efforts are essential to ensure the survival […]

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How to Conduct a Plant Reintroduction with the Help of Volunteers

Screenshot of How to Conduct a Plant Reintroduction with the Help of Volunteers video

Seana Walsh, National Tropical Botanical Garden When conducting plant reintroductions with the help of volunteers it is useful to do a measure of advance planning. Considerations might include such items as taking into account how many volunteers are attending and making sure that there are enough tools and gloves available. It is important to be certain […]

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