b'Reclamation Demand for Native Seed Evolving, But Work NeededPublic agencies have a role to play in building, growing the supply.Peter MithamTHE BREADTH ANDseverity ofneither adapted to the environment wildfires have increased in recentwhere it was sown nor the kind of species years, with each year raising concernsnative to the location.that old records will be broken and newThe National Academies report found records set.that government agencies frequently Canada experienced its worst wild- substitute non-native varieties or native fire season on record in 2023, with firesseeds sourced from climatically different raging from coast to coast, many in areasenvironments when locally adapted seed that have not experienced them for dec- isnt available, at a rate of about 42%.ades. In the U.S, wildfires scorched Maui,While the U.S. Department of Hawaii and its historic town of Lahaina,the Interior and U.S. Department of killing dozens in a landscape that hadntAgriculture were charged in 2002 with evolved to cope with the destruction. developing a plan for a native seed Common elements of prolonged drysupply, a succession of devastating wild-conditions and human factors contrib- fire seasons has dramatically increased uted to the spread, as well as wildlanddemand. In 2002, the five-year average management practices that have typicallyfor wildfires was five million acres burned; focused on fire suppression rather thanin 2022, it was more than 7.6 million acres.co-existence and management. But evenThe demand coincides with rising in managed landscapes, where pre- interest and research into the advantages scribed burns reduce the risk of quicklyof locally adapted seed across horticul-spreading, catastrophic fires becomingtural sectors.deadly interface fires, reclamation effortsWe have lots of grass that can be are necessary to ensure vegetation growsplanted all over the place, and now were back to create a healthier, more resilientworking on forbs, and we also need things landscape. that flower in the spring, says Beth Leger, Traditionally, seed used for recla- University of Nevada-Reno Department of mation was a standard mix of grasses,Biology researcher and foundation profes-mass-produced to fill orders from thesor and a member of the committee that Bureau of Land Management (BLM). BLMoversaw the National Academies report. is the largest single buyer of seed in theWere really at a point where the market Western Hemisphere, ordering 1.5 millionis developing in a more specialized way, pounds of seed for wildfire reclama- which is an opportunity for local grow-tion efforts in 2020 alone, according toers to provide that stuff that people really estimates the National Academies ofcant get on the broad scale.Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine pub- Legers focus is plant populations lished in January 2023. rather than specific individuals within the However, mass production meantpopulation, a different focus from other reseeding depended on seed that washorticultural sectors. Rather than focus-10/ SEEDWORLD.COMFEBRUARY 2024'