Across the sweeping landscapes of the Great Basin, the Great Basin Institute’s Seeds of Success (SOS) Program is in full swing this summer. SOS crews are out collecting native seeds from wildlands for critical restoration projects, including areas devastated by wildfire. Within the Bureau of Land Management’s Native Plant Materials Development program, SOS is the first step in a much larger process that supports land managers and researchers in restoring ecosystems. In this vital work, Native Seed Program Technicians like Suzzy Bledsoe and Oscar Hernandez are out everyday tracking plant phenology, collecting data, performing seed viability tests and harvesting seeds sustainably by hand.
Suzzy, from Reno, NV, didn’t originally plan to work in environmental conservation. “I got into environmental work as a biochem major studying for med school, ” she said. After school she took a work visa to Australia and ended up spending 13 months between Bali and India. “I wasn’t sure about college or science- related work. I was tired of not learning in a classroom.” That time away helped her find way back to science. “Eventually I found my way towards general biology, and studied biology with an emphasis in desert and montane ecosystems.”
Oscar, also a Native Seed Program Technician, came into this work from Fort Bragg, California. Similar to Suzzy, his academic background is in general biology, but with a specific spark. “I loved it a lot and found it interesting. I worked at a plant evolutionary genetics lab on campus, where I got to experience plants and field work. Getting to go out and collect nectar for genetic analysis was super fun.” That hands-on experience helped him realize he could combine biology with his love for the outdoors. “I interned for the forest service and got interviews with people involved in SOS. Everyone I talked to highly recommended joining SOS.”
Now both Oscar and Suzzy are spending their summer traveling through and around Nevada’s varied terrain in search of viable native seed populations. The process is precise, each day begins with breakfast, scouting and identifying populations of priority species, tracking their development, lunch, and then determining whether the seeds are ready to collect. Ceana Olson, GBI’s SOS Collection Coordinator, explains, “Every day a crew collects, they must first calculate the estimated seed viability of their target population. That is, the ratio of live viable seeds to empty, dead, or damaged seeds. [Some of the photos show the crew performing a cut test]. This is done by taking a representative random sample of seeds and performing a “cut test“ on each seed to assess whether a healthy endosperm is present. Collectors can then use this ratio to help calculate the number of “pure live seed“ in each collection. Once seed is collected and bagged, it is treated to remove any insects or pests before being sent to a processing facility. From there, the seed is sent to seed banks, growers for increased and operational use, and storage for project use.”
This season, millions of acres of sage brush habitat continue to face threats from shifting fire regimes and increased wildfire intensity, the seeds collected by GBI’s SOS crews are more important than ever. Native plant materials are in short supply and the demand for locally adapted, genetically diverse seeds is growing. The work Suzzy, Oscar, Ceana and other crews are doing is critical to the beginning of the restoration process.
