SWC joined forces with the Tri-County Conservationists Saturday morning to participate in a seed-cleaning workshop at the NC Botanical Garden in Chapel Hill. We first had a terrific orientation to the mission and operations of the lab by Conservation Grower Ali Touloupas, followed by hands-on use of various equipment and devices to separate the seeds of five different native plants they are helping to propagate in the NC Piedmont. We then toured the rest of the facility, including a freezer for long-term storage of carefully sealed and frozen seeds from a wide variety of plants under conservation, as well as dry storage in a climate-controlled room.
The coolest equipment was the “seed blower,” which takes seed mixed with other plant matter that is poured into a funnel and gently blows it through tubes to separate it all into two different containers. I have to admit, though, that my personal favorite was whacking a big bag of Rattlesnake master in a heavy bag with a tennis racket to shake the seeds loose! Other techniques involved finer motor skills, picking seeds out one-by-one from grass stalks and milkweed “fluff,” as well as sifting though screens.
Seeds we cleaned included:
- Eryngium yuccifolium – Rattlesnake master
- Chrysopsis mariana – Golden aster
- Gonolobus suberosus – Anglepod milkvine
- Anatherum gyrans – Bluestem
- Lespedeza hirta – Hairy bush clover, which is native (not the highly-invasive Lespedeza cuneata!)
It was super fun, and we appreciate the important work done there on behalf of conservation in our Piedmont region. Be sure to visit sometime, enjoy the gardens, and check out the lab for yourself!
South Wake Conservationists 