Native Plants
Restoration
Salmon Valley Stewardship’s Native Plant Program focuses on generating locally adapted plant materials and increasing regional capacity in any part of the restoration supply chain. Healthy and biodiverse native plant communities are critical to the resilience of the incredible natural resources of East-Central Idaho, and the Native Plant Program’s goal is to be a catalyst for increasing the quality and scale of native plant restoration efforts in the region. Learn more below, including how to get involved as a partner, researcher, or local grower.
The Challenge
The rugged canyons, high-desert valleys, and towering mountain ranges of East-Central Idaho swirl together into an ecologically unique and biodiverse landscape. However, current threats and past misuses have chipped away at the integrity of these ecosystems, which now stand vulnerable to further degradation and conversion. In addition to reevaluating how to use and manage this special land in light of vexing threats like invasive species, changing climates, and overuse, it is increasingly important to know where and when native plant communities might need a boost to handle these threats.
Consistent success in native plant restoration in the drier parts of the Western US has been hard to come by in the past century. Ecosystem complexity, the low frequency of “good years” for seeds to establish, and the consistent challenge of obtaining good seeds and plants all results in a truly uphill battle for restorationists.
Regionally adapted plant materials with high genetic diversity are the most likely to provide long-term success but can be difficult to obtain, especially in larger quantities. For regions with smaller restoration needs, costly hand-collection of wild seeds or cuttings can satisfy demand, but only if collected and processed correctly. For regions with larger needs, farmers have long been involved in growing native plants as crops to produce larger quantities of seed. If done carefully, locally adapted seed collections can be farmed to increase seed quantities, but farmers more often choose non-local varieties genetically selected to be easier to grow, more productive, and easier to sell to agencies with lowest-bid purchasing protocols. These more general varieties might be the right price but often do not have the right genetic diversity or adaptations to thrive on specific or difficult sites.
The result is that many regions across the west have few available commercial seed sources for only a few species that are genetically appropriate, and hand collection efforts are either nonexistent or small and isolated.
Creating Solutions
before it's too late.
For East-Central Idaho, real and pressing threats are creeping into a vast landscape of habitats that were once more resistant and resilient to degradation than they are now. It’s not too late to build a robust and targeted seed-sourcing and restoration infrastructure, rooted in rural economic livelihoods, to meet these complex challenges with equally complex efforts. The Native Plants Program seeks to do just that, by working to become a trusted go-to partner in the complex process of getting the right seed in the right place at the right time.
The Program was initiated with a 5-year agreement between the Salmon-Challis National Forest and SVS that grew out of consistent conversations within the East-Central Idaho Native Plant Communities Work Group. Now, it strives to bring specialized expertise and a flexible workforce into formal agreements with local management agencies and other practitioners who are equally invested in conserving this remarkable place from the ground up.
How We Work
balancing pragmatism with openness.
While only the best laid plans are likely to give the most consistent success, effective restoration is notoriously hit and miss, and the NPP confronts this reality with a pragmatic approach that embraces the high likelihood of at least partial failure. The Program encourages using multiple methods and trying multiple times, strategically concentrating limited effort, and does not promise or assume immediate success. Combined with enough monitoring to spot important trends in success, this approach respects the complexity and challenge involved in restoration while still prioritizing meaningful outcomes.
There are no silver bullets in restoring native plants to semi-arid ecosystems. All methods have their strengths and limitations. The Native Plant Program recognizes the importance of being open to change and different perspectives, whether it’s revisiting age-old and long-forgotten methods or trying new and innovative ideas. The NPP follows existing and emerging best-practices and is open to trying new things when the evidence suggests it could make a difference.
What We Do
improving seed availability and restoration quality.
Currently, the Native Plants Program performs a variety of technical activities to serve its existing agreements, as well as planning and coordination to help set the stage for engaging with additional partners.
The Native Plants Program has an active and fully integrated wild seed collection process, from scouting and mapping populations to collecting, cleaning and storing seed. For a growing number of projects, the Program is also involved in restoration planning and implementation, including site assessment, seed mix design, and hand-seeding. Additionally, Salmon Valley Stewardship’s focus on community outreach and education bleeds through into the Native Plants Program in the form of plant-focused educational curriculums, demonstrations, and events throughout the year. Learn more about our current work here...
Wild Seed Collection
With the aim of providing locally adapted seed to restoration efforts on the Salmon-Challis National Forest, the NPP must first scout, map, and monitor populations across hundreds of local sites to know when and where to collect. Seed collection utilizes Program and partner staff, seasonal SVS technicians, and volunteers. Strict collection protocols avoid overharvesting and ensure an appropriate amount of genetic diversity is captured. The NPP’s list of target species is extensive, incorporating both early and late season forbs and grasses, as well as foundational shrubs. With each year of collecting, the NPP builds its database of local plant populations and deepens its knowledge of the local flora. To date, over 100 species have been collected.
Seed Cleaning
Quality restoration needs quality seed. Proper seed cleaning is required to ensure seed is dry, free of debris and weed seeds, viable, and still contains high genetic diversity. The program employs specialized and custom-built seed cleaning equipment in a dedicated facility to accomplish this task, constantly gaining know-how in dealing with a wide variety of seed types, some of which can be very tricky to clean. The workshop is also equipped with professional-grade seed dying and storage equipment to make sure seed collections remain safe and stable until they return to the landscape.
Restoration Planning & Implementation
Native plant restoration efforts should be custom-made. The Program strives to work with partner organizations to identify sites and needs, then intentionally design restoration methods, seed mixes, and timelines while keeping key practical limitations in mind. Comprehensive restoration plans must consider past and future history and disturbance and the current plant community of the site, and also pay attention to minimizing negative interactions between species in the mix while maximizing possible benefits to wildlife and pollinators by including a range of plant types and flowering times. The Native Plants Program is only just beginning to provide this depth of planning for certain sites but endeavors to expand this component as the program grows.
Where We're Going
and how you can help.
There is momentum across the country in forming regional Native Seed Partnerships to connect and energize the various components and skillsets needed to create and implement successful restoration, from seed collectors and growers to certifying agencies to federal, state, and private organizations tasked with getting plants back on the ground. In line with this, the Native Plants Program is looking to grow its engagement with others involved in restoration in the region, and wants to be a valuable and flexible partner for getting quality restoration work planned and accomplished.
Want to get involved?
Are you personally or professionally involved in – or in need of – native plant restoration in East-Central Idaho? We’d love to learn from you and explore opportunities for the Native Plants Program to connect with your work.
If you are a researcher capable of using some of our seeds to produce applied findings, read our request of research involvement and contact us.
The NPP is seeking volunteers interested in being our boots on the ground when large seed collection or manual restoration events need a boost.
If you are a local grower hoping to grow more local varieties for seed or transplants to meet local demands for native plants read our request for grower involvement.
For anyone else, contact us at the button below or stop by the SVS Office at 107 S Center St. In Salmon, Idaho. We'd love to hear from you.
Do you still want to learn more about what we do and what we've done so far?? Take a look at our annual reports!
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2024 Annual Report
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2023 Annual Report