NDA to host Native Seed Forum in Fallon on March 10

The Nevada Department of Agriculture (NDA) will host the fourth annual Native Seed Forum, which will bring producers, technical experts and land management agencies together to discuss statewide and national seed strategies to support land restoration efforts.

“This forum is part of the Nevada Native Seed Partnership, which has worked to increase availability of native grown seed for restoration projects,” Meghan Brown, Plant Industry division deputy administrator for the NDA, said. “The goal of the forum is to bring stakeholders together to address issues like seed production management and seed availability to help support rehabilitation efforts.”

Native seeds refer to plant seeds native to Nevada landscapes, cultivated in this climate. These seeds can acclimate to Nevada’s unique environment, increasing the plant’s chances of survival. The NDA supports the industry by providing wildland seed certification services and ensuring Nevada native seeds maintain purity and identity for use in land restoration efforts. These rehabilitation projects are completed by land management agencies or land owners in response to devastating land impacts from wildfires, invasive species, land development, among other activities that result in surface disturbance. Restoration efforts are critical to protecting wildlife habitat, supporting diverse land use, and in mitigating future wildfire impacts.

The Nevada Native Seed Forum is a full-day workshop and will be held on Tuesday, March 10, 2020 at the Churchill County Commission Chambers located at 155 North Taylor St. in Fallon, Nev.

The Nevada Native Seed Partnership includes representatives from public land management agencies, like the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service; natural resource agencies, like the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Nevada Department of Wildlife, the NDA, and the Nevada Department of Conservation and Natural Resources; and nonprofit restoration organizations like the Nature Conservancy and the Walker Basin Conservancy. The forum, which will include roundtable discussions and presentations, is open to anyone interested in restoration, including: federal land management agencies, state partners, current seed producers, potential seed producers, seed collectors, conservation groups and seed buyers.

To register, please email m.russell@agri.nv.gov.

The Nevada Department of Agriculture’s mission is to preserve, protect and promote Nevada’s agriculture. The department has 150 dedicated employees providing services in its five divisions, Administration, Animal Industry, Consumer Equitability, Food and Nutrition, and Plant Industry. The department’s $232 million budget facilitates regulatory and administrative work in agriculture and food manufacturing industries, protecting public and environmental health and worker safety, and providing food distribution and oversight for the United States Department of Agriculture’s school and community nutrition programs