[APWG] Get a truckload of money together money together!

[Craig Dremann]

> William C. Stringer
> Forage Agronomist &
> Native Plant Enthusiast
> Clemson University
> 
> Entomology, Soils and Plant Science
> 279 P&AS Bldg
> PO Box 0315
> Clemson, SC  29634
> 
> 864 656 3527  Voice
> 864 656 3443  FAX

Dear Bill and All,

============================

Bill Stringer wrote:
> 
> One of our first priorities should be to develop economically viable
> sources of seed of most native species (locally (read regionally) adapted) sources of all but the most commonly used native species.  This will take away the need to buy seeds! -any seeds! by government agencies.
> 
> Bill
==============================

Thank you for your email.  Yes, I agree with what you're saying about
the native seeds, and they are one part of a very important three-part
program of successful Ecological Restoration and management of the
exotic plants:

1.) Sufficient quantities of local native seeds, to use when converting
the exotic plant areas back to local native ecosystems.  The sufficient
quantities of local native seeds is an important issue listed at
http://www.ecoseeds.com/standards.html

2.) Invent the technologies and processes that will be robust enough to
convert the exotic plant areas back to local native ecosystems, at least
four time faster than the speed that the exotics spread.  

It took 100 years for 25 million acres of California to get covered by
Yellow Star Thistle, for example---so your processes you use to manage
YST need to be able to convert at least one million acres a year.  I
called that the "Rule of Four" at my talk last year, at
http://www.ecoseeds.com/talk.html

3.) Once you have sufficient local native seeds together---how do you
successfully use them?  New technologies and processes will have to be
invented so that native seeds can be sown, and the sower can be
consistently assured of end up with a local native ecosystem that is
fairly weed-free within a short amount of time.  

That's means, inventing processes and technologies that have Performance
Standards supporting them---where you can sow a native grassland in
California, and get 90% or better native plant cover within 6 months,
with no future maintenance, for example.

For all of the 135 Kuchler ecosystems in the United States, inventing
these new and successful technologies may be the most expensive portion
of this triad necessary for successes against exotic plants.  Two
examples are on our web pages:

The first example: you have 50 pound bags full of local native seeds,
but you can't get them to work!---An exercise from a class I taught four
years ago for Caltrans (California Dept. of Transportation), can be
viewed at http://www.ecoseeds.com/good.example.html

Also, UC Davis is currently proving that the costs of inventing the
necessary technologies to get native plants to work will be fantastic,
at http://www.ecoseeds.com/road.test.html  ---$450,000 for two acres,
and no successful technologies invented after two years yet!

So every State needs to get their annual truckloads of money together!

Sincerely,  Craig Dremann, The Reveg Edge
Box 609, Redwood City, CA 94064 (650) 325-7333