<div dir="ltr">Forwarding this exciting news about a three-year study being funded by the American Herbal Products Association-Education and Research on Botanicals Foundation to explore the sustainable harvest of the U.S. native medicinal plant <i>Ligusticum porteri </i>(wild osha). <div>
<br></div><div>Many involved in this undertaking are well-known among the medicinal plant conservation community. Among them, Botanical Liaisons' Trish Flaster who, as Chair of the MPWG Conservation Committee, coordinated osha inventory and harvest studies beginning more than ten years ago in the Rio Grande National Forest. With citizen scientists from the Garden Club of America and the assistance of the Desert Botanic Garden, among others, research teams endured treacherous field conditions and fierce storms to gather information on osha's response to harvest in the wild: <a href="http://www.nps.gov/plants/medicinal/projects/colorado.htm">http://www.nps.gov/plants/medicinal/projects/colorado.htm</a></div>
<div><br></div><div>It will be great to see the results of the AHPA-ERB research!<br><div><div><div>-Patricia</div></div><br><div class="gmail_quote">---------- Forwarded message ----------<br>From: <b class="gmail_sendername">AHPA</b> <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:ahpa@ahpa.org">ahpa@ahpa.org</a>></span><br>
Date: Tue, Apr 29, 2014 at 10:40 AM<br>Subject: AHPA Update: AHPA-ERB Foundation to fund multi-year osha sustainability study<br><div><div align="center"><table style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255);margin:0px" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" border="0" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
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<p style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px"><strong style="font-size:14pt"> </strong><strong style="font-size:14pt"> </strong><strong style="font-size:14pt"> </strong><strong style="font-size:14pt">AHPA-ERB Foundation to fund multi-year osha sustainability study</strong></p>
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<p style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px"><span style="font-size:12pt">The American Herbal Products Association Foundation for Education and Research on Botanicals (AHPA-ERB Foundation) has committed to funding a multi-year study on the sustainability of harvesting wild osha (</span><span style="font-size:12pt"><em>Ligusticum porteri</em></span><span style="font-size:12pt">) by Kelly Kindscher, Ph.D., a scientist and professor at the University of Kansas.</span></p>
<p style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px"><span> </span></p>
<p style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px">AHPA has tracked the annual harvest quantities of osha and several other North American native species since 1999. The current research will add to this existing knowledge by evaluating the effects that harvest of the roots of osha, a perennial plant, has on populations where harvests occurs.</p>
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<p style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px"><span>The </span><a style="color:blue;text-decoration:underline" href="http://www.ahpafoundation.org/Osha.html" shape="rect" target="_blank">research</a><span> is </span>a collaborative effort by the University of Kansas, the Missouri Botanical Garden, the U.S. Forest Service, and the AHPA-ERB Foundation<span> to determine the impact of current wild harvesting practices on osha populations, the rate of regeneration, and the optimal harvest practices needed to maintain the long-term viability of this species</span>.</p>
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<p style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px"><span>In September 2012, the AHPA-ERB Foundation awarded a $10,000 grant to study osha sustainability and Dr. Kindscher produced an initial report, "<a style="color:blue;text-decoration:underline" href="http://www.ahpa.org/Portals/0/AHPA_Osha_Sustainability_First_Year_report.pdf" shape="rect" target="_blank">Harvest Sustainability Study of Wild Populations of Osha</a>." This report highlighted the need for a multi-year study to monitor regrowth and estimate the resiliency or susceptibility of osha to different harvest pressures. In March 2014, the foundation committed an additional $10,000 annually for three years to complete the study. </span></p>
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<p style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px"><span>The AHPA-ERB Foundation encourages interested individuals and companies to </span> <a style="color:blue;text-decoration:underline" href="http://www.ahpafoundation.org/Osha.html" shape="rect" target="_blank">contribute funds</a><span> to finance the study. <span>Current supporters include Ms. Jackie Greenfield, Botanical Liaisons LLC, Gaia Herbs, Herbs Etc., Mountain Rose Herbs, and Vitality Works.</span></span></p>
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<p style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px"><span>"Osha's medicinal properties and historical significance make it a valuable North American plant," said AHPA-ERB Foundation Chair Beth Lambert. "Because osha is difficult to cultivate and has a limited range within a sensitive environment, we need to learn more about how to protect these populations and support healthy regeneration rates."</span></p>
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<p style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px"><strong>About the AHPA-ERB Foundation</strong></p>
<span>The American Herbal Products Association (AHPA) established the AHPA Foundation for Education and Research on Botanicals (the AHPA-ERB Foundation) as a 501(c)(3) foundation for the purpose of promoting education and research on medicinal, therapeutic, and health-promoting herbs. Additional information is available at </span><span><a style="color:blue;text-decoration:underline" href="http://www.ahpafoundation.org/" shape="rect" target="_blank">http://www.ahpafoundation.org/</a></span>
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<p style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px"><strong>STUDY CONTACT:</strong> <a style="color:blue;text-decoration:underline" shape="rect" href="mailto:msharaf@ahpa.org" target="_blank">Dr. Maged Sharaf</a>, Chief Science Officer - 301.588.1171 ext. 103<br>
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