Site Adapted Seed

In order to increase the chances for successful reclamation it is important to plant seed that is adapted to your site. This means identifying the characteristics of your site and planting seed that originates from similar ecological conditions. At Granite Seed Company, we make it our goal to match the ecological conditions of your site with seed that is adapted to it. If you are not certain which species and varieties are appropriate for your site, please provide our staff with site information and we will assist you with making the selections.

There are many tools available to determine the species that are adapted to your site. One tool that has been recently gaining in popularity is the Ecoregion Map designed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Granite Seed Company is happy to offer you the Level III map of Ecoregions of the Continental United States. Please click on the Level III Ecoregion option at the left and look for your ecoregion. When you contact Granite Seed, let us know in which ecoregion your project is located and we will be better able to assist you with your plant selection.

Granite Seed Company also offers the option of on-site hand collections and custom grow-outs. We will send a crew of hand collectors to your project site, collect seed from the plants at your site and provide them back to your project. If the project is relatively small, the initial collection may be sufficient, but if your project is large and long in duration, we can farm the material for supplies in subsequent years.

If you require seed to be harvested in a specific area around your site please allow ample time for the collection to be organized and implemented. To produce a large quantity of seed from an on-site collection often requires two or three growing seasons to successfully complete.

There are many factors which affect a successful wild seed collection. Is there a large enough stand of the desired species? Is the stand free from noxious weeds? Is there a good crop in the year you need it? Relying on a site-specific collection for enough seed to plant a large project is often risky because of the variability of production from year to year.

If you do not have a great deal of lead-time, plant seed that originates from ecologically similar sites. Granite Seed Company stocks the most diverse inventory of seed accessions from every corner of the West. We are very likely to have site-adapted seed for your project, and we believe you will be satisfied with the results.