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Re: Weed killing / wildflower questions

Nick Kaufmann:

There is no long-term harm in harvesting 90% of your blazing star 
seed for one year, as long as you harvest less in future years. In 
terms of biological fitness of these perennial prairie plants, seeds 
dispersing to a restoration project where they have, say, a 5% chance 
of surviving to adulthood is far better than staying near the parents 
and fighting with the established vegetation for a fraction of a 1% 
chance of survival. The reason for leaving behind seed is to maintain 
a "seed bank", i.e. a cache of ungerminated seed in the soil which 
can replace the adults that die off naturally or which are wiped out 
by an epidemic, a big surge in vole populations, or what-have-you.

There have been problems reported of diminishing populations of wild 
plants from which seed has been heavily collected year after year. 
There is also the problem of seed collectors taking seed from 
public natural areas and private lands without permission, which is 
unethical even if not harmful. With the rising interest in prairie 
restoration, we should all take care that our seed-gathering doesn't 
endanger the populations gathered from, nor step on the toes of the 
people in charge of protecting and managing them.


James C. Trager
Shaw Arboretum
P.O. Box 38
Gray Summit MO 63039
PH# 314-451-3512
FAX 314-451-5583
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