b'in my case, for the big three threatsWere investing in various ways to work with grow-that are best-establishedheat,ers, including our Sagebrush in Prisons project, which salinity, and drought, Simon says.has grown more than one million sagebrush seedlings, While Simons work has focusedbut we are envisioning a lot of growth in this industry more on food supply than habitatand will need partners to be native seed growers, Olwell restoration, the breeding principlessays. are similar, as are the challenges.Getting buy-in from the publicMoving Forwardand private sectors that there is aRevegetation brings many specific challenges, espe-challenge to overcome is a chal- cially when considering the challenges of collecting or lenge, Simon says. There is also aproducing native seed.need for encouragement, includingNative plant species are difficult to use because rewards, for even modest success,they are wildthey are tough to establish, they are using not only all the best high- genetically heterogenous, frequently have poor seed tech approaches such as gene edit- production and other wild traits that make them tough ing and elegant phenotyping, butto use, compared to our domesticated crop species, also, and importantly, the not-very- Greene says.flashy but well-proven methods ofHowever, using the necessary native genes with crop testing and production. Jill Wheeler serves as head ofmodern seed advances could be the highway to suc-Its a long process, which is whysustainable productivity forcess thats needed to combat land degradation.those involved in restoring habi- Syngenta. If we can explore the middle ground, perhaps by tats after natural disasters have anattempting to breed native materials that maintain their increased sense of urgency.different areas in three differentunique adaptation to place, yet are easier to grow and Getting improved traits intolocations. Five years later, all theestablish and provide a return on investment, we are new cultivars can take decadestests still looked strong, but overmore likely to overcome current challenges, Greene but can be sped up effectively with20 years after the original testsays.more aggressive research, he says. planting, the results were drasti- Partnerships will be key to moving forward, capital-Wheeler is excited about thecally different.izing on seed industry knowledge and skills in breed-possibility that computational biol- Only one of the original seeding, as well as commercial seed production, distribution ogy brings, which helps bring prod- provenances was still at 100%and marketing. ucts to market faster and moresurvival while the others were allPlant breeders need to focus on improving traits efficiently.less than 50%, Olwell says. Thethat make native species easier to deploy, while main-As climate change accelerates,issue with using non-native, non- taining the unique characteristics that make them that will be more and more impor- local seed for restoration is that weadapted to a particular environment, Greene says.tant, she says. cannot afford to think we are restor- And, that all has to happen in the face of a changing ing these areas, only to find outclimate.Mapping Out a Future Focus years later that we really werent. As the climate changes, what worked 10 years ago The SOS is currently workingIn addition, the Nationalin one place may no longer be the best option for that through an evaluation to deter- Academies of Sciences, Medicine,place today, Wheeler says.mine the biggest collection areaand Engineering is currently work- Thats why this is so important, Olwell says. In gaps. Ecoregional evaluations areing to assess federal, state, tribalterms of the planet warming, we have developed most also needed to determine howand private sector needs andof the food crops we have for a cooler, wetter climate, far a seed can be planted from itscapacity for supplying native plantand it just might be the BLM lands and desert lands original collection site.seeds for ecological restorationthat will have the drought tolerate genes we need. If Were working with our part- and other purposes.we dont keep those ecosystems thriving and protect ners at the federal agencies toOnce we see where our needsthose native seeds, the foods of the future will be lim-develop empirical seed transferare geographically and speciesited. Its really all connected.zones, which are based on geneticswise, we can better target how weThe road isnt an easy one, but its the only way to and specific traits, Olwell says. Incan get the industry to respondpave the way toward a healthier future for everyone.SWthe meantime, we have provisionaland work with us, to get those seed transfer zones, which areneeds met, Olwell says. based on areas that have similarThere arent a lot of seed compa-temperatures and moisture levels.nies on board with producing nativeWHERE The National Forest Serviceseeds, but thats something SOS isON THEFor more information or to get involved with Seeds of Success, visitconducted a test in 1987 by plant- hopeful will change as more atten- WEB www.plantconservationalliance.org or blm.gov/NativePlantsing sagebrush collected from 13tion is given to land restoration.10/ SEEDWORLD.COMFEBRUARY 2020'