Project Profile: Develop NPS and Tribal Native Seed Nodes in the Midwest Region at Wind Cave National Park

Wind Cave National Park

NPS Photo

Bipartisan Infrastructure Law
National Seed Strategy | FY22 $150,000

The National Park Service will create two seed collection sites within the Midwest Region that could be expanded with partner organizations, one at Wind Cave National Park and one at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore with plant propagation capacity. Wind Cave National Park partnered with a tribal entity to collect native grass and forb species at five locations: three tribal reservations and two NPS sites - Wind Cave National Park and Agate Fossil Beds National Monument.

Why? Reliable availability of genetically appropriate seed suitable for current and projected climatic conditions increases restoration success. Creating partnerships will enable the NPS to implement the National Seed Strategy and to restore native plant communities on a landscape scale.

What else? The National Park Service will expand the impact of this project through collaborations with new and existing partners. Coordination with the Chicago Botanical Garden’s network of plant material and seed collection programs will support additional seed collection nodes and sharing of seed and plant materials across regions and agencies.

Bipartisan Infrastructure Law – Ecosystem Restoration

This project was made possible by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law – Ecosystem Restoration, signed on November 15, 2021. It is a historic investment in the restoration and protection of the environment.