UP Native Plant Program
Collaboration & Restoration
UP Mission Statement
To develop a collaborative approach to improve
the ecosystem health and natural functions of
the landscape, using best available science,
community input and adaptive management.
The UP Partnership
An M.O.U. formalizes the partners:
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US Forest Service
Bureau of Land Management
Colorado Division of Wildlife
The Public Lands Partnership:
representing a broad base of
local public and private
interests.
• Western Area Power
Administration
• Tri-State Generation and
Transmission Association, Inc.,
UP Program Areas
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Landscape Scale Project Assessment &
Treatment
Invasive Species Management
Education and Technology Transfer
Native Plant Program
Native Plant Program
Goal of the UP Native Plant Program
To facilitate the collection and propagation of
species native to the Colorado Plateau for
use in the restoration of native plant
communities on public and private lands.
US Depts. of the Interior and Agriculture
2002 Report to Congress:
‘Interagency Program to Supply and Manage Native Plant
Materials for Restoration and Rehabilitation of Federal Lands’
1. Undertake a Comprehensive Assessment of the Need for
Native Plant Materials
2. Make a Long-Term Commitment to Native Plant Materials
Production, Research and Development, Education and
Technology Transfer
3. Expand Efforts to Increase the Availability of Native Plant
Materials
4. Invest in Partnerships with State and Local Agencies and
the Private Sector
5. Ensure Adequate Monitoring of Restoration and
Rehabilitation Efforts
Native Plant Program Cooperators
• Bureau of Land Management, UT
and CO
• US Forest Service, Region 2 and 4
• Utah Div. of Wildlife Resources
• Colorado Div. of Wildlife
• Snow College, UT
• Brigham Young Univ., UT
• Utah State Univ., UT
• USFS Lone Peak Nursery, UT
• USFS Lucky Peak Nursery, ID
• Colorado State Univ.-Rogers Mesa
and Yellow Jacket Research
Facilities
• Upper Colorado Env. Plant Materials
Center – Meeker, CO
• Great Basin Research Center, UT
• Commercial Growers
Species List
Grasses
• Basin wildrye
• Bottlebrush squirreltail
• Galleta
• Indian ricegrass
• Mountain brome
• Muttongrass
• Needle-and-threadgrass
• Nodding brome
• Prairie junegrass
• Salina wildrye
• Sand dropseed
• Sandburg bluegrass
• Western wheatgrass
Forbs
• Arrowleaf balsamroot
• Bladderpod
• Blue flax
• Blueleaf aster
• Bluestem penstemon
• Cushion buckwheat
• Dusty penstemon
• Eastwood's milkvetch
• Hairy golden aster
• Low fleabane
• Many-lobed groundsel
• Oregon daisy
• Rock goldenrod
• Roughseed cat's eye
• Sand aster
• Scarlet globemallow
• Silky lupine
• Sulfur-flower buckwheat
• Tapertip hawksbeard
• Utah sweetvetch
• Western yarrow
• Wooly milkvetch
• Yellow eriogonum
Shrubs
• Antelope bitterbrush
• Basin big sagebrush
• Black sagebrush
• Cliffrose
• Dwarf rabbitbrush
• Fourwing saltbush
• Green ephedra
• Mountain big sagebrush
• Mountain mahogany
• Saskatoon serviceberry
• Winterfat
• Wyoming big sagebrush
Wildland Collection
From 2003 – 2008, 387 separate wildland seed
collections were made of over 50 species on and
around the Uncompahgre Plateau, western
Colorado, and in eastern Utah.
Propagation and Studies
• Life History Studies investigated plant phenology, flowering
regime.
• Cultural Studies assessed
optimal spacing, irrigation
techniques and seed
harvesting techniques.
• Adaptability study
compared 113 accessions
of 13 native grass species.
• Seed Increase fields
produce sufficient amounts
of seed for future
commercial production.
Prioritization of Species
# of
Species
Ranking
8
Seed is available for purchase.
1
7
Species released to commercial growers.
13
6
Ready for commercial release.
6
5
Working with species, in progress.
8
4
Worked with species, problems associated but
important species. Will look to continue research.
8
3
Worked with species, problems associated. Do not
advance at this time.
5
2
Collected but no activity yet.
2
1
Sufficient amounts can be wildland collected or a
local ecotype is already in commercial production.
Do not advance.
6
Three Tier Approach
1. 20 Workhorse Species: Key to native ecosystems
and have proven to have commercial potential.
Objective = Advance to commercial production
2. 16 Species that may have potential: Key to native
ecosystems and important to wildlife but have proven
problematic to large-scale, economical production.
Objective = Actively seek funding and partnerships
to continue studies.
3. 13 Problematic Species: Important to native
ecosystems but have proven problematic to grow even
on a small scale.
Objective = Shelve for now. Seek partnerships to
conduct research.
Species Released to Commercial Growers
Grasses
Basin wildrye
Prairie Junegrass
Muttongrass
Bottlebrush squirreltail
Indian ricegrass
Mountain brome
Leymus cinereus
Koeleria macrantha
Poa fendleriana
Elymus elymoides
Achnatherum hymenoides
Bromus marginatus
Sandberg bluegrass
Poa secunda
Forbs
Western yarrow
Oregon daisy
Sulfur-flower buckwheat
Utah sweetvetch
Dusty penstemon
Bluestem penstemon
Achillea millefolium
Erigeron speciosus
Eriogonum umbellatum
Hedysarum boreale germiale
Penstemon comarrhenus
Penstemon cyanocaulis
Scarlet globemallow
Sphaeralcea coccinea
Release Name
UP Cochetopa
UP Sims Mesa
UP Colona
UP Paradox
White River
UP Cold Springs
UP Colorado
Plateau
UP Dry Fork
UP Dry Fork Hwy
UP Burn Canyon
UP Uncompahgre
UP Delta
UP San Miguel
UP Paradox
Valley
Species Ready for Commercial
Release
Common Name
Blueleaf aster
Lewis flax
Alpine golden buckwheat
Multi-lobed groundsel
Hairy goldenaster
Shaggy fleabane
Scientific Name
Aster glaucodes
Linum lewisii
Eriogonum flavum
Packera multilobatus
Heterotheca villosa
Erigeron pumilus
* Currently, there are no cultivars from Colorado Plateau
sources available on the market.
Commercial Production of
Sandberg bluegrass
• The UP worked with a
commercial grower to
plant 50 acres and
produce >15,000 pounds
of Sandberg bluegrass.
• The UP purchased 5,500
pounds and distributed
the seed to state and
federal agencies and
private landowners in
western CO for reseeding
projects.
2010/11 Native Plant Plan of Work
• Coordinate with commercial growers on the production of
UP native species.
• Seek funding to develop an incentive/buy back program for
commercial growers.
• Continue to encourage agencies and energy companies to
purchase local ecotypes.
• Seek funding to continue in-house increase of numerous UP
native grass, forb and shrubs species.
• Seek funding to continue on-going and initiate new studies
on native species.
• Support the Colorado Plateau Native Plant Initiative
• Coordinate with the CO Division of Wildlife on the native
seed distribution and storage facility in western CO.
For More Information:
www.UPProject.org
UPProject@UPProject.org